Chapter Thirty-Three #2
She moved, not stopping until she was between James’ gun and Collin. She placed a hand on her chest. “James, please. Think about this.” Her eyes dropped to his chest, and I looked between the both of them before looking at the man who used me. Who betrayed us.
His ice blue eyes were on Karina, silently communicating with her as she struggled in Jer’s hold.
She struggled and tried to break free, but her brother only held her tighter.
“You leave a single mark on her skin, Mr. Jones, you and I will be having a different kind of conversation,” he said coolly before turning to address Haley.
“Hals, I think it would be wise for you to move.”
I flinched at the use of her nickname, and my gut twisted at the kindness in his cold eyes. She shook her head, her auburn hair falling from her shoulders, green eyes pleaded with her lover’s dark ones. “Put it down,” she begged, her voice thick.
“How did you find me?” The devil drew everyone’s attention back to him, and all heads turned in his direction.
“It wasn’t that hard, considering you left a trail of breadcrumbs bigger than a fucking monument,” Collin sneered, drifting past Haley, not giving a damn about any gun pointed at him.
His steps faltered slightly as he passed me, but it was so subtle, I think I was the only one who noticed.
He came to stand in front of Romano—his father— as the rest of us watched.
He shoved his hands in his pockets and frowned. “I do have one question, sir,” he taunted.
“Son, get me out—”
“You took something that belongs to me. I am not your son,” he hissed. Romano exploded, desperation oozing off of him in waves.
“My blood runs through your veins, boy. You'd be nothing without me! If I hadn’t taken you on after Cal’s death—”
“You would still have a kingdom?” he deadpanned.
In his panicked state, Romano looked at me and snarled. “A whore without a son, just like Collin’s mother should have been.”
Though the man was trying to get a rise out of me, I didn’t show it, even as my blood began to boil. He just confirmed it. He knew about Aiden.
“Aiden Connors is alive and well,” Collin said, sounding bored.
Romano cursed and stuttered.
“Never,” he hissed. “Never would I hurt a child.”
I looked at Dean, his eyes were wide with horror when they connected with mine.
“You are nothing to me. You are nothing to the underworld. You have no power here, old man. Your era has ended.”
Romano smiled. “Your cockiness will be the death of you.”
Something exploded.
Madness began at the sound of the explosion, and time seemed to slow down. The structure shook all around us. James lunged for Haley, shouting her name.
Jer smothered his sister and yanked Casey to him, covering them with his body. Hazel eyes clashed into mine over a sea of chaos and fear. Dean tried to get to me, but another body slammed into me, taking me to the ground and shielding me.
Alarms went off around us, and the lights above flickered. I looked up to find ice blue eyes, and when the world slowly came back to me, I felt a hand under my head. He looked behind us in the general direction of where Kay was and then back to me.
“Are you okay?” There was a soft, underlying panic in his voice that rendered me speechless. I just had to nod. His hard gaze softened slightly. “I know these words don’t mean shit to you,” he said quietly, “but I am sorry.”
He was ripped off me in that next moment, and Dean filled my vision, pulling me up on my feet. His hands and eyes scanned my body for injuries. “Baby girl,” he rasped.
I nodded. “I’m okay.” I repeated the words once more for good measure—for both of us.
Panic coursed through me, and I looked to where Romano was supposed to be.
He was still there, but his chair had fallen over.
He was hissing and cursing in Italian. Collin was standing against the far wall, sporting a pained expression as he watched Kay.
I could tell he was trying to restrain himself from going to her.
Dean was the same way when he saw me with Tony.
“Send paramedics to the stadium. I want feet on the ground! There were people in those stands,” James barked into the earpiece as he helped Haley stand. The far-left side of the stadium was consumed in flames, and the black smoke stretched towards the skies.
Jer stood, checking both of his girls. Dean squeezed my shoulders and approached the window with James. Jer was on the phone with Sullie, and I found myself going to the girls. Kay had a gash on her head, but other than that everyone was fine.
“He saved me.”
For a moment, I thought those were my words, they came from Casey. She was staring at Jer’s back as he spoke on the phone with Sullie. We looked back to her, and her honey eyes had tears in them. “He saved me,” she repeated, her voice a whisper.
“Of course, he did,” Haley said softly. The power shut off, and the only light that remained was from the soft glow of city lights outside.
“Son of a bitch,” Dean muttered.
Kay pushed past us and darted for Collin.
The three of us, Casey, Haley, and I, watched as his shadow pushed off the wall and clashed against her.
His arm banded around her waist, and his free hand went to cup the back of her head.
She kissed him, holding his face. James was still barking orders, Jeremy was still on the phone, and Dean—
He was watching with them, a strange expression on his face.
The two broke apart, and he took a step back from her, shaking his head slightly. My brow furrowed, and my heart skipped a beat at the sight. Why was he backing away? Was he rejecting her? He wanted her. She wanted him.
Why did I want this all to work out in the end? For all of us—including the man who betrayed me.
Collin wasn’t the villain, Gwen.
