Twisted Cravings by Cora Reilly

Being back at camp actually felt like returning home. I loved my childhood home in Chicago, but it had always felt like a prison of sort. When I lived there, I had to abide by certain rules. Dad’s soldiers and the staff required that I reflected a certain image. Not to mention that Dad preferred to see a version of me that had little resemblance to the real Dinara.

Kate, the pit girl with the beautiful voice greeted me with a hug when I ran across her on my way to the toilet trailer. I could see us becoming friends in the long run, if I stayed in camp and really started seeing it as my home. If she’d heard what had happened, she didn’t let it show. I couldn’t believe that no one had spread rumors.

I never made it to the trailer because Dima headed my way. I hadn’t seen him in weeks. I hugged him. “I missed you,” I admitted.

His expression twisted with apprehension when he pulled back. I braced myself for what he had to say. “We should return to Chicago now. There’s no reason for us to stay. Falcone and the races served their purpose. We don’t need either anymore.”

I allowed my gaze to take in the tents and race cars, soaking up the buzzing excitement of the day before a race. I didn’t want to leave. I wanted to become a part of the camp, just because and not for any other reason. I wanted to be with Adamo. “Why should I return to Chicago?”

“Because that’s where you belong,” Dima muttered. “This isn’t your home. Don’t overstay your welcome, Dinara. Remo Falcone might have tolerated your presence so he could play with you but now that the game is over, he’ll want you off his territory as soon as possible.”

“Nobody played with me. He gave me an option and I grabbed it. Only because it was an option Dad and you disapprove of doesn’t mean his motives were bad. He gave me what I wanted.”

Dima made a face. “He’s good at manipulation. I have to admit it. Remo used you to exact revenge that your father wanted.”

“He might have wanted it but it was mine to begin with. Not his, or anyone else’s.”

“And yetyou shared it with Adamo instead of me or your father.”

“Because neither of you would have allowed me to get my hands dirty. You would have taken matters into your own hands. Maybe you would have allowed me to watch but definitely not to partake.”

“Because what you did can destroy you.”

“But it didn’t,” I said firmly. “I don’t have nightmares, and I don’t feel guilty.”

That wasn’t quite true. I had nightmares but they were better than the ones that had haunted me in the past. They didn’t wake me in a cold sweat with a pounding heart.

“I won’t return to Chicago now. I’ll finish the season—”

“Your father wants you back in Chicago, so that’s where I’m taking you. You got what you wanted, now you have to come to your senses.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Are you going to tie me up and kidnap me?”

“Your father won’t accept a no in this case, and he’ll blame Adamo if you don’t show up in Chicago tonight.”

I gritted my teeth. I didn’t want to provoke my father. He’d been pissed about my vigilante quest but had allowed me to do what I needed to do, but I had a feeling he wouldn’t be as tolerant if I ignored his order this time. I didn’t want to turn him against Adamo. I wanted him to like Adamo, to accept him as the man I loved, no matter how unlikely that was.

“I’ll have to talk to Adamo first,” I said. Dima didn’t bother hiding his disapproval but I didn’t care. I wouldn’t sneak away. Adamo deserved to know what was going on. I turned on my heel and went in search of Adamo. I found him, as expected, at Crank’s trailer, probably discussing last-minute details for tomorrow’s race. He gave me a distracted smile but his face morphed into a frown when he saw my expression. He said something to Crank who nodded before he jogged toward me. “What’s wrong?”

It was strange how well Adamo knew me. I’d always prided myself on my poker face, but after everything Adamo and I had been through, we knew each other’s fake expressions and the true meaning behind them. It was scary and comforting all at once.

“I need to return to Chicago—tonight.”

Adamo froze. “Why? You’ll miss tomorrow’s race.”

“I know. But my father insists that I’ll return to talk to him. He’s given me the time to do what I needed to do but now his patience is running thin.”

Adamo regarded me silently for a couple of heartbeats. The hint of worry and suspicion flared up in his eyes but disappeared so quickly I would have missed them if I didn’t know him just as well as he knew me.

“I’ll be back as soon as possible,” I said firmly. “But I need to straighten things with my father first. I don’t want him to send the cavalry and create more tension between our families.”

Adamo touched my hips, pulling me closer. “Maybe he won’t allow you to return.”

