by Lylah James
Table of Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Epilogue
GET (5) FREE READS EVERY FRIDAY!
THE MAFIA AND
HIS ANGEL
PART 3
Tainted Hearts Series
By Lylah James
THE MAFIA AND HIS ANGEL PART 3
Copyright © 2017 by Lylah James.
All rights reserved.
First Print Edition: November 2017
Limitless Publishing, LLC
Kailua, HI 96734
www.limitlesspublishing.com
Formatting: Limitless Publishing
ISBN-13: 978-1-64034-261-3
ISBN-10: 1-64034-261-3
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to locales, events, business establishments, or actual persons—living or dead—is entirely coincidental.
Dedication
To all the beautiful Angels out there who are struggling to find their peace. You are beautiful. You are strong. You matter. Your tears might fall now, but I hope those droplets turn into a true, beautiful smile one day.
***CONTENT WARNING***
This book contains dark—and sometimes violent—depictions of the world of organized crime, sexual assault, and suicide, and some events might be triggers for some readers. This is book 3 of 3–The Mafia and His Angel. It is important to read Part 1 and Part 2 before this book to fully understand the story.
Table of Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Epilogue
GET (5) FREE READS EVERY FRIDAY!
Prologue
Ayla
I had him…and then I lost him. I lost everything.
My wings were ready to fly, but the Devil clipped them, feather by feather, until I had nothing left.
Then my savior came, waging a bloodbath to find me. He loves me. He wants his Angel to be free.
But how could I fly again when my wings were broken?
***
Alessio
I had her…and then I lost her. I lost my Angel, the reason for every breath I took.
If he thought he could break her and just disappear, he was wrong. I was going to find him and break him, like he broke her.
This war wasn’t over.
I made a vow to my Angel.
I promised to let her fly…I promised to save her soul.
And my vows are never broken.
This was a battle for my Angel.
Chapter 1
Viktor
He broke.
I watched Alessio break right in front of my eyes.
I have known him for years—since we were babies—and very few times had I seen him at his weakest moment.
Since his mother’s death, I had never seen him shed any tears. Of course not. He was the boss of four families. The Pakhan of the most ruthless Bratva. He was cruel and heartless.
Alessio Ivanshov didn’t cry.
But right now, he was breaking.
He didn’t care that his men were watching. All his focus was on Ayla.
I watched him cry. As he rocked Ayla back and forth, his arms tight around her, I watched my boss, the man whom I have known to be ruthless, cry for his woman.
I stood frozen, just a few feet away from them. My eyes shifted to Ayla, and my chest tightened. It was a small change of emotion, but it was painful. Painful because I had never felt this way before.
Nikolay moved to stand beside me, and I quickly shook my head, trying to clear my mind.
“This is messed up,” he muttered, a look of horror masking his face.
As I nodded, I saw Nina rushing past me. She knelt in front of Alessio and Ayla. Nina was still and I counted the seconds in my head.
One. Two. Three. Four. Five.
She turned around, her expression cold, but her eyes spoke volumes. She gave a slight shake of her head.
I understood what she meant. It was bad. Very bad.
Nina turned back around, and I saw her quickly removing her jacket.
“Alessio, we need to go,” she said, placing the jacket over Ayla’s almost bare body.
He didn’t move. Alessio was so lost, he didn’t even hear us.
“My jacket is too short. It barely covers her.”
Nikolay moved forward, removing his jacket. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. We were wasting time.
Fuck! We didn’t have time to waste. For all we knew, we were about to be ambushed as we stepped out.
I waited for Nina to wrap Nikolay’s jacket around Ayla’s body as much as she could with Alessio in the way.
When she was done, I nodded at her to move away. Taking her place in front of Alessio, I looked down at Ayla. Her face was pressed in Alessio’s neck, and it was hidden by her greasy, matted hair.
I leaned forward, ignoring the sound of Alessio choking back his cries. I even ignored the way my stomach cramped at the sight of Ayla like this. Moving her hair to the side, so that her bruised face and neck were visible, I placed my finger on the side of her neck, right over the pulse.
It was faint. Slow, but at a steady rate. It was good. At least for now.
My eyes shifted to her chest, watching the slow rise and fall. It was too slow, almost as if she was fightin
g to take each breath.