We were so caught up in the moment that when Romano rose up to full height, a gun—my gun—in hand, it didn’t register when Haley screamed their names.
My hand went to my hip to find an empty gun holster.
My stomach sank as I looked at the scene in front of me.
There was a snarl on the devil’s face as his dark eyes landed on Kay, the gun aimed at her.
“You took my kingdom. I am taking your love,” he growled.
Time slowed once more.
Oh. God.
He fired. People around me scattered.
I couldn’t take my eyes away from the blue-eyed man.
The baseball player whose eyes only softened for my blonde friend, who secretly watched over her and protected her.
His blue eyes always bounced to her when I sat next to her in the stands…
it was the only game I went to, and I knew it then, but I was too blinded by my own pain to see it.
Collin was in love with Kay.
He reacted immediately, and it was all a blur. He—he jumped in front of Kay.
My ears were ringing from the gunshot, but there was no mistaking that grunt of pain. Collin had been shot. He slammed into Kay as she screamed, wrapping her arms around him as they went down to the ground together, her back against the wall.
The men next to us had their guns pointed at the madman with wide, dark eyes. Those eyes were on me. “Your turn,” he hissed.
“Drop the gun, Romano. You're surrounded. This won’t end well for you,” James shouted as the three men fanned out. Kay was crying as she frantically tried to stop the bleeding. Dean came in front of me, and Romano started shouting.
“Run, baby girl.”
When I tell you to run, you run. You run for our son.
I couldn’t run.
Not like this.
I would be abandoning not just Dean, but everyone else. Casey had her gun pulled out too, standing in front of Haley. Her green eyes met mine, and I unsheathed my dagger and stepped up to stand beside Dean, ignoring his demand.
“I can hit him,” I said to the man who owned my heart.
“No.” His voice was firm, and he shoved me behind him again. “Run. Out the fucking door. Now!” he barked over James' and Jer’s shouting. Romano was screaming in Italian, a pitiful man facing a dead end, wanting to reap as many souls as he could before he met his fate.
“All of you will die! See you all in hell!” the devil laughed.
Gunshots rang out, and I was pushed to the floor by Dean. Haley pulled Casey behind the bar while James and Jer ducked behind the furniture. The men started firing at Romano as he ran across the room, firing my gun in every direction.
Kay shouted, and I twisted my neck to see Collin snapping up, launching something in the air.
The door busted open, and a man dressed for war stepped through. He didn’t waste time, throwing Kay over his shoulder and supporting Collin. Through the gunfire, the three of them exited to the room in a rush.
“He’s down!” James shouted. Jer jumped over the couch as Casey and Haley emerged. Dean lifted himself off me and my hands ran down the length of his torso in a panic. “Are you—Are you okay, baby?” I stuttered, gasping for breath as I looked up into his hazel eyes.
His jaw was tense, his blonde hair falling down from his bun, his pupils dilated with anger. “I’m fine,” he grunted as he rolled off of me and stood. His dark jean covered thigh was shiny…It shouldn’t be shiny.
“Dean! You were shot!” I cried, scrambling up and reaching out for the wound. His hand snapped over my wrist, pulling me into his chest. His lips met mine in a brutal, painful kiss before he pulled away and growled, “I told you to run.”
I shook my head. “I’m sorry. I couldn’t—I—” He shut me up with another kiss.
“Aiden cannot lose his momma, Gwen. I cannot lose his momma!” he roared, shaking me. Tears fell down my cheeks, and I shook my head again.
“Gwen…”
Haley’s voice pulled me away from Dean. She was standing by James, Casey, and Jer across the room. Swallowing, Dean and I made our way over to them, shoes crunching the glass and debris on the floor.
My heart pounded in my ears as my eyes landed on what everyone was staring at.
Ray Romano.
Dead.
His dark eyes were void of his fire and life, his jaw slack as his corpse faced the ceiling. A river of blood flowed from underneath his body. Bullet holes were scattered across his body, but that wasn't what killed him. Those were just for good measure.
What killed the devil, the king of the mafia, the man who tormented me and my family for generations was the dagger sticking out of his chest, directly in his heart.
My dagger.
The Black Death.
Collin threw that dagger.
He had it the whole time.
My hand flew to my mouth to stop the sob.
“They are gone!” Jer’s eyes were on the small pool of blood where Collin and Kay once were, his jaw jumping.
“We have to find them,” he growled as he left the room.
James cleared his throat and re-loaded his gun. He looked at Dean. “You find him. You arrest him.” The agent turned to Haley and kissed her forehead.
“Are you alright, princess?” His eyes did a quick once over of her body. She nodded, her lip trembling as she did the same.
“Don’t hurt him, please,” she begged.
He sighed and looked to the floor. “I have a job to do.”
“James—”
“Medical is on their way up. Casey, you good?”
“Peachy,” she answered as she looked from the door down to Romano.
The men left in search of the bleeding demon and his angel. I looked to the girls.
“We have to find them before they do,” I said firmly, pulling my dagger from of Romano’s body.
They both smiled, and as we ran out of the room, I casted one more look at the body.
Kiss my ass, Romano.