Stripping a Steele

by Elizabeth Knox

  “I have done nothing that I wasn’t asked to do,” His voice strong and full of lies. I won’t believe anything that came out of his mouth, not tonight and not ever.

  “Is that true?” Logan speaks up from behind me. Normally he isn’t one to come to these kinds of “meetings” as we call them. He’d much rather stay at home and be with Brook and Emmett. I can’t say that I blame him but this one was different, only different because of how high a price Varca has on his head.

  “You have obviously done something that you were asked not to do, Matteo,” Jordan adds, smirking as he leans against the brick wall of the abandoned warehouse where we brought Matteo. It’s concealed, quiet, and private. Three things that we need if we are going to be able to get anything out of him tonight.

  I chuckle at the way Varca’s face twists, knowing that he’s recognizing Jordan’s voice. Jordan is the man that everyone goes through. He may not be the face of our business, but he is the leader in a sense. Our father didn’t want Jordan or me to have any part of the business, but that was out of pure spite and to put Logan through hell. Their relationship was never normal, and it would never have been. Logan, in his style, decided to say fuck it to my father’s wishes and gave Jordan and me duties, on both the illegal side of the business and on the very public side as well. Logan makes the big decisions, like who we do business with; but Jordan is the man that our clients speak to, and me – well, I’m the guy who fucks people up when they don’t pay. I love being that bastard.

  “Where am I, Jordan?” Varca calmly asks, licking his lips.

  “You aren’t the one asking questions here, Matteo,” Logan tells him firmly.

  “Right, that would be our job,” Jordan adds.

  “I want to know, why do you think you’re here?” I ask him, curious to see what he thinks.

  “I have done nothing wrong. I have absolutely no reason to be here, wherever the hell it is that you three have me.”

  He’s lying through and through, my brothers and I know this, that he’s covering something up. I only want to know the information that is so valuable to Gabrielle DiGiovanni, and then I can end him. I’d prefer it if this went by quickly.

  “We both know that’s a lie. Let’s try this again, shall we?” I growl, quickly walking over to Varca and ripping off his blindfold. I pull my blade from my suit pocket and press it to his throat, the sharp end lightly pressing into his flesh, giving me a lovely shade of crimson red sliding down his neck. “You know I will do far worse, my reputation does not do me justice.”

  “Oh, I know much about your reputation, Christian. I’m shocked that you haven’t found yourself leaving your brother’s business and working for the Arcane by now. It seems that this kind of work better suits you.” He glowers at me, eyes not breaking from mine. I want to slice his neck open and watch him bleed out in front of me right this moment, but I know that cannot happen. First, we need the information that Gabriele wants, and then I can have my fun. No, fun is the wrong word. I can bring justice to what happened to my Cinderella.

  “Maybe one day. I haven’t ruled it out, seeing as it fits,” I say, acting like I agree with the pitiful man who lay before me.

  “I’m willing to give you an offer, an option as it were,” Jordan pipes up. I see him walk towards us, looking at Varca the entire time. “Would you like to know what it is I am willing to give you, or would you prefer to endure whatever it is that Christian has planned for tonight?” I smirk at Varca, knowing very well that no matter what my brother talks him into doing, I will still be doing everything that I planned for tonight. Nothing will change the outcome or the process.

  Varca doesn’t move. Of course, he’s not able to do much of anything right now. He simply looks at Jordan.

  “I’m going to take that as a yes. I think that you know by now that Gabriele has spoken to the three of us. You aren’t a dumb man Matteo, and I respect you because of that. He wants us to kill you because you have information, and we’ve agreed to do just that. Except, I’m not sure I want to anymore. I’m more interested in a partnership with you as it were, the only thing I ask is that you tell me what it is that Gabriele is so determined to kill you over.” I am hoping and praying for any sort of God that my brother is bluffing, because if he isn’t, Varca may not be the only man who dies tonight.

  “I need assurances that what you say is true,” Varca adds, I listen closely as my brother and Varca speak.

