Men of Mayhem (63 page)

“You shouldn’t have done that, Faith,” he said, letting the lust come clear through his voice. He looked me over, in nothing but his shirt and my panties, and it quickly escalated from there.

Devon lunged at me from across the room, and pulled me into an intimate kiss. He crashed his lips to mine and claimed me as his own. I attempted to take control of the situation, and wrapped my legs around his waist and pulled him to me in order to deepen the kiss. When that didn’t work, I lightly bit Devon’s bottom lip and then let our tongues tangle together in an erotic battle.

“Baby girl,” Devon moaned. “You know where this will go if you continue this.”

“Let’s just head straight to the bed then,” I suggested with an alluring smile, knowing I had him just where I wanted him.

That’s why we kept the game going. We didn’t want to lose the fun or the attraction. Though we didn’t realize that our game would come to an abrupt end, and not by our own accord.

Taken Hostage

Devon

I knew I was being watched, and had been over three months. Riccardo, the Don of the Ricci mafia, had grown impatient and displeased with the charade. It had gone on too long, and killed too many of our own people, but not enough of the Morettis. Riccardo must have ordered someone to make sure I was covered at all times, and I’m sure what they reported back wasn’t what he wanted to hear. It’s not my fault they followed me home and found Faith and I living together. Did Riccardo really think after a year of being around her I wouldn’t step up my game? Besides, I liked having her around.

I knew Riccardo wouldn’t be pleased with the news when they told him I had fallen for the girl, and was no longer acquiring information against the Moretti mafia. In his eyes I had failed this mission, and I would pay the price for it. I knew Riccardo was after leverage, and he was using whatever he learned as a reminder of what had to be done to gain the upper hand. He always told me that if I was going to take over one day, I couldn’t let a woman get in the way of that.

He wanted me focused on the matter at hand, not on a beautiful woman. I knew I would have to take over one day, and the war between the Riccis and the Morettis would become my responsibility. I used to think that I could end it sooner rather than later, but only if I could get Faith to disclose any useful information. That had changed almost the instant I met her in the coffee shop almost a year ago.

My guards, who followed me around for protection, recognized Faith. They’d seen her previously when she tried to escape her father’s hold, which she still fought against for her free will. She had landed right in our territory after becoming lost, and stumbling into a dangerous situation.

Having the daughter of the rival would have ended the war before anyone had to die. They had planned to take her and use her as leverage on the Morettis. Too bad someone had been following her and pulled her back to safety before the men could grab her.

That had left us no choice but to play into the plan the Morettis had set before me, and I practically jumped at the chance. I had played into her game, knowing she was getting close to me in the coffee shop so she could gather information, and start a relationship to continue searching for anything on the Riccis. I had been warned she would try to get close, and she had. Of course, she didn’t need to know I had been warned. I just wish someone would have told me how beautiful she was, and how she’d steal my heart the instant I saw her, and then again when she spoke to me.

She had offered a gentle smile, which still stopped my heart when she flashed it in my direction to this day. Her blonde hair had fallen in front of her face when we first met, hiding her clear blue eyes behind a curtain of hair, and I took the opportunity to slowly tuck it behind her ear. I was infatuated with her before I even had a chance to look over the showy outfit she wore to gain my attention. It was no wonder Riccardo had become sick of our game, because he knew I wasn’t playing her anymore. I had fallen for her and given up using her for information.

So I watched as Riccardo’s men waited. They were watching our small apartment, and following our movements. They were waiting for something, but I couldn’t be sure what. I was determined to figure it out before they could harm Faith or me.

It had become difficult to leave Faith alone in the apartment, especially after spending a weekend with her where neither of us had to run off to be with our respective families. We had spent the entire time together, mostly so I could watch over her without scaring her, and we rarely left the bedroom except for bathroom breaks and to eat. Even then we weren’t far from each other. I knew both of us had lost sight of why we started the charade. It was clear there was more to it now, and that’s why Riccardo had enough.

I should have known what he was planning when he ordered me to meet up with some of our men to discuss what they should do about a botched job. The target had escaped, and now knew we were after him. I should have known that it was a distraction, to get me out of the house. I shouldn’t have expected anything other than retaliation from him. Though, I didn’t think he would stoop as low as to frame me for Faith’s kidnapping.

When I returned home I was shocked to see the apartment torn to pieces. My heart stopped momentarily before the anger took over, a primal anger that I could only imagine had come from falling in love with Faith and then having her ripped from me. My heart ached as I looked through the destroyed apartment. There were vases and pictures toppled over, creating a maze of glass. The furniture had been over turned in some areas, even broken. My first instinct was to find her; I had to find her. But looking through the destroyed apartment was almost too much for me. I didn’t want to think about what she had been through when Riccardo’s men broke in.

I wasn’t sure what to do, how to approach Riccardo, or where he would have taken her, but I knew he had to be smart. I knew what Riccardo could do to hostages, and it wasn’t pretty. There had to be some way to get her back safely.