“The only way he could make me stay is to lock me in and that’s something he’d never do.” To me, at least. Because of what happened to me, Dad hated to force his will on me, which was why I had more freedoms than most girls I knew.

“If you don’t return, I’ll drive to Chicago and get you myself.”

I scoffed. “Don’t you dare. That would be insanity. Dad would kill you on sight. Trust me to handle my father. He won’t force me to stay. I know him.”

Adamo still looked doubtful but he nodded anyway. “All right. I trust you. Promise me to hurry.”

“I will.”

“Dinara!” Dima called across camp, impatience ringing in his voice.

I sighed. “It’s time for me to leave.” Adamo pressed his lips against mine and kissed me passionately. When he pulled back and released me, Dima’s expression had darkened even more.

“Did you tell him goodbye?” Dima asked when we got into the car together.

“It wasn’t a goodbye. It was a see-you-later.”

Dima sent me an exasperated look. “That’s not what your father wants.”

“It’s what I want,” I said sharply.

Chicago felt even less like home than last time. I’d transformed over the last few months. I didn’t bother changing into new clothes before seeing Dad. My boots, tattered jeans, and biker jacket were me and I didn’t want to pretend I was someone else.

Dad’s face flashed with surprise when I entered his office. He scanned my outfit, obviously disgruntled. For him, women should wear dresses and skirts to emphasize their femininity. He got up from his desk chair and strode toward me to pull me into a tight embrace. “It’s good to have you back now. I couldn’t stop worrying about you while you spent time in Camorra territory.”

I gave him a tense smile. He thought I’d returned for good, that I wouldn’t return to camp, to Adamo.

“Dad,” I began, pulling back.

Dad’s eyes tightened. “Your place is here, with your people, with your family.”

“I’m a grown-up, and grown-ups eventually move out and live their own life. You know that I never really felt like I belonged in our circles. I don’t want to schmooze the wives of oligarchs and politicians, or pretend I give a damn about the newest limited-edition bag from Louis Vuitton. I want to be free and do as I please. I don’t want to fulfill my role as a Pakhan’s daughter. I never did. You have Galina and the boys for that. You don’t need me.”

Dad took a step back, his shoulders stiffening. I could tell that he was hurt by my words. “I gave you all the freedom you need, more than any other girl in your position would ever be allowed. All I ask is for you to be loyal.”

My brows snapped together. “Of course, I’m loyal. That I want to spend the year as a race driver in Camorra territory doesn’t mean I’m not loyal to you. I love you Dad. I’d never betray you.”

“You want to be with the Falcone boy.”

“He’s not a boy,” I said. “And yes, I want to be with him. It’s not like we’re going to marry. We just enjoy spending time together.”

Dad stroked my cheek as if I were a delusional child. “This can’t work Dinara. You will be torn between two worlds, worlds that’ll never merge. I don’t want open war with Dante Cavallaro, but if I make peace with the Camorra, his arch-enemy, that’ll be the result. He’s acquired some very important political alleys these last few years and it’ll hurt my business if they start to turn their attention on me.”

“I’m not asking you to risk war with the Outfit, or to make peace with the Camorra. I’m not part of the Bratva, and if I stop doing our websites, then I won’t have any involvement with our business at all. There won’t be a risk of me revealing anything to Adamo, not even by accident. He and I don’t even discuss business details anyway.”

“Dinara, you are a Mikhailov and people will judge you as one. You lived a fantasy for a few months but now you have to face reality. A Mikhailov and a Falcone can’t be together. I can’t allow it.”

I took a step back. “You can’t or you won’t?”

Dad smiled joylessly. “It doesn’t matter. The fact is that you can’t see Adamo Falcone again.”

Anger rushed through my veins. “You’re asking me to stop seeing Adamo?”

“I’m not asking you. You won’t see him again and you won’t set foot on Camorra territory.”

“You can’t order me around like that. It’s my life. I always respect you but you need to respect me as well.”

Dad’s face became hard. “You can stop seeing him, or I’ll find a way to move him out of the picture in some other way. It’s up to you, but the end result will be the same. Adamo Falcone won’t be a part of your life.”

My mouth fell open. “Are you threatening to kill him?”

Dad perched on the edge of his desk, his business expression replacing the look he usually gave me. “I’ll do what’s necessary to protect all of us.” His voice didn’t leave room for an argument. For him the matter was settled and my opinion was irrelevant. This side of him wasn’t new to me, but usually I wasn’t on the receiving end of it.

