The rest of the trip went in perfect silence. I dozed off a few times, while Lucas leaned on the backrest of the sofa, keeping his posture unchanged all along, knees flexed and left arm on his stomach, right one over his eyes.

I hate this tension between us. We've shared good and bad, we've faced death both of us, we've gone through thick and thin and beyond our powers for the woman we've both loved at that time.

He won, I gave up. Becks was never mine anyway, but Lucas and I... we've created a bond stronger than sharing the same blood.

I shot a fucking bullet in the head of Salvatore, my own brother, and he saw that. And I did that because I knew that a dead Lucas would be the end of Becks and I rather saw her away from me than broken.

Salvatore was lost anyway. He shot me that night like I was not his blood and flesh, and I was sure he would have shot anybody standing in his way.

I had my personal vendetta with my brother. His weakness and blackmail gave me no choice but to accept to be a Don, the only one thing I never wanted.

I'm keeping my eyes closed for the past one hour. I don't want to open them because if I do the shape of my beautiful Eve will disappear.

Eve smiling the world back at me, Eve dancing like a mermaid swimming in the sea, Eve blushing when I mess her insides, Eve kissing the life out of me, Eve coming undone under me, her green eyes shining like emeralds, Eve telling me she loves me, filling this old fucked up heart of mine with glory as if I've conquered the world.

I don't know if I'm sleeping or I'm awake when the flight attendant announces our landing and I glare at Lucas, waiting for him to wake up but he doesn't move so I stand up and shake his arm lightly.

"Lucas... Come on, wake up, bro. We're landing," I tell him, and he sighs deeply, coming around from his sleep.

He sits up and pushes my hand away.

"Don't touch me," he mumbles, running his hands over his face, and pushing the sleep away.

"Get over it, Lucas," I scold him.

"Fuck you!" he replies, not very convinced.

"Fuck you too, brother," I pay him back and our eyes meet, glued to each other's faces, and there, right there, I see the brother I've always had in him.

"Come on, buckle up. We have a long day ahead," I continue, and I take my own seat, fasting my seatbelt.

We land soon after, three black SUVs waiting for us on the runaway with Alex welcoming us.

"Brother..." he greets, hugging me strongly and patting my back. Then he shakes hands with Lucas next.

"Alex, this Lucas Tate, the..." I make the introductions but I'm proved there's no need.

"Lucas Tate, I know who you are. It's a pleasure to meet you," Alex interrupts me, speaking confidently in the purest Irish accent.

"Likewise," Lucas replies.

"Talk to me, Alex," I say when we get in the cars and leave the airport.

"Alright. Now, they've landed a couple of hours ago in Rome then..." he starts.

"They...?" I frown my eyebrows and lock my eyes with Alex.

"That would be Jason, Benito," Lucas clears the air for me and I feel how gradually the hair on the back of my neck stands up and my temples throb in anger.

Fucking kid is good, I have to admit. He has taken Eve away right from under my nose.

Alex presses his lips in a thin line and stares back at me while I nod, asking him to continue.

"So, two hours later they took a second flight to Palermo," he continues.

"Feli..." I mumble and my blood rushes in heat to my brain.

I spoke to her. I fucking spoke to her a few hours before I knew Eve left and she didn't say a fucking word.

"Exactly!" Alex nods. "We have four guys at Palermo airport and ten around the house of Feli and Massimo. They don't know about it, of course."

"They landed," Lucas says, typing on his phone, which is the only thing he has been doing since getting off the flight.

I stare at him still amazed at how life has brought us back to the point of bad blood between us, useless, from my point of view because the bad blood is only his stubbornness.

Alex's phone buzzes with a message.

"Right. They are on the move. She is secured now," Alex says and I press my lips in a thin line, scratching my jaws hard and adjusting the stiff collar of the shirt, choking me.

I should be there. My eyes should be the ones watching, protecting. My arms should be the ones holding her, scooping her, and hiding her to my chest.

"Mansion or the warehouse?" Alex asks.

"Warehouse. We need to gather the men there, and Mario says he has something for me. Lucas, I'm sending you the address. I want my men to work together with yours, got that?" I say coldly, thinking I might face another tantrum from his side, but luckily he doesn't say a word.

I need to have this finished before the shit hits the fan.

I pull my phone out and send Lucas the address of the warehouse, and then I dial Feli, fuming.

"Enzo, caro, come stai?" she says in a cheerful voice, picking up the call after just one ring. (Enzo, darling, how are you?)

"Bene. Bene. E tu? Tutto bene?" I ask, without giving her any other details. (Good. Good. And you? Everything good?)

"Si. Ovviamente. Bellissimo. Perche?" she asks and here it is.

I feel the tension in her voice, and I know she has Eve with her. I know Feli better than I know myself. (Yes. Of course. Everything is good. Why?)

"Senti, stanno succedendo delle cose e ... Potrei mandare delle guardee a casa tua. Nel caso in cui..." I tell her. (Look, some things are happening and... I might send some guards to your house. Just in case...)

I don't want to disclose the fact that I know about Eve being there. Not yet. But Feli is smart, and she will know what to do in case they get there before we do.

And I was right.

"Va bene. Capisco. Lo dirò a Massimo e saremo pronti. Ciao, caro," she says and hangs up. (Okay. I understand. I'll tell Massimo, and we'll be ready. Bye, darling).

"Is she there?" Lucas asks when I hang up the phone.

"Yeah. She's there. Everything is settled. Don't worry," I reply without gracing him any look.

"Hm," he hums, pressing his lips into a thin line, and we all keep silent for the rest of the drive.

I walk huge leaps to the entrance of the warehouse with Lucas on my heels and followed by Alex, and the rest of the guys take their spots, guarding the place.

