Текст книги "Ruthless People"

Автор книги: J. J. McAvoy

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Текущая страница: 7 (всего у книги 21 страниц)

She took me in her mouth and I moaned incoherently, words I weren’t even sure were English. I could barely even think straight, her mouth was that heavenly. Forget Natasha, and any of the other bitches I had been with. Had I known this was what waited for me, I would have come here fucking first.

“Well Callahan?” She ran her teeth along my length, and I shivered.

“Fuck no, Mel. I’m not fucking lying.” My hands went to her hair.

“You and I work as one?” she asked me before sucking down harder, making me almost come in her mouth.

My head went back, and I tried to hide how blissful this felt. “Jesus yes. Fuck yes. You and me, no one else. We will . . . fuck, baby. Ohhh! Yes! We’ll rule as one.”

“Even now, as I’m sucking your cock, you will see me as an equal.” She used her hands when she spoke, before her magical mouth enveloped me once more.

What was her question?

“Yes. Fuck yes. Even as you fucking suck me off, I still won’t see you below me, just as you won’t when I’m eating you out.” I moaned, thrusting into her mouth, she just took it, and my hands went to the sides of her head, as I fucked her mouth like I fucked her pussy—hard and fast.

When I came, she sucked it all down her throat and wiped her mouth.

“Well, I guess I can handle that, but if you fuck me over, Callahan, I will kill you.”

“Let’s get dressed and get this marriage over with, so I can fuck you with a ring on both our fingers.”

She rose before me and lifted her torn top, groaning. “You are such an ass.”

“I would say sorry, but I wouldn’t mean it,” I said, rising from the bed as well.

We stood there, staring at each other, both naked and both desperately in need of each other.

“One last fuck before we get married?” That look in her eyes made me shiver.

All I could do was smirk before pushing her against the wall.

“You and I, what a pair we make,” I said, spreading her legs once again and one of the many more times that will happen in the future, I hoped.

“You and I against the world then?” she asked me as I pushed inside her.

“With this fuck, we start a new chapter in our life,” I hissed as I slammed into her. “May we forever be rulers, may our enemies tremble at our feet, may we never forget our great love that is the family. Which we will rule with an iron fist.”

“May we be ruthless and have no regrets,” she added gripping onto my back. “May we take what we want, when we want it, with the world at our feet.”

I smiled as I fucked her against the wall. We moved in sync. It was like our bodies were also agreeing to our package of glory, death, and blood.

“Mrs. Callahan, we shall have the world soon,” I said, never wanting to stop my hunt to go deeper within her. The tides were changing, and we must adapt to survive during drastic changes, and Mel was that drastic change. What we had was much bigger than the two of us, but as she moaned out my name, I couldn’t be more grateful. She would help me fill the sky with the Valero blood. Once we did, we would rule.

That thought added to the pleasure, and it was the best fuck of my life.

ELEVEN

“I love the old way best,

the simple way of poison,

where we too are strong as men”

~ Euripides

MELODY

“After hours of rescue missions and millions of prayers, we have yet to find any survivors of Flight 735. Our hearts go out to all the families affected by this great tragedy, which was caused by a simple and unpredictable engine failure. The Callahan family has created a charity in honor of the victims and has already donated fifteen million dollars on behalf of Melody and Liam who, as we all know, are getting married this evening. Their wedding has been the talk of the town since we broke the story to you only three days ago. Apparently, the couple had been seeing each other in secret for quite some time now. The rumors of who are to attend this wedding range from U.S. senators to the very top of the A-list . . .”

“Ma’am would you like me to turn it off?” Adriana asked as she fixed my hair. Taking a sip of my wine, I shook my head at her before looking into the mirror.

“Adriana, I do not want an up-do.” Screw tradition, I liked my hair down.

“Are you sure?” Evelyn smiled kindly as she walked into my room.

Tying the robe around myself just a little tighter, I smiled before standing up. Adriana left us quickly to get the dress that hung in the deepest, darkest part of my closet.

“I prefer it down,” I stated when Evelyn walked up to me looking me up and down then nodding. Reaching over she pulled the pin out of my hair and took a simple step back.

“Well, I must say you do look even more beautiful with it down.”

“Thank you, Evelyn.”

“Mel, please look at me,” she asked, and when I did her palm came right across my face so quickly I never saw it coming.

Shocked, I touched the side of my cheek, unsure if I was dreaming or not.

“What the fuck!”

