na'

eutenants erupted into

t, trying to use that crushing psychological pressure to force me to pu

hol mixed with bitter artifici

dump the filth into the trash-when my eyes accidentally ca

froze in

d to me-my grandmother's sacred Sicilian a

rayed, and the sacred amulet itself was cracked so bad

" I rasped at Dante, my finger t

matter. "She found it in the back seat of the car and thou

ed, utterly indifferent to the desecration of my family relic, as if it

that detonated in my chest, burning away

ung

k. The shattered amulet's jagged edges bit de

doctored wine-glass explode

edge of the heavy poker table and heaved

hrough the air like a po

m plunged into

will never bow to your twisted rules a

I spun on my heel and mar

suffocating lounge and in

ushed bone. "Walk out now, and next week'

me to my knees. "Without my protection, you're nothing!" he ro

myself free

my eyes as dead

en night without looking back, coldly severing the l