“I needed that last kiss before you’ll always look at me the way you looked at me when I attacked Christian.” He leaned back, looking off into the flames once more. “I killed my first wife.”

The ground dropped away under me. Slowly I pulled my hand away from his, wishing I had misunderstood him and terribly certain that I hadn’t.

Cassio smiled darkly. He took his time tracing my horrified expression with his eyes. “Not with my own hands. She killed herself, but she did it because of me.”

Relief almost knocked the breath out of me. If Cassio had actually killed his wife, I couldn’t have stayed with him—not that he’d ever allow me to leave him.

I knew suicide was more common than people liked to admit in our circles, but usually it was the result of abuse and despair. What had Cassio done to his wife? He was good to me and to his kids. I couldn’t imagine him abusing his late wife, unless her death had made him change his ways. Even the cut on my arm… even if that hadn’t been Christian’s doing, it hadn’t been his intention. He’d looked guilty afterward.

“Why?” I asked, half scared to know the truth, but I wanted to be rid of the past’s dark shadows and shedding light on what happened was the only way to do it.

Cassio smiled without humor. The flames created shadows on his sharp face. “Because I killed the man she loved.”

I was shocked into silence.

The Past

This day had been an absolute clusterfuck. Losing two men to those fucking bikers was bad enough. Losing them because we had a rat was worse. I wasn’t sure who he was, not with certainty. Many things pointed to Andrea. He hadn’t been at Christmas dinner two days ago, but he was supposed to watch Gaia today.

It was close to midnight when I entered our home, expecting everyone in bed as usual. Light streamed into the foyer from the living room. Following it, I found Daniele on the sofa playing on a small tablet, his brows puckered in concentration. I went over to him. “Why are you still up?”

“Can’t sleep. Uncle Andrea gave me this.”

“Where is he?”

“Upstairs with Mom. They’re playing.”

He didn’t even look up, completely mesmerized by the colorful screen. It was exactly why I hadn’t wanted him to have one of these things.

“Playing?”

Daniele nodded distractedly. “Yeah. Uncle Andrea gave me this to play too.”

“Stay here and keep playing,” I said firmly and walked toward the stairs, drawing my gun. I crept up the stairs, making sure I didn’t make a sound.

In front of the door to Gaia’s bedroom, I stopped, listening. Behind the door, someone grunted and a woman cried out. They weren’t sounds of torture.

I shoved open the door. It smashed against the wall behind it.

Fury slithered through my veins at the sight before me. Gaia, my heavily pregnant wife, straddled her half-brother, both of them naked.

My wife was fucking her half-brother.

For a second neither of us moved.

Gaia let out a shriek, covering her breasts as if I had less right to see them than her fucking half-brother. A look passed between them, and I knew this had been going on for a long time, maybe longer than she and I had been married.

The bitter taste of betrayal bloomed in my mouth, followed by the irresistible thirst for revenge. I closed the door. Andrea pushed Gaia off him and lunged for the gun on the nightstand. I pulled the trigger. The bullet tore through his palm, blowing it apart. Blood and flesh splattered everywhere.

He roared in agony.

“No!” Gaia shrieked, stumbling to her feet and moving toward the gun. I was by her side in two large steps, wrapped my arms around her ribcage above her belly.

“No!” she shrieked, struggling in my hold. I covered her mouth with my palm and dragged her toward the bathroom. “Stop screaming,” I growled. “Daniele doesn’t need to hear this.”

Her muffled screams didn’t cease. She didn’t care if our son heard this. I pushed her into the bathroom and locked the door before I turned back to Andrea who was coming out of his pain-induced daze. Gaia hammered against the door. Andrea tried for the gun again. I shot his other hand too, feeling sick satisfaction at his cry of agony. He fell back with a choked cry, holding his ruined hands in front of him.

“Don’t hurt Andrea! Don’t, Cassio, or I swear I’ll kill the child in my womb.”

I froze, my eyes slanting to the door, not able to believe what Gaia had said. I stalked into the walk-in closet and grabbed tape and handcuffs before I returned to the bedroom. Andrea wasn’t a danger to me in his current state.

I opened the door and Gaia almost fell toward me. The second she saw what I was holding, she stumbled back and grabbed my cutthroat razor, pressing it to the underside of her belly. “Don’t hurt him, or I’ll cut Simona out of my belly.”

“You’d hurt your daughter for that man?”

“You wouldn’t understand!” she croaked. “I’ve loved him all my life. He’s all that matters.”

“Put the razor down, Gaia, and we can talk.”

“You’ll never let him live. I know you. It’s either him or you.”

“And you want me dead.”

“Yes.” There wasn’t a hint of hesitation in the word. “I’ve wanted you gone for so long. I want nothing more.”

I lunged, grabbing her wrist before she could hurt herself and the baby. Despite her struggles, I managed to tie her feet and hands together and carefully put her down on an array of towels. I covered her mouth with tape so her screams wouldn’t alert Daniele. “I can’t allow you to kill our child.”

Her eyes were frantic as I straightened and left the room. I closed the door with a soft click. Andrea had stumbled to his feet, but I got to him before he could flee. I chained him to the heater with the handcuffs then taped his mouth as well. We’d talk later.

Taking a deep breath, I checked my clothes for blood then changed my shirt before I went downstairs. On the way, I texted Faro that he needed to come over with a doctor who could treat Gaia. I ignored his following questions.

Daniele hovered in the center of the living room, the tablet still in his hand. His small face showed confusion. I smiled despite the darkness swirling in my insides. “You were right. Your mom and Uncle Andrea were playing.”

“I heard screaming.”

I chuckled, even as my throat tightened. “Yeah. They were chasing each other and Mom got startled.”

Heading to his side, I stroked his head. “I’m going to take you to bed now. You can keep playing if you want.”

He nodded. I lifted Daniele and carried him upstairs, relishing the feel of his warm body. He called to the good part of me, a part Andrea wouldn’t get to see today. After I put Daniele in bed, I left and locked his door.

I returned to Gaia’s bedroom. Before I dealt with Andrea, I checked on Gaia again. She still lay where I’d left her. Her eyes begged me to spare Andrea—the man she’d been fucking behind my back for eight years.

I turned my back on her, not able to bear the look in her eyes, and went to Andrea. After unfastening the handcuffs, I grabbed him by one wrist and dragged him after me, enjoying the sound of his muffled cries. He struggled like a madman. I pulled him down the staircase, when Faro entered the lobby with his keys, our most-trustworthy doctor behind him.