The Wolf's Claim

POV: Dima

The heavy thud of my mahogany door closing barely registered over the dull ache in my temples.

Five years of running my syndicate in Miami, and I was still wasting oxygen on the stubborn ghost of Massimo Bellini. The aging head of the Sicilian faction refused to fade into quiet retirement, clinging to his rotting empire instead of yielding. I glanced up from my massive desk as Dawid strode into the room. My cousin carried the rigid posture of a man delivering a massive headache.

"Let me guess," I said. "Another complication."

"I'd rather bring you decent news, but my hands are tied," Dawid replied, dropping into one of the leather visitor chairs.

"Just lay it out."

"Our inside guys are signaling that the old man is actually preparing to hijack our incoming weapons shipment."

"The sheer arrogance is exhausting," I muttered, leaning back. "There is plenty of cash flowing through this city for everyone."

"He’s a fossil running on an inflated ego. What do you expect?"

"I expect basic honor among thieves."

"His universe begins and ends with his own absolute authority," Dawid countered, crossing his arms.

"Too bad for him. The old rules died in the nineties. He needs to adapt or get buried."

"So how are we playing this?"

"I want to see if he actually has the balls to pull it off."

Dawid frowned. "You're handing him the bait."

"No, I'm orchestrating a permanent solution," I corrected coldly. "Let him take a swing. Once he crosses that line, I have every justification I need to wipe his family off the local map."

"What about the son? He seemed capable of holding a rational conversation."

"Matteo is practical. But the old man keeps him on a tight leash, refusing to hand over real power. My father molded me to rule, but Massimo treats his own bloodline like a threat."

"Shame. We could have hammered out a solid alliance with the kid."

"We play the board as it's set."

Dawid nodded slowly. "Should I lock down the cargo?"

"Remind me of the payload."

"A smooth two hundred grand in heavy artillery."

"Transport method?"

"Coming in via the docks. We kept it off the radar to let the airspace cool down."

"Slice the load in half," I ordered. "If Bellini wants to play pirate, he only gets fifty percent. Send the rest to Mendoza so our volatile buyer stays armed and happy."

"Consider it handled. By the way, we should hit up Verona. It’s been weeks since our last visit."

"I am not in the mood."

Dawid paused, tapping his chin. "Hold on, let me calculate the timeline. Ah, right. Not since Susie."

Susie had been a highly compliant submissive for nearly a decade. She took my commands beautifully and thrived under the sting of my discipline. But her obedience curdled into delusion. She forgot the ironclad boundaries of our dynamic and started whining about a massive suburban house, a diamond ring, and legitimate children. I dragged her out of my property the second those pathetic demands left her mouth.

"I require distance from that club right now," I told him.

"You desperately need a new sub to bleed off this aggressive mood you've been carrying."

"Watch your mouth. I am not some erratic teenager."

"Just reading the room, Dima. Don't snap at me for pointing out the obvious truth."

"Focus on your actual job instead of analyzing my schedule."

Dawid stood up. "Suit yourself. They're hosting a massive event tonight, and I'll be heading over at seven if you drop the attitude."

"Get out of my office."

"You're a miserable prick," Dawid laughed, heading for the door.

"I never advertised myself as a saint," I chuckled back.

The silence returned, allowing me to check my encrypted server. Verona was wildly profitable, drawing endless wealthy clients seeking extreme, secretive domination. Word on the street confirmed Massimo aggressively wanted the club for his own portfolio. The encrypted phone on my desk buzzed violently.

Dawid: *Massimo will be at his usual Italian place downtown. You need to pass by and show him you mean business. He just moved on the divided shipment.*

The bastard actually took the bait. I had zero patience for drawn-out mafia games. It was time to deliver a final, devastating message.

Dima: *It’s a go. Meet me at the garage at seven. We handle this.*

Dawid: *Verona afterward.*

Dima: *Grow up.*

I tossed the device aside, but it immediately vibrated with an incoming call. The caller ID flashed Katya, my nineteen-year-old sister.

"What do you need?" I answered.

"Is that how you greet your favorite sister?" Katya chirped through the speaker.

"You're my only sister."

"Technicalities," she giggled.

"What is going on?" I asked. I had practically raised Katya since our mother died, shielding her from the violent filth of our world. She was the absolute center of my universe.

"I am actually calling to ask if my friends and I can use the private beach house next week."

"As long as you take Nate and the full security detail with you."

"Come on, I don't need a heavy bodyguard detail. I'm nineteen."

"Barely out of childhood."

