“One of you should get inside and make sure Desmond watches every second of what’s going on. Don’t forget to record everything, and don’t let him talk to you or get in your head with his lies.”

The guards nodded. This was a well-protected place, so it was unlikely Desmond could escape, even if he somehow managed to free himself from that chair. I trusted that my men would take care of it if he tried something like that, but now I had to get to the rest of Desmond’s family and figure out a way to really hit him where it hurt. Maybe he had a favorite child. Perhaps his youngest son, who was my age. Or maybe one of his daughters. I supposed I was going to find out just how much of a monster and a psychopath Desmond truly was.

***

I’D REACHED THE EZZATIS’ house just in time. Brent met me at the door, and I pulled out my gun. My men must have just gotten inside the house and defeated the guards. There were bodies everywhere, and as we entered the hallway, Brent stepped in front of me. His black hair was slicked back, and his light blue eyes were focused on me.

“You should stay back,” he said. “They might be armed, and we can’t risk you getting hurt.”

I fought the urge to roll my eyes, because by now, I’d heard that sentence so many times that it was getting old. But I was the last Monti, and if something happened to me, my family’s legacy would be forever gone.

“I want them alive.” I took a deep breath and let him join the rest of our men while I stayed a little behind. The Ezzatis had been chased into their living room, and there was nowhere for them to go since the windows had bars over them.

And even if they got out, my men would be waiting for them outside. I turned on the camera on my black jacket and pulled my hair back as I entered the room. Desmond’s only remaining son stepped forward, and he’d managed to take three of my men down before they subdued him.

His mother and his three sisters were huddled together against the wall, their eyes full of tears, and my throat constricted. For a second, I was back in that cabin. Back in my worst nightmare without a way out.

You’re the last Monti. You have to avenge your family.

I heard Hugo’s voice over and over again until I finally snapped out of my thoughts. The Ezzatis’ guards were dead, and Desmond’s son was forced down on his knees. He was glaring at me with so much emotion in his eyes that I couldn’t tear my gaze away from him.