by Erin Trejo
“But you weren’t. You weren’t as strong as he was. I mean no disrespect, Matteo, but your place in the family was never on the battlefield.” He doesn’t say a word as he takes in what I’ve said. Matteo is older, being twenty-two. He was always the brains but never the fighter. My father realized this at an early age, and where I was homeschooled the best that anyone could do, he was sent to multiple high-quality schools to obtain an education that would prove useful in the future.
“Doesn’t make it any easier. Do you ever wonder what it would have been like to be born into a different family?” he asks, his tortured gaze holding with mine. I lick my lips, run my hand through my hair, and shake my head.
“There is no point. We only get one life, and this was the one we were dealt whether we like it or not. There is no reason to dwell on what could have been when reality is sitting right in front of us.” Matteo nods his head and stands from the bed before walking toward the door.
“You know, I envy you, Gio. The hell that you have lived through, yet you survive.”
“Don’t envy me. The things I’ve done are nothing short of sadistic,” I respond quickly. Matteo lowers his head before nodding.
“I suppose you’re right. I’m not attending the fight tonight.” Not a surprise there.
“I wouldn’t want you to.” I watch Matteo leave the room and the door close behind him before I blow out a breath and head back into the bathroom. Steam rises and covers every surface but it’s Asia sitting on the floor with her head in her hands that makes me flinch.
“He’s gone. I need you to go too.”
“They’re making me go.”
“Go where?”
“To the fight. Your father…he’s making me go,” she says looking up with tears in her eyes. I had a bad feeling that he would, seeing how she and I have always been close, but then again, what’s his reasoning for this?
“I’ll talk to him,” I say pulling my jeans down my legs, not caring that she’s sitting there watching. Her eyes widen when I’m only in my boxers.
“You can’t!” she snaps, catching me off guard.
“And why can’t I?”
Asia stands quickly clearing the space between us in a few short strides. “Please, Gio. Don’t breathe a word to him.”
The fear in her eyes makes my stomach clench. What the hell is happening that I don’t know about? Why does she fear him so much?
“Why are you so afraid of me speaking to him?” I ask needing an answer. She shakes her head and looks away but I grab her face in my hand jerking her face back to mine. I lean in closely and ask once more. “What are you scared of?” Her eyes dance between mine but she doesn’t say a word. When I’ve had enough, I pull away and give her a shove toward the door.
“If you don’t want to speak, and you aren’t here to fuck, get out.” My harsh tone causes her to gasp. I heard it even with the shower running. Stripping out of my boxers, I climb in the shower and slide the glass door shut. I close my eyes and rest my forehead against the cool tiles, letting the steam release some of the tension in my body. I don’t fully let out a breath until I hear the bathroom door click shut.
Chapter 6
The club is packed with men from all walks of life. From the other made families, to the low life scum that make a living off betting on these fights. They all line the floor waiting for the show of the night; hell, some might consider it the show of a lifetime. No one as young as me has fought in the underground world before, but there’s a first time for everything. I roll my shoulders and crack my neck from side to side readying myself for what’s about to come. I don’t look at the crowd, only her. Asia watches me as she sits in the front row between her father and mine, her bright brown eyes taking in all that she can of the scene. I’m still not sure why my father wanted her to be here unless he has it in his head that I’m going lose. That would be the obvious reason. Keeping her in line by showing her what happens when you step out of it. Either way, it pisses me off that she’s here.
Angelo steps into the ring and the crowd goes wild. They don’t know me considering I’m too young for these types of fights, but Angelo has plenty of ring time. He’s known by these people. A large bald man steps into the ring, coming to stand between the two of us.
“There’s a life on the line with this fight. As I’m sure you know, this is set up to be a death match. One of you won’t be leaving here tonight.” Even as he speaks, I tune him out and focus on my breathing. One thing Angelo doesn’t know is the amount of time I’ve put into learning new things without his knowledge. I have that advantage and plan to use it tonight. The crowd around me means nothing. I’ve tuned them out and tuned into myself.