  “You are in no position to be making demands tonight. I, however, am. You are only given this option because of my graciousness; do you understand that? My brothers here, they want you dead. They don’t see a reason to have a partnership with you, Matteo, however, I see the potential. The only thing I ask of you is that you give us information on Gabriele, and what it is that he wants you dead so badly for. I can put you in hiding, somewhere safe until Gabriele is dealt with.”

  “Where is it that you could possibly find me that Gabriele doesn’t have his men?” Varca asks. Jordan chuckles. Meanwhile, I already know that there is not a dingy little place on this planet that the Italians don’t have their hand dipped in. They’ve got their hands in every pot. The Italians are no doubt the largest mafia. The Russians, Romanians, and Irish may run a good game, but the Italians are the ones who could easily destroy the others. Honestly, I’m not sure why they haven’t yet, they surely have the means to do so.

  “I have places where I have hidden men and women like you in the past, Matteo. You don’t need to be worried about any of that,” Jordan tells him.

  “Untie me,” Varca grumbles. Quickly I see Jordan raise his hand to me. I remove my blade from Varca’s throat and cut the ropes that bind him, gritting my teeth as I do so. Logan comes around Varca, staring him down before he begins to speak.

  “We are your only option. Your wife is trying to kill you. The head of the Italian Mafia is trying to kill you. It seems as if the Steeles are your only way out of this mess,” Logan tells him. I rise and step away from Varca, afraid that I will kill the man before my brothers get the information that we so desperately seek.

  “You want to know why Gabriele is trying to kill me, do you?”

  The three of us don’t utter a word. Varca knows very well that’s what we want.

  “Do you remember the hit that was placed on Mariana Vasile, the Queen of the Romanian Mob?” Varca asks. I nod, remembering how a little under a year ago her fiancé Ion Petran had finally tracked down the man who had kidnapped her all those years ago. Rumor has it that he killed Jonas Masterson and made Mariana and her bastard daughter move in with him. There was a big tiff because Mariana was almost killed. It was evident that a hit was placed on her and attempted to be executed although no one was claiming the hit – which was odd. In most cases, when another mob was successful with killing a head member of a rival mob or gang, they would claim the hit. Although, maybe because they weren’t successful, they didn’t see a reason to accept the claim. “Gabriele DiGiovanni was the one who placed the hit. He wanted that blonde girl dead.”

  “What was he hoping to achieve with Mariana’s death?” Logan asks Varca.

  “She is the one person keeping the entire Romanian Mob together, without her there would be nothing left. Sure, they would try to maintain order, but they would fail. The power hungry would rise up in the midst of her death when Ion was mourning, and it would have been easy to hit them while they were down. Obviously, Mariana’s death didn’t go as planned, and Gabriele is trying to kill everyone off that knew about it – including me.”

  “He wanted the Romanian territories, didn’t he?” Logan mutters lowly, looking at Varca as he brushes his hand over his jaw. The Romanians are just as strong as the Italians when it comes to where they have force, except the only difference is that the Italians are stronger in numbers. It doesn’t make any sense for Gabriele DiGiovanni to want Mariana Vasile dead because the Romanians are in the same cities. It even makes less sense since Gabriele’s own sister is married to a head Romanian Cla
n member.

  “Gabriele DiGiovanni wants a lot of things, Logan, and he always gets what he wants, but this time it was different…Gabriele didn’t want the territories for him. He has been getting close with a certain cartel leader, one whom I believe you all don’t take too kindly to.”

  Rafael Ramirez, the man who tried to have me killed.

  Gabriele is working with Rafael, but why?

  “Before you ask, I don’t know anything else. Gabriele is working with Rafael to help him gain more power. I’m not sure why, but they’ve become increasingly close over the last two years. You have heard about what Gabriele let him do to his daughter, Caprice, haven’t you?”

  “No,” I answer quickly before my brothers have a chance to speak.

  “Rumor has it that Gabriele would let Rafael have visits with Caprice after their business meetings. I have a source who works in the house, she told me that Caprice was pregnant, and when she went into labor, the child was ripped from her arms and given to Rafael. Now, Caprice has disappeared with not a hint to where she’s gone. When that baby was given to Rafael things started to escalate. That child cannot be more than a year old if she’s even that old at all.”

