Dante (Blood Brothers Book 5)

Dante

By

Eve Vaughn

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons living or dead is entirely coincidental.

All trademarks, service marks, registered service marks are the property of their respective owners and are used herein for identification purposes only.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Dante

Copyright © October 2014
Eve Vaughn

E
lectronic book publication April 2014

With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means without permission from the author,
Eve Vaughn
.

WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any other means electronic or print, without the author’s permission. Criminal copyright infringement without monetary gain is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in Federal Prison and a fine of $250,000. For more information regarding the government’s stance on copy
right infringement visit
:
http://www.fbi.gov/ipr.

Dedication

To my readers, thank you so much for supporting me, and keeping me going. I hope you’ll enjoy reading this book as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it.

Prologue

1402

“
Dante! Harder! Faster! Ride me!” Donna Perucci screamed as she clawed at his chest and thrust her hips to meet his every pulse and stroke.

Her melon-sized breasts jiggled furiously as he pounded into her. Though Dante’s mission was to give her pleasure, it stayed in the back of his mind to be finished before he
r
husband arrived home. A powerful man in Venice, Don Perucci would have his wife killed for committing adultery.

Dante’s feelings for this woman writhing so passionately beneath him didn’t spring from altruism, but for the loss of coin should anything happen to her. She’d become his most generous client over the past few months, and he depended on those funds to provide for his brothers. Most men in his position would worry about being strung up in the gallows, beaten, tortured, or possibly killed, but not him. There wasn’t much harm a human could do to a vampire.

No, his concern rested firmly on the money.

Not so long ago, he’d been carefree, traveling and making a place for himself in the world. With no responsibilities, no one to provide for, and a warm bed with a willing body waiting for him in the many cities he’d visited, he’d lived the life of a nomad. He
lived every
day to its fullest and without responsibility—
until one chilling moment in time irrevocably changed his life forever.

What should have been a joyous
gathering with his parents and younger brothers
had turned into a night
that would stay etched in his memories until the end of time
. It had been months since he’d seen his papa, mama, and brothers. He’d
been filled with anticipation
on
this particular visit to Florence because Mama had recently given birth and he’d yet to meet the
bambino
, GianMarco.

The reunion had been all he’d hoped for.
Like always, he’d be been welcomed home with open arms.
Though his parents shared the kind of mad, wild love that seemed to consume them when they were near each other, they always included Dante and his brothers in their circle. It set high standards for Dante because he knew when he found his bloodmate
,
he’d settle for no less than what Maria and Giovanni had.

The night of his visit, Mama had cooked a feast in his honor. Nine- and eleven-year-old Niccolo and Romeo wouldn’t leave his side, begging him to regale them with tales of his travels.
GianMarco was every bit as precious as Dante imagined he would be.
Later that night, his mama suggested the family take a stroll under the stars. Sensing his parents
could use so
me
time alone
, Dante volunteered to stay behind with his brothers.

Mama and Papa
never returned.

When a considerable amount of time passed and all his brothers slept peacefully, Dante went in search of his parents. His senses tingled and dread filled his heart.
They wouldn’t leave their young sons for too long. As he continued his search, he was suddenly hit with the fresh scent of blood, and it smelled familiar.

Ru
nning
as fast as his legs could carry him, he made it to the prone figures of his parents just as a cloaked figure flashed away into the night. Torn between chasing the
mysterious attacker
and
checking on the seriousness of his parents’ wounds
, he chose the latter.

Weakened at the sight of the lifeless bodies,
Dante collapsed
to his
father’s side.
Papa and Mama were dead
. No human could have done this. A rogue. His mother’s neck was torn to ribbons and her chest gaped open. Strands of bloodied blonde hair clung to her terror-frozen face. The sa
me fate had befallen his father. There was a hole in his chest where his heart used to be. Papa’s shirt had been torn completely off and
written in blood across
his
stomach were the words
Il Diavolo
. The devil. A taunt. No ordinary rogue would have taken the time to
send such a clear
challenge
.

But it made no sense. His parents didn’t have any enemies that Dante knew of. They lived a relatively quiet life, blending in with the humans that surrounded them.
A soul shattering pain ripped through his body. He wanted to scream and rage at the twisted fate that had befallen two of the most loving people he knew, but Dante didn’t have the luxury of giving in to his grief. The thought of his younger brothers left unattended, set him on high alert. If this
Il Diavolo
had deliberately selected his parents for slaughter, it stood to reason he might turn his focus on the younger Grimaldis.

Before taking off, he gently closed his mother’s eyes and kissed both parents goodbye. This would be the last time he would ever see them as their bodies would soon dissolve. “Whoever did this to you, I will make them pay.”

With that vow, he raced home, where thankfully, he found the children safe. B
ut
they couldn’t remain there in case the rogue returned.
Days later
with his brothers in tow
, he’d found a small room to rent in Venice while he figured out
how he’d provide for them
.
He needed a
stable income and fast. He had very little money; most of it he’d earned doing odd jobs here and there.

The answer came in the form of a rich nobleman’s wife. He’d caught her eye when he’d been out on the street,
searching
for work. When he was approached by her servant with an offer to be paid generously for services, Dante could hardly refuse. Upon meeting his would-be employer, it became quite clear what said services were. As much as he enjoyed sex, he balked at the idea of being some rich woman’s glorified stud.

When she
increased
the offer, however, it made it difficult to refuse. Much to his shame, Dante agreed to whore himself
in order
to provide for his brothers. His rich
patrona
was so pleased with his bedroom skills she’d bragged about his prowess to her friends.