“May the best man win,” the man says, stepping out of the ring. Angelo eyes me before he steps closer.
“You can back out, Giovanni. People will understand,” he says with a grin.
“Why would I do that?”
“I don’t know, so you can keep that little piece of ass you have over there,” he says, turning his head to look at Asia. I follow his gaze and find her wide eyes staring back us. I swallow back any emotion that she stirs in me because God knows if I thought about it I might just back out, for her. That isn’t an option. I can’t be viewed as weak.
“I plan to keep her around anyway, Angelo. You may think you will win this fight and you may have trained me, but did you really think you made me?” My gaze slowly moves back to his and holds there. His eyes glisten in the dim light and I can feel the hatred running through his veins. I can taste the desire for vengeance on the tip of his tongue. The evil dancing in his glare could never rival the devil that dances in me.
“We will see, won’t we?” he hisses. I know Angelo is only brute strength; he has nothing more to taunt me with.
I nod my head and roll my shoulders once more, standing tall in the middle of the ring. The overhead speakers come to life announcing that bets are closed and that this will indeed be a death match. The crowd grows wilder by the second, vocalizing their love over the ability to see someone else’s demise. The thought should make me sick yet it stirs something else inside of me, a fire fueled by hatred.
As soon as they say the word “fight”, we both move. My hands are in fists, shielding my face as I move around the ring getting into a groove. Angelo counters my steps as he finds his own rhythm. Being trained in many forms of combat from a young age is going to be helpful tonight. I can’t forget Angelo is older and far more skilled in some respects yet, he’s getting older and it’s beginning to show. As the crowd grows louder, I shake my head slightly, ridding the sounds. I keep them locked away as I focus on my breathing and the internal need to dominate this fight.
His smirk does nothing to me when I move in and jab him in the face. He squares off and comes back at me, but I effectively stop him. Lunging out of the way, he stumbles as I chuckle at him. Angelo regains his composure, keeping his fist up as he moves toward me. Slowly, we gauge each other. Neither of us willing to back down. I throw a punch that he blocks and counters with one of his own. I can taste the metallic flavor of blood as it fills my mouth before turning my head and spitting it to the floor. Angelo laughs but I couldn’t care less. I feel nothing right now but power. Pure, white-hot, fucking power.
The fight goes on for a long time with both of us landing some hard punches. We’re both fatigued and running low on energy when Angelo steps in and punches me in the middle of my face. Lights spark behind my eyes as I stumble and fall to the floor. The crowd cheers, “Kill him! Kill him!” I’m shaking my head trying to clear my vision, which is proving to be difficult. I can feel Angelo behind me, jerking me up onto my knees by the back of my hair. The cheers and chanting get louder and louder. My ribs are screaming in pain as I try to suck in as much air as I possibly can. With me on my knees, Angelo’s hands around my neck, I can nearly taste my own death. Will it be as sweet as I think it will be? Will it hurt or end quickly?
Stefano’s voice whispers in my ear as my head spins. “Do
n’t let him do this to you. Don’t let him win.” I blink rapidly trying to clear the blood from my vision when I see her. Asia stands in front of her seat, her eyes wide with fear. Swallowing the pain that sits heavy in my chest, I wink at her. She shakes her head so slightly that I might have missed it. Then I move. Rising quickly, I bring my elbow back and jab it into Angelo’s chest. He grunts but releases me as I spin around and kick his leg out. I climb over him, straddling his chest as I land blow after blow to his face. Blood splatters on me, the mat, anything in sight. When his near lifeless body goes still beneath mine, his eyes crack open. We’re locked in a stare down, a battle of demons as they both work their way to the surface. My heart beats erratically in my chest as our eyes convey what our mouths can’t. An unspoken truce flows between us when I reach down and grab his head in my hands. A quick flick of my wrists and I snap his neck, falling to the mat next to him, exhausted. Heaving for air, the room goes wild. My father’s men move into the ring rapidly, checking me over. The family doctor takes over, pressing on my ribs and other parts of my body before I brush them all away. The doctor stands, offering his hand which I don’t take. I brush it away holding my ribs with one hand and balancing myself with the other as I stand and walk out of the ring. My father slaps a hand on my shoulder, a smile plastered to his face.
