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Did that mean she was considering it? he wondered, his anger rising to dangerous levels. He risked a glance back and his shoulders relaxed. He dropped his hand from the handle, feeling less murderous. The look on Angela’s face was enough to flay the skin and muscle from Abel’s bones. It was clear she wanted nothing to do with the man.
When Angela turned and walked confidently from the room, leaving behind a hundred thousand dollars in clean money, he tracked her movements from screen to screen. His eyes narrowed, seeing the proud tilt to her head and the straight back. But there was something else. Something not quite right. His instincts were never wrong, and they were suddenly screaming at him that she wasn’t as put together as she appeared.
“Boss? You want the boys to stop her?” Alaric asked, glancing up.
Roman didn’t respond for a moment, weighing his options. He couldn’t afford to trust that she wouldn’t walk out of there and straight to the nearest police station. For one, she clearly hated his guts. But he had more important things at stake than mere business dealings or the chance of going to prison. He had many people that relied on him for their wages, their work, and their families. Plus, his baby brother was vulnerable right now and would continue to be for weeks. He really couldn’t risk all of that. But... he had a feeling he wouldn’t allow anyone to touch a single hair on her head. So, after some inventive swearing in Italian, he did the only thing he could.
“No. Tell the boys to stand down. Nobody is to touch her,” he ordered.
Roman smiled when she punched the button, glaring daggers at the camera. But his humor died quickly when he noted the fine shaking in her limbs and the tiny hitch in her breath. Her eyes changed for a moment, losing their hard-ass stare, and he got a glimpse of raw fear, anger, betrayal, and a pain so deep his own breath stalled. She was more than just the top-rated surgeon, born on the rich side of town, that Morrigan had discovered from her preliminary search. There was a world of hurt in her stunning green eyes. There was trauma. And damned if he didn’t want to find out why, so he could hunt down every motherfucker who had ever hurt her.
It was crazy. He was an Italian-Sicilian crime boss, so he was known for being emotionally charged. But the level of emotions the doctor stirred in him was just ridiculous. He had only briefly met her. And under truly shitty circumstances, at that. But it was the truth. When she told him she was done, just fucking done with everything, Roman felt the words reach down to his heart—down to his fucking soul—and rip him the fuck open. It sounded dramatic, but he didn’t know how else to describe it.
He went over to the control panel to activate the elevator himself, then watched unblinkingly as it carried her down all fifty floors. Only when she was out of his building did he leave the security room. He nodded his head to the two guards stationed outside the door. The room was manned by three of his people at all times. He had ordered the pair out earlier because four people in the enclosed space was pushing it. But he was satisfied to see them slip quickly back inside as he made his way to the stairs.
He swiftly walked down the one floor to the medical suite. He ignored Abel for a moment, instead heading directly over to where Luca was sleeping. The machines and tubes attached to his brother were hard to stomach, but Roman knew they were keeping him safe and comfortable. So, he did his best to ignore them as he placed his hand over Luca’s forehead. He felt warm but not feverish, and the beeping from the equipment was steady. Roman sighed, suddenly exhausted.
“He’s resting comfortably,” Salvatore said from Luca’s other side.
Roman nodded, his tongue stuck, no words forming. This was his baby brother. Luca and dozens of other people were Roman’s responsibility. They were his to protect, and he had failed.
“You didn’t fail anyone,” Salvatore said, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back in his chair.
Roman narrowed his eyes at his soon-to-be brother-in-law, his hand staying on Luca’s shoulder. “I didn’t say I did,” he answered gruffly.
Salvatore snorted, humor dancing in his eyes for the first time in days. “You didn’t have to. I can read you. This wasn’t your fault any more than it was mine. And you told me this wasn’t on me... remember?”
Roman said nothing. He had failed his brother once before. Failed in his promise to his mother on her deathbed. It burned his ass that he had allowed it to happen again.
Knowing Roman well, Salvatore simply shook his head and went back to stroking Luca’s arm gently. “What are you going to do about the doctor?” Sal asked. “She didn’t take the money. And Abel didn’t shoot her.”
* * *
“I couldn’t bring myself to do it,” Abel piped up from behind Roman. “I mean, waste that sexy body of hers? Not a chance.”
Roman spun around and pinned him with a cold look. “Don’t talk about her like that. And if I hear the word fuck and her name in the same sentence again from you, you’ll be shitting in a bag for the rest of your life.”
Abel looked taken aback for a moment, his eyebrows raising nearly all the way to his hairline before he smirked. “Are you staking a claim?”
“I’m not staking anything,” Roman refuted. “Unless it’s a real stake, and it’s through your annoying face.”
Abel snorted, sharing a knowing look with Salvatore. “You’re awfully defensive there, Roman. Did the good doctor get to you?”
Roman remained silent, running his tongue over his top teeth. He was gratified when Abel dropped his playfulness, recognizing the action for what it was—impending violence.
“What’s the plan, boss?” Abel asked somberly.
“Boss?” Roman rolled his eyes. Abel was included in a handful of people who had never called him boss. He must have looked really pissed off. “Nobody likes an ass-kisser, Abel.”
Abel shook his head, adopting the look of a kicked puppy. “Sheesh. A guy can’t win around here.”
Roman finally smiled. Abel was annoying as hell, but the lightness he brought to Roman’s world was very much needed. “Put some men on her,” he said. “Men you trust implicitly. I want her followed day and night until further notice. Make sure she doesn’t do anything stupid.”
“She won’t,” Salvatore said confidently. “I’m pretty sure that woman doesn’t have a stupid bone in her body.”
Roman agreed. Still, he had to be cautious. He had just allowed someone to walk out his front door who knew critical things about their lives and operation. Someone who hated them. He groaned. “I’m a fucking moron, aren’t I? She’s probably already at the cop shop spilling her guts.”
“I agree with Sal,” Abel said. “She won’t talk. She worked too hard to save Luca. She gives a shit about her patients. I can tell. She won’t do anything to jeopardize him.”
