Kat POVI felt as if someone had tipped a bucket of ice cold water over my head, instantly cooling the flames of desire which had captivated me just moments ago. I dropped Enzo’s hand as if he had burned me, and walked toward Fabio and Giulia. “Why?” I heard myself asking, but I already knew the answer. Fabio had been seen being intimate with the enemy, and had been disciplined for that. The hypocritical bastard had ordered that Fabio be beaten, while he freely toyed with me - and I was as much an enemy to the Castellos as Giulia was. The beaten man’s face had become nothing more than a pool of blood, his lip split in multiple places, his nose broken and his eyes already swelling shut. From the way he stood clutching his side, I was sure he had cracked a few ribs too. I glanced from Eli to Enzo, catching the look which passed between them as if they were having a silent conversation. In a heartbeat, Enzo moved to Eli’s side and was handed a handgun, which he cocked. Giulia screame
Kat POVI didn’t go back to Mother’s house. The thought of seeing that terrifying woman in a rage after learning that her favourite prostitute had run away sent a shiver down my spine. The events of the evening spiralled in my mind, and I knew that I wouldn’t be able to sleep anyway. I changed into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt that Giulia had left in Fabio’s apartment, using a hairpin to clip the waistband tighter so that the pants wouldn’t fall down around my ankles as I walked. “The last thing I have left of her,” I sighed, running my hand over the slightly baggy shirt. I glanced around Fabio’s flat before I closed and locked the door behind me, pocketing the key. The flat was Castello’s property, so I would have to give the key back to Enzo when I had managed to sell the furniture - not that I was in a hurry to see the man again. In fact, if Fabio and Giulia hadn’t needed the money desperately, I would have told each piece off at leisure, just to inconvenience Enzo.I sighed a
Kat POV“It’s done,” I announced as I shut the door to Enzo’s hotel room behind me with a bang. Enzo and Eli jumped, looking up from a piece of paper they were inspecting on the desk. Eli looked a bit uncomfortable and picked up the paper, folding it and slipping it into his pocket before he made a rather smooth yet hasty retreat out of the room. “I’ve delivered the blasted envelope, now give me the next one and I will leave,” I said coldly, still furious at Castello for the whole Fabio fiasco. He sighed, running his hand through his hair as he watched me. His face seemed to be marred by the signs of a sleepless night, and I wondered if I looked as bad as he did. I had crept into the house in the early hours of the morning to change my clothes, and left as quickly as I could without being seen by anyone. From there, I snuck into the house of Milano's most terrifying enforcer to deliver the blasted envelope. The man was built like a tank, fueled by steroids and the blood of innocen
Kat POV“Sofia is too soft on you girls,” he roared as he pulled his belt from his pants, cracking it like a whip. “I’m going to teach you your place, once and for all. No one betrays me!” I felt the buckle of the belt hit my cheek, causing me to cry out as my vision blurred from the pain. He raised the belt again and I shielded my face with my hands, only to have the buckle slam into my forearm. “I am your master, you worthless bitch,” he screamed, pulling me away from the wall to kiss me hard, his lips bruising mine as he grabbed my breast painfully. His hands grabbed at my shirt, tearing it down the front as his eyes devoured my chest hungrily. Milano licked his lips pushing me back against the wall, my head slamming back against the bare bricks as he undid the button of his pants. He was going to rape me. That was almost certain, and then he was probably going to kill me for my betrayal. My scream was cut off by his fist as it connected with my cheek, and the tears pricked at
Enzo POVKat fell asleep within fifteen minutes after we left the city, her head pressed against the window of my car. She looked so peaceful that I didn’t have the heart to wake her up, even though she would probably wake up with a sore neck if I left her like that. “She probably didn’t sleep either,” Amarok grumbled, obviously feeling sorry for the woman. The moment I had seen her standing in the hallway, blood splattered across her pale face, I knew that something bad had happened. I initially wondered if it had something to do with the envelope I had given her - the threat inside meant for the consigliere of Milano. Milano wouldn’t have taken the threat on his advisor well, the older man being his number one support in the family of cut throats. I hadn’t suspected that Kat would take the fall for Guilia’s disappearance, nor that she would be expected to take the older woman’s place. But my thought returned to what Eli had told me about Milano preferring younger women, and I imm
Enzo POV“I hope you eat pasta a la disaster,” Kat laughed, placing some of the pasta I had made onto a chipped plate and passing it to me. My brow shot up as I surveyed the dish. “This is a disaster?” It looked appetising enough, even if it was served on a broken plate. The pasta was slightly clumped together, but the pieces of salami and sundried tomatoes seemed to salvage the appearance from being particularly bland. Kat shrugged, “Elijah seriously needs to update his cookware. Half the pasta is still glued to the bottom of the pot.” I could feel her eyes glued on me as she watched as I took a big mouthful of the food and forced a slight smile. It tasted as if I had licked a rock on the beachfront. Salty, dry and slightly gritty. “Mmm, delicious,” I tried to say with as much enthusiasm as I could muster. Her eyes lit up and she beamed with pride, as if she had somehow achieved something she was desperate for. I may be the big, bad Mafia man, but I couldn’t crush her spirit, so