I glared. “You aren’t protecting me by keeping me away from Adamo! I thought you wanted to see me happy but you’re obviously only concerned about business.”

“If open war breaks out in Chicago, everyone’s going to be at risk. You, Galina, the boys, my men. I have responsibility that goes beyond your infatuation with a boy you hardly know.”

I couldn’t believe his nerve. He didn’t know the first thing about Adamo and me. He’d never wanted to know and I’d been careful not to tell him too much. Why poke a beehive?“Adamo saved me. He gave me what I needed to forget the past. He brings me happiness in the present and he makes me excited for the future. Isn’t that more than a silly infatuation?” For the longest time, I’d tried to pretend I wasn’t in love with Adamo, had feared any kind of commitment, but now that I was past the point of denial, it made me all the more furious to have others question feelings I’d battled for months. “I’m not someone who allows emotions easily. You know me, Dad. If I tell you that I want to be with Adamo, then that means something.”

“Do you really think his family will allow him to be with you? Their traditions aren’t ours. They’ll never fully accept you, never trust you.”

I wasn’t sure. Adamo had assured me his family would accept me. They weren’t as traditional as the other Italian mob families. After all, their Enforcer was married to an Outsider, which if you looked at it, was a bigger risk than having a relationship with someone from an adverse crime organization. I’d been brought up in a world of violence and bound by strict rules. I knew how to keep a secret, no matter how dark. I could lie into the face of a police officer without batting an eye. Even if Adamo and I had been brought up on different sides, our lives were similar. “I’ll cross that bridge when I reach it, but that’s my problem, not yours.”

Dad stood and grabbed my shoulders gently, his smile wistful but his eyes were relentless. “I’ll do whatever’s necessary to protect you, Katinka. Don’t force my hand.”

I didn’t doubt for a second that Dad would kill Adamo. He wanted to protect me at all costs. That he wouldn’t step on the Outfit’s toes by doing so was a side-effect not the reason. “You’re trying to make up for the past because you couldn’t protect me from my mother and the men who molested me, but you can’t undo what’s happened, and certainly not by ruining my life now.”

Dad’s fingers tightened around my upper arms. “You have Dima. You two were happy together. If you want to protect Adamo, you’ll stay. He’s young. He’ll find a new love, someone he can actually be with. Or do you actually think you can live in Las Vegas with him?”

Las Vegas was out of the question, would always be, but Adamo didn’t want to live there either.

Yet…

“Katinka, be reasonable,” Dad said softly. “Some things aren’t meant to be. If you miss racing, we can try to set something up.”

I tore away from his grip, unable to bear his closeness. Without another word, I stormed out of his office. My eyes burned but I didn’t cry. I almost bumped into Dima in the lobby. He must have waited for me and now he’d probably keep an eye on me to make sure I didn’t leave the house. Red-hot fury sizzled in my veins. I charged toward the front door, determined to leave. I’d take a car, because Dad had probably given orders to all our pilots not to fly me anywhere.

I didn’t get far. Dima grabbed my forearm, jerking me to a stop. I whirled on him, furious and desperate.

I didn’t want to lose Dad, or Dima. I didn’t want to never see my half-brothers again either. But giving up Adamo? I wasn’t sure I could do it. “Let me go,” I hissed but Dima didn’t loosen his hold.

“Dinara,” he murmured imploringly, the voice that was usually balm on my anger. “Think before you act. Do you really want Adamo to die? Do you think he’d want to die for you?”

I froze.

“Would you want Adamo to insist on being with you if Remo threatened your life because of it? Would you die for a relationship that might not even last years?”

I didn’t even have to think about it. The answer rang loud and clear in my heart. Yes, I would risk my life to be with Adamo because I loved him and because he’d already done so much for me. Dima seemed to see the answer in my face because his expression fell but he still didn’t release me. “Are you sure his answer would be the same? He might have helped you get revenge but that never really posed a threat to his life. But if your Dad puts him on his death list, his days are counted.”

