Chapter 49
Ifollow Levi into the building, the smell of wet grass and petroleum invading my nostrils. It’s not something I’d associate with knowing what we hope this place holds, but then again, maybe Enzo is right. I had to see for myself, though. I had to know that D’Angelo lied to us, because he’s far from mercy if he sent us into a trap.
My heart races the further we step into the little compound. We search high and low for a door, turning over every damn piece of furniture in the dusty, desolate building, trying to locate an entry point. It feels like we’re getting nowhere until Levi calls out to us.
“I’ve found something.” He lifts a threadbare rug, exposing the edge of a trap door.
“Yes!” I whisper, racing towards him.
He doesn’t hesitate to lift it, stepping back so the twins can jump down first. Then it’s my turn to navigate the uneven wooden steps, which isn’t exactly an easy feat when you’re wearing a dress and heels, but nobody ever said I opted for the easy route. There wasn’t enough time to change or even think about it. As soon as the Governor gave away Gabriella’s location, the clock started running down. Somebody would have noticed me leaving with the Governor, and someone would have also noticed me leaving with Levi. It won’t take long for someone to go searching for D’Angelo, and once they do…
Maybe that’s why Nico isn’t answering his phone.
No, the man is skilled enough to avoid getting caught. This was his plan after all. There has to be a logical reason that he isn’t answering our calls, and I refuse to entertain the idea that he double crossed us. After all, he has something to gain out of this, too.
My feet hit the last step, then Matteo helps me to the ground. I give my dress a quick brush with my hand before joining the twins, shivering at the chilly air that whistles through the hollow passage. With our guns all pointed down a long tunnel, we follow Marco’s flashlight. The walls are lined with thick sludge that looks like it’s been there centuries. There’s no modern lighting down here, which tells me this place is probably never used.
Enzo’s words creep up on me, niggling in the back of my mind. What if he’s right? What if this is a trap and I’ve just walked us all to our deaths?
I shake my head, exhaling a long breath. The stench of petroleum only gets stronger the further we get, and I don’t know how far we’ve traveled down here before we reach an open door that brings us into a large circular room. There are two doors either side of us, completely sealed except for windows with bars across them. It looks medieval, like this was once a place used to for torture.
The littering cable ties that are scattered across the ground hint that this room was definitely used. I have to hope that it’s recent because we’re quickly drawing to a dead end and I don’t know where we could possibly go from here.
I run to the door on the right while the twins race to the other. The door doesn’t budge no matter how hard I force it—even with Levi pushing with me, the thing is rusted shut. I push up onto my tiptoes, pulling myself up on the window to shine Levi’s flashlight, but all I see beyond the pane is darkness. “Nothing,” I mutter, glancing at Levi worriedly. “It’s just another tunnel.”
“Same,” Marco states from across the room.
“Enzo was right,” I sigh. “D’Angelo lied.” I feel my heart crack under the weight of my own guilt. Once again, I’ve left Giovanni down when I promised I’d get his little girl back. He’s going to be heartbroken and it’s all my fault.
Bang!
A gunshot rings out, causing us all to spin around.
“Enzo,” Marco mutters before rushing to the door.
Only it’s too late. The door slams shut before he can reach it, sealing us in the round room. He bangs his fist over and over, Matteo joining him as they push their bodyweight against the thick wooden door.
“Hey! Let us out!” Matteo yells, banging his fists against the door.
My pulse races as I search for a way out, but there isn’t one. I push on the door closest to me, but it still won’t move. I try the second one, only to be met with the same resistance. We’re trapped.
Pressing my back against the cold wall, I slink down to the ground and close my eyes. None of this makes sense. The Governor lied, which means he was working with someone. And that they knew we were coming, which means whoever D’Angelo is working with is the same person out to get me.
“Raf?” Matteo calls through his earpiece. “Enzo?”
The lack of excitement on his face tells me he’s not getting any response. We’re completely alone down here, and there’s no way of knowing how long we’ll be trapped before someone realizes.
