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"Never, Aurelia." He presses his lips to mine, sealing his vow. But even then, my heart trembles with fear.
"I'm scared," I confess, my voice cracking with emotion.
"I know you are." His hand tightens around mine. "But we'll face this together, like we always have."
"Promise me again," I beg, tears welling in my eyes.
"I promise, Aurelia," he murmurs, cradling me in his arms. "I will always come back to you."
I cling to his words like a lifeline, praying to every God that might be listening that he's able to keep his promise. Because if he can't, I don't know how I'm supposed to survive it.
Chapter Thirteen
Mattia
The cold steel of my gun presses against the small of my back as I stand beside Rafe in the shadows outside of Elio Cascella's mansion. My heart pounds in a steady rhythm. I'm not afraid. I'm not anxious. I've never felt more fucking calm than I do right now.
Brio is somewhere inside those stone walls. So is vengeance. Other members of the family—Ricci, Angel, and Rafe's lieutenants are already combing through the Cascella family's territory, picking off high-ranking members of his inner circle.
Come sunrise, there won't be anyone left—just a chilling reminder of what happens when you come for our family. Not war, but complete fucking annihilation.
If Brio didn't want to pay the price, he shouldn't have started the fire. Rafe isn't going to let the threat stand. He can't. Showing weakness now means allowing seeds to grow. Others will try to follow in Brio's footsteps.
At least, they would have. Not now. After tonight's brutal reminder of what happens when you test the Valentino family, no one else will ever come for what belongs to us again.
"Everyone knows their roles?" Rafe asks, his obsidian eyes scanning each member of our group. Luca, Gabriel, Diego, Domani, and Coda are all here. So are half of Rafe's personal enforcers. Nico is at home guarding Aurelia, Norah, and Amalia. He isn't mafia. This isn't his fight.
"We do," I say, speaking for the collective group. The tension in the air is palpable. Every single one of us knows what we're here to do and what we stand to lose if we fail. We won't allow that to happen.
Every single one of us will die before we bend a knee to Brio Cascella.
Rafe nods, motioning Domani forward. It takes him and two of the enforcers all of five minutes to disable the gates, allowing us access to the property.
"Be careful," I murmur to Rafe as we pull our guns, preparing to slip through the gates.
He glances over at me, a dark, vicious smile on his face. "It's going to take more than Brio Fucking Cascella to kill me, motherfucker."
We stick to the shadows, creeping toward the mansion as silently as possible, doing everything we can to avoid being seen by Brio's guards and the security cameras. Aurelia's mother can't afford for us to be seen until we're inside. If we are, Brio may kill her simply to spite us.
He's that type of motherfucker.
The doors are in sight when a guard comes out of nowhere, locking eyes with Rafe.
"Shit," Gabriel hisses behind me.
Shock widens the man's eyes as he stares at the Capo. But Rafe doesn't give him time to react. He points his gun at his head and pulls the trigger. Brutal. Efficient. Cold.
The sound of the silenced shot is negligible.
Rafe catches the man before he hits the ground, easing him down.
Without a word, he steps over his body, glancing back at us as if to tell us to move our asses.
We move our asses.
Thirty seconds later, we pause, eyeing the doors. There's no one standing between us and them.
"Now or never," Diego mutters.