Few people survived for long if Dad wanted them dead. My mother had because of Remo Falcone’s intervention. Adamo had the Camorra at his back, but he was an easy target when he lived in camp, and Dad had made it clear he would risk war with the Camorra this time if necessary. My shoulders sagged. The idea of being separated from Adamo hurt but the fear of him being killed was even greater. Maybe Dad and Dima had a point. Adamo and I hadn’t been together for long, and the majority of the time we’d been too cowardly to even put a name to what we had. I couldn’t decide for Adamo to risk his life. No, I definitely didn’t want him to risk his life.

“I need to end it face to face, Dima. I won’t do it over the phone. That’s a bullshit move after everything he’s done for me.”

“Your father won’t allow you to return to camp. He suspects you might stay.”

“Talk to him. If I do it now, I’ll only make things worse. I’m too angry. Tell him you’ll make sure I’ll return.”

“I will make sure you return,” Dima said firmly. “Because if you don’t, your father will relieve me of my head. I really don’t want to die so you can traipse about with Falcone. Stay here. Don’t you dare run off.”

I felt empty as I watched Dima set out for my father’s office. Last night, I’d allowed myself to imagine a future with Adamo. It had been blurry, with many variables, but I had been happy and free. If I stayed in Chicago, I’d never be either, not without Adamo, not as the Dinara that Dad wanted me to be.

Dima returned five minutes later. “He agreed, but he made it very clear that he’ll send men after Adamo if you aren’t back home tomorrow for lunch.”

“I’ll be back,” I said.

When Dima and I sat in Dad’s private jet for the second time that day, my stomach sank. Adamo deserved to be told the reason for breaking things off in person, but the idea of actually telling him, of being close to him for one last time, it split my heart in two. What if I couldn’t say goodbye?

Dinara’s message telling me she would be back soon raised my alarm and the moment Dinara showed up in camp early the next morning with Dima, I knew something was up. She looked exhausted and as if she was bracing herself for a battle.

I had barely slept the night. I hurried toward her, eager to clear things up. Dinara got out of the car but Dima didn’t. He stayed behind the steering wheel, looking stoic as usual. I grabbed Dinara and kissed her. For a moment she tensed but then she threw herself into the kiss, oozing despair and passion. I cupped the back of her head, pulling her even closer. It felt as if we hadn’t seen each other in forever.

Eventually Dinara jerked away and staggered a step back. Her cheeks were flushed. The dazed look in her eyes quickly morphed into apprehension, then determination. This wasn’t good.

“What’s wrong?” I murmured. We were a good distance away from Dima but the windows of the car were down and I didn’t want to risk him overhearing our conversation in case he was part of the reason for Dinara’s tension.

“Nothing,” she said quickly, but her voice proved her answer wrong.

“I didn’t think you’d be back in time for the race tonight. I worried it would take you days to convince your father you were safe here.”

She looked away briefly and when she met my gaze again, her walls had come up, locking me out of her mind and heart.

“Dinara,” I said imploringly, taking her hand. “Tell me what’s going on.”

Her eyes locked on mine then she pulled her hand away. “I didn’t return for the race tonight. I won’t race again. Racing was always only a means to an end, and so were you.” Her voice wavered when she said the latter.

“Liar,” I growled, stepping closer again. I wouldn’t allow her to put distance between us, not physically and not with words either. We’d gone through too much. We were both haunted by inner demons—demons only we could understand. Maybe we’d been born on different sides but fate had thrown us together because we were meant to be, because no one would ever see the world the way we did. “If I was only a means to an end, you wouldn’t be here right now. You would have left without an explanation or ditched me over the phone. But you are here, Dinara. Why?”

She held my gaze, trying to appear resolute and emotionless, but I’d seen every emotion in those green eyes and knew her too well to believe her charade.

“I simply thought you deserved to find out in person after everything you did for me. I’m not ungrateful, even if I used you for my purposes.”

I smirked. “You need to do better to convince me.”

Dinara glared. “It doesn’t matter. I’m not here to convince you, Adamo. I’m here to inform you about my decision. This is the last time you’ll see me. I won’t stay in camp, nor will we ever meet again. I belong in Chicago with my people.”

“Your people? The people that want you to dress up as a fake version of yourself? The people who only know one side of you, but not every aspect of yourself, not the dark parts only I got to see.”

Dinara reached into her pocket and took out a smoke. Her fingers were unsteady when she lit it up.

“I thought you wanted to stop?”

She shrugged. “It wouldn’t work.”

“The not-smoking or us?”