She didn’t even flinch. “So, I’m guessing this is the real Melody Giovanni, the girl who had the balls to step into my house, destroy my Jackson Pollock, and then shoot my fucking husband?”

Now I was starting to get angry. Standing straighter, I glared into her eyes. She got one slap and that was it, the next time she raised her arm at me I was going to break it. Before she could move, Adriana stood behind her with a gun to her skull.

I grinned, wiping my cut lip thanks to her fucking ring. “Evelyn, you should know better.”

Evelyn glared back not even a little bit scared. “I come to you as a mother coming to a daughter. Had it been any of my sons who had put a bullet in Sedric, I would have taken them out of this world so quickly they wouldn’t even know it was me. I may not walk the same line you do, nor do I wish to, but you should know that when it comes to my husband, I will not hesitate to kill anyone. You crossed the line.”

Look who has a spine. Nodding over to Adriana, she took a step back and walked over to the bed pulling out my dress.

“Noted,” I said, not even a least bit threatened. I was too amused for that. “Sedric is off limits. He wasn’t my target anyway; your idiot son was.”

She glared once again before smirking. “It took me a long time to shift Sedric’s view on women when I first met him and again when he first learned about you.”

What?

“Sedric found out about me the same time Liam did.” Didn’t he?

Evelyn beamed. “Like I said, I may not choose to walk the same path as you, but that doesn’t mean I’m naïve to the inner workings of this family. Everything Sedric has ever done he has told me. The moment he knew what you were, he believed you were the best thing for my idiot son, as you so elegantly put it. He kept it a secret from him to let him deal with the information as he saw fit. I will commend you on your acting and will expect it whenever you are in public with me. What you and Liam do is none of my concern. I just wanted to make sure you knew where you stand.”

“And where is that?” I wanted to bust her smug face in. It reminded me of Liam for fuck sake.

Evelyn pulled out a small box setting it on the table. “Today, you become my daughter; I will love you, stand by you, and when necessary put you in check. You may very well have the world in your hands, but you are still young and that makes you just as stupid as my son is at times. I like you, Mel, so I hope the next time we speak in confidence it is more civil.”

I said nothing as she looked over to the bed and grabbed my new white shoes.

“Christian Louboutin.” She smiled before turning back to look at me. “When we go to Paris in the spring you, Coraline, Olivia, and I must go shopping. You have impeccable taste.”

“That would be Adriana, but I shall take the invitation all the same,” I replied, and she nodded before walking to the door.

“Well, I will leave you to it. The girls and I will come back later if you don’t mind.” It didn’t seem like a question, but I nodded anyway.

When she left, I smiled as I finished the rest of my wine. I was starting to like Evelyn.

My moment of peace didn’t last long, however, before Liam walked in dressed in nothing but silk pajama bottoms as if we weren’t getting married in a few hours.

“What is with you people and not knocking?” I glared at his chest before pouring myself more wine. I would have to make sure it was close by if I was going to make it through the rest of the day.

“What did my mother want?”

“The better question is what do you want?” I asked him, stepping forward. He towered over me, and the fact that I was in my underwear beneath the robe was not lost on either of us.

“Adriana, leave us.” She froze, looking to me.

Rolling my eyes, I nodded, and she stepped outside, the moment she did he kissed me, opening up my robe so he could cup my ass. Pushing him away, I slapped him across the face.

“Just because we fucked already doesn’t mean we need to jump each other every time we make eye contact,” I snapped at him. Despite the fact that he did look rather sexy, I didn’t want him getting used to the idea that my body was his to do anything he wished with when he was horny.

“Maybe if we did, you would be kinder.” I just snorted and turned away from him to the items on the bed.

“Callahan, seriously what is it you want? We have the wedding of the decade to go to soon,” I replied, stepping into my shoes.

“Those shoes make it hard not to have you right now,” he said, staring at my legs. “However, I will take pleasure in that later tonight. I just wanted to let you know Vance and his son, Amory, will be attending.”

What the fuck?

“You do know this would be a perfect moment for him to strike back at you for what you did to the plane.” I crossed my arms over my chest, and his eyes went to my breasts. Jeez, you would think we hadn’t had sex all night. If it weren’t for Sedric’s call, we’d both still be on that boat.

Stepping forward, he let his hands trace up and down my sides. “Well love, as our new personal contract states, we now work together. My plans were to either beef up security and enjoy the evening, or take a moment out of our night and poison the bastard right then and there.”

