Chapter 25 #2
More bullets blaze to life, more men arriving. I can hear the taunting, the shouting, the fighting.
I huddle behind a large tree, a tall shrub immediately at my back.
Is this about me? Is that why they came? Did I just cost Chiara a chance at becoming a mother? Did they harm Robby?
The fear from the unknown crashes over me, hitting with the same force as the whip of gunfire around us. Will we lose someone? How many more lives can these monsters ruin?
“Give us Chiara and Raquel. That’s all we want,” a man I immediately recognize says.
Benvolio.
Someone else’s laughter erupts and I instantly recognize it.
Agnelo.
“I want that whore, Joelle, too. Where is she, huh?” he asks roughly, sending a shiver running down my spine.
A guttural snarl woven with a growl erupts from Enzo. “I’m gonna rip your damn head off just like I did to your men, who are lying dead, where you’ll soon be. Both of you,” he snaps, his voice deadly. “I’m gonna enjoy gutting you like a pig.”
I swallow through the bile rushing up my throat, choking on the rancid taste.
“You fuckin’ jackass motherfuckers,” Agnelo continues. “Who do you think you are, huh? You’re all about to join your mommy and daddy. My nieces, Joelle, they’ll all be following you there too.”
Pop.
A single gunshot causes me to gasp, my body jerking backward.
Please don’t let Enzo die.
“Nice try,” Agnelo chides with a terrifying tone before the words are replaced with more gunpower, bullet after bullet shooting from all around.
I’m helpless, trapped here, my body jolting every time someone’s gun goes off.
I back up further, curling my body in the hopes of not getting shot, but instead, I hit something hard behind me. I try to turn, but a hand buckles around my shoulder, warm exhales creeping against the side of my neck.
All the hairs on my body stand up and my pulse thrashes.
“Don’t turn around. Pretend I’m not even here,” a voice I’ve never heard before says. “If you do, I’ll fucking shoot you. Understand?”
I nod, but barely.
“Agnelo has a message for you.” He drops a piece of paper onto my lap, and as I try to look down at it, he tightens his grasp.
“You don’t want to disappoint the boss, Joelle.” He says my name with crass. “He’ll be waiting.” His hand is gone faster than it came, leaving my body ice cold, the shock of it lacing through me.
Finally, I look down onto the paper, finding a message from the man whose soul left him a long time ago, assuming he ever had one.
I knew I’d find you, eventually. You can’t escape me. You better find a way to meet me at this address: 1010 Main Street. Come alone. Robby and I will be waiting. He’s counting on you. Ticktock.
I read the words over and over, knowing I have to go. There’s no other choice. But how will I ever get out of here without being stopped?
The fighting continues for a while, and my panic, it only intensifies. My poor, sweet Robby.
I love you so much, baby.
New tears spring up, my bottom lip quaking.
“Raquel?” Dante calls to her, though I can’t see either of them from my position. “Give me the gun, baby.”
Why does she have a gun and why is she not hiding?
It’s then that I realize, the gunfire has ceased.
“Come on, I’m taking you inside,” he continues, and as I slowly sneak a peek around the tree before me, I find Benvolio dead on the ground, and other men lying all around.
Enzo jogs, drawing near, kneeling once he’s before me. “Are you okay?” He palms my cheek as his eyes wander over every inch of me, while I attempt to hide the paper now discreetly crumbled in my hand.
“I think so. Is it over? Is everyone okay? How’s Chiara?”
“No one else got hurt, but fucking Agnelo ran. The pussy.”
He must be heading to this address.
“I don’t know anything about Chiara’s status yet,” he explains. “Dom took her to the hospital.”
“Can I go see her?” And then it hits me, that would be the perfect way to escape and find Agnelo. I realize it’s probably a trap, but I can’t ignore when he comes calling. He doesn’t threaten lightly. If I don’t go, I know he’ll kill my son.
“It’s not safe for you to leave right now. I need you where our men can keep an eye on you.”
Irritation settles in my gut. “This is bullshit, Enzo. You can’t keep me prisoner forever.”
He watches me sympathetically. “I’m not, I swear. But I can’t risk your safety. We’ll talk about it later, when I’m done with those assholes, all right? I love you.”
My gaze narrows, locking him with a brutal stare.
His chest widens with a hard inhale. “I’ve got some loose ends to clean up.” He gestures behind us with a tilt of his head to two men being dragged away, their mouths gagged. He gives me a hand as I get to my feet. “I gotta bring you inside. Then I’ll take you back home.”
“Fine,” I practically snarl, already starting toward the house, him jogging after me.
“Don’t fucking do that.” He grips my wrist, halting me, pulling me right against his body.
“It’s for your own safety.” He throws my arm over his shoulder, his hand now braced around the back of my neck.
“Agnelo won’t stop until he has you.” The way he looks at me—God, those intense green eyes spilling into my very soul, his fingers dipping into my skin.
“I’d die before I let him have you. You hear me? ”
He draws his face close to mine, his lips skimming across my mouth, my eyes watering, my heart hammering. The affection, it kills me.
I’ve been without it for so long, it may as well be foreign. But with him, it feels like home. But it’s incomplete, like the roof has been ripped off.
My son, my mom, my brother, they’re a part of me too, and without them, nothing will be the same.
A soft exhale rises out of me, gently caressing his lips with my shaky ones.
“I love you, Enzo. Thanks for loving me,” I say, barely grasping to keep all the tears locked away.
“Loving you, Jade, is the easiest thing I’ve ever done.” His mouth finds mine, reminding me just how much he does.