She took a deep drag and glanced at her boots. “Both.” She peered back up at me. “Listen, Adamo. This is a courtesy. I won’t explain my reasons. What we had was fun as long as it lasted but it was never meant to be forever. You have to accept my decision. But even if you don’t, it won’t change a thing. Dima and I’ll fly back to Chicago today and I’ll return to my old life, and so should you.”

“We aren’t the same people from our old lives. We changed.”

“I should go now. This is pointless,” Dinara clipped and tossed her cigarette to the ground then stomped it out with her boots.

Despite her words, she didn’t move a muscle, as if she was rooted to the ground.

I took a step closer. “You can trust me with anything, Dinara. Didn’t I prove that over and over again in the last few months? Tell me the fucking truth. Is this because your father doesn’t want you to be with me?” I asked in a low voice.

Dinara looked away, obviously fighting to keep her expression neutral. “We always knew that our relationship had an expiration date. We’re from two different worlds.”

I positioned myself right in front of her, cupped her cheeks and forced her to meet my eyes. She narrowed them to keep me at a distance but I knew her too well for that. What we’d done these last couple of weeks, killing and torturing together, overcoming past demons, that had given me a key to look past her barriers, just like she could look past mine. “Maybe our families are from different worlds, and on different sides, but we aren’t. Our life as we’ve led it over the past year has been in a world of our own.”

“Exactly,” she whispered. “But we can’t stay in our own bubble or world or whatever else you want to call it. We got family and we belong with them.”

“We belong with each other. It’s where we found happiness. I won’t give you up and I know you don’t want to give me up. Did your father threaten to kill me if you didn’t break it off?” Dinara had her own head and I doubted she would allow anyone, not even her father to forbid her from seeing me, but if she feared for my life that would change things.

She closed her eyes, trying to lock me out but I kept stroking her cheeks with my thumbs and eventually she covered my hands with hers. “I hate that you know me so well, that you know how things work in the messed-up world I live in. I should have never let you in.”

“I didn’t give you a choice,” I said quietly. “Just like you didn’t give me one either.”

Dinara let out a harsh breath and opened her eyes. This time it was harder to gauge her emotions. She was really giving it her all.

“So he did threaten to kill or at least seriously hurt me if you kept seeing me?” Dinara always talked with respect and love about her father. I’d never met the man, but even Remo and Nino seemed to respect him to some degree. Though, that was probably a testament to his ruthlessness and brutality, both character traits my brothers appreciated.

It was obvious he was important to Dinara, had been the most important person in her life for a long time. If Grigory was willing to risk war with the Camorra, willing to raise Remo’s wrath, because both would be guaranteed if he laid a hand on me, then he must really mistrust me, or have a closer relationship with the Outfit than we thought. Whatever it was, he’d be a difficult nut to crack. Considering Dinara’s love for her father, killing him seemed like a bad idea.

“Your family doesn’t mind us being together?” she asked.

“Remo has never been someone who played by the rules. He trusts me so he accepts my choice. Of course, he’d never confide any business details relevant to the Bratva while you were present, but he won’t stop me from seeing you. My main work is racing and it’ll stay that way. It’s not like I’m at the base of Camorra business in Las Vegas. I don’t even have to live there.”

She scoffed. “Racing is one of your most important businesses and how can you be sure you’ll be happy living the nomad life forever?”

“We’ll figure something out, and I don’t care how, but I won’t give you up, you hear me?”

Dinara took a step back but I followed. I wouldn’t let her do this. “Don’t make this harder on us than it needs to be. I won’t risk your life.”

“I don’t care. It’s my life to decide on. And I’m willing to take a risk because what we have is worth it.”

“You can’t decide alone, and for me, the risk is not worth it, Adamo. And it’s not just your life on the line. This conflict could endanger my father, Dima and the rest of my family. Nothing is worth risking so much, least of all a relationship based on something as twisted as revenge and blood-thirst.”

She made a move as if to turn and return to her car but I grabbed her wrist and pulled her against me. She didn’t resist, but despair flashed in her eyes. “Let me go. You have to accept my decision. And let’s be honest, in a year or maybe less you’ll have found a new girl to get cozy with, someone who doesn’t have the Russian mafia at her back, or who’s as messed up as I am.”

“I like your kind of baggage and your messed-up brain. I want you, and no one else.”

