Shirley
Earlier in the morning
I sit on the sofa, waiting and listening. I got tired of standing with my ear to the door with nothing happening. I was prepared, though. I’d moved the sofa with some difficulty closer to the door so I could be up quickly and startle them, maybe slash them across their face and make a run for it. I don’t know if I’ll make it, but I’m a Sorvino, and I’ll be damned if I don’t go down fighting.
Although a part of me can’t believe Pietro is behind this, at the same time, I’m not that surprised. Ettore was giving up everything his family had worked for because he wanted a quiet retirement and didn’t trust his sons, so Pietro retaliated.
It dawns on me that he’s probably orchestrated all the attacks around the city against the two families. I know everyone is worried about the power Alessandro and Ivan wield, but I wouldn’t expect a family as small as the Pachecos to form an attack. Clearly, they attacked Ettore to get him out of the way before any deals could be signed.
No. I’ve heard people speak about Pietro and seen him at events. This is too out there for him. He’s too meek, too much of a follower. Ettore was right. His sons cannot lead the family because they aren’t suited to be leaders.
There’s something more to the story that I’m missing, and I don’t like it. That’s when I hear voices. They’re close, but I have to go to the door to hear what they are saying. From the couch, one voice sounds familiar, but I can’t place it. Now that I can hear two men speaking, I recognize the voices perfectly.
It’s Pietro.
With Mikhail.
Evgenii was right all along. Mikhail is behind everything, and honestly, it makes the most sense. Mikhail is a cunning leader who would use anyone as a pawn to get what he wants.
I listen carefully, they’re not close, but I can make out what they’re saying if I don’t breathe too loudly.
“What if the Sorvino or Volkov families retaliate? What would we do? We don’t have the manpower or arms to defend ourselves. We’re a drug-orientated family, not weapons. I feel like we’ve made a mistake.” I smirk and think, yes, you have Pietro.
Mikhail chuckles. “You stress too much, Pietro. I have a simple plan that will ensure that the families don’t retaliate. Shirley will marry me, which will tie our families through marriage. They’re Catholic. They don’t cross those lines. The problem with those two is that they are old school and follow the ridiculous honor codes laid out by the ancestors who smuggled their families into this great nation.”
I glower because, firstly, not a fuck am I marrying this asshole, and secondly, he does not get to talk about the head of my family that way.
It’s quiet momentarily, and then Pietro says, “I don’t think that will work. They’ll bump you off and consider it a win. I don’t think you’ve thought this through, Mikhail.”
I can hear their voices getting closer as they talk, Mikhail reassuring Pietro, and I hide behind the door. The door opens, and a beautifully dressed woman walks in carrying a tray. She pauses when she sees the sofa has moved closer to the door. I lunge and grab her from behind, holding the shard to her throat.
She screams, and I press the glass into her throat. “Shut up. I will slit your throat right here, right now.”
She whimpers, and I turn her around as guards rush into the room, pointing their guns at me. I glare at them. “Get out. Back right up outside the hallway where I can see, or she dies.”
She’s clearly someone important, maybe a wife or sister because the guards keep their guns on me but back up.
“If anyone tries anything, I just slit her throat. I don’t care,” I shout, guiding the woman out of the room.
The guards continue to back up as I slowly move forward until I see the stairs. Mikhail appears from around the corner and holds up his hands.
“Shirley, let her go.”
“Why? Is she Pietro’s sister? Is he worried I’ll hurt his family?” I’m being snarky.
Mikhail lowers his hands. “His wife, actually. Come now, we don’t want to fight with you. We didn’t bring you here to hurt you, not at all. In fact, I have a brilliant business proposition for you and your families, and I think if we can just sit down and work out all the details, you’ll see how advantageous it is to everyone.”
I give a short laugh. “Not a fuck. I know what your plan is, and I’m not marrying you, Mikhail. I won’t betray my family. There’s nothing you can offer after what you’ve done that will keep peace in New York. Not even my life.”
It was a mistake to focus on him. I don’t see the movement out of the corner of my eye until it is too late, and the guard grabs me. I release the woman and spin around, slashing through the guard’s face. Blood splatters all over me, the floor, and the walls. In the chaos, I run down the hallway, pushing through the surprised guards. Yup, I did that. Women can get ass as well.
The only one who isn’t surprised is Mikhail, who catches me by the arm and throws me against the wall. I hit it hard with my back and head, and instinctively, my hands fly to my belly to protect it from any blows.
Mikhail stares at me and then laughs. “Oh, you are fucking kidding me.”
He shakes his head. “I’m kind of disappointed. I didn’t think you’d fuck him again. Clearly, you are a sucker for punishment if you’re willing to have his child.”
I ooze anger, and I narrow my eyes. “Let me go before he burns down the world to kill you.”
Mikhail grabs my throat and pushes me against the wall. “Why would I do that? The second in command of the most powerful Russian family in New York won’t dare touch me if I have a gun to the head of the woman carrying his child.”
I shake my head, my hands scratching at the hand holding my throat. I try to kick out at him, but using his free hand, he slaps me. It stings, but I return my angry glare at him, trying to get him to let me go. “You’re choking me. I’m no use to you dead.”
