112

[ARTEMY]
I felt numb as I stepped out of the car. Standing in the driveway, I stared at the estate. The front doors were open, but my feet were rooted in place, refusing to move.
There was an ache in my chest. I left with Rebecca but was coming back without her. At the thought of coming back home without my Angel and knowing she wouldn’t be there to greet me or kiss me, the pain in my chest intensified.
Brayden came to stand beside me, and he waited. I felt Avim on my left side. And then Leon and Milandro. Nobody stepped forward. They all waited for me.
No matter how much pain I was in, I was still a Boss-the King. I couldn’t let myself get weak at a moment like this. Swallowing past the lump in my throat, I took a step forward and walked toward the door. Each step I took was heavy, a reminder of my failure.
I stepped inside, and as soon as I had walked through the doors, Lynda was on me. She grabbed my collar, her face a mask of anger and disbelief.
“Where is she?” Her voice was chilling as she screamed. “How could you have let this happen?”
Her eyes blurred with tears as she choked back a sob, her chest heaving with the effort. “You promised to protect her, Artemy.”
I didn’t say anything.
She was right. I vowed to protect Rebecca, but I wasn’t able to. My father was also right. I thought I wouldn’t let it happen. I thought I was strong, but history was repeating itself.
The tightness in my chest was back again. Lynda released my collar, and she sank down to her knees, her anguished cries ringing through my ears.
“You promised,” she sobbed at my knees. “You promised.”
I heard another cry, and my head snapped up toward Nona. She was holding her chest, her eyes wide as she gasped.
“Nona!” Brayden rushed to her, pulling her to the sofa before she could fall over. “Call Wyatt,” he ordered as Nona continued to gasp for air, her face twisted in agony.
“My sweet child,” she whispered, her voice breaking.
This was all too much. All their emotions washed over me; disappointment, pain, sorrow so deep that my heart ached with it. I ran a trembling hand over my face, trying to stay calm. Trying to be strong for everyone.
For Rebecca. She needed me strong.
Milandro pulled Lynda into his arms. She buried her face into his chest as she sobbed. Swallowing against the lump of emotions around my throat, I shook my head and walked forward.
Lynda stopped in front of me. “Rebecca might be an Cavalieri, but she is innocent.”
Her voice was a mere whisper, but it reached me. And the words were a straight blow to my heart.
“I know,” I murmured, looking straight as I walked past her.
“Artemy, you have-” She broke off, her voice cracking. “I can’t even imagine what she is going through right now.”
My eyes closed, my fingers tightening into fists at the thought of Rebecca being in pain.
“I will find her,” I said, my voice gruff from the effort of keeping my emotions in check.
I will find her. It was a vow spoken out loud.
Lynda stepped in front of me, a single tear trailing down her cheek. “You promise?”
I broke my promise before, but not this time. So I nodded. Lynda seemed satisfied enough with my answer, and her eyes held no doubt. They only shone with absolute trust.
She stepped out of my way, and I continued upstairs. Walking down the hall toward my office, I only heard Rebecca’s beautiful laughter and sweet voice. She was everywhere yet nowhere at all.
A sudden surge of anger coursed through my body. Raffaele had to die.
But first I had to find him. And the fucker was smart. A coward, but smart. The moment Rebecca was in his trap, he went off the grid. Nowhere to be found.
It had only been hours since Rebecca was taken, but it felt like years.
“Fuck,” I swore, opening the door to my office, only to stop dead in my tracks.
Damian was staring out the window, while Howard’s body sagged against the couch, his head in his hands as if all his energy had left his body.
I walked inside, analyzing both men closely. They hated the Cavalieris with a passion, but I wasn’t going to let them stand in my way to find Rebecca. Consequences be damned.
From the corner of my eyes, I saw my men following me inside. My expression stayed cold and emotionless as I faced my father and Howard.
“I should have known,” Howard said, causing a cloud of confusion to settle around us. Damian’s back went rigid at Howard’s voice, his eyes closing tightly.
“She looked so much like Olivia, but I didn’t want to believe it. I refused to believe it,” Howard continued, his voice breaking over the last words.
Herman’s wife?
“What?” I snapped, moving forward.
Howard looked up, and I was shocked to see his eyes red. No, he wasn’t crying. But the agony on his face spoke more than the tears would have.
“You knew Olivia?” I asked when our eyes met. He flinched and stared at Damian, who still hadn’t turn around to acknowledge us.
“Yes. I knew Olivia. I more than just knew her,” he murmured.
Cocking my head to the side, I stared and waited. I could have guessed the answer, but I needed to hear it from him. The truth.
My thoughts ran wild as I waited for Howard to explain.
“To understand, you will have to know the beginning.”
My eyes widened when I heard Damian’s guttural voice. “Tell him,” he ordered without turning around.
Howard stood up and paced the room. “After your mother’s death, our only goal was to take down the Cavalieris. I was sent to find Herman’s weakness.”
