My Stepbrother's Dirty Little Secret novel Chapter 141

Chapter 141

I didn’t look up from my screen immediately then I slowly raised an eyebrow, my expression flat. “Did he tell you why I threw him there in the first place?”

Adriano stopped tracing the map of Indiana. He leaned back, “What did the idiot do to earn a death sentence in the shipyard?”

I felt my jaw tighten. I reached up and pushed my glasses back, my fingers still tingling with the memory of Gianna’s skin. I clenched my fist under the table, my knuckles turning white.

“He set his sights on Gianna,” I stated, “He brought our stepsister to a sex hunt. If I hadn’t seen her there… if I hadn’t stepped in… things would have gone very differently that night.”

Luca stopped clicking his Glock. Dante’s eyes snapped up from his legal briefs. And Vincenzo’s posture changed completely, his shoulders squaring.

Thinking back to that night made my blood boil. I could still see her standing there in the middle of that filth, that ridiculous pink ribbon tied around her, marking her as prey for animals like me.

She was supposed to be safe. She was supposed to be under the protection of this house, under the shadow of ourname.

Ciro had treated her like a common girl you could buy for an hour. He had tried to put his hands on what belonged to this family.

“A sex hunt?” Vincenzo asked, “He took a girl from this house and took her to the Void to be hunted by the highest bidder?”

“He claimed it was a misunderstanding,” I said, “He told me he only brought her to the party. He’s lucky I didn’t feed his tongue to the water before I sent him to the docks to rot.”

I looked back at my laptop, but the numbers were just a blur. I wasn’t thinking about Ciro anymore. I was thinking about how I had rescued her from one hunt only to start my own.

No one touched the prey I was tracking.

“How did Ciro even get close enough to take her to a party in the first place?” Luca asked, “Why did he think she was his to take?”

“Because she’s been locked in this house with us. Ciro offered her a ‘night out.’ He offered her a bit of freedom, and she was desperate enough to take the bait without looking for the hook.”

“Still awake, I see,” he said, his eyes scanning the room, “Planning the next move?”

“Dad,” Vincenzo acknowledged. He didn’t stand, but his posture straightened, “We were just finishing the logistics for the state line. The docks are ours by Monday.”

Our father walked toward the center of the room. The firelight caught the gold ring on his hand. He stopped right behind my chair. I could smell the faint scent of his cigar and expensive brandy.

“I wanted to talk to you all,” he added.

“About what?” Dante asked, leaning back and narrowing his eyes. He knew that tone. We all did.

Our father looked at us, a slow, thin smile touching his lips, “Just know that I’m not here to ask for permission. I’m not here for your opinions. I’ve already made the decision. I’m just letting you know so you can fall in line.”