Page 125 of Mafia Obsession

Ares ignores me and says, “Where are?—”

“Dead,” Daria responds with little emotion, or she’s just trying to hold it together.

“Who’s dead?” I ask, holding my stomach.

No, not my sister. Daria wouldn’t look like she’s ready to throw up over my sister. She’s never even met her.

Also ignoring me, Daria keeps talking to Ares. “I have the extra security we hired for the event herding the guests toward the east railing to watch the fireworks.”

“Who. Is. Dead?” I snap.

“My guards,” Ares says and pulls me close to him again.

I run all their faces in my head. The four who stuck by melike glue for weeks. “Which… Which ones?”

“All of them,” he says and moves me to the elevator, and sure enough, seven men lay dead on the floor. All of them have single bullet holes in the forehead. “Daria, take Lourdes…”

“No. You aren’t sticking me somewhere, I?—”

“Ares,” another man with an Irish accent calls out.

I glance back. It’s not Griffin. It’s the man with the redhead in a long green velvet dress. I’ve seen him in our office twice.

Ares waves him off, not looking at him. “Walk away, Quinlan. This doesn’t concern you.”

“We’re allies, Ares,” Griffin says, walking toward us.

“Not for this.” Ares steps aside to show them the dead guards. “Not anymore.”

“Not again!” Ava cries out.

Again? What the hell does that mean? From her wedding?

“Ares, we know your secret might be valuable to the wrong people,” Griffin says.

Secret. He knows my father might have stolen money from the Bratva.

“No one will touch this woman,” Ares says, eyes narrowed at me. “Any part of her.”

Atlas and Ambrose walk toward us, making apologies, and the Quinlans back off.

Fireworks over the river explode. The sound cracks through me and makes me jump. It sounds too close to gunfire. Even with Ares at my side, my pulse doesn’t settle.

The same man who just promised no one would touch me is standing over seven dead guards. Fear slips down my spine because I don’t know where I stand with either version of him.

Before I can process further, Ares kisses me with a rough mouth. It feels fake, like he’s doing it to send a message.

Or put a bigger target on my back.

Chapter 50

Ares

We travel four floors below the rooftop to the Aurelian’s command center. Lourdes follows me inside with Daria on her six.

Seeing them both inside, I yank off my ridiculous bow tie and say, “Daria, lock everything down until fresh guards arrive.”

“Fresh?” Lourdes asks on a breathless whisper.