“That’s the first sensible thing you’ve said since we’ve brought you in.” He lightens the pressure around my neck.
I am tempted to spit in his face, but my thoughts are on my tiny sesame seed. I don’t want to miscarry. This situation has just cemented how much I want my child.
He lets go of me completely. “If you move, I’ll rip that little Russian bastard out of you through your stomach.”
I believe him, and I sniff. I won’t cry. I won’t give him that satisfaction. I’ve been taken before, and he doesn’t fucking scare me. In fact, I smile evilly. Mikhail looks taken aback and says to me, “What are you smiling for?”
“You understand who I am, right?” I say.
“You’re the little orphan that the Sorvino family took pity on,” his remark is snide.
I shake my head. “I’m not like Alessandro’s sister. I am his sister. He considers me his family, blood or not. I’m also in charge of the Sorvino family’s West Coast territories. No, I don’t help,” my smile broadens. “My brother works under me. I apparently have a business mind. Also, the man whose child I’m carrying may seem old or soft or whatever you think. But I know something you don’t.”
I see a flash of emotion in Mikhail’s eyes. I’m not sure if it’s fear or irritation, but I continue, “He’s wanted by eight international agencies for crimes against humanity, but no one in their right mind would take him in.
He is second in command of America’s most powerful Russian family.”
Mikhail snorts, “Spare me the accolades.”
I shake my head. “You attacked two fucking powerful families and pissed off their ruthless leaders, siblings, and cousins. You’ve also pissed me off. Be careful how you treat me, Mikhail, because I know for a fact they will find you here or anywhere you hide me. They will find you and the only thing that will spare your life is if I intervene.”
He smirks, but as he’s about to respond, there’s an explosion downstairs, but outside. The mansion rocks, and we hold our hands out to steady ourselves.
Mikhail looks at me, his eyes wide, and that’s definitely fear.
“I told you,” I say smugly. “Don’t touch what isn’t yours.”
“Well, at least I have a safety net,” he growls. He grabs me by my hair and uses me to shield himself. I wince as he yanks my hair but pulls out a gun, forcing me to walk forward and down the stairs, his gun stabbing into my side.
“We’re getting out of here, and maybe you will survive this,” he hisses in my ear. “Maybe you don’t. The only thing standing between you and your death is my decision, so I would be careful how brazen you’re feeling.”
We make it down the stairs, and then he drags me. I cry out as he pulls me along and out the back door of the kitchen.
Evgenii
I walk straight up to the door as gunfire rains down from the various guards at the windows of the mansion. I walk right up to the front door and kick it with all my strength, raising the guns in my hand as it flies open, and I start killing everyone I can see.
Alessandro and three other guards come in with me and start taking out the guards on the ground floor. There are more rushing to help, but more of our men enter. Some are circling the house to trap everyone in the place.
“Shirley?” I shout over the gunfire, hoping she can hear me. My foot is on the first step of the staircase when I hear a distant shriek,
“Evgenii.”
It’s from downstairs, so I hurry to where I thought it came from. “Shirley?”
“Fuck you,” I hear Mikhail shout, I’m guessing he tried to cover Shirley’s mouth, and she bit him.
“Evgenii,” she shrieks again. “Out back.”
I run, not sure what I’m going to run into, but I have to get to her before Mikhail does something terrible to her. I find the kitchen and see the open back door. I run to it, glancing out to see what guards are out there and if I can see where Shirley is so I don’t accidentally shoot her.
I don’t see any guards, our men have probably preoccupied them, but I see Mikhail trying to push Shirley roughly into an idling car. I step outside, my guns trained on him.
“Give it up, Mikhail,” I shout, walking purposefully toward him. “It’s over.”
He points the gun at Shirley and smirks. “Put your gun down, or I’ll kill her.”
He has me there. I see Shirley look at me and nod, and I slowly lower my gun with a smile.
Mikhail snorts, “Idiot.”
He moves to point the gun in my direction and shoot, but as soon as his guard is down, Shirley kicks him in the crotch, grabs his arm, and hits his elbow up so that he loses grip of the gun. She grabs the gun and shoots him in the leg.
Mikhail screams, looking up at Shirley with desperation in his eyes.
She inclines her head to the right. “I told you how this would end.”
Before he can protest, I watch her shoot him in the head without hesitation. I quickly make my way over to her, gather her in my arms, and gently lower her to the ground. “Stay low so you don’t get shot. You’re going to follow me, okay? I’m going to get you out of here safely.”
She nods, and I take her hand. “Stay low.” I know I’m repeating myself, but I need to ensure her safety.
As we crouch and walk our way around the side of the house, we hear tires squealing, and a car comes tearing out from the back garage. We watch it as it drives past, and Shirley looks at me. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
“Do you have to tell me right now?” I ask, looking around.
“Yes,” she says with a frown. “Because it’s fucking ridiculous that the brother behind this is Pietro, not the eldest.”
I look at her, surprised. “Well, I suppose he was the easiest to manipulate. Now, if you don’t mind, we have a situation here.”
