his dark obsession

fair exchange

Now that we're all here, how can I help you, Felix?" I ask as my men circle my desk.

"It's been an exciting week so far, for both of us. Too much excitement. Perhaps we need to come to a fair exchange," Felix says. "Let's talk exchange after all the players are laid out on the board, Natalia. I know you're there, and I'm assuming your son is also. Da?"

"You have property that I want and a woman that is not yours. Give them both to me, and I'll leave your city alone," I hear him growl through the phone, ignoring my mention of Natalia and his son.

"Ah, you speak of my territory and Miss Wolff, right," I say with a grin. "Yes," he confirms. "Give her back to me, and I'll leave your territories alone." My eyes widen with anger as I listen to the nerve of this fucking cunt. A growl of anger begins to build in my throat as I grip the phone stand, hearing it groan and crack. Then a strong hand grips my bicep, stopping me from smashing the phone to pieces. Turning, I see Ivan looking into my eyes as he says, "He's purposely playing on your anger, my friend. He's trying to make you lose focus." While I always appreciate his advice, right now I care not for it.

"NO!!" I say in a dark voice that makes some of my men take a step back.

Angelmarie's mine. Anyone who tries to take her will die. I won't be creative in my killing, either. I'll simply put a bullet through their heart and stop them dead.

"No?!" Felix spits out through the line, and I can imagine his face turning beet red from his anger. "Are you fucking defying me, cunt?" I say.

"I'll fucking murder you all. All of your lives are forfeit," Felix screams at us through the phone before I hear heels click and a door close in the background.

All around me, my inner circle bristles with fury. It's one thing to threaten them, but he threatened my queen and their alpha; they won't stand for that.

"It's time to put this dog down," one of them says.

"Here's my offer, bitch," I say after a moment of quiet. "You will remove your men who haven't been slaughtered yet from my properties in the lower cities that you've been sneaking around in."

"Done," Felix says a bit too quickly.

"You will give us all the guns you plan on buying from New Jersey, that you think we don't know about," I snarl.

"How the fuck did you—" he tries to say. "I'm not finished," I interrupt. "You will then, along with all of your men, get down on your knees like the dick-sucking bitch you are and beg my forgiveness before I let my men take turns torturing you and your useless men however they want. And then, when you reach hell, you will submit my name as your fucking master."

"I will fucking end you all," Felix screams. "I will blow—" I push the disconnect button and look to all of my men. "I want them all dead. I do not care how much blood is spilled. This fucking state will run red until they all die." Nodding their heads at me, we look to Vasily. "The tracer failed. He's hiding behind too many firewall layers. He used a satellite phone. Triangulating will be next to impossible," he says with a sigh.

"All Albanians die tonight. Kill them all. I don't want a single Albanian left, except Felix and Hector. I will torture them myself," I say with a deep growl.

Angelmarie

I begged Vladimir for space, and now that I finally have it, I don't know what to do with myself. The house is quiet and empty. Too fucking quiet and empty. Every little noise has me on edge. Every shadow is a person I want to put a bullet through. All alone with my thoughts, I feel like I'm going insane. I pace the rooms, the halls, passing time until he returns to me, and find myself missing his presence immensely. I try to convince myself it's only because I feel safer with him, but it's more than that, and I know it. As my hand lightly touches my tummy after he left, I ran to the bathroom and threw up again. Shaking my head at myself, I stop in the bedroom and stare down at the bed. His scent still lingers in the air, a raw, unapologetic masculine scent, and there's an imprint in the shape of his huge body in the ruffled sheets. Reaching down, I trace the outline of his back, remembering that blissful moment of feeling safe. What we did last night, the things he said, the way he desperately thrust himself inside me and held me in his arms afterward... I think it's completely broken me. Broken me in a way that can never be fixed. There was truth in the way our bodies joined, an unmistakable truth I can't ignore or deny.