He paused, taking a deep breath, as if it pained him to continue. “We thought Olivia was his weakness, so for months I kept an eye on her. From far away. I watched her every move and waited. After weeks of watching, I started to see signs of abuse. Sometimes she would have a bleeding lip. Her cheeks would be red or a shade of purple. Once she was walking with a limp.”
Why did that sound so familiar?
Rebecca. Her name was a whisper in my head, and I clenched my jaw, my teeth grinding together.
“Every day, at the Wyatte exact time, Olivia would go to a coffee shop. I watched her cross the street. I watched until I couldn’t stay away anymore. She was so sad. So broken,” Howard continued. He had long ago stopped pacing. His eyes were now glued to the wall. He was lost in his memories.
“But she was never alone. She always had a baby in her arms. The only time I saw her smile was when she played with the small little bundle. I approached them, desperate to know the broken woman in front of me.”
I knew where this was going, but I didn’t stop Howard. So he kept talking. And in doing so, his words stabbed at my already fragile heart.
“The baby’s name was Rebecca. Rebecca Cavalieri. She was the sweetest little baby. Only three months old when I met her.” Howard’s voice slightly broke over Rebecca’s name.
My eyes snapped shut as I sank down on the couch.
“Olivia and I got to know each other, but she didn’t know who I was. Not my real name. We…we started an affair. It was forbidden, and we both knew it. But that didn’t stop us. It lasted for several months. I watched Rebecca grow. She took her first step in front of me, and it was toward me.”
I heard Brayden swear, and Howard paused. The room was suddenly filled with silence, and the silence was suffocating.
“What happened?” I asked, my voice harsh against the silent room.
Howard took a deep breath before continuing. “Olivia was mad when she found out the truth about me, but she understood why I did it. That night, we planned her escape. It was the only way to protect her and Rebecca. But I was a little too late.”
“Olivia died in a fire,” I said.
“No,” Howard suddenly growled. “She didn’t.”
My head snapped up toward him as he turned to face me. “I heard her die. I heard her screams as Herman killed her. Shot her. The bastard fucking called me and made me listen. Three gunshots and then there was silence.”
Shaking his head, he ran a hand over his face, his body shaking. With anger. And deep sorrow.
“Olivia had died, and I couldn’t do anything. But I knew I had to get to Rebecca. I promised Olivia that Rebecca wouldn’t live the life that she did. Rebecca would be free and happy. I vowed to protect her and take her out of that hell.” Howard broke off with a harsh, emotionless laugh.
He shook his head, still laughing. “I was too late. Again. Rebecca-”
“-died in a fire,” I finished off.
Everyone knew that story. Half of Herman’s estate caught on fire. So many lives were taken, including his wife and daughter. That was the story, but it clearly didn’t happen that way.
“Rebecca was only a year old. I didn’t believe it at first. But I saw her casket. It was so small. She was so small. She looked so fragile as she was lowered into the ground next to her mother,” Howard’s voice was a mere whisper now.
I had known Howard for many years, but I had never ever seen him so broken. I rubbed the back of my neck, trying to release the tension there.
It all made sense now. Why we never got anything on Rebecca…no matter how intensive our research was. Why I never even thought for a moment that Rebecca could have been an Cavalieri.
She was a ghost. Herman had made sure of it.
“That fucking bastard,” Howard hissed, his eyes suddenly sparking fire. “He knew. He fucking knew I was coming for Rebecca. She might not have my blood, but I loved her as my own.”
“He made us believe that Rebecca died. It was the only way to keep Howard away. All these years we thought she was dead.” Damian finally spoke again when it became clear that Howard couldn’t say anything else.
There was only silence for a few seconds, until Howard exploded. He reached forward and grabbed me, almost frantic in his actions.
“You have to find her. Please, Artemy. She won’t survive there. Not again. We have to save her. We have to find her. She…she…you…” Howard begged me, his breathing panicked.
My chest went tight, so tight that it was almost impossible to breathe. And the anger, it clawed at my body, laughing, taunting, shaking me, begging for release.
My fists shook as Howard stepped away when I didn’t answer him.
It was vicious cycle. Pain, suffering, and anger. It clouded us until we were blinded with it. But through it all, there was only one light.
Rebecca.
Standing up, I walked to the large panel window. Damian stood beside me, where he had been throughout the whole confrontation.
And then Brayden was beside me. Howard on Damian’s side. Avim next to Brayden. Leon beside Avim and Milandro right next to Leon.
A brotherhood.
Taking in a deep breath, I let it out slowly. When I spoke, my words rang with finality.
“I’m going to bring Rebecca home.”
Raffaele didn’t know what was coming for him. He may have taken my Angel away, but I was coming for her.
I may have been a monster. A killer. Heartless. Ruthless. But what was worse for Raffaele was that I was Rebecca’s monster.
I wouldn’t stop until I had delivered all their corpses at Rebecca’s feet. My blood roared with the need to seek vengeance against the men who caused Rebecca pain.
I would burn everything in my path to find her. It was the beginning of destruction. A bloodbath.
And I wasn’t going to stop looking. Not until I found my Angel.