I raise my gun and shoot one of the Pacheco men in the head as he comes around the corner.
We manage to sneak past the rest of the war without any more hindrance and get Shirley into one of our vehicles. There’s a moment, just a moment, as we look at each other. I kiss her deeply. I thought I was going to lose her, and I swear from now on, I’ll kiss her like every moment is our last.
When we part, she buckles up, and I start the car and race towards the exit of the property that we blew up. I dial Ivan once we’re a distance away.
“Alessandro says he saw you got her out,” Ivan says without greeting me. “Are you satisfied?”
I swallow. “She’s fine. They took more losses, I think.”
“Who was there?” he asks. I hear glass clinking and know he’s having a celebratory shot.
“Shirley says the culprits were Mikhail along with Pietro Pacheco. Shirley dusted Mikhail, and Pietro got away in a vehicle,” I explain as I glance at Shirley. She’s closed her eyes, and it looks like she’s trying to relax.
“Take her back to Alessandro’s house. Their doctor is waiting to look her over. Let me know if there are any problems.”
He hangs up, and we drive back home in silence.
Once Shirley is in her room, an elderly doctor comes in. I hesitate because I want to know if the baby is okay, but she doesn’t know I know. I decide to step out as he checks her over to give her privacy. It feels like a lifetime, and the Sorvinos and Volkovs gather outside the room, waiting for the news. Thankfully it’s a wide hallway.
When the door opens, we all stand straight. “And?” Alessandro asks.
“Everything is perfectly fine.” He smiles. “A true Sorvino.”
I hurry into the room, and I’m surprised no one follows me. Instead, I see Alessandro reach in, clutching the door handle, and shut the door, giving us a moment. I’m grateful for that.
I go to Shirley’s bed and sit on the edge. She turns her head to look at me. “Thanks for saving me.”
“I think you would have saved yourself just fine,” I joke. I clasp my hands in front of me, my elbows on my legs so I can lean forward. After a moment, I speak, “Why didn’t you tell me about our baby?”
Instantly, her whole demeanor changes, and I can practically feel the cold rolling off her like a snowstorm. “Because it doesn’t matter,” she says matter-of-factly, “Because I don’t want you near us.”
I frown. “Jokes aside, I just saved you, and that’s how you feel?”
“We’re even,” she says. “You broke me, and you saved me, and I now forgive you for what you did. But I don’t want anything to do with you going forward.”
My world crashes around me. Mikhail might as well have killed her because I have lost her. I get up and leave the room without a word. I don’t trust my voice not to crack.
I go downstairs, where I can hear several people talking. I walk into Alessandro’s study, where family members are scattered around in armchairs. As I walk in, Frankie is speaking, “We need to do something about Pietro. We should hunt him down and make him pay.”
“That could cause war,” Dominic says. “We should see if Ettore survives first.”
“I wouldn’t mind killing him in person,” Ivan says calmly, but Alessandro shakes his head. “No. We should speak to his older brother. He must make a decision.”
“Excuse me, sir,” Aleks says from the door. “Don Pacheco and guests are at the front door. They want to see you.”
Alessandro nods. “Bring him in.”
Dominic nods. “Man’s tough,” he mutters, going to stand guard by Alessandro. I move closer to Ivan, my hand on my gun.
Ettore is brought into the room, sitting in a wheelchair with an oxygen mask on. He removes the mask and shakily speaks, “I apologize to both the Sorvino and Volkov families for my son’s stupidity.” He puts the mask over his mouth to breathe and motions behind him. His guards drag Pietro into the room. He removes the mask again. “He has betrayed his own family. I give him to you as payment for the inconvenience caused and ask that we remain on peaceful terms.”
You could hear a pin drop in the room, and I am amazed. No family gives up a son like that. It’s been rumored as the thing to do, but no family has ever done it. Ettore is extremely traditional in doing this.
Everyone looks at the door as Shirley slowly walks in. I look away from her. It hurts too much to look at her and be reminded of what I’ve lost.
Instead, I look at Ivan, who meets my eyes and then gestures toward
Pietro with his hand. “Deal with him, now or later.”
I nod and walk up to Pietro, who starts whinging against the tape over his mouth, tears streaming from his face. I shake my head. “Pathetic.” I pull my gun and shoot him in the center of the forehead before I return to Ivan.
Alessandro gestures to Ettore. “Can we get you anything, Don
Pacheco?”
He shakes his head and removes the mask again to speak, “I will consider proposals only from your families. We will meet tomorrow to settle who gets my territory. My eldest has already sworn to be loyal to whoever takes over.”
Alessandro nods. “Thank you, Don. We appreciate you taking the time out while you are still recovering from your betrayal. It isn’t easy when it’s family, especially your own child. You have our families’ sympathies, and if you wish to bury the body, you are welcome to take it now.”
Ettore nods. “Thank you.” He motions to his guards, who pick up Pietro’s lifeless body, and I sigh softly. Ivan looks at me, and I nod. “I should check on operations.”
Ivan nods, and I walk out without a glance at anyone, my head up high and straight.