“You look like hell!” Rocco, one of my father’s other soldiers, says as I walk toward the back of the room. His grin is nearly infectious considering the win I just had. When we make it into the dressing room, I drop onto the bench to catch my breath.
“Here’s some medicine for the ribs. Take it before bed. You need to rest, but I don’t think anything is broken,” the doctor says passing me a bottle of pills. The door opens and my father steps in with Mario and Asia closely behind.
“You did well. Proved me wrong,” he says, his words taking me by surprise. I knew my father doubted my ability to handle his main fighter, but he shouldn’t have.
“Is the spot mine?” I ask looking up at him. He chuckles and shakes his head.
“Not right away but I do have work for you to do,” he says with that same smirk on his face. It pisses me off that I just killed a man, a man who trained me, groomed me but at the same time hated me with a passion for no reason. I shove off the bench and stand in his face, daring him to say one more word to me.
“I killed him, Father. To prove your goddamn point and you are still taking that spot from me?” He stands taller, his head held high. I could be making the biggest mistake of my life challenging him right now but he must know how I feel.
“Did you not hear what I said? I have another job for you right now! Clean up and we will discuss this later.”
With that he turns and walks away, waving Asia toward me. She hurries and grabs the first aid kit, coming to sit it on the bench next to me. I inhale deeply trying to reign in the anger as Asia reaches for me. Jerking my arm away from her, the others see the rage in my eyes and leave the room. Not her though. She stays and reaches for me again, pulling me back until my ass hits the bench once more.
“Give me your hand,” she says softly.
“I don’t need this shit!” I roar, clenching my hands in front of me. Asia reaches over and gently pries my left fist open and starts cleaning. “It isn’t your job to take care of me,” I snap at her. She doesn’t say a word, just continues cleaning me.
“Why would you want his spot, Gio?” Her question catches me off guard.
“Why wouldn’t I?” I ask looking over at her. Her eyes catch mine and my chest tightens.
“You are better than this, Gio. You know that.” Shaking my head, I huff out a breath.
“Did you not just watch what I did out there?” Asia cleans my hand making sure to press a little harder. I can’t do anything but chuckle under my breath.
“You could have died,” she says softly, her hands falling away from mine.
“But I didn’t.” She leaps off the bench, her hands running through her long dark hair.
“But you could have, Gio! Then what? Where would that have left me?” Emotions show on her face and it tugs at my heart but there is nothing I can do for her. Nothing I can do to ease the fear of losing me. I stand from the bench and move toward her, cupping her face in my swollen hands.
“One day I won’t be around, Asia. You have to learn to accept that. You know as well as I do that this life doesn’t last forever,” I try to reassure her. When she tries to pull out of my grasp, I tighten it. “You can’t run from the facts, Asia.” Leaning down I kiss her through the pain that ignites in my body. Her lips tremble but she doesn’t stop me. I walk backward and sit on the bench pulling Asia into my lap. She moves her legs, straddling me as my cock hardens in my shorts. Sweat trickles down my temples, her hands wrapping around my neck. I raise my hips pressing my cock into her core. She may be young but she is far more mature than her years. Asia rocks her hips, pressing against me. I groan into her mouth, never breaking our kiss as she gets herself off. Each stroke of her body over mine sends me spiraling into a dark space that I’m afraid I won’t come back from. Her breathing picks up, her body starts to tremble when she tries to stop.
“Don’t stop, Asia. Fuck, don’t stop,” I nearly beg her. I know she’s a virgin and I doubt she’s ever been touched by anyone let alone touched herself. I move my hands down to her waist helping her, guiding her.