I frowned at the thought. “First, do not call me love. Second, when Vance falls, I want him to watch his empire burn around him and know that he was outsmarted, outgunned, and fucked over. Drowning in the soup seems . . .”

“Too easy.” He agreed. “Then the first option it is. I’m shocked, Mrs. Callahan, did we just agree on something? Can it really be this easy?”

He cupped my breasts, and I gripped his dick tight enough to cause him pain. “If that’s all, sweetheart, I would like to spend my last few moments as a Giovanni by myself.”

“Bitch.”

“You, too.”

“I should have—” He stopped himself before stepping up behind me. “You look beautiful. See you at the altar, and try not to flinch at the holy water.”

“I won’t, if you won’t,” I replied as he kissed me where my shoulder met my neck.

He said nothing else before leaving, allowing Adriana to come back in. I sat down again, and she finished making the waves in my hair as I stared into my own reflection. His kiss brought back all his touches of the night before. He was amazing and had stamina that was unheard of. My body cried out for his, and my mind both hated and loved that. I loved being dominated in such a beastly sexual way, how his hands, lips, and tongue all grabbed on to me. He was the best partner I had ever had, but I didn’t want him to know that. I didn’t want his head to become any bigger than it already was.

I also didn’t want him to think that just because he was a great fuck, that he held the key to making me bend. He said he understood, but the Boss in me told me that everyone lies. People lied about how much they drank, how much they were in debt, how many people they had killed—people were liars. I always thought I was good at reading liars. I could see it in their eyes, and if I did, I would kill them. However, with Liam, I was lost. It was like I was blind. He seemed honest, but he was just like me—a master liar.

“Adriana, what do you think of Liam Callahan?”

She froze, not sure what to say.

“Adriana, you can speak freely. I’m sure you’ve dug up more dirt since we’ve been here.”

She nodded. “Liam Callahan is cocky, arrogant, controlling, manipulative, hotheaded, and attractive. What makes it worse is that he knows it. He has bloodlust. He stares at people with such rage, it is as though he wishes for them to mess up so he can put a bullet in them. However, the moment he looks at you, it’s gone. He is content, which is far from the man I saw three days ago. He seemed a rather isolated and lonely person. From what I’ve gathered, he was a very ill child, to the point he was crippled. Add that to his high intelligence, and it made him a prime candidate for bullies throughout his early life. He keeps it private and is embarrassed about it, seeing as he is a Callahan. He was admitted to a hospital for almost year, and from there, gradually became better. He trusts very few people, which includes his family. He’s searching for something.”

I stared at her through the mirror, eyebrow raised, before grinning. This was Adriana’s talent. She was a profiler. A very good profiler. Everyone overlooked her, thinking she was just my personal maid. However, I kept Adriana close because she was my second pair of eyes. She saw people as if they were an open book and could collect information because no one noticed her. She wasn’t a fan of the blood, or the violence, and I wouldn’t force her to be. She proved her worth often in times like this.

“So you think I should trust him.”

“Only you know, ma’am. You are a better judge of character than I. I think he wants you to care about him as much as his mother cares for his father. I don’t think he is out to hurt you—yet. But he is still a Callahan, and the Irish are tricky. He is going to be your husband, and you are not cringing at the thought of it, ma’am.”

She was right, and I didn’t know how to process that.

“It has been a long three days.” I sighed, standing up and allowing my robe to fall. She nodded, grabbing my dress and holding it for me to step into.

“You look beautiful,” Coraline said, beaming when she, Olivia, and Evelyn stepped in. Olivia looked sour, and I wouldn’t have been surprised that she figured out I was the one who put a hole in her husband’s arm.

“It’s very simple,” Olivia said fingering the tattoo on her wrist, looking my dress up and down. If I weren’t in all white and about to enter the house of God, I would have bashed her head in.

“Some people have to try harder than others. Others can make simple look elegant.”

“Agreed,” Evelyn said. Apparently, she and I had come to a new agreement.

“Did you give her the bracelet?” Coraline asked even though Evelyn was already walking toward the desk to pick up the small box.

She opened it, and my eyes widened ever so slightly. The vintage bracelet, made of all pearls and pendant with the letter C embedded in it. It had to be from the early 1900s, at least.

“Something old. All the Callahan woman wear it during their wedding. It was the gift given to the wife of the first Boss.” She smiled and placed it on my wrist.

“Thank you,” I replied, and for the first time it hit me. I was getting married today.