I lowered my head and kissed her fiercely and for a moment she kissed me back with the same passion, only fueled with despair, then she ripped away. “It’s over, Adamo. Accept it. Move on. It’s what I’ll do.” She stumbled toward the car.

“Does returning to your old life include getting back together with Dima?” I asked, jealousy raging in my body. Fuck. I wanted to ram my knife into Dima’s stupid face. He was pretending to be busy with his phone, but I wasn’t buying it for a moment. He was paying close attention to what was going on between Dinara and me.

Dinara stiffened but when she faced me her expression was cold. “Maybe. But from this day on, it’s none of your business.” She ripped open the door of her Toyota.

“You can’t run away from what we have, Dinara. We both know that emotions, dark or light, follow you wherever you run.”

Dinara swung herself into the car and slammed her door shut. She turned to Dima and said something. He briefly glanced my way. He didn’t look triumphant but I still wanted to kill him. The engine roared up and then Dinara’s Toyota raced away, only leaving a cloud of dust behind.

“Fuck!” I snarled as I watched her drive away. My breathing was harsh and my heart galloped in my chest. I closed my eyes, trying to calm myself down. I needed to think. Right now, my first impulse was to take our Camorra jet and fly to Chicago to put a bullet into Grigory’s head, and into every fucker’s head who thought he could keep me away from Dinara.

After a few more deep breaths, I pulled out my phone and called Remo. Usually Nino was the person I called to ask for advice. He was the voice of reason after all. “Adamo—”

“I need your advice,” I interrupted him.

“I thought Nino was your advisor of choice.”

I didn’t say anything. Of course, Remo would put his finger into the wound.

“That you choose me to give you advice tells me you already made up your mind and need encouragement for an irrational and emotionally charged endeavor Nino would disapprove of.”

“I hate that you read people so well,” I muttered. He was right as usual.

“I assume this is about Dinara. You and her completed your list, so your reasons to be together have to be evaluated anew.”

“That sounds like Nino.”

“No one’s been on the receiving end of Nino’s logical advice more often than me. I can anticipate his advice without talking to him.”

“And yet you always do whatever the fuck you want.”

“Just what you have in mind,” he said with dark amusement.

“Dinara ended things between us because her father threatened my life.” I fell silent. I wasn’t a kid anymore, but Remo’s protectiveness hadn’t really caught up on that yet.

“Did he now?” Remo asked in a voice that rang my alarm bells.

“I don’t want you to handle him. This is my problem, Remo. Your involvement could end things with Dinara for good. I’ll deal with Grigory.”

“If Grigory lays a hand on you, he’ll pay the consequences, Adamo. You are my brother and I’ll rip his Russian ass apart if he touches you.”

This was Remo’s way of showing he cared for me. I knew that now, but I couldn’t allow it. “I’ll handle things. If I want to win Dinara back, I’ll have to show her how serious I am.”

“You plan to go to Chicago.”

“Yes. I have to. If I risk my life, she’ll realize I won’t give her up no matter what.”

“And you expect me to give you the okay for this suicidal bullshit?” Remo growled.

“You would do the same if our roles were reversed. You never cared about your life when the people you love were involved. You allowed Cavallaro to torture you for me and Serafina. A painful death was as good as certain, but you didn’t care. Now it’s my turn to follow in your manic footsteps.”

“You are becoming too much like me, Adamo,” Remo said.

“I thought you’d be happy.”

“You were supposed to be the good Falcone.”

I scoffed. “We both know that would have never worked.”

“You might have to kill Grigory,” Remo said.

“If I kill him, Dinara won’t ever forgive me. I’ll have to convince him—”

“Or die.”

“That’s not the outcome I’m hoping for.”

“It’s not an outcome I can allow, you realize that.”

“I want your promise that you won’t go on a killing spree if things don’t work out. I’m the one who’s intruding on Grigory’s territory. If he decides to kill me, he’s got every right to do so.”

“And as your brother, I have every right to seek revenge.”

“Remo,” I gritted out. “I don’t want you to avenge me. If her father got killed as well, that would break Dinara.”

“If she really loves you, she won’t allow her father to kill you, and if she can’t stop him, she should be happy if I kill him.”

For Remo, many things were black and white, especially where loyalty was concerned. Deep down, I hoped Dinara wouldn’t allow her father to kill me, but above all, I wanted to convince him of my feelings for his daughter.