My gaze followed a path down her body to the shackles around her. I touched the heavy chain and pulled at the small latch on her left ankle. It gave way. The shackles weren’t locked around her wrists and ankles. One after another, I pulled them off until she was no longer chained.
Sighing, I looked up at Alessio. “We have to go.”
When he didn’t respond, I touched his shoulder. “Alessio, we need to get out of here. Now!”
No response. What was going on in his fucking mind right now? Was he too far gone?
Shaking my head, I pushed the thought away.
My hand tightened on his shoulder. There was only one way to snap him out of his daze.
“We need to get Ayla out. She is not safe here,” I muttered quietly.
His head snapped up, his eyes meeting mine. My heart might have stopped for a second. The look in his eyes was heartbreaking.
I remembered the day of his mother’s funeral. Or even the moment we found him after his mother’s death. He didn’t cry. No, he stood there emotionless, watching everything happening around him.
You would think a man like that wouldn’t understand heartbreak.
But the look in his eyes right now showed so much pain that even I felt it.
The look was there for a brief moment. Alessio changed almost too quickly, masking his emotion.
His eyes flared dangerously and I knew my words had hit home. Good. He needed to snap out of it.
Alessio looked down at Ayla again. His expression softened the slightest bit. “She…I…” he choked, pulling Ayla into his chest more.
“I know. We’ll take care of her back at the estate. Right now, our priority is to get her to safety,” I reasoned.
Taking a deep breath, he nodded. Alessio caressed Ayla’s cheek, his fingers barely touching her skin. He handled her with a gentleness that I didn’t think he was capable of.
I stared at Ayla, my eyes moving to her neck. My fingers were still on her neck too, but now I was mindlessly caressing her pulse, my touch light on her skin.
Quickly snatching my hand away, I stood up. My hands fisted at my side, my jaw grinding in sudden frustration.
Alessio shifted Ayla in his arms and slowly stood up. My eyes went to his legs when I saw him limp forward.
“Let’s go,” Nikolay called. I nodded and quickly walked away. Following Nina and Nikolay, we started to climb up the stairs.
They made it out first, but I stopped in the middle to see Alessio still on the first step. I ran down the steps, stopping in front of him.
“Give her to me,” I said with my arms out.
Alessio shook his head, his arms tightening protectively around Ayla. “Alessio, you can’t carry Ayla out like this. You can’t keep her safe with an injured leg.”
His eyes glinted with anger, and he growled. “I can protect her. Move out of my way, Viktor.”
With a sigh, I stared into his eyes. “After everything we’ve been through, do you not trust me?”
“Viktor,” he warned. “Move.”
“Give her to me. Damn it! Stop being so fucking stubborn.”
When Alessio didn’t move to do so, I finally understood. Seeing Ayla like this, there was no bound for his protective instincts. Hell, there was no fucking way he would let another man near her.
“I’ll carry her out, Alessio. Think about it. You can’t keep her safe with your leg. I’m faster.” I sighed, my eyes shifting yet again toward Ayla. “I will protect her as if she were my woman.”
Alessio’s eyes glowed dangerously. He moved forward, his face mere inches from mine. “She is not yours,” he snapped. Even though the anger was there, I saw his resolve slipping away.
He looked down at Ayla again. “If something happens to her, I will kill you.”
“I know,” I replied with a nod.
Alessio finally shifted Ayla into my arms, and I quickly brought her to my chest. Ayla was light, barely weighing anything. She felt fragile in my arms, and my eyes moved to her rounded stomach.
I avoided looking at it before, but now that she was in my arms, there was no avoiding the round bump.
I couldn’t even imagine the horrors Ayla had to go through with Alberto.
Alessio touched her cheek in a soft caress before nodding at me. I returned the nod and quickly walked up the stairs with Alessio right behind me.
We didn’t stop until we were out of the house. After Alessio climbed in the backseat of the car, I placed Ayla on his lap. He immediately wrapped his arms around her.
“Get us home as quickly as you can,” he ordered.
“Boss,” Nikolay acknowledged his words before climbing into the driver’s seat. Nina was beside Alessio while I moved to the front with Nikolay.
“She’s going to be okay,” Alessio said. I glanced at the rear-view mirror and saw Alessio’s gaze fixated on Ayla. He placed a kiss on her nose. “Nothing is going to happen to her. I won’t allow it.”
I closed my eyes, leaning against the headrest.
I hoped he was right. There was no other option.
