Page 129 of Never Say Never

"No touching. Walk," he growled.

I gazed at the girls once more and the look in their eyes said they remembered our lessons. Each and every one. Duct tape wrapped around both me and Paul's wrists and another piece was slapped over our mouths. We stumbled as we were both shoved forward, our bare feet dragging over carpet and then the cool floor of the hallway. I stepped in something, nearly slipped and righted myself.

When I looked down, my throat constricted. Every guard that had been watching over us was dead. The pool of blood that circled Mtichel's head beared my footprint. His eyes were open, half of his head caved in. The feeling I felt was more than irritation, and I realized I was just as pissed for him. I'd only known our guards a little bit, but they had looked out for us, watched over the children. They all had families, lives, homes to go back to.

When I met Paolo's gaze, it was so dark; it was pitch black. As we stared at each other, it was as if we were on the exact same page. I wasn't normally a violent man, but they had pushed me to new heights.

I'm going to watch Paolo kill every last one of you. You'll be lucky if I don't join in.

No force on this Earth could stop me from extinguishing every single person who'd touched my family. Anger wasn't the emotion rolling in the pits of my stomach. No, that was too soft to describe the visceral indignation that sliced through my veins. If the world thought I was a monster before, they hadn't seen me when my family was being harmed.

The twins' light whimpers made my heart ache. It was one thing to drag me out to be killed, but my kids too?

"Stop with the crying." A thump followed.

I jerked around, trying to figure out exactly where it had come from. I knew the girls were behind us in the van, but after they placed the blindfold on us, I was left lacking. Navy and Nyra let out a scared yelp but shut their mouths. I tugged at the duct tape to no avail.

"They're just kids," York said.

He must have gotten the duct tape off.

The sound of flesh colliding rang in my ears. I whipped my head around, pissed at the darkness that greeted me. York's shoulder pressed against mine as he groaned.

I ripped mine off. "Are you okay?" I asked.

They're all dead.

Something heavy slammed into the back of my head, making me dizzy for a second. Still, I worried about York and the girls. As long as they were okay, I could handle anything.

"York?"

"Stop talking," one of the men said. I stopped caring who. They were nothing more than dead bodies I needed to dispose of.

"Fine, Paolo." York grunted before righting himself. He kept touching me. It was the only thing besides the girls in the van that kept me from flying off the handle.

Wherever we were going would be the final resting place. I swore I'd get York and the girls out and then I'd make sure every single person who dared threaten what was mine would meet their end. My resolve was unwavering.

The car slowed down, and I blew out an easy breath. "Don't say or do anything to attract their attention," I whispered to York. They were my only concern. "Let me handle it."

"Paolo—"

"Please. Voi tre siete la mia famiglia, il mio mondo."

"Stop talking." Another hit to the temple had me temporarily disoriented.

I sucked in a breath as the throbbing set in. The warm trickle of blood down my forehead was unmistakable.

"We're here. Get out now." They shoved at my shoulders, forcing me out of the van.

For a brief second, York's back pressed into my front. It was a small comfort but it was one I knew to take. The opportunities weren't likely to present themselves again. Rocks and fuck knows what else cut into the soles of my feet as I got out of the van. The brisk air slapped me, shoving away the concussion I no doubt had.

"Move it." The cool metal of a gun pressed between my shoulder blades. "One wrong move and the kids are dead."

"Keep threatening my girls and you won’t get the chance to use that gun, pussy," I shot back.

Laughter chorused around us but it was tight, almost forced. They knew I wasn't joking. I meant every word.

"Shut the fuck up. Vitales are nothing more than talk."