Levi pulls his phone out and sighs. “No reception.”
“Cazzo!” I groan angrily. I should have listened to Enzo. He’s never steered me wrong before, yet I ignored him to prove a point.
“It’s going to be fine,” Levi reassures, crouching down in front of me. “Luca and Giovanni know where we are. They’ll come looking for us and—”
“And then what?” I snap, letting my own panic and uncertainty overwhelm me. “They’ll get trapped too? Or worse?”
With a huff, Levi stands. He knows I’m right. We have Nico’s men out there, but they’re only on standby if things get heated. The only communication we have is via that earpiece, and it’s not working.
Life becomes deceptively surreal when you’re trapped. Add three other people to that, and the guilt sets in hard. It’s pointless fighting it, even though I should. It’s my job to ensure nobody gets hurt, and I’ve made a rookie mistake of ignoring someone who knows more about instinct than I could ever fathom.
Levi joins me on the floor, sliding his hand into mine with a smile. “We’ll get out of here,” he winks.
I don’t even have the chance to decide whether I believe him though. My stomach flips as soon as I hear the sinister thud of footsteps echoing through the tunnel beside me. They’re not rushed or determined. They’re not delicate or shy. Those footsteps resonate with the sickening feeling that something bad is about to happen.
Frowning, I push up from the ground and peek through the gaps in the bars. A light shines in my eyes, and while I should feel a sense of relief that someone has found us, I can’t ignore the dread enveloping me.
“Looking for something?” A voice sounds; one I’d recognize anywhere. It’s so familial, yet there’s an undertone of detachment that has me backing away from the door in apprehension.
A key turns and the twins spin around, aiming their guns into the darkness. More footsteps surround us as the two other doors slam against the walls before the bright shine of flashlights blind us. But the crowd of soldiers isn’t what fills me with dread, nor the guns pointed in our direction.
It’s the murderous expression on my grandfather’s face as he steps towards me with his own gun pointed at my head. His brown eyes are filled with contempt, the only light coming from his men’s flashlights casting eerie shadows across his face.
“What is this?” I croak, unable to tear my gaze away from Levi. If my expression isn’t a dead giveaway, my words are. “What are you doing here?”
“Sorry,” my grandfather replies, but it’s laced with sarcasm that makes my insides twist. “I forgot you don’t like surprises.”
Bile rises as his words register with me. The fact he’s here—and I sense it’s not to rescue us—has me feeling queasy. Sweat beads along my forehead, though I’m not sure if it’s from the flush of anger or fear, or maybe it’s the confined space with all these bodies surrounding us.
There’s too many of them for us to fight through. As good as the twins are with their weapons, I don’t think they even have a chance against—I do a quick count—fifteen of them.
More footsteps sound before my grandfather steps to the side with a smile.
A body drops in front of him, the heavy thud as it meets the concrete floor making me wince.
“I thought I killed this one,” my grandfather mutters, kicking his shoe into the man’s side. “He’s proving harder to get rid of than I thought.”
Who?
When the light finally shines on him, my breath chokes me. “Enzo!” I scream, lunging forward, but I don’t get very far. The barrel of a gun is pressed against my forehead, forcing me to back away. I keep my eyes on Enzo, noticing the blood trickling down his face and fighting to keep my tears at bay. But it’s hard to do that when you realize you’re reliving one of the worst moments of your life. Returning my attention to my grandfather, I lock eyes with the last man I ever expected to pull a gun on me.
“Drop your weapons. All of you!” my grandfather barks, forcing us all to obey with the amount of weapons pointed at us.
“I don’t understand,” I gape, my words dry and cracked as I slowly lower my gun to the floor.
“What’s there to understand, Serafina?” His words are filled with resentment, edged with a bitterness I’ve never heard from him before. It used to take a lot for my grandfather to get angry; it’s why we always got along because he always had time for me. I realize now how stupid and na?ve that sounds when I’m facing down the barrel of his gun, which only makes this hurt more.