  My blood boils, the heat rises through my veins inch by inch until I’m overflowing with anger. I’m a Steele, and that means many things, but above all, it means that I was born into this life of treachery and betrayal. The worst part is that the ones who betray us are the ones who are closest to us. I am one of the lucky ones, my brothers and I are united as we should be. But there are others, like Caprice DiGiovanni, who have to live with their enemy, and for her, she has to call that man, father.

  Before I know it, I’m lunging towards Varca, I jab my blade quickly into his stomach and pull up, reveling in how my blade slices through his insides. He groans, and in that moment, I look into his widened eyes. No, he didn’t see this coming and neither did my brothers.

  Varca was right about one thing. I should join the Arcane. There is nothing sweeter than taking the life of someone who shouldn’t have the privilege of walking this Earth. Tonight, I took what was owed to me, and my girl.

  Justice.

  Chapter 16

  Christian

  “Are you done yet?” I hear Jordan grumble from behind me. Varca’s groans are growing louder with each passing moment. I didn’t want his death to come fast, I wanted him to slowly bleed out, to feel his body growing cold. Slow and painful, those are the only two things that I need from him. He would not die quickly. Only men of dignity die in such a way, and a man of honor he was not.

  “I’ll be sure to let you know whenever it is, that I think he’s had enough time to suffer,” I seethe at my brother, glaring. I look at him, then to Logan. Logan does nothing but gives me a slight nod, showing me that he approves of whatever it is that I decide.

  “I don’t blame you for wanting him to suffer like this. If it was Brooklyn who was in Selena’s position I would make him suffer far worse than what you are doing to him. I’m going to leave, I have a son and fiancé waiting for me at home.” Logan walks towards me, putting his hand on my shoulder and squeezes, “I never thought that I would see this side of you. Jordan and I both thought that you would be the party boy bachelor until the day you died. I must say I’m pleasantly surprised that you’ve found someone that you love this much. I can’t wait to meet her. Set up a dinner, will you?”

  “I’m not in love with Selena, yet,” I tell him, firmly.

  “You only do things like this for the people you love,” Logan chuckles, as he pats my back and walks out of the building.

  It takes me a moment to figure out what my brother has just said and how to process it, he is right. Maybe.

  Maybe I do love her.

  How silly is that? To love someone I hardly know? I’m sure it’s possible, though.

  I wait for two hours and watch as the man slowly bleeds out, just as I think he will be taking his last breath, he surprises me and continues to draw air into his body. He has the will to live, I will give him that.

  My cell phone starts vibrating in my breast pocket. I ignore it at first, letting it buzz and buzz until I feel it go still. Not even a minute later, it starts buzzing again, it’s now I decide to see who is calling me. Logan is at home with Brook and Emmett, Jordan is still here standing twenty feet across from me. It’s either a damn telemarketer or something is up.

  As I pull my cell from my pocket I see my phone lighting up. The name that is plastered across my screen gives me the chills because when he calls, it means that something has happened.

  “Reggie,” I answer.

  “I drove by Selena’s to check in on dumb and dumber, only to find out that the fuckin’ idiots bolted. The police are here, Christian. If she knew me, I would go up and figure out what happened, but I am a stranger to her. I go up to her and say I work for you, she’ll spook.” I chuckle at Reggie’s assessment of Selena, hoping it will hide the worry I feel.

  “You’re right. Stay in your car, I’m on my way over now. Do me a favor and text me with any information that you discover and find out why the fuck those two idiots weren’t where I pay them to be!” I snap, ending the call and sliding the phone back in my pocket.

  “Trouble in paradise?” Jordan asks, I simply glare at him in response.

  “Make sure this scumbag dies,” is the last thing that I say before I’m hustling out through the doors and driving to where my princess is.

  Nobody fucks with my Cinderella. Nobody.

  When I pull into Selena’s driveaway there are two patrol cars. One is next to her Kia and the other is parked on the street. Naturally, the men in uniform turn to look at me the moment I step outside of my car. I can’t say I blame them, and I can’t even blame them for giving me the disgusted look that comes across their face when they recognize who I am.