Kat POVI had heard the stories of men who turned into beasts on nights where the full moon is high in the sky. Stupid stories filled with tales of curses and blood oaths with the devil, no doubt embellished by the old gypsy fortunetellers who told the tales from the darkness of the alleys in Rome. I had never once thought to believe any of them, filing them away securely as one of the many myths old ladies tell to keep the young girls wary of men. And yet, there before me, was one of those beasts that I had been warned against. A beast who looked like a man, but in seconds could change into a raging monster which could kill without a second glance. “Kat?” Enzo’s voice was uncertain, as if he expected me to be afraid of him. Is it weird that I wasn’t? I felt as if I had known that he had been different all along, and I knew for a fact that I was in no danger of him attacking me like he had just attacked the man who lay lifeless on the floor. “Are you ok?” I heard myself whisper,
Kat POVBirds chirped happily in the branches of the old Bergamot tree outside the bedroom window, warm sunlight streaming in through the windows and falling onto the bed. I was gently woken up as its warmth caressed my face. Enzo was long gone, his side of the bed cold as if he had left hours ago. “Enzo?” I called out, but there was no response and I decided to linger in bed for just a little bit longer. There was a sound of a car pulling up outside and I climbed out of bed, dragging the duvet with me as I made my way to the kitchen. Enzo burst through the door, carrying large paper bags which he dumped on the kitchen counter unceremoniously. “The villagers here are absolute criminals,” he grumbled as he pulled out a baguette from the bag. “I swear, they saw me as a tourist and forced me to pay double the price! It's a pity that I left my gun behind, or else I'd have done a different form of bargaining.” I leaned against the counter and bit back a smile as I teased him, “maybe t
Kat POVI felt the icy fingers of fear wrap around my heart as Damian let out a deep growl, his eyes glued on me. He was going to kill me, of that I was sure, and my beloved Enzo was going to watch it all. “I guess you get to choose how you die,” Anka giggled, tapping her dagger on her chin. “My blade, or your lover’s hands.” Anka swung her blade out at me, catching me off guard and the sharp steel sank into my forearm. I let out a hiss in pain as I jumped backwards, my hip crashing into the cement balustrade of the balcony. “Kat!” I heard Enzo call out followed by a strange metallic sound. Damian launched himself forward, anger in his eyes as his heavy footsteps thudded on the stone flooring as he began to run at me. I gripped the banister, my body frozen in fear and dread. This was it. This was how I was going to meet my death. It was as if it all happened in slow motion as Damian’s body shifted ever so slightly as he ran, and I saw something flash in his eyes - almost as if he
Otis POV“Was it really necessary to lock ourselves in this room?” Henry grumbled from across the colossal dining table in the palace dining hall. “We could have stayed in our rooms, or left Slovenia entirely.”Gunter let out a deep sigh, “would you have liked Katerina’s rebels to twist the narrative to make it seem as if we were letting her take the throne? No. We stay put until Anka kills the little bitch, and then we announce the victory with pride.”Devon nodded enthusiastically before adding, “besides, it is best that we are together while the killing of Katerina takes place. No one would be able to say that we intervened in any way, even though Damian is there to make sure that the job is done. That was a clever idea, Otis. Well done old man.”A smile tugged on the corner of my mouth but I bit my cheek to stop it from escaping. I would be lying if I were not proud of my plan. Having one of Katerina’s mates be the instrument of her death while the other was forced to watch? That w
Kat POV“Damian.”I breathed his name, my voice failing me as I watched him confidently stand beside Anka, her personal bodyguard.“What the hell did they do to you?” Enzo shouted his way, but Damian didn’t even respond in the slightest… not even a twitch of a muscle or a blink.Vasilios gripped the bars beside my head even tighter, his fists turning white as his voice dropped to a mere whisper. “That is Damian, right? It isn’t Darius?”Jurgen nodded… well, I think he nodded because the next words out of Vasilios’s mouth were, “what the fuck did they do to him? He doesn’t even look like he recognises us!”I had honestly wondered why I hadn’t seen Damian on the battlefield, and a part of me had hoped that he had escaped – oh, how wrong I had been.“Ah, I see you haven’t forgotten my darling pet over here,” Anka purred, stroking Damian’s cheek lovingly. “When the council asked me to choose who I wanted to serve me, I could think of no one better than the King of the Rogues. Ha! King!”S