“Devon Rizzo,” a threatening voice stated from behind me.

I turned, half expecting Riccardo to have sent someone to pick me up so he could rub it in my face that he had Faith. I never expected to see Niccolo Moretti behind me with half a dozen guns pointed in my direction.

“Niccolo,” I replied curtly. Taking in his stone cold features, I noticed the blond hair that reminded me of Faith. My heart ached momentarily before I pushed it from my mind. “It’s a pleasure to see you again.”

“Don’t play games with me, Devon.” His expression turned serious as he ordered the men to lower their weapons. While they looked displeased with the turn of events, they also seemed to be silently begging me to cooperate. “I do not have time for your games as my daughter does. While I know she enjoys your games, I don’t enjoy my daughter being taken and held hostage with a gun aimed at her head. Where is she?”

I tried to control his emotions—a mix of shock, fear, and heart-wrenching pain. How could I have let this happen to her?

“I told you, I have no time for games,” Niccolo reminded me as a hand grabbed the front of my shirt and pulled me toward him. I came eye to eye with Niccolo. “Don’t hide your emotions. I find it touching that you worry for my daughter. It has also prevented you from being shot dead when you turned around.”

“Why didn’t you just kill me?” I asked curiously. If it had been me, I would have killed the man who had basically caused the kidnapping. I felt responsible, regardless of my feelings for Faith.

“Because you care for her, and that means you’ll get her out. I know you didn’t kidnap her. Riccardo would like to have me believe that so I eliminate you and throw a grenade into our war. If I kill you, the Riccis retaliate and kill my daughter then my family. I know better.”

I was taken aback. I wasn’t sure I could get her out. I didn’t even know where she had been taken, and didn’t know for sure anyone in the Ricci mafia would tell me in fear of me releasing her. If Niccolo knew I had feelings for Faith, then the assumption was that Riccardo knew, which is why he would have taken her. I clenched my jaw, furious.

“Use that anger, and get my daughter back,” Niccolo said as he released his hold on the front of my shirt and let me go. It wasn’t a suggestion; it was an order. “If you do, I will give you anything you want. I just want my daughter back, alive.”

I nodded. “I don’t know where she is, though. It will take time. Time I’m sure she doesn’t have.”

“For your sake, Devon,” Niccolo stated. “She’d better have the time, or you’ll be dead before the day is out.”

Searching For Faith

I had spent hours on the phone, contacting anyone I could to find information. At first, I tried to play it off as if I wasn’t worried about Faith, that I just wanted to know how the grab went, but I quickly realized anger got me more answers, especially when I found Mark Pizolli lurking in the shadows of an alleyway beside Faith’s and my apartment building.

“Mark,” I said as I grabbed his coat and yanked him from his hiding spot. Without planning to, I slammed him into the wall behind him and held him in place. I needed answers, and he would give them to me. “What are you doing here?”

I had seen Mark waiting in an alley from my bedroom window. I’d also witnessed a short exchange between Mark and Lucas Malzoni, Riccardo’s right hand man. While I couldn’t directly go after Lucas, I could easily grab Mark and get a few answers before Faith’s time ran out.

“Devon,” Mark stammered. He was already trying to stall, and that meant two things. He knew he had gotten caught, and would come up with a story to make it seem as if he hadn’t been a part of it. “I was just grabbing a few things the boss wanted before the attack on the Morettis. He wants to be sure he’s ready this time so we can end it for good.”

I put on a fake smile, gently removing Mark from the wall before grabbing his arm and twisting it behind his back to hold him in place. “You were here when they took Faith from my room.”

It wasn’t a question, and I was sure Mark knew that from the way he squirmed in my hold. “I was,” he admitted, but he paused. Most likely to give himself time to think of a story. Time I didn’t have.

I slammed Mark against the side of the building and twisted his arm a little bit more until he was writhing in pain.

“You didn’t let me finish,” Mark said, letting out a breath of relief when I loosened my hold ever so slightly. “I was here when it happened, but I didn’t touch the girl. I was ordered to pick up a few things for the boss before the attack, and while I did that someone was supposed to distract you and take the girl.”

“Why? Tell me why they took her,” I growled, tightening my grip on Mark’s arm. If I weren’t careful, I’d end up breaking it.

“Riccardo figured out you had feelings for the girl, and he didn’t like it, man,” Mark stated through clenched teeth as I pulled his arm a little more. “He ordered a couple guys to come out here and take her. They are going to use her as leverage on the Morettis and win the war before more lives are taken.”

I was much more levelheaded and calm compared to Mark, mostly because I wasn’t in duress. I let out an angry groan, furious that they had taken her because I had foolishly allowed my feelings to become obvious, and now she was paying for my mistakes. Though I couldn’t help the smile that curved onto my lips as a new plan formed, one that hopefully ended up with both Faith and me alive, or at least Faith still breathing when it was done.