Chapter 96
Cesare
The Farm
While Romeo kept watch on the telescope, I paced back and forth like a pissed-off tiger.
Lucrezia knew enough to stay out of my fucking way.
All this goddamn waiting was driving me insane. I was already on edge, like I was strung out on drugs –
When Romeo said, “Something’s happening.”
I whirled around to look at him. “What?”
“There’s… five, six… seven cars leaving the property.”
“WHAT?!” I screamed.
Lucrezia looked like she was about to shit her pants.
I sprinted over to the telescope.
After last time, Romeo knew to get out of my way real quick.
I looked into the eyepiece. Sure enough, the big iron gate was open, and a blue Bugatti and a bunch of black Mercedes were driving through.
And they were hauling ass.
“It’s nothing,” Lucrezia said. I could hear the desperation in her voice.
She was wrong.
I had this sixth sense. Always had. I was like a fucking shark when there’s blood in the water – I could smell desperation miles away.
The people down there?
They were desperate.
Something had happened.
Whatever it was, I knew – knew, in my bones – that Dario Rosolini was in one of those cars.
And now he was slipping through my fingers.
FUCK
THAT.
“LET’S GO!” I shouted as I started for the Cadillacs.
All of my guys perked up.
They’d been standing around for hours, bored off their asses.
Now – finally – it was starting. They knew something huge was about to go down.
Lucrezia stared at me. Even through the sunglasses, I could feel her one good eye boring a hole through me.
“What the fuck are you TALKING about?!” she shrieked.
“Dario’s getting away,” I yelled as I headed for the lead car.
“You don’t KNOW that!”
“Yes I do.”
“The Russians are almost here!” she screamed.
“Russians?” Romeo said, sounding surprised.
I guess he should’ve been. It was the first he’d heard about them.
Lucrezia ignored Romeo and kept howling at me. “They’re literally minutes away!”
“You said that half an hour ago!” I yelled back at her. “Thirty minutes, twenty minutes, blah blah blah – Dario Rosolini is getting away, and I’m sick and tired of fucking waiting! Now let’s GO!”
Lucrezia ran between me and the SUV and pushed back against my chest. “Cesare, listen to me – listen to me – this is a mistake. The Russians will be here any minute – if we just wait, they’ll kill everybody but Dario, and we can mop up right after – ”
I grabbed her and flung her to the ground like a rag doll.
Then I loomed over her and screamed in her face as she cowered beneath me.
“YOU FUCKING BITCH – HE’S GETTING AWAY AND YOU’RE TELLING ME TO WAIT?!”
I cocked an arm back like I was going to punch her.
God, I wanted to – I wanted to smash her face in so fucking bad –
When I felt two hands grab my wrist.
I whirled around, ready to fucking kill whoever was trying to hold me back.
It was Romeo.
He let go of me as soon as I turned around.
“WHAT?!” I screamed at him.
He pointed out into the distance. “We’re wasting time. We’re going to lose them if we wait any longer.”
As much as I hated to admit it, Romeo was right.
But the fucker had put his hands on me, so he had to pay.
I punched him in the gut as hard as I could –
And he dropped to his knees, unable to breathe.
“Don’t you EVER lay hands on me again,” I hissed.
He just knelt there, his mouth working like a dying fish, trying to get his breath back.
I roared at my men, “LET’S FUCKING GO!”
I jumped in the back of the Cadillac as Ciro slid behind the wheel.
Lucrezia glanced at Romeo as she staggered to her feet, then walked over to the car and got in the backseat beside me.
“I don’t wanna hear another fuckin’ word,” I snarled at her.
“Fine,” she said coldly as she closed the door.
I watched as another one of my boys helped Romeo into a different vehicle –
And then we roared down the dirt road, a dozen black SUVs like bats out of hell.