Page 10 of Stolen Compliance

The horrors I’m seeing… I know they only scratch the surface, but fuck. None of the Families we know would ever engage in this shit. I may not think much about the Amatos, but fuck, even I know they wouldn’t do this. If I get a chance to tell Allesandro about this, it’ll break his damn heart.

And Dominic’s harshness? The ease he kills someone? It’s pitiful. Fear is a powerful motivator, but there’s a proper way to do it. When Il Padrone wants to make an example of someone, he doesn’t just put a bullet in their head or hack off a hand messily. No, we round people up and make it fucking obvious why you don’t fuck with us.

Acid. Skinning. Sledgehammers. The fun shit. It doesn’t stop until people are vomiting. And then we make them clean up their own vomit. But whatever. Dominic can pretend he’s a badass. I know the truth.

Until you put a gun to your own head, or kill your own brother, those things matter. Foolish men running around because they can’t find trust, not knowing how relationships work, well, I’m shocked they’ve even lived this long.

And where is Sergio in all this? He’s supposed to be a Boss. What does he do every day?

Still, as we finally fucking pull into the palace, I’m ready to get away from this fucker. He makes my skin crawl. His inability to think, to see the truth… to honor those around him. It makes me sick. He plays the role of a Dom in a way, but a false one. The type who continually tries to prove he’s strong because he doesn’t know anything else.

I stop myself from taking a deep breath when we finally make it to the house. Hours near this asshole has me wishing for a shower in the worst way. Of course, when we walk into the house, it’s to find Teo lounging against the wall. What is it with these fuckers and walls?

I will say this… While Sergio isn’t much to look at, Teo has those sharp blue Martelli eyes. He’s not as bulky as Dominic, but his lanky frame doesn’t hide the power it contains. The main difference is his features are slightly more delicate. Likely taking after the maternal line. He’s hot, and it fucking irks me.

“You’re late,” Teo comments as he glances up from the phone he’s tapping on.

Dominic shrugs. “We ran into some problems. Plus…babysitting. He adds time to my day. There shouldn’t be anything else on the list.”

Teo snorts. “Of course not. But you really think the Boss would make Luca feel unwelcome on his first day of working with his best man? We’ve been invited to dinner.”

“You mean commanded,” Dominic retorts flatly. “I’m sure you and Luca here would have a great time, but you know, I think I need to go wash my hair or something.”

“If I have to go through with it, so do you,” Teo calls out as Dominic starts to walk away.

For a moment, I’m curious as to how Dominic will react. After all, he’s the Second. But Teo, he’s the heir.

Dominic freezes. There’s no other word for it. Fuck, the foyer may be covered in ice just from the “fuck you” vibes coming from the asshole. Suddenly, he turns and stalks toward Teo. Fuck, I’ll give it to Teo, all he does is lift his chin and wait.

Bam. The sound of Teo hitting the wall causes me to wince. Not in sympathy, but the sheer power of it… fuck. Teo doesn’t stay down, and I shake my head at the stupidity.

Dominic bares his teeth as he pushes Teo into the wall again, this time his knife comes out, pressing against Teo’s neck. There are no words. Hell, I’m not sure if anyone is even breathing. An explosion is intermittent, and at this point, I’m not sure which one I want to win.

“Enough!” A new voice enters the fray. “Fighting in front of a guest? Children are better behaved than the two of you.”

I move to look at the newcomer. It’s certainly not what I expected. She reminds me of a cross between a favorite ally of Ignacio’s and Dr. Ranlen. The tough as hell look of a gang leader, all while wearing the heels and professional suit of Dr. Ranlen.

She’s probably five-eight with the heels on; her hair is a cascade of red curls—and more the type of red found in a bottle than nature. Her dusky skin and upturned nose add a certain charm to it all. Hell, from the way she shut those two fuckers down, I’m curious if she’s got elven blood in her or some shit.

Grinning at me, she steps forward and holds out her hand. “I’m Kari. It’s nice to meet you.”

Given the way she’s staring at me, which is far too expectantly, I want to groan. Not another test. Fuck it. I shake her hand firmly. Il Padrone doesn’t believe women are weak, and neither do the rest of us.

“As I’m sure you know, I’m Luca Martelli,” I respond simply. I don’t add anything else, not knowing what secrets she holds or her position here. It’s becoming evident that Sergio held a lot of shit close to his vest. Which means I’m not just acting on bad intel… there’s fucking no intel.

With a throaty chuckle, she loops her arm in mine, sliding close enough to me that both men hiss behind me. She winks at me before holding up her middle finger. I stifle a smile, impressed with her style.

“Hmm, a Martelli, huh? I’d say that must make us relatives, but neither you nor I share a drop of blood, despite carrying the name.” She drops her hand that was giving the other two the finger and pats my arm that she’s still holding on. “Of course, that means we get to have far more fun.”

“It seems you have me at a disadvantage,” I say cautiously.

Huffing, she shakes her head, the swish of her curls drawing my attention. “It figures. Most people don’t know me. Papa keeps it all hush-hush. Of course, now Teo is here and can take over for him. I was never in consideration, of course, being a female and all. Do you have women on your side?”

“Uh, we have Dr. Ranlen. It isn’t quite possible for her to have a position similar to mine given the way Il Padrone…trains people. But anyone who misjudges Dr. Ranlen will find themselves on the wrong side of a scalpel—or even a pair of heels.”

“Ah, so you at least recognize the importance of women. I’m glad. Now, you’ve been playing with the boys all day, so I’m sure you’re tired. They’re very boring, aren’t they?”

My eyes widen, especially when Teo snickers. Fuck. How many traps does she want to lay down?