“We should get going. Sedric is waiting,” Olivia said, frowning and clearly pissed that the moment was happening between everyone but her. The bitch.

“Sedric?” I asked her and one met my gaze. “Why is Sedric waiting? Where is my father?”

LIAM

“So what happened on the boat, Lamb?” Neal asked me for the billionth time as we waited in St. Peter’s Cathedral.

“Mind your own fucking business. And if you call me Lamb again, Neal, I will kill you, then bury you under the church.”

He smirked. “You’re excited. You didn’t even describe how you would kill me. That boat ride must have—”

Before he finished, I punched him in the fucking nose.

“For the love of motherfucking fuck!”

“Last chance brother or you’re going to piss me off,” I replied, fixing my tie.

“Liam, calm down before you get blood on your suit. I’m sure Melody wouldn’t mind, but the press . . .” Declan sighed, throwing a cold beer at Neal who held it on his nose.

Neal mumbled something under his breath and left.

“One day you two will have to work out your issues,” Declan said to me.

One day maybe, but not fucking today.

Saying nothing, I took a deep breath and walked out the door that lead to the front of the Cathedral. Looking outside, I noticed my mother had made sure to invite every last motherfucker with a net worth over a hundred million. They all looked like tourists, excited to be on the guest list. My eyes met Vance’s, and I could feel the blood in my veins begin to run hotter. He smirked, nodding at me as though he was fucking proud, the bastard. Next to him sat Amory. The golden-locks-wannabe was all but sucking on Natasha’s neck. It had seemed Deep Throat had switched ships. She winked at me, and I wanted to puke.

“How is security?”

Declan snickered. “They would have a better chance getting to the president than any one of us today.”

“If this doesn’t go off perfectly, shoot him for good measure.” I wanted to be the one to take Vance’s life, but if it needed to be done today, then I didn’t care who did it.

“Just worry about Melody and pray she doesn’t run away.”

“No, she wouldn’t run.” Running wasn’t in her nature. “She would come if only to kill me.”

Before he could reply, music rang throughout the church and the door opened slowly making my heart rate quicken. A vision in white stood beside my father with a bouquet of blood-red roses in her hands. She didn’t bother with a veil to cover her face, and for that, I was fucking glad. She was beautiful, deadly, stunning, and all mine.

When she reached me, she stopped and kissed my father on the cheek before taking my hand. However, when I looked in her eyes I saw a twinge of sadness, and it pained me to my core. I squeezed her hand, not to hurt her, but to tell her I saw and I didn’t like it. I wanted her to be happy. I would let her pick anyone in the church and kill them if it made her smile.

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today in the face of not only God, but the world, to join together Liam Alec Callahan and Melody Nicci Giovanni in holy matrimony.”

Everything he said after that faded when she squeezed my hand back.

She glanced up at me, and the lioness in her eyes wasn’t gone, but simply asleep. Something was wrong, and I hated that I couldn’t figure it out.

“Liam Alec Callahan, do you take Melody Nicci Giovanni to be your wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish? Do you promise to be faithful to her until death do you part?”

“I do, always,” I said without any hesitation, and she snickered at me, shaking her head as I placed the wedding band on her finger.

“Melody Nicci Giovanni, do you take Liam Alec Callahan to be your husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish? Do you promise to be faithful to him until death do you part?”

“I do, always,” she replied, and I felt overflowing relief and joy as she slid my ring into place.

“May these rings be blessed so he who gives it and she who wears it may abide in peace and continue in love until life’s end,” he said as we stared at each other. “You may now seal the promises you have made to each other with a kiss.”

In that moment it didn’t feel like our lips met. It was though our souls did.

Mel, my Mel, wiped the lipstick from my lips.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I now present to you the loving couple, Mr. and Mrs. Liam Callahan,” the priest said while Mel rolled her eyes at me. Apparently, Mrs. Liam Callahan didn’t sit well with her, but too fucking bad.

Everyone rose from his or her seat, clapping and cheering as we walked down the aisle hand in hand. We stopped at the top of the stairs to take photos for every damn magazine in the world, when my father leaned in beside me.

“I believed both of your emotions, so will the world,” he whispered with a smirk as we smiled. “But was it true. Do you believe it? Did it take only Russian blood and a boat ride?”

I said nothing before stepping into the Rolls Royce.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

Sighing, I leaned in and held the side of her face so she would have to look me in the eye. “Wife, what is wrong?”