Enzo POV“It has to be a trap,” I grumbled as I stomped up the hill toward the castle with Kat by my side, her hand in mine. “Are you certain that you need to do this? None of us will blame you if you cancel and tell Anka that the fight should be on neutral ground.” She sighed and leaned against me as we walked, lifting our joined hands to kiss mine. “If I try to back out now, she will twist the situation and make it seem as if I have bowed down to her. Anka is a master manipulator, and I can’t take that chance.” I didn’t like it, not one bit. But Kat was determined to end this fight for the crown today, and nothing I could say or do would change her mind. She didn’t even let the rest of her guards follow us up to the castle - only Vasilios and myself had been allowed to accompany her, with Jurgen trailing behind like a beaten puppy. He was just mopey because his mate still hadn’t been returned to his side after being taken for medical treatment. She and the rest of the council’s
Kat POVAnka stood just on the edge of the parking lot, two of her bear bodyguards beside her with guns and a mean glint in their eyes. Okay, I might have been too far away to see their eyes, but I’m pretty sure that they looked as mean up close as they did from my distance away. “Oh, Katerina,” Anka laughed bitterly, “I wouldn’t have thought you would be so stupid to have come back to Slovenia, but I guess you couldn’t tell that you aren’t welcome. If you had a death wish, you should have just said so. I’m sure my men would be happy to oblige you.” Anka laughed at her own joke and the bears chimed in, causing the hair at the back of my neck to stand up. Aurora growled lowly and the men kneeling before me slowly stood up, creating a shield with their bodies against any attack. “Why should I be afraid of her?” I asked myself, shaking my head. I nudged Vasilios aside and stepped in front of him as Enzo tried to pull me back, but I shrugged off his hand and he came to stand beside m
Kat POVI had heard so much about the way adrenaline pumped through the body when you’re in battle that it’s like someone else takes over - and I guess they were right - but no one had ever told me the effects of coming down off of that adrenaline high. One look at the dead bodies strewn across the parking lot had my stomach churning, and I realised that I had actually killed someone. The nausea clawed its way up my throat, and I couldn’t hold back any longer, emptying whatever was in my stomach in a manner which certainly didn’t suit a princess. “Are you alright, Kat?” I heard my brother-in-law ask, concern evident in his voice. I nodded to Luca as I wiped my mouth on my sleeve, fighting the dry heaves which I knew were far from gone. “Of course she is alright, Castello,” Jurgen replied, his chest puffed out as if he had something to do with my composure. “She is Princess Katerina, the only royal woman to ever have joined in a battle.” I blinked hard as my voice found its own fr
Jurgen POVI had expected a tough battle - I think we all had - but some part of me had envisioned it happening on the hills of the Slovenian countryside and not in the parking lot of Enzo’s nightclub. The rogues rushed at us in waves, hoping to overpower us by their sheer numbers, but they were untrained and their fighting was sloppy. Perhaps that was why the Council decided to send in their brainwashed drones.The first soldier who attacked me took me by surprise, his strength and technique so vastly different to that of the rogues. I barely managed to drop him when another launched at me, and then another. I could hear my own heartbeat in my ears as I was confronted by three of the Council’s soldiers, and for a brief moment I doubted my abilities. “You are a blessed wolf, Jurgen,” I gave myself my go-to pep talk. “You were touched by the light of the moon, and you can get through this.” I guess it helped as my hands were soon coated with the blood of one of my attackers, the ot
Enzo POVIt happened so quickly that it was almost as if it had been practiced, like some choreographed scene in one of those cheesy action movies Luca loved. The whole room seemed to shake as the back wall of my club crumbled, and rogues covered in dust and building debris stormed in. I barely saw Jurgen and Vasilios exchange a glance, their unspoken commands to each other once again reminding me of why they were such a great team in battle. If it hadn’t been for the pair of them and their cohesive strength, I would probably have died back when I was being held prisoner by that band of sadistic humans. The sound of Vasilios’s battle cry yanked me from my memories, and I watched as he charged toward the sea of rogues, my brother close behind. “We have to get Kat to safety,” Jurgen shouted above the chaos, grabbing her around the shoulders and steering her back to the front door of the club. “If we can get her into the parking lot, we can hide her away in one of the cars.”Kat opene
Kat POVUnder the cover of darkness, Vasilios’s plane taxied down the short runway and came to a complete stop before the occupants moved an inch. I could see Vasilios’s phone light up as he dialed his mate, the phone ringing only once before I heard Cassie’s concerned voice on the other side of the call. “Are you safe? They haven’t laid any traps, have they? You’re all still alive?”Even in the darkness I could almost see Vasilios roll his eyes in response, and yet he still managed to hide any frustration with his wife as he reassured her that we had arrived back in Slovenia safely. “I still don’t understand why Elle and I have to sit this fight out,” Cassie huffed, and Luca’s head snapped in the phone’s direction at the mention of his mate. Vasilios let out a long sigh, as if he had been waiting for her to say something along those lines. “Love of my life, you need to look after our son. This is going to be a war, and I will not have you in the line of fire - just as Luca would r