“If Greta fell in love with an enemy, could he stop you from killing him if his love for her was true and if he tried to prove it to you by risking his life?”

“No,” Remo said without hesitation.

“Even if that meant Greta would never forgive you?”

“Greta can’t be separated from Nevio, nor should she be separated from her family. We are her safe haven. I’d never allow anyone to take that from her, not even for love.”

“Okay, maybe Greta wasn’t the best example, but Dinara doesn’t have trouble adapting to new surroundings. She loved living in camp with me.”

“But being with you still means you’re taking her away from Grigory. He lost her once before and he hasn’t forgiven himself for it yet. Allowing her to be with you means putting her at risk in enemy territory, away from his power.”

“I’ll have to give it a try,” I said imploringly.

“Do what you must, you are an adult. But tell Grigory that I’ll destroy everything he holds dear if he touches you.”

“Will do,” I said, even if I had absolutely no intention to follow through.

After my conversation with Remo, I was determined to go through with my plan. This was insanity but if that was what it took to convince Dinara and her father that we had to be together, then I’d do it.

I rented a private jet instead of taking one of the Camorra’s. If I showed up with a Camorra jet, Grigory might consider it a threatening gesture, but I wasn’t here as a Camorrista. I was here as Adamo.

A taxi took me to the Mikhailov palace. The moment I walked toward the gate and told the guard my name, he rang the alarm. Within a minute, several Bratva guards and Dima rushed down the driveway.

Dima shook his head, an incredulous expression twisting his features. The gates swung open and the guard shoved me toward Dima. I didn’t resist.

Dima grabbed my arm in a crushing grip, bringing his mouth close to my ear. “What the fuck, Falcone? Are you crazy? You must realize that even your name can’t protect you in Chicago. This isn’t Camorra land. Grigory will be pissed and kill you.”

“That’s what you’ve been waiting for, right? So this’ll be a good day for you.”

Dima shook his head, muttering something in Russian under his breath. “You are an idiot. Dinara will be devastated if something happens to you.”

My heart skipped a beat hearing her name. “Dinara and I love each other.”

Dima nodded. “I know, but Grigory won’t care. He wants Dinara in Chicago, he wants her safe. Sending her off with a Falcone isn’t something he can accept.” Dima patted me down and removed my knives and guns, and handed them over to the other guards who trained their guns on me.

“Are you alone?” Dima asked.

“Yes.”

“Usually I’d say you’re lying because it’s absolutely idiotic to come here without a backup, but I believe you. You’ve got more guts than I thought.”

Dima dragged me along the driveway toward a magnificent palace and then inside the building. It was something straight out of Russia, a palace so full of splendor that even I was awed despite having grown up in a huge mansion. The States and even the Camorra seemed light years away in this place.

“Maybe you can put in a good word for me, if you want Dinara to be happy,” I joked.

Dima gave me an amused look. “If Dinara hasn’t convinced him yet, then I definitely can’t do it. And if you think that Grigory will listen to you, then you’re the biggest fool I know.”

Dima knocked on a massive wood double-door with gilded decorations. Business seemed to be going splendidly for the Bratva.

“Come in,”a deep male voice said in Russian. I’d worked my ass off to learn the language whenever I had a moment to spare but I was still far from being fluent. But I understood enough and could even communicate on a basic level. I’d wanted to surprise Dinara with it. Now I could only hope it would appease Grigory enough to save my life.

Dima shoved open the door and led me into a vast office. I’d seen photos of Dinara’s father on the internet but this was the first time I saw him in person. He rose from his desk chair and walked around the massive piece of furniture, his expression harsh. He was a tall man and judging from the look in his eyes, he didn’t have any interest in listening to what I had to say. I was a threat in his eyes. For his daughter, for the Bratva, for his business. He wanted me gone, as far away from Dinara as possible, and that I’d showed up today, made him want to kill me.

Maybe it was a sign of disrespect in his eyes. Remo would have respected someone who risked his life in such a suicidal way. But Remo’s way of thinking was different from most people. Still, I had to hope that Grigory would realize what this meant.

That I was willing to risk everything for his daughter. Maybe it would save my life. Not that saving my life was my top priority. I wouldn’t leave unless I could be with Dinara.