BLAKE MORENO POVThe new room was suffocating, it was wide but all it managed to remind me of was the white room since it was almost similar. I felt around the wall, it was the same, my thumb couldn't feel a thing, the only difference was that the room was painted in a light gray color, while the remaining item in the room was a mix of white and light grey. It was depressing. I walked toward the door, turning the knob but it remained locked. There was no television, just an old newspaper that laid haphazardly on the desk.I jerked back, my heart running a marathon when I looked around the corner of the four-poster bed. I could swear that I had seen the little girl crouched in on herself. My hand shook and I quelled the urge to scream by biting harshly on my lips. It was bad enough with the nightmares, now it was like she wanted to haunt my waking hours too. I'd spoken to April after that undercover mission, retelling all the horrible details of what went on, she'd comforted me, let
GABRIELLE POV He gave me the best fight of my life, even tho he was still weak, traumatized from the white room, but my cuff was on both his hands. I smiled, little tingles trailing over my skin as I manhandled him towards the bed and he still put up a fight even after he knew I'd won. He never ceased to defy me, fight his feelings, and resist the inevitable. I pulled down the chains attaching them to his cuffed hands, then pressed a button beside the bed, the chain pulled, dragging his arm up above his head, forcing him to sit up. His robe parted his powerful thighs on display. Heat crawled over my skin, settling at my core. The blood dripping from his head just added more visuals to the beautiful picture he presented. Breathtaking. I almost drooled as his dark angry eyes met mine."I won, and you're going to sit back and enjoy all I have to give" I whispered, moving closer, jerking his thighs apart roughly. He gasped, the sound making me clench. He was definitely my special brand
MASSIMO POV.She got me. She got me good. And It was downright hilarious, but a dying man couldn't laugh. Genovese was right, Gabrielle never hesitated when it came to taking out her rivals. She used any means necessary. That was why she kept Luca Padova alive, she used him to lure me to my doom. After a sleepless night filled with pain and agony, I'd gone to a private doctor of mine to check what was wrong when it felt like my insides were on fire. It was Polonium 210 poisoning, that too after wasting precious time carrying other tests for other sorts of poisons because from what I'd learned, the poison was a master of disguise. You couldn't find it unless you went looking.I dragged my hands through my hair pulling strands of it out. My hands shook as I held it, my vision blurry. Was this it? Was I just going to go away like this when I'd just started to achieve everything I ever wanted? That fucking bitch! I stepped under the shower, the water soothing my burning skin. I could se
GABRIELLE POVI should've just taken the shot, and taken the old man into the fucking grave. I punched at the heavy bag in rapid succession until I broke the barrier, my knuckles raw and bleeding. I crumbled to the floor, a migraine making itself known as my head thumped. Family? He never knew the meaning, he was always going to do whatever he wanted as the leader, not as a grandfather. I'd foolishly followed him like a puppet on his string, forgiving him for what he did to me, blaming myself for being weak. He should have never put me in the position to get hurt in the first place. The door to the boxing room opened slowly, making me alert, but the footsteps closing in on me felt familiar. Simone. I looked up at him, and he faltered in his step. He looked sad somehow, and I wondered what was bothering him... Surely he didn't have much to worry about "Your hand is bleeding," he said, a first aid kit in his hand. I waved him off."It's fine. I wanted to bleed a little. You'll need t
BLAKE MORENO POV.The rate of my heart was still not steady and I didn't want it to be. I gazed at the wall dazedly, color bursting behind my eyelid, my hands trailing over my lips as they throbbed in remembrance of the heated night that I'd shared with Gabrielle. My skin heated up as I pictured every minute detail of the night, the euphoria of it all. My brain felt off, it was like it was at war with itself. I shouldn't have let her win, but I would also give anything to feel what I'd felt in her arms that night. Gabrielle had broken me to the point that I'd come to crave her touch... her presence. It had been two days since the night I had her and she hadn't come to see me or call for me.I rubbed at my face in frustration. It was starting to feel pathetic that I was pinning over someone that I was supposed to hate. Gabrielle... Gabrielle, her name was a poison to my system. She'd messed me up, maybe that was why I didn't fight her hard enough. I was twice her size for God's sake
******April exhaled, smacking her head against the table. She was beyond frustrated and with everything coming to a standstill, she felt more and more restless.The ongoing investigation related to the alleged Genovese syndicate weapon and drug bust looked like it was going to be dropped since there was no evidence to tie them to the case and the two main witnesses that had been apprehended had died while in custody. Their death came as a shock to April, because when she'd interrogated them the day before, they were perfectly fine, then it was pandemonium everywhere once their lifeless body was discovered. They had been Poisoned to death under their watch- an inside job, probably those under the Genovese cartel payroll. The people in charge of the men were under investigation, but April was sure nothing would come out of it, not with the level of corruption that was sweeping through the precinct. April had only two suspects in mind, and it was either Gabrielle or her grandfather.