Ayla had to be okay. Not only for her sake, but for Alessio’s sanity.
Chapter 2
Alessio
The drive home was fast, thank fuck for that. I thought I was slowly going insane. Nobody spoke a word during the drive.
My eyes were only on Ayla. I watched her, waiting for any indication that she was okay.
But she stayed unconscious. Unmoving.
I caressed her, touching her, waiting for her to wake up. But nothing. Not even a twitch. Nothing to give me a little peace.
When the car finally stopped, I opened the door and climbed out with Ayla still in my arms. Viktor came to take her, but I walked past him, carrying Ayla close to my chest.
There was no fucking way he was holding her again. It took everything in me to hand her over to him before.
But not now. I didn’t care that it felt like my leg was about to fall off. No, I needed Ayla. I had to hold her myself.
I needed her close to me, knowing that she was finally safe in my arms.
My injured leg dragged behind me as I walked inside. Without stopping, I made my way upstairs to my room.
The door was already open. I walked inside to find Lena standing by the bed. She rushed toward me as soon as I stepped into the room.
“Nikolay already called. I have the tub filled,” she muttered, stopping in front of me. Lena leaned forward. She sucked in a harsh breath at the sight of Ayla.
Tears filled her eyes. “My sweet child.”
“You should clean Ayla up before I have a look at her,” I heard Sam say behind me.
I walked past him and into the bathroom. Just as Lena said, the tub was already filled. I sat on the edge, settling Ayla on my lap.
Lena helped me pull off the jackets wrapped around her shoulders. Holding the shredded dress, I ripped off what was left of it from her body.
“Let me clean her up. You’re bleeding all over the floor, Alessio. Sam can look at your leg while I take care of Ayla,” Lena suggested.
“No,” I snapped. There was no way someone else was going to take care of Ayla. Not even Lena.
I would bathe her. I would take care of her. She was mine.
Mine to take care of. Mine to love.
After almost four months, I finally had her in my arms. I wasn’t letting her go anytime soon.
“Alessio,” Lena sighed but didn’t push.
Standing up, I gently placed Ayla into the warm water. I winced when my leg made contact with the floor. It hurt like a bitch. Pinching my eyes closed, I ignored the burn for a second before focusing on Ayla again.
I held Ayla in a sitting position, letting the warm water envelop her body. She was still so cold, and I feared she would never warm up again.
Lena knelt behind Ayla’s head and made quick work of shampooing and washing her hair. The water turned a dirty brown, the smell touching my nostrils, almost making me gag.
She was in more pain than I had thought. And I had no idea how I was going to bring her back to me. I was scared that we were forever broken.
I ran my hand over her neck and arms. When my hand neared her stomach, I paused, suddenly finding it hard to breathe.
Of all the scenarios I had running in my head, this was not one of them. How did Ayla live in that hellhole in this state? How did she stay alive?
Taking a deep breath, I slowly rubbed my hand over the fullness of her stomach. It was rigid, and the skin felt tight. My throat burned and my heart ached as I quickly moved my hand away.
I didn’t know how to feel about this—him…or her?
“Alessio.”
I turned my head to see Lena staring at me expectantly. I ignored the look of sympathy on her face and turned my attention to Ayla again.
Squirting some soap in my hand, I quickly washed her legs and then her back. When I was done, I pulled Ayla out of the water.
Lena quickly drained the dirty water. I placed Ayla in the empty tub again, washing her again, making sure she was cleaned from all filth. I poured water over her and rinsed off the soap. When she was clean, Lena wrapped a towel around Ayla’s still form.
Sucking in an agonized breath, I stood on my legs and pulled Ayla into my arms again. I limped into the bedroom to see Sam, Viktor, and Nikolay standing at the bed.
Viktor’s eyes moved to my injured leg, and his face tightened in frustration. “Sam, you need to take a look at Alessio’s leg. He’s bleeding too much.”
“I’m fine,” I ground out, placing Ayla on the bed. I wrapped the towel tighter around her and pulled the comforter up.
“Boss, let me stitch you up first,” Sam suggested as he came behind me.
The anger I was holding inside of me finally bubbled out. “We don’t have time for this!” I bellowed.
“You’re bleeding out! You are no good to Ayla like this!” Viktor yelled back, his eyes furious.
I turned to Sam. “Make sure she is okay. I want her to be okay. Fix her!”