She stared before sighing as well. “Husband, my father refused to walk me down the aisle. He’s gotten worse.”

With that she ripped her head from my hand and glared out the window. I felt like a bloody moron. I was so focused on her, I didn’t even think about the person walking her down the aisle. Melody Gio . . . Callahan had the ability to make me forget anyone else existed when she was near.

“After we do our time at the reception, if you want, we could sneak out and go see him.”

She looked at me, and her eyes narrowed. “Is this you trying to be sweet? Because I’m fine and would prefer to deal with asshole Callahan. You know, the son of a bitch I fought in my basement who thought his balls were bigger than they actually are?”

And there was the lioness again.

“I’m putting in effort, maybe you should fucking try it, Melody. I’m planning on going to war with the entire world. I don’t need one with the woman sleeping beside me.”

Neither of us spoke after that, she knew just how to fucking kill the mood.

Not looking at me she took my hand into hers and squeezing it before letting go. “I’ve never been . . . nice. I’m not used to being anything other than a Giovanni. Affection and tenderness are not our strong suits. So I do not know how to reciprocate that. Bitch is standard mode for me, and I will work on it.”

“I don’t mind you being a bitch to anyone else, as long as it is not me,” I whispered, taking her hand and kissing it quickly. Part of me was starting to enjoy her ripping out other people’s hearts. It was her thing, and she was good at it.

She laughed, and I enjoyed the sound. “You do know that we have known each other for only seventy-two hours.”

“Holy fuck, I feel like I’ve known you for decades.” If not longer.

“Really?” she asked. “What is my favorite color?”

Fuck.

MELODY

When we got to the reception, which was being held outside at Callahan Manor, there were more photographers, who Evelyn allowed to take photos from a distance. My face felt as though it would break from all the forced smiling.

“Call them off, or I’m calling snipers,” I said to Liam.

He leaned down to kiss my cheek. “I would, gladly, but my mother and father want good press.”

I glared at him, pinching his arm until he pulled me away from the cameras and headed toward the sea of guests. There were more damn photos and fake congratulations there, until I saw Vance and Amory making their way through all the drinking and celebrating in the courtyard. Our guests danced underneath the steams of lights, blissfully unaware that two of the most deadly men in the country were about to collide with another deadly pair.

Both Vance and Amory were as slick as eels with their dark eyes and oily skin. Amory stood at the same stunted height as his father, even though Vance was rather stout and Amory was sickly thin. They shared many of the same traits—blond hair, though Vance’s was graying, a strong chin, and small ears.

“Remember, the Valero do not know I took over for my father,” I whispered, making sure it seemed as though I was nothing more than an excited bride. Behind Liam, I saw Neal and Declan step closer to us. Monte and Fedel were near the entrance focused on me. With a glance, Fedel let me know Antonio and three other snipers were in the windows of the manor, waiting.

“Oh, and you should know, Vance tried to arrange a marriage with Amory and me, years ago.” His eyes widened before narrowing into dangerous slits of green.

“Mr. and Mrs. Callahan!” Vance said as he reached us. “Congratulations. I must say this was a huge surprise. Melody what a fine young woman you have become, hasn’t she Amory?”

“I’m sorry, do I know you?” I asked innocently, squeezing Liam’s hand. He needed to step up and be calm. Amory looked at me with pure lust, however, making me want to cut his eyes out, and doing nothing to help Liam calm down.

He sneered, shaking Vance’s hand, which had been extended for me. “This is Vance Valero, love. The owner of the company that keeps stealing many of our products.”

Vance glared dangerously, as did Amory before he smiled at me. “I do not wish to bore your beautiful little head with such youthful fiction. Your father and I were quite close. I was hoping to speak with him, however, he seems to be absent from this joyful occasion.”

I tried not gag. “Liam and I wanted to get married. My father spoke of some new huge business venture in Austria that he needed to get a jumpstart on. I will let him know you spoke of him.”

Amory’s eyes widened before he grinned and reached out for my hand, but Liam took it instead. “I’m sorry gentlemen, but my wife and I must be making the rounds. Please enjoy yourselves.”

“Yes, please do,” I added, smiling as though I was naïve to the tension between them. “Evelyn has worked so hard on this day. We are lucky to afford such a lifestyle. One day you could be sitting on the top of the world, then the next it could be sitting on you, my father says.”

“Your father has always been wise.” Amory winked at me before glaring at Liam. “But we are all human and make mistakes.”