BURN PAYN POV.I watched the young man saunter into his room, his dyed green bed hair contrasting the blue of his eyes. I noticed his eyes widen as he took in the disarray of his room. A grin tugged at my lips as the boy jerked back once the shock of someone breaking into his room registered.He took faltering steps back, his interesting eyes darting across the barely illuminated room, searching for the culprit. I waited, chuckling to myself, it was fun to see the way his fingers trembled. I could see the appeal that he had for Gabrielle to notice him, dominate him even. He was cute, and if there was anything that turned me on, it was the pleasure of having and Killing anyone who had been with Gabrielle.Genovese might be a stubborn old fool, but he knew deep down that I was the only one who could tame Gabrielle, I was also the one who could rule the Genovese empire after he was gone, he was just afraid I'd kill all his family members, which he wasn't wrong about, I'll kill a lot of
BLAKE MORENO POV."I already own your heart" Those doomed words of hers popped into my head each time I sat down to relax, making me agitated until I felt like screaming. What the fuck was this... Letting my captor get the better of me just because I couldn't keep my hands off her, was mortifying.I got out of my seat, pacing the depressing room that I had come back to after being defeated by Gabrielle in the boxing ring... Fine, maybe I let my guard down, and that was why she could overpower me, but next time, I would give it all I've got. I already knew the way she moved by heart, she was like a viper waiting to strike, so I had to prepare ahead. Damn it all to hell, I couldn't even spend one minute by myself without thinking about her, could I?I forced myself to think about April, maybe If I could steal a phone and call her, leave her a cryptic message that I knew only she would be able to understand, maybe I could get a chance then...Didn't April check around the company for my
PRESENT. BLAKE MORENO POV. Gabrielle Genovese was standing at my door- and she was real... the fire in her gray eyes was all too familiar and my heart nosedived. The woman I would have given up everything for was standing right in front of me. With a gun aimed in my face. My head spun even tho I tried to come off unaffected- but my throbbing heart was still racing and my breathing had accelerated so it was a wasted effort. The memories that I had tried to bury slammed into my head with an intensity that made me aware of every part of her. Her scent assaulted my senses, and every inch of her skin that I'd explored called to me fiercely until It was overwhelming. Her hold on the gun didn't waver and it looked as if she was contemplating just letting loose a spray of bullets in my direction. But despite the threat she represented, all I wanted to do was relive every moment I had spent with her. I wanted to touch her, wrap her in my arms, and run away with her to the ends of the
GABRIELLE POV.Everyone gathered to hear me dole out the new terms to my rule, and anyone who opposed was shot dead immediately, their body burnt into ashes and tossed into the sea, not that most of them had anything to say while they stared at the head of Genovese at my feet. I wanted to shame him, even in death. He didn't deserve a proper burial. I was going to feed his head to the dogs he kept. The people in the room grumbled when I raised their returns to sixty percent but an arch of my eyebrow shut them up. They should be happy I didn't take them all out. Death was what they deserved, so they should be fucking grateful that I was letting them live. Simone stood beside me, his mouth clenched shut all through the process, but even his presence irritated me... Everyone that reminded me of Blake irritated me. The family dispersed and I appointed spies to keep an eye on them and report back to me about any misconduct, or any act of rebellion. If anyone broke any of the laws I'd lai
GABRIELLE POV.I stared at Micheal, then at the gun that he aimed at me, waiting patiently for him to pull the trigger but he didn't. I waited until my fingers trembled. "If you're going to shoot an enemy, you should never hesitate"."You killed my father" he screamed, his hold tightening around the gun, his aim getting steadier. Yes, Micheal. Get mad, and put an end to all of this pain and suffering. "Yes I did, and I'll probably kill you too, so you better pull that trigger now that you have the chance," I said, meaning every word as I stared at him. His hands wavered, and then he lowered the gun as tears escaped an eye. I groaned inside, clenching my fist as we both stood in silence, his eyes fixed on mine. "Why didn't you let that guard kill me? Why did you save me? I don't want to be indebted to you for anything. Why did you do it?" He asked, meeting my gaze fiercely and I lost it. "I didn't do it for you! I killed him because that is only what I am good at. These hands only
GABRIELLE POV TWO WEEKS EARLIER.Footsteps approached my room and I braced myself for whoever was going to step in through the door. The door flung open and two people stumbled in as they were shoved viciously. They dropped to their knees right in front of me and I jumped back, my gaze darting to those of the culprit. Burn stepped in behind them with a sick smile on his lips, the two guns he held pointed at the back of their head. "I brought some audience for our little show".I stared at Keenan who couldn't meet my gaze then at Micheal whose little body shook in tremors as he looked up at me to deliver him. But he was wrong, I didn't save people, I only destroyed them, just as I had done to Blake.I met Burns's amused expression. "There will be no show," I told, my voice so quiet, it sounded eerie even in my ears.Burn quirked an eyebrow. "Is that a no, Pet, because I get trigger happy every time someone says no to me and I really don't want to have to blast Keenan's head off or th