“You’re going to need to explain,” Levi growls beside me, earning a knock to the head by one of the Bianchi guards.
Levi grunts, but doesn’t back down, even though I can see the pain in his eyes. It blends with the fury I know is bubbling beneath the surface. Taking his hand in mine, I pull him behind me. This isn’t his fight, though I know every fiber of him contradicts that. If this is what it was always going to come down to, I can’t have his death on my conscience. I do what he would have done for me.
“You’re behind this?” I grind out at my grandfather as the words break my heart in two. I don’t want to believe it, I hate to suggest it, but all signs are pointing to him. “I thought you wanted me in this role?”
“And I thought you were smarter,” he mocks, waving a hand to the room we’re trapped in. “Guess we were both wrong.”
My jaw tightens and my teeth grind with anger. I’ve always hated people underestimating me, it’s a peeve of mine that I’m constantly trying to overcome. But when it’s your own blood mocking you, that rage you’ve tried to keep at bay only makes the words sting harder.
“Why are you doing this?” My question comes out as a broken whisper, suffocated by my own family’s betrayal. “You put a hit on me? Why?”
“Because apparently, you’re untouchable.” My grandfather cackles, the sound making the hairs on my neck stand up. “I really thought the Verdis would get to you first, but this piece of shit got in the way. Twice!” He sneers as he kicks his foot into Enzo’s side, making him groan. “Your bodyguard… oh, that was too easy, and yet he still failed! It seems if you want to get the job done, you’re better off doing it yourself.”
My heartbeat pounds so hard it feels like the organ might break through my chest. I try to make sense of everything, but all I can focus on is the buzz in my head where my thoughts should be sitting.
“The attack on my bar… you know that could have killed my father!”
There’s only a fraction of remorse in his dark eyes before it’s gone, leaving me defeated. If he doesn’t care about me or his own son, what else is this man capable of?
“...Only Bianchi’s are leaders, and you are not a Bianchi. Never have been. Never will be,” he derides.
My eyes widen, my breath choking me. I don’t know what the fuck he means by that, but the look in Enzo’s eyes tells me he knows something. I suck in a sharp breath, fighting the tears that threaten to fall. “What are you talking about?”
“Your mother… she never was faithful to my son or this family. The fucking whore couldn’t keep her damn legs closed, much like you.”
“Sera!” Enzo grunts. “Don’t listen to him!”
“Like mother, like daughter.”
“What’s he talking about?” I growl at my best friend. This isn’t his fault, but he knows something and he’s clearly been keeping it from me. The idea that he’s betrayed me again is more than I can handle. I keep giving him inches, forgiving him even when I shouldn’t, and he takes a goddamn mile each time. I choke on a sob, holding onto the single strand of strength that keeps me rooted to the spot.
The laugh my grandfather responds with is dark and almost demonic, filled with conniving violence and venom.
My fists clench, my eyes narrowed on Enzo. When he drops his gaze to the floor, the final thread I’ve been clinging onto snaps. “What is he talking about!?” I shriek at him.
“I wanted to tell you,” Enzo mutters into the painful silence. “I just didn’t know how.”
“What is it, Enzo?” Levi barks. I feel the same anger I’m experiencing reflecting from him, too, his protective side ignoring the connection he and his cousin have.
“Alfredo,” Enzo murmurs. “He’s not your father.”
I stagger backwards in shock—or I try to, but Levi keeps me upright, squeezing my hand to let me know he’s there.
“My son was always a pathetic idiot when it came to your mother,” my grandfather—or should I now call him Francesco—adds callously. “I told him he was an idiot for staying with her, but he wouldn’t listen. You should never have taken the seat, my son should’ve known better.”
The way he mentions my mother so coldly has me shivering. All I have are fond memories of my mother and father, the love they shared, their love for me. They raised me together, my father raised me as his own, and all I’ve ever wanted to do was make them proud.