Fuck you, you no good motherfucking asshole.

When we walked away, Liam pulled us onto the dance floor under the purple and red fabric draping.

“What the fuck is going on in Austria? I know that is the last place your father is.”

“Calm the fuck down. Nothing is in Austria, but Amory doesn’t know that. He is a leech, and I have no doubt he will be on the next plane tonight trying to steal from us.” Plus, if we divided him and Vance, it would be easier to break them.

His hands wandered down my spine. “You want them to think you don’t know anything.”

“It’s easier to kill a deer if they think you are a rabbit rather than a wolf. Amory was so busy staring at my breasts, he couldn’t even speak.”

“I noticed. I should just kill the motherfucker now and save myself the annoyance. He is lucky I didn’t rip his eyes out, and believe me I would have.”

The darkness in his voice made me shiver in pleasure. I allowed him to spin me before bringing me in close. “You need to clear your mind and take a deep breath. We were able to flip Ryan Ross. He reports directly to Monte now, then to me. It’s how I knew Vance knew about the plane. He wants to do something bigger. He wants us to relax before he attacks. But mostly, he wants to hurt you.”

“And how the fuck is Vance going to hurt me?”

“Me,” I answered. “He will want to use Amory as a way to gain intel. Amory will probably flirt with me and try to gain my trust. It wouldn’t be the first time he went after a married woman.”

“You aren’t making my desire to kill the fool lessen.” He stopped to look me in the eyes. “In fact, I want to kill him more.”

“Then I get to kill Vance.” He wasn’t going to get to kill them both.

“I kill Vance. You get the brothers and Amory.”

“Deal. But the only way for that to happen is to give Amory a little wiggle room and some rope to hang himself with.”

“So more parties and balls. My mother will like it. However, I will cut off the motherfuckers’ fingers if they touch you. But until then, Valero has a shipment of prized cars coming in two weeks to Italy. Vance loves his cars.”

The bastard was getting excited just thinking about it.

“You hit his drugs, and now you want to take his toys? Husband, that is quite cruel.”

He raised an eyebrow at me. “Do you have any other ideas?”

“No.” I grinned. “But after we steal them, we should set them on fire.”

“And I’m cruel?” He kissed my cheek, and I froze for a moment, realizing that we had once again just worked together with ease. It was like our minds fed off each other.

“We will talk about this later. Apparently, it’s time to cut the cake,” I told him, noticing Evelyn waving. I had almost forgotten that this was our wedding with thoughts of theft and blood in the air.

“Yes. Later,” he replied, looking at me with lust once again.

LIAM

It felt like hours after we cut the cake that we were able to sneak off. Orlando was in one of the rooms in the eastern part of the manor. The moment we arrived, Mel went to sit beside him. He was breathing only through tubes and machines, which all looked painful.

“Ciao, mi bambino dolce.”¹³

Mel kissed his hands. “Ciao, mio dolce padre.”¹⁴

“Sei bellissima, Melody. Mi dispiace che non ero abbastanza forte per voi.”¹⁵

“Tu sei, e sarai sempre abbastanza forte.”¹⁶

I felt bad for intruding on their moment. I wasn’t sure what they were saying but it seemed to be too personal for me to just be standing there. However, I couldn’t bring myself to leave Mel’s side.

Orlando looked up to me breathing heavily, waiting for me to take his hand. When I did, he squeezed it.

“Sii buona con lei,¹⁷ Liam,” he said to me before turning to Mel. “Sii buono con lui,¹⁸ Mel.”

“Lo farò,”¹⁹ she said, and I repeated it, even though I didn’t know what it was she said. It just felt right. When I did, he kissed both our hands before giving them back to each other.

Mel closed her eyes, taking a deep breath and standing up. I watched as she pulled a needle from the nightstand, and realized what she was about to do. Reaching out, I grabbed her hand, and for the first time I saw the true depths of her strength and how much she hated it. She would put her father to sleep to give him peace, and it would kill her slowly every day of forever. Yet, she would still do it.

“I have to do this,” she whispered to me, as I tried to pull the needle from her.

Shaking my head, I snatched it from her hand. “You will hate yourself, and I would rather you hate me.”

In her eyes there was a fight, because she was Mel, and my Mel would always fight me. But I would win this battle. Stepping in front of her, I pulled the cap off with my teeth before going for his arm. Mel wrapped her hands around my waist and placed her head on my back, not watching.