“No, you’re not. You’re being an ass.”
“Fuck you, Dante. You see, that’s your problem. You don’t have a loyal bone in your body. Did she really fuck you up so bad you couldn’t give a shit about your own goddamn family anymore?”
Dante rushed toward Antonio, stopping only a few feet away. His eyes were wild, angry orbs staring at Antonio like he wanted to tear his head off. “Don’t talk about shit you know nothing about.”
Antonio met his glare. “Maybe if you were a little more loyal to the family, I wouldn’t have to bring shit up.”
Dante snorted. “Loyal? You think you’re being loyal right now, Antonio?”
“Yes,” Antonio answered without hesitation. The tension was so thick, I was sure this night was going to end with my two brothers beating the shit out of each other.
Dante took an intimidating step toward Antonio, and it felt like my heart was about to rip through my chest.
“She’s your fucking sister, Antonio. You have no idea what that son of bitch did to her, yet you’re standing here wanting to expose her wounds, her shame, for everyone to see…for Dad to see. Where’s the loyalty in that?”
Antonio stepped back and looked at me with the most bewildered expression on his face. Then it chose that exact moment to start raining, like Mother Nature thought the cold, hard drops of water would be the perfect ambience for this epically disastrous scene.
My tears threatened to escape, and I had to bite the inside of my mouth to keep myself from crying.
“What did he do to you, Karina?” Antonio asked softly, his eyes wide with concern.
I couldn’t look at him, so I let my gaze drop to the ground beneath my feet and wrapped my arms around my chest. I knew what he had to be thinking, and it was nothing like that. It was worse. For four years, I carried this burden, knowing my mistake would one day come out in the open. And here I was, unable to keep my secret any longer.
Antonio moved closer. “Karina, did he—”
“No,” I interrupted him. “No, he didn’t.” I still couldn’t look at him. The guilt was too much, tearing at my soul. Admitting this to Antonio was almost as bad as it would be admitting it to my father.
“Then what did he do?”
Finally, I gathered the courage to look up and glanced between Dante and Antonio. A tear slipped down my cheek, and I took a deep breath.
“Enzio didn’t do anything to me that I didn’t want him to.”
And then the dam broke. Tears stormed relentlessly down my face, and my chest started to close in, growing tighter, making it almost impossible to breathe.
I can’t do this. I can’t face this. Not now.
I darted toward the car and pushed Dante out of the way when he tried to reach for me. I was in the car and reversing out of the driveway so fast, neither Antonio nor Dante had any time to stop me.
While I sped down the streets, I wiped at my face as tears kept on coming. I couldn’t remember the last time I cried this hard.
Oh, wait. Yes, I can.New Year’s Eve, four years ago, when I realized I was exactly what Enzio called me—a little lamb. A little lamb who trusted everyone, who followed anyone who was willing to lead. A little lamb who didn’t know any better, naïve and weak. A little lamb who would follow the devil to the slaughterhouse because maybe, just maybe the world wasn’t so fucked up, and there might be something good waiting behind the door you were about to walk through. And once you walked through that door, realizing you’d been tricked, you didn’t fight for survival. You just lay down and stared at the knife that was about to slice through your throat, and let your soul bleed out of you within a matter of seconds.
That’s me, Karina Valenti…the little lamb.
Chapter 11
LORIK
It had been hours since I sent her my address.
What the hell was I thinking? Oh, right…I wasn’t. My raging hard-on had completely ruined my ability to think like a fucking adult. All I could think about was giving my cock what it wanted. Her.
She had read my message. Her little face icon was there right next to my message. But she didn’t reply—which was probably for the best.
For whom?my dick would ask.
For everyone, you fucking huge piece of flesh that has the tendency to make me act like a fucking caveman!