A tear slips down my cheek, one I can’t fight no matter how strong I want to believe I am. This is not how I saw tonight going, or my life. Even if I make it out of here tonight, I feel like every moment of my life has been tainted, broken by Francesco’s confessions. I can’t even put into words the way my world is shattering around me. I trusted so many people, loved so many people, only to be lied to, betrayed by them. Nothing is sacred anymore, and that thought scares me the most. Who can I rely on if I can’t trust my family? Or my best friend?
“I suppose you came here for this,” Francesco sighs when the silence grows thick and heavy.
A scuff of feet in the darkness catches my attention, followed by a small whimper that exposes a little girl with curly brown hair, covered in dirty clothes. She tries to contain her sobs as she’s forced in front of us, but the dirty marks that track down her face from her tears show she’s just a scared little girl, thrown into a world she knows nothing about. The familiarity in her features is so strong that my heart breaks a little more, because though I should be relieved to have finally found her, I honestly don’t know if we’ll make it out of here.
We’re outnumbered, maybe not outskilled, but with the way things are going, I’m not so sure any of us are safe.
“Gabriella?” I whisper.
She nods, green eyes cast to the floor as she hugs her tiny body.
Enzo is beside her, pulled up to his knees with his head yanked back by a soldier.
“It’s going to be okay,” I try to reassure Gabriella, though I’m pretty sure the guns all pointed at us contradict everything I’m saying. So I return my focus to Francesco, gritting my teeth. “Please don’t do this.”
Frnacesco steps towards me, circling me and pushing Levi out of the way. Our hands separate, and the ghost of his touch is the only reminder that I’m not alone. Francesco presses his chest against my back, and I have to force the urge not to shake. “I’m not going to do anything. You are.”
His words are filled with emptiness as he places his gun in my hand, and I look down at the pistol, swallowing back the fear.
“No!” Levi lunges for me, but one of his guards presses a gun to his head to stop him. “You don’t need to do this!”
“Oh, but she does,” Francesco insists. “And if she doesn’t…” The guards press their guns to Enzo and Gabriella’s heads, forcing me to choke on another sob.
I glance over my shoulder, my brows etched with all the pain I’m feeling. “Please, don’t make me do this.”
With his body framing mine, Francesco lifts my hand and points the gun at Gabriella. “The kid, or him. Which will it be?”
Enzo’s dark eyes lock onto mine, and I instantly know what he’s thinking. I don’t like it, but Enzo and I have always managed to read between the lines when it comes to each other. We always knew what the other was thinking because we’d been around each other for so long. It’s like intuition, and mine is telling me that he’ll take the fall again and again.
The heat of my grandfather’s body against mine makes my skin crawl. The shock of everything unraveling has me suspended in shock. My hand shakes with the pressure of making a life-altering decision like this, blanketing me with premature guilt and shame. How can anyone choose between their best friend and an innocent child, a bystander in a dangerous game for power? The greed of some people will never fail to bemuse me, but that doesn’t mean I can’t join them.
I”ve lost my sense of self-preservation. I think it left me a long time ago, when four men entered my life and altered it in ways I could have never imagined. I got to experience love in four different ways. I got the chance to care for four men effortlessly and willingly. Of all the choices I got to make, I’m glad I made them with each of my guys. But this choice is my own, this choice is what will set me apart.
We didn’t come here for conflict; we came for Gabriella, and I swore to Giovanni I’d do whatever it took to get her back. If my death is the consequence, then I’ll gladly accept that. It’s about time I stood up for what I believed in; proved to everyone that my mercy isn’t a weakness. I’m strong because of the people I have around me. Because I’m loved.
I aim the gun at the one person who can stop all this, my eyes locked on Enzo as I silently apologize for what I’m about to do.
“Sei tutto per me,” the words leave my lips with my tears as I squeeze the trigger and soundlessly ask for his forgiveness.