"Don Vincenzo," the guard from the door greets me with a nod, opening the door for me and I bend my head, walking in.

"Enzo, welcome," Mario greets me, limping against a cane.

"Mario, what are you doing here? You're supposed to rest," I say while hugging him manly.

"Well, I have a surprise for you," he says, and stepping aside I see the two guards I've left at Eve's apartment in NY, tied up to some steel chairs, their faces black and blue, blood dripping from everywhere.

I shove my hands in the pockets of my pants, sauntering towards them and breathing deeply just to release the air in a slow blow.

Lucas takes a seat on the sofa behind me, and Mario gives him a whiskey, sitting next to him as if preparing for a fucking show.

Well, it is a fucking show! For the first time, I seem to enjoy breaking bones and skinning flesh because this is what I'm going to do.

I walk behind one of them, bending over till I'm close to his ear.

"Head up," I hiss, and the motherfucker lifts his face, looking straight at Lucas and Mario.

"Do you see the guy over there?" I ask him, but he keeps silent. "He's a father. And his daughter is the one you've spied on for your boss. Now, tell him who your boss is," I whisper to him at a deadly slow pace.

"Fuck you! I'm not telling you shit!" he mumbles. Pretty sure he's missing some teeth.

I pull my right hand out of the pocket and grab my gun, shooting his buddy next to him in the head.

He jerks lightly at the sound of the gun unloading.

"Now, that has been easy for him, although I don't do mercy," I say, putting my gun back in the holder around my shoulders and I moved my hand to one of my guys who brings me my leather gloves.

"Buddy... I hate to do this. I hate guns, I hate breaking bones, I hate torturing people. Fuck, I hate blood," I speak menacing and I don't lie.

I've never wanted this life despite that, I'm living it every fucking day of my life.

"So, what I'm going to do to you is triple. The fastest you talk, the less you'll make me hate myself. You don't talk, I'll be pissed, first because you don't talk, second because you've made me waste a bullet tonight, third because you've made me hate myself," I continue and walk around, crouching in front of him and inching my face to his, nose to nose, smelling the iron of his blood.

I lift my hand, waiting for my first tool.

"There is something I like, though. Numbers. Hell, I've used to be the best in math, but my favorite is counting, 1,2,3," I spell the words slowly.

"Who is your boss? One. Two. Three," I ask again, and getting no answer I thrust the iron tool into his knee while he shouts his lungs out, his leg shaking in pain.

When he stops shouting, I twist the iron bar and dig some more.

"I've told you I enjoy counting. Let's try again," I say, lifting my hand for the other iron bar. "Who. Is. Your. Boss? One, two...," I lift my hand, holding the tool pointed to his other knee.

"Valentini!" he shouts before I reach three. "Pedro Valentini," he mumbles and starts crying like a fucking chicken shit he is.

"Where is he now?" I ask calmly.

"The warehouse... at the docks," he replies, crying like a baby.

I press my lips in a thin line, looking unsurprised while I stand up, pinching the bridge of my nose.

Pulling my gun out, I discharge the first bullet right between his eyes and the rest to wherever they aim, unloading it completely.

"That's for breathing the same air with my girl, you fucking piece of shit," I spit at him, placing my gun back in its holder and peeling the gloves off.

"Clean up," I order one of my men and walk to Lucas and Mario who hands me a glass of whiskey that I throw down my throat with one quick move of my hand.

Fuck, I hate this! I catch Lucas' stare from the corner of my eye. I'm breathing heavily, the alcohol burning my inside all the way down to my stomach.

"I'm sorry, brother," Lucas says knowing that every time I kill, I rot in my guilts for days.

"I want the blueprints of the place by tomorrow morning," I tell Mario and make my way out, walking back to the cars and taking my seat in the back of the first SUV, rubbing my hands on my face.

I'm tired. I'm so fucking tired of this life I have.

Moments later Lucas gets in next to me and we move out of the premises towards my mansion.

My phone buzzes and I get a text message followed by five pictures of Eve in the house of my sister. I've ordered pictures every two hours. I want to make sure my men are watching, and their eyes are on her at all times.

She seems to be speaking with Feli in the first one, sitting on the patio. It must be something funny because she's laughing, her beautiful laughter.

She looks happy, careless, and I'm fucking crumbling because she's that happy without me. Or at least that's how I see it.

I lock the screen and put the phone back in my inside pocket, looking out the window, debating if I should go to her or not yet.

I wish I can, but I need to solve Valentini's matter first and this time it's going to be for good. I'm sick of their constant vendetta for something they don't even have the right to. And Pedro Valentini... how the fuck has he escaped when I've hit them years back? Shit, they are like rats!

Once arrived at my mansion, I tell Alex he needs to stick around with his men. There is space enough for everyone.

I ask one maid to show Lucas his room and announce dinner at 7 pm.

It was quiet, a too quiet dinner, and it gave me the chance to daydream of how cheerful this dinner would have been if Eve was here.

I retire to the office immediately after dinner, alone, with Lucas invoking a deep need for sleep, and Alex wishing to visit his woman.

I get rid of the necktie and open the top buttons of my shirt, walking deeper into the office after fixing myself a glass of whiskey and sitting on the leather sofa, jacket off and sleeves rolled to my elbows, I lit myself a cigarette, leaned on the backrest, scrolling through the pictures of Eve that I've received today.

And I must have fallen asleep like that, her face is the last thing I see before sleep takes me over, because her face is the first thing I see when I open my eyes.

She's hovering above me, the fair skin of her face is shining, black curls are rounding her cheeks like a curtain, her eyes are filled with joy, and her lips are stretched in that gorgeous smile that has always made me skip a heartbeat.

Her lips mouth, 'I love you' and I lift my hand to cup her cheek.

*****
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