So here he was,
giving the screaming woman the time of her life. It wasn’t a completely distasteful experience, she was attractive and he liked to fuck but it was difficult to maintain his hard-on knowing this was merely a business transaction.

When her release came, it was a sweet, merciful relief.

“Oh, Dante!” Donna Perucci screamed her climax as a warm flow of cream
coated his cock.

Dante stayed inside her until she stopped shaking, then eased himself out of her damp sheath. To his annoyance, she wrapped her plump thighs around his waist.

“No. Don’t go. I need you again. My husband shouldn’t be back for several hours. His new mistress should keep him occupied; that is, if Antonio is able to get it up, the impotent old goat.” She released a satisfied trill of laughter.

Dante was well aware of Don Perucci’s mistress, as he serviced her as well, but just because the don fooled around didn’t mean he’d take kindly to another man fucking his wife. Besides, it was getting late and he needed to get home to his brothers. Leaning forward, he planted an open-mouthed kiss against Donna Perucci’s white throat before meeting her dark, lust-filled gaze with his. “You are tired, Sophia.” He whispered the words softly.

Her eyes widened, conveying her fear.
He felt the heat
of
his glowing eyes but she’d soon forget she saw then. And just as he knew she would,
Sofia
relaxed. “Yes, I’m tired,” she agreed.

“You intend to gift me with all the coin in your purse.” Though his price had already been determined before their session, he told himself his brothers needed the money, just managing to push away his guilt at what was basically theft.

“Of course, everything I have is yours,” Donna Perucci cooed.

A smile tugged the corners of his lips as he dropped one last kiss on her forehead. “Now, sleep, sweet Sophia.”

“Hmm,” she moaned, closing her eyes and giving in to the hypnotic rest Dante had demanded. Breathing a big sigh of relief, he untangled himself from her soft frame and donned his clothing before taking the coin she’d laid out for him, along with the remaining contents of her purse.

He counted his money and pocketed it. There was enough to keep his household comfortable for a month. Stealing one last glance at the sleeping figure in the oversized bed, he exited the room, flashing past the servants in a blur, not stopping until he stood in front of the little dwelling he shared with his brothers.

The faint sound of a baby crying in fury met his ultrasensitive hearing. GianMarco! A pensive, content child, the
bambino
rarely cried. Dante raced inside. “Romeo! Nico!” he called out. There was no sign of them. Fear shot through him. Those two knew better than to wander off by themselves, especially at night when they could easily fall prey to rogues.

He didn’t know whether to go out and look for them or comfort the baby. His dilemma was solved on its own when the two children, one fair, the other dark, walked through the door with mischief in their eyes and their hands full of sweets. Their mirth was short-lived when they spotted their very angry older brother standing in the middle of the room, shaking with visible fury.

“Where the hell have you been?” Unable to control his temper, he stalked toward them and grabbed the boys by the fronts of their shirts. He lifted them off the ground and gave them each a shake. “Where…have…you…been?” Dante pronounced each word with
barely
contained
fury
.

Romeo spoke, though his fear was evident. “We…we only wanted to have a little fun. You never let us do anything. Mama and Papa
—
”

“Are dead! And I’m the one responsible f
or you two ungrateful
children
. What were you thinking to leave GianMarco on his own? He’s just a
bambino
!
And I suppose you stole those sweets you have?” Not waiting for an answer, Dante
released Romeo and Nico none too gently
. The boys hit the floor with loud thud
s
.

Dante regretted his actions the instant that happened
. The stress of their situation had gotten to him, but
it horrified him that he would take it out on his young brothers
. They were practically babies themselves.

GianMarco’s wails grew louder and more furious. A feeling of helplessness coursed through him as he collapsed to his knees, his face in his palms. He hadn’t allowed himself to cry since he was a boy, not even when he’d found the mutilated bodies of his parents. But now
,
the sobs came freely. He cried for what had happened to his mama and papa, for his orphaned brothers who wouldn’t grow up with their parents’ love, and for what he’d become, a gigolo sleeping with wealthy women to make ends meet. And most
ly,
he cried
out of
fear. It w
as his responsibility to shape his siblings
into the men they would eventually become. The thought was daunting and he was scared he was already failing at it.

In truth, he’d never had the chance to
really get to know the
children before his parents died
because his visits never lasted long
, but in the past several weeks of taking care of them,
they had
become
his entire world
. Tonight when he thought something had happened to them,
it hit him how devastated
he would have been
.

As he gave in to his misery, two sets of thin arms wrapped around his shaking frame. “We’re sorry, Dante. We won’t sneak out again,” Niccolo whispered against his ear.

Shamed
at how easily his brothers were able to comfort him after his manhandling of them
, Dante couldn’t raise his head to look them in the eyes
. “Please, one of you, bring Marco to me,” he croaked, too full of emotion to get the words out properly.

Romeo scrambled to get the screaming infant and returned shortly. Dante took the baby and carefully rested him in the crook of his arm. He slit a vein in his wrist and put it against the baby’s mouth. The bambino latched on and sucked furiously. Dante’s heart contracted with love for this child and the two boys who stood beside him.

“I’m sorry for losing my
temper with you. It was inexcusable.
I need you to promise me to never
wander off like that again. It’s not safe for young ones like
you
to roam the streets at this time of night. If you two must go out, let me know and we can arrange something.”

The boys nodded solemnly.

“We’re sorry, Dante,” Romeo said quietly, his blond head hanging in apparent shame.