  “Well, well. Look at what we have here,” the fat cop mutters, tapping his pen against his notepad. The other doesn’t make a move or utter a word. He must be a rookie from the looks of him.

  “A knight in shining armor. Now, where’s my girl, officers?” I ask, looking at the shrubs which lead up to her front door. I look over her house, noticing how the shutters are all in place, seeing the glass on the windows are fine. It’s then that I notice her front door is mangled, and glass is missing.

  “Your girl?” The younger of the two asks.

  “Yes. The beautiful woman who lives here. She’s a spitfire, drop dead gorgeous. Sometimes she’s nice, depending on her mood,” I tell him, just as I see her come walking out of the doorway that leads into her house.

  “I’m always nice, just not to you,” she hisses at me, then looks over at the officers as she walks towards the group of us. “I’m sorry about that. I had to get my little sisters to settle down, they’re a bit shaken up.”

  “What happened?” I ask, staring at Selena but wanting an answer from the rookie. I knew he’d give it to me, and I was right.

  “At approximately one o’ four this morning there was a disturbance at 15 Lakeview Drive. Miss Jacobson called 9-1-1 after reporting a loud crashing noise coming from the front of her home and hearing noises coming from the inside of her home. When we arrived, we noticed the front door was bashed in and wide open. As we searched the premises, we discovered that the assailants were gone, however, there is tremendous property damage and loss.”

  “I was robbed by some punk kids, no big deal,” Selena mutters, wrapping her arms around herself. She looks up at her home, and I watch as she shakes. I know that isn’t from a damn chill.

  “This doesn’t classify as no big deal, sweetheart,” I tell her, taking a few steps towards her until I can pull her against my chest. When I think she’s going to fight me, she doesn’t. Her arms wrap around my body as I rub her back soothingly, kicking myself for not making sure that experienced men weren’t watching her house tonight. If they were, those damn punks wouldn’t have shaken up my girl, or her family. “You’re going to be okay,” I whisp
er, brushing my lips against her forehead. “I can promise you that, you’re all going to be okay. You’re safe, you hear?”

  I get a soft mumble coming from her.

  “Officers, thank you for your service tonight. Is there anything else that needs to be done, or can you go?” I don’t ever mean to sound so rude, but somehow, I always manage to come across that way. It’s probably why I don’t have too many friends.

  “No, we have everything we need. If we need anything else, we will follow up at a later time. You have a safe night,” the old man tells me, flipping his notebook shut as he and his partner walk to their patrol car. As soon as they get in, I see that the car on the side of the street leaves as well.

  I raise my hand up in the air, signaling to Reggie, wherever he may be to get his ass out of his damn car and get over here. He’d be fucking insane if he thinks I’m gonna pick up my phone and give him direct orders when my arms need to be wrapped around Selena right now.

  He walks up to us discreetly, I’m still rubbing Selena’s back when she pulls her face out of my chest and looks up at me. “Hey there, pretty girl,” I whisper. Her makeup is smeared, her cheeks are red, and you’d be able to tell straight away that she hasn’t had a good night.

  “I hate that I like you!” she bawls, smacking her hand against my chest. “I shouldn’t like you at all, and I do! I freaking like you too much! You’re like…so annoying! You just won’t leave me alone, and you do this sweet shit sometimes, and I just can’t help but like how you keep popping up and can’t take a hint. You will never take a damn hint…” Tears pour out, and I shouldn’t be smiling right now, but it’s as if she’s given me the golden egg. She’s just admitted to me that she fucking likes me. Bingo. Jackpot. Hoo-Raa! I wipe her tears from her face and stare down at her, smiling like the domesticated bastard she’s turning me into.

  “Christian,” Reggie coughs, causing Selena to jump in my arms.

  “Relax, Cinderella. This is Reggie, he works for my family,” I tell her, then redirect my attention to Reggie. “I need you to call someone to fix her door, and I want good shit. Shit that people can’t get into, you got me? And I want an alarm system and all of the windows to be replaced too. Just change out everything and get this door fixed tonight.”