“Gio!” she cries as her body vibrates.
I want to feel her, see her come apart for me. The more she rocks the more I can smell her arousal. “It’s okay, Asia. Just feel,” I beg.
Asia doesn’t stop moving, her wet panties sliding over the thin material that in no way conceals my hard cock. I hiss at the feeling, needing to come myself, but this moment is only for her. She needs this connection and who the hell am I to deny her.
“Gio!” she cries again, burying her face in my neck. I hold her hips tightly as she rides me when I feel her body tremble uncontrollably. Her orgasm blasts through her, soaking my gym shorts and straight to my cock. I nearly come myself, I’m so lost in feeling her let herself go on me. Asia pants into my neck, her warm breath tickling my skin.
“I’ve never… that was…”
She doesn’t need to tell me, I already know. I turn my head and press a kiss to her forehead before lifting her body off my lap.
“We need to get you home, it’s late.”
Chapter 7
I spent my sixteenth birthday learning to shoot every possible gun there is. It was a fun time for me, learning to use something aside from my fists, although I prefer the up close and personal approach. I lie on the rooftop, following my father’s orders and using my new found skills to handle his problems. When he first took Angelo’s spot away from me, I was pissed. I wanted that spot in the family for as long as I’ve been alive, but I have to say that this one is just as good. I might not be fighting with my hands anymore, but I still get to kill assholes so that’s a plus in my book.
The air is still in New York tonight as I watch for my target through the scope. I often wonder what life would be like outside of New York. I’ve lived here all my life, and this is home. But my dream was to live in California away from all the DeLuca madness and just be me. That was a dream of a boy long ago and plans change. We change. I know I have since then. And that boy is long gone.
“There you are,” I whisper to myself when Anthony Morelli steps foot out of the restaurant with his men flanking him. I watch him adjust his suit jacket and smile like today was any other day. Little did he know today was going to be his demise. My finger caresses the trigger much like it does a woman’s body - careful and with my full attention. I count his footsteps as he walks toward the side of the building where his car is parked waiting on him, and when the time is right, I pull the trigger. Morelli falls to the ground, his men moving quickly. They all glance around trying to pinpoint where the shot came from, but I move rapidly out of view. Stuffing the riffle back in the bag, I stand and sling it over my shoulde
r before jogging back down the stairs. When my car comes into sight, I press the button to open the trunk and toss the rifle in before closing it. I watch the area before climbing in and taking off. I get as far as I can as fast as I can when the little box on the seat next to me catches my eye. It’s Asia’s birthday today. My father is having a party for her, one which I wasn’t invited to. My job comes first and I’m sure my father will be angry to know that I took him out a little earlier than we planned, but I want to be there for Asia.
Pulling into the long driveway, I enter my code and wait as the gates open to me. I choose the back entrance so that I don’t have to sit in the line of guests awaiting admittance. Parking my car, I grab her gift and head in to get changed. I never make it that far though.
“I thought you were out of town!” Asia’s happy screams pierce the silence in the room.
I didn’t expect her to be in the back of the house, but I suppose this is where she was getting ready. Her eyes come to meet mine, that perfect smile decorating her face makes my heart leap. She’s fucking perfection.
“I finished early. Did you really think I’d miss your birthday?” Out of town? What a fucking joke. My birthday may mean nothing to my father but hers means something to me. Asia moves quickly throwing her arms around my neck.
“I’m so glad you’re here,” she whispers.
“Me too,” I whisper back.
“Why are you here?” My father’s voice booms through the room. Asia pulls away from me quickly almost as if she’d been burned. Her head stays bowed down as he speaks. What the hell is going on here? I’ve only been gone a few months.
“I live here in case you forgot. This is my home too.”
“You were on an assignment,” he hisses through clenched teeth.
“And now it’s done and here I am.” I love to challenge him the older I get. There’s something about the way he looks at me that I can’t place but I love it.