"You are completely ruining my life," Katya complained loudly, her bratty tone echoing in my ear.

"I am keeping you breathing. There is a massive difference."

"My friends already think I live in a fortified prison."

"They can focus on their drinks," I countered with absolute finality. "You take the armed guards, or nobody goes."

"Fine. I'll let the girls know my brother is a tyrannical control freak."

"Dinner on Saturday. Don't skip it."

"I will be there, just like every week. Love you."

"Stay out of trouble. Love you too," I finished, ending the connection.

Katya failed to grasp the lethal reality surrounding us. The Bellinis would absolutely butcher her to gain leverage over me, and I refused to leave any vulnerability exposed.

By six o'clock, I shut down my systems and locked the heavy vault.

"Heading out for the evening, Mr. Volkov?" Nina, my personal assistant, asked as I stepped into the corridor.

"Yes."

"Do you need me to take care of anything else before you go?" she purred, leaning over her desk to push her cleavage forward.

"No," I stated coldly, walking past her without breaking stride. She was an employee, and her pathetic flirtations were entirely useless to me.

Down in the private garage, I found Dawid leaning against the armored SUVs.

"Dressed to kill," Dawid noted, eyeing my impeccably tailored navy suit. "I thought Verona was off the table."

"This is my standard wardrobe."

"Right. The heavy cologne says you're hunting tonight."

"I don't have to hunt. They line up for me."

"Just leave some scraps for the rest of us."

We climbed into the heavily armored vehicles, flanked by an elite security detail. We pulled up to the brightly lit, crowded Italian restaurant downtown. It was packed with oblivious college students and loud tourists.

"He's holding court in the back VIP section," Dawid briefed me as we approached the entrance. "Brought the new trophy wife, Matteo, and the daughter."

"I always forget he even has a daughter." She was a heavily guarded ghost, entirely isolated from the family blood money.

"Lives alone, going to college," Dawid confirmed. "Strictly civilian."

I pushed through the glass doors. The loud, chaotic atmosphere instantly chilled as my heavily armed crew swept into the room. Patrons quickly scattered out of my path. I strode directly toward the massive corner booth where Massimo sat with his family.

My eyes scanned the table and violently locked onto her.

The entire crowded restaurant completely faded away. She sat quietly next to her brother, possessing gorgeous, tumbling blonde hair and wide, innocent eyes the exact brilliant shade of the sky. Staring at her soft, delicate features, a massive, painful erection instantly strained against the fabric of my trousers. She was exactly the kind of breathtaking, pure woman I violently wanted to claim, ruthlessly dominate on a daily basis, and drag straight back to my fortified estate to lock in my bed.

Dawid muttered something beside me, but I completely ignored him, closing the distance to their table.

Massimo immediately started running his mouth, barking out loud, pathetic territorial threats as I stopped inches away. I barely registered a single syllable leaving the old bastard's lips. My absolute focus was entirely consumed by the shocking, undeniable dark hunger actively swimming in his daughter's wide blue eyes.

She stared at my massive frame with dripping, explicit lust. The raw sexual submission radiating from her small body was intoxicating. I knew instantly she was a filthy, absolute freak deep down inside. The dark, possessive monster roaring in my chest demanded blood; I would brutally punish her right here if she ever dared to direct that heavy, heated look at another living man.

Cutting right through Massimo's loud bluster, I shifted my unyielding gaze directly onto her fragile face.

"There are a lot of wolves out in the world and you have plenty of prey surrounding you," I warned her, my voice dropping into a terrifying, dominant register.

Massimo violently kicked his chair back, his face flushing purple with impotent rage. Instantly, a heavy-handed bodyguard grabbed the beautiful blonde by her upper arm and aggressively dragged her away from the table.

"Are you disrespectfully threatening me in my own territory?" Massimo roared.

"I don’t do threats. It’s a fact," I replied with absolute, lethal calm. "Stay away from my business. This is the only time I will tell you."

"We will see about that."

"We shall," I answered, watching the exit where his beautiful daughter had just disappeared.

My terrifying point was completely made. I turned my back on the fuming old man and led my men out of the dead-silent restaurant.

"You are fully aware of the massive war you just openly triggered, right?" Dawid asked nervously as we reached the armored SUVs.

I completely ignored his strategic panic, my dark, obsessive mind already locked onto my new target.

"I want to know every single piece of information, every habit, and every secret about his daughter," I commanded coldly, staring straight at him.

Dawid blinked in shock. "What?"

"By the end of the night," I ordered, ripping the car door open. "She will absolutely be mine."