Forever Changed

Chapter 22: Bullets and Betrayals

Mattia POV

(6 Months Married) 

** T/W ON PAGE VIOLENCE **

The door bursting open had my head snapping up from where I was removing a man's thumbnail, I took a defensive stance and reached for the gun in my holster. I quickly realised it was my brother, but it was the look on Nico's face that stopped the next demands for information from leaving my mouth. My brother looked scared, and he never looked scared. He was cool under pressure and his face told me something very bad had happened. It was then I remembered that my phone had been buzzing in my pocket for the last twenty minutes. 

I'd ignored it because we were finally getting somewhere with the the man we had tied to a chair. His face was black and blue from the beating he'd received when we took him from outside his home two days ago. He'd been locked in this room with nothing to eat or drink for twenty four hours, with his eye lids taped open, while screeching death metal music played continuously in the background and I'd just started removing all his finger nails. I could feel he was ready to break, his resolve was weakening but the look on my brother's face made me go cold all over. 

"What is it?" 

His eyes looked tormented and I felt my hands begin to shake. I'd never seen Nico actually cry. Not when our father punished us as children, not when his best friend had been shot and died in his arms following a drive by shooting when we were children, and not when he was informed who his Chosen would be. But in this moment he looked like he might cry.

"You need to clean yourself up and come with me."

With that he walked towards the man I had tied down and grabbed his chin. 

"I have my men gathering your wife and sons. If you do not wish to watch her be raped before we make you both watch your children die then you better start talking." 

The prisoner's face blanched at my brother's words. We never involved families, and we certainly didn't rape women. The Elders would not stand for such behaviour. It went against what we stood for, so I was unsure why he was threatening this man's wife and children. The man glared at my brother before replying.

"You wouldn't do that. I know the rules. You can't threaten my family."

He leaned in close to his face and in a menacing voice said.

"I can when whoever you work for just hurt my family. If you want to cross that line, then so will we. Women are sacred. Everyone knows this and you filthy cunts just breached that rule so all bets are off. The Elders will understand." 

The man was now twisting in his restraints. I could see the fear pouring from him. He knew, as well as I did that my brother wasn't offering empty threats. He meant every word he said.

"What has happened Nico. Who is hurt?"

He grabbed a knife from the rolling table and plunged it deep into the man's thigh before making his way towards me. I could hear the man's screams, but they were background noise to the sound of my heart beating out of my chest. Nico had his arms out like he was approaching a cornered animal and I knew. I knew that Angel had been injured. Or worse. Was she dead? He stopped a few paces from me and turned to my second and spoke.