Mafia's Devil part 29

KARINE

My heart pounds along with my feet as I run out of the diner and into the bitter embrace of the cold.

In my rush, I slip on an icy part of the sidewalk. I fall on a pile a snow and turn rapidly to see if Luciano is catching up to me. He’s not there. Not near me, or even in the distance. Every fibre in my being knows that he wouldn’t let me go, which is why I’m shocked to not see him behind me.

Was his fall so great that he’s writhing in pain on the floor? That must be it. Luciano is the most athletic man I know, but he’s not immune to gravity. He must have gotten badly injured by the landing.

Guilt eats at me. Should I go back and help him?

Hearing footsteps come from behind me, I snap to attention. “Are you alright, miss?” an officer asks me.

Great. Of all people, it’s the police.

“Uh, yeah. I just slipped on the ice.”

He offers me a hand, and I take it just to avoid suspicion. The authority is the last thing I need added to the equation.

Once I’m back on my feet, I smile.

“It’s awfully cold. Where is your coat?” he asks.

“Left it in my car,” I lie quickly. “I just ran to the store quickly. Thank you for your help, but I should get going.”

I walk away without waiting for a reply, turning the first corner I find to vanish from sight. I have nowhere to go, so I walk until I find a convenience store.

“Hey,” I tell the woman behind the counter. I reach for my left ear and remove a diamond stud. “This is about five-hundred dollars. Can I trade it for your coat?”

She raises an eyebrow.

“I’m not lying to you. It’s worth the risk, trust me.” I fight the urge to shake from the cold, wanting to look as confident as possible.

“Fine girl.”

I drop the earring on the counter and wonder where Luciano’s engagement ring is. There’s a noticeable absence on my finger now that I’m not wearing it.

The woman picks her coat off the back of her seat and passes it to me.

“This better be worth it.”

“It is,” I assure. “You hit the lotto today.”

The coat is large on me. It engulfs me and makes me think of how Luciano’s embrace does the same.

I wring my fingers and stare outside. It’s snowing, but no amount of snow will cool him off. He must be fuming.

This is how we both knew things would end— with some sort of pain. He knew what he was signing up for by kidnapping me as if he’s a spoiled toddler and I’m a cookie in a jar.

Logically, I know I’m not doing anything wrong by leaving him in the dust. This guilt makes no sense, because I have a right to be free.

I want to— no, I need to go home. My family is worried about me. Luciano is a titan of a bully who can take care of himself.

“Hey, can I ask for something else?”

The woman lifts her gaze from the earring she had been studying.

“What is it?”

“Can I borrow your phone?”

One call, and this would all be over. I’d get picked up and safely transferred home, where I would be monitored and kept a world away from Luciano.

I think of the digits and reach for the phone.

— LUCIANO —

Right now, I’m a very unhappy man.

Karine is long gone. As I tumbled down a flight of stairs and nearly cracked my head open against the wall, she ran away.

Not much damage was done to my body, other than my temper catching fire.

How dare she?

She ran off into the cold without proper clothing. Her attack didn’t surprised me because I’m used to her rebellion, but she has no business putting herself at risk of the elements or other selfish bastards that might come across her and are tempted to kidnap her, too.

Karine is a magnet, pulling men left and right. There’s no ring on her finger or my menacing face beside her to ward criminals off.

When I fell down the steps, I instantly stood up to chase her. The manager and three staff members surrounded me and began heckling questions. They offered to call an ambulance or the cops. I had to make sure no unnecessary calls were made, but that took time; Time that Karine used to run off.

Now I stand outside the diner, arms crossed and face scowling as I think of a plan. There’s no way she made it out of this town yet. She’s on foot and crippled by cramps. Those little legs of hers can’t even carry her over a pile of snow. She needs me to lift her around.

She knows better than to call the cops or hitchhike. No. Her only way out of here is by calling her dear cousin and my moral enemy, Maksim.

This isn’t over. I’m not rolling onto my back, belly up like a coward, and admitting defeat. The only thing I’m caving into is this attraction of ours. I’ll get Karine back, and glue the engagement ring onto her if I have to.

First, I’ll have to make a few calls. My army is back in the states. I’d have to wait hours for them to land up here. On top of that, they’d be racing against Maksim’s men, who will also haul ass up here to reach Karine.

My best bet is to use an ally’s resources. There are plenty of capos up here. After all, drugs rule the world and mafias are needed to carry them from South America onto the North.

The Irish rule this section of Canada. They know I’m in their territory by now, but they know better than to question my presence or tip Maksim. That would not please me, and my empire is so much larger than theirs that I could crush them as easily as a fistful of snow.

I’ll have to call and borrow their resources to find Karine, and offer them something in return. Although I hate being indebted, it’s a price I’m ready to pay to get my woman back.

I lick my lips, and I swear I still taste her pussy. Next time I have her, I'm going to devour her until she can’t walk— period or not. A little red won’t get in my way.

People walk around, glancing at me. It’s nothing new to me. A figure cloaked in a heavy coat appears up the snowy hill. I recognize her hair instantly. It’s Karine. She’s headed right for me.

My shoulders relax. I hadn’t even noticed that her absence made them hulk.

I don’t know why she’s returning to my side, but it saved us both plenty of time and energy because I was absolutely going to get her back.

I stand still, but my eyes refuse to leave her. I want to throttle and hug her all at once.

She stops a few feet from me and looks at my legs. “Are you okay?”

“You’re back,” I state the obvious.

She crosses her arms over her chest, the huge beige coat she wears restricting the motion.

“I felt bad for hurting you. I had to check in on you.”

She felt bad?

Something clicks in my mind. I can capitalize on this situation.

"I’m fine. My ankle is heavily sprained and my arm bruised, but I will survive.”

“Your arm?” she frowns.

“Yes. Your father shot me, remember? The graze is still healing.”

Her little hands cup her mouth. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to push you down the steps. I just wanted to get away. Can you walk?”

She walks to my side and embraces my left arm. I internally grin like the manipulative ass I am.

“Do you need help to get back into the car?” she asks, her enormous eyes looking at me with melted worry.

“Yes.”

No. I could beat every man in this town to a pulp, but she doesn’t need to know that.

“Let’s go back to the motel,” she offers. “I’ll… um. I’ll take care of you.”

Had I known that all I needed to do to get her attention was break a leg, I would have jumped out of my own helicopter long ago.

“Alright. Let’s go.” I fake a limp, and poor little Karine does her best to support as much of my weight as she can. It’s not much, but it’s… cute.

I’m going to milk this situation for all it’s worth.