BLAKE POV.The raw pain in her voice carried through the room, the agony of it rending through my heart like sharp-edged darts as I listened to it, then the call ended and April glanced in my direction. My grip on the chair handle I sat on tightened as I struggled to keep my emotions in check. "It's done. She thinks you're dead now. Do we proceed with our plans. Do you want her behind bars... We can have her arrested with the evidence we have on her"."I don't know" I got out, my voice hoarse as my eyes lingered on the phone, willing it to ring again just so I could hear her voice. I was crazy. Crazy and bloody stupid, but I couldn't stop myself from longing for her, especially after listening to her. What if, no, it wasn't speculation at this point, she'd shot me not to kill me but to save my life? If she'd really meant to kill me, I would be dead. But then I remembered her voice, the way her gaze had brightened as she conversed with Burn on how she'd lost interest in me, how it w
GABRIELLE POV.Stepping into the house I swore I would burn to the ground once I took over made me feel like a failure but I was not going to be so easily defeated, especially now that I might have nothing left. The pain of the unknown was terrible and my head hurt- the misery making my vision blurry, as I thought back to the bridge. What if I had miscalculated the angle of the shot as I aimed for Blake... maybe I'd hit one of his organs and he'd bled to death, and if that didn't happen, maybe April hadn't been able to save him, maybe she hadn't even been able to find his body.My heart constricted, the realization that Blake might really be gone from my life hitting me hard until it felt like I would collapse. I don't. Instead, I forged on, forcing my legs to move even tho all I wanted to do was crash against the floor and just cry for all the injustice I'd been dealt with. But those scenarios were all what-ifs. I had to believe that he was still alive.Blake was tough, and I hadn'
"No!" April gasped as she rushed into the murky river and searched blindly for the body of Blake. Was this what Gabrielle had meant when she said she could have him back? Why had she shot him... Just why, especially after keeping him alive for so long? "Blake! Blake, where the hell are you? Blake!" April screamed, crying as she searched blindly, the water tossing her from every corner until her eye caught a movement just ahead of her. April squinted, blinking the murky water from her vision and she saw him floating, red blood circling his midsection. Was he alive? Please let him be alive. April pushed at the water, gasping in frustration when it seemed as if she was moving in slow motion. Kicking through the murk, she finally reached him, and heaving a sigh of relief she wrapped her arms around him, and dragged him ashore, her chest heaving once they were in the safety of the dry land.Catching her breath, April let go of him and quickly pressed her finger to his wrist, then his nec
GABRIELLE POV.Blake coughed, grunting beneath me and I released a whoosh of air I hadn't realized I'd been holding. Simone pulled me up and helped Blake to his feet and we ran down the corridors. I kicked the door open to the garage to meet some of the soldiers waiting there for us."Let's go. And once we're within a safe distance, hit the self-destruct buttons, got it" I yelled over the roar of the car as I turned the key on the ignition... The other cars followed suit as the rebels rushed the entrance firing rounds at us but the bullets just bounced off our bulletproof van as we sped off Into the night, the house turning into balls of flames behind us as my soldiers carried out my instructions. I smiled as I watched the house burn, sure that no one had been able to get out alive. I turned to face Blake who was already staring at me, a smile on his lips. I reached with one hand for his shirt and yanked him to me as I rediscovered his taste once more, kissing him like the air I need
GABRIELLE POV"Who the fuck did he call" I growled into the phone, my heart rate increasing by the seconds and threatening to come out my chest. The soldier muttered his reply but it all sounded like a freaking broken record that had me flinging my phone at the wall in anger.I should have fucking known Keenan would do something like this. It was like I could never get through to him about the dangers of making impulsive decisions. Did he call grandfather, if he did then he was just going to expose himself to danger, something that I had been trying to avoid from the get-go. If only he'd just listen! Ugh. I switched on the voice transmitter in my room. "Prepare to leave. I want everything ready in half an hour" I ordered, then switched it off. Taking a deep calming breath to ease my frayed nerves, I opened the closet, then hit the button for the secret chamber. It swished open, and I stared at my collection of weapons, all armed and ready for use. I trailed my finger over my revolve