Chapter 28 - Vivian

Dante was doing everything in his power to not give away just how terrified he was, but as he held me tightly in his grasp, I could feel how the end of his pistol trembled against my head.

I didn't bother trying to hide how scared I was. I was horrified feeling that cold weapon against my scalp, wondering when he'd pull the trigger and end it all.

Every time he squeezed me harder, I'd be hit by another wave of bitter anticipation, clenching as I braced myself for the final impact.

But the moment I saw Ari forcing himself to the front of that crowd, all guns aimed at my brothers, something in me couldn't help but feel sympathy for my flesh and blood. They had chosen their path and found themselves in a position that would surely only end in death.

Surrounded by Levov men, there was no way all three of us were making it out alive. That painful realization made me wish they had never engaged in this feud at all. I wished that didn't have to be the case, and we could come to some sort of agreement instead.

Whether it was the fact that they were my family alone, or perhaps because of the naive little girl in me who always longed to have a genuine connection with her brothers, I didn't want them to die.

I wanted things to be different. I wished they had been.

"Put the guns down and let Vivian go," Ari demanded. "I'm not going to say it again."

Despite the harsh clip in his tone, hearing his voice helped remind me I wasn't alone, and that he had come for me. He didn't plan on letting them get away with me. He was determined to fight for our future.

"No can do," Dante seethed, voice sounding so different without his usual confidence. "You wronged our whole family by pulling that stunt of yours. You disrespected our father, and you disrespected Vivian. Dad will never recover from that humiliation. In fact, he's given it all up because of you. Ever since that night, he put the family business behind him and couldn't even muster up the courage to get back in the game."

As he spoke, I felt every bit of forced determination emphasized through the gun as he tried to cover up his hesitation, the doubt that started to creep in ever since those vehicles circled us. Yanking me out of the Range Rover and aiming a gun at my head was all to mask that he knew they weren't going to get what they wanted.

"But even if he refuses to do anything to take back what was ours all along, or try to mend our family's honor, then I will," Dante continued, letting that pure rage fill his voice. But even through his anger, I could hear and feel his pain. He let out a bitter laugh. "With whatever resources we could scrounge up, we started digging into your operations to find a way in. We needed an angle, and to your credit, your defenses were pretty good. But I realized hitting your business was useless. Nobody can shake an empire like that from the ground floor. No, I had to go to the penthouse. I needed to get a little closer to home and take what we needed directly."

"So you managed to take her. But where did you plan on going after that?" Ari asked him, keeping his voice scarily calm, and his body unwaveringly still. "Surely you knew you couldn't outrun the greatest surveillance operation in New York. Or did you not think that far ahead?"

I just barely heard as Dante swallowed harshly, but his voice came out in a brutal rasp, "It didn't matter where we went, so long as we could nullify the marriage license. That was the missing piece."

Ari adjusted his grip on the pistol, looking like an impenetrable wall of pure muscle. "To sell her off to the highest bidder?"

Dante didn't say anything at first. Instead, he gritted his teeth, seemingly hating how Ari threw that question around like it wouldn't make or break his and Elio's future in the mob world. Then he let go of a subtle breath.

"If you want her to live so badly, then call your dogs off. Let us go, and Vivian will live another day. That's the only way she'll walk away from this," he proposed, laying it out on the table. "We will leave the city and never come back. You and your family can move on, and surely, you'll find someone else to marry."

I watched Ari for any signs of contemplation, afraid of what I might find, but he didn't waver for even a second. His eyes held every ounce of pure rage and disgust he had, focused on Dante.

Dante's idea made my stomach turn. He wanted to pass me on to the next man so he could capitalize on the opportunity that came with having a sister. He wanted to keep me as far away from Ari as possible.

But they still didn't know about the twins, and I couldn't tell them. That would create a new risk in itself.

Even considering living an abysmal life as some other man's wife and not getting to know my babies was enough to make tears burn in my eyes.

"Please, Dante," I managed despite how tight my throat felt. "I don't want this. I want to be with Ari."

I felt how his hold on me tensed.

"What did you just say?"

I sniffled and tried to maintain my composure. "I'm married to Ari, and there's nothing you can do to change that. Please just let me go."

"Shut the hell up," Dante spat, knocking the barrel of his pistol against my temple, sending a sharp pain through my skull.

As I winced, every Levov man cocked their guns, and fury burned within Ari's eyes.

"Enough!" my husband snapped, letting me see exactly what his enemies saw whenever they tried to cross him, proving to me why the world thought he was brutal. "Hit her again and your remains will be scattered on this road."

The entire area went quiet as his booming voice echoed around us, and while it should've scared me, I could only feel pride.

For our family, he wasn't going to pull his punches. He was determined to fight for us, to fight for me. Above all else, he wanted me to be safe, to get me back home.

"It seems that what we both want isn't lining up, Aristarkh," Dante growled, pressing his fingers into my arm with so much intensity that I knew it would bruise. "Need I remind you, I have her under my gun. Threaten me all you want, but so long as your precious wife is caught in this precarious position, there's nothing you can do."

"How can you do this?" I mumbled, unable to fully grasp how cold he was, and how he could threaten my life so carelessly. "I'm your sister!"

Dante sucked air in through his teeth and murmured with disinterest, "What's one life compared to the interest of the whole family? Tell me, Vivian. Would you sacrifice one of us to be with the Levov?"

Shaking in his grasp as I tried to fight off my tears, I already knew my answer, although I didn't need to say it.

All that sympathy I felt for him previously vanished, and I felt truly vindicated in my decision to turn my back on them. To put my complete faith and loyalty in Ari.

Even when given the chance to let me go, Dante would rather cling to his pride and threaten to take my life. For his gain and that of the family business, he was willing to kill me before allowing me to go back with the Levovs.

I was right to trust Ari over them. He cared about me, and he only wanted the best for us. He was willing to put everything on the line just to make sure we'd be there to watch our family grow and to get the chance to allow our love to flourish.

He wasn't my blood, but he treated me a hell of a lot better than my relatives did.

Stuck in that uncertain position, I couldn't stomach the idea of anything keeping me from Ari. More than anything, I wanted the chance to return to him and to feel his touch again. I needed to feel his careful arms around me and watch him become the father he always wanted to be.

There was so much left for us, and even if he had the upper hand in the situation, I felt just as pinned and helpless with my brother's gun against my head.