Chapter 131
Lucrezia
Outside The Hospital
Istared at the message on my phone.
Attack aborted. Heavy casualties.
I immediately called my Russian contact.
It went straight to voicemail.
“GOD DAMMIT!” I screamed into the phone in English. “What the hell do you MEAN the attack’s aborted? CALL ME! NOW!”
Romeo glanced back at me, then pretended like he hadn’t heard a thing.
After I hung up, I stared ahead in shock.
This couldn’t be right.
This couldn’t be the way things ended.
I was supposed to be the one who destroyed the Rosolinis…
Not my shithead brother.
The coppery smell of Ciro’s blood filled the SUV. The stench – and the collapse of all my plans, more likely – was starting to make me nauseated.
From deep within the hospital, I could hear the muffled pop pop pops of gunfire.
“Well?” I shouted at Romeo. “What does Diciasette say about Rosolini?”
“I’ve called both him and Curtiello three times each. Neither one’s answering.”
OH
SHIT.
My mind raced through the possibilities.
Either they’re in the middle of a gun battle –
Or they’re dead.
There’s maybe a 50/50 chance they killed Rosolini.
But if they DIDN’T –
Then there’s a 100% chance Rosolini’s headed back here.
I didn’t care for those odds.
Especially not with me and Romeo alone outside.
The obvious choice was to grab another SUV and take off –
But I was guessing none of the drivers had left their keys behind.
If we spent precious minutes searching the cars, Rosolini would arrive while we were out in the open, and we’d probably meet the same fate as Diciasette and Curtiello.
And unless we wanted to pull Ciro’s corpse out and drive around Florence with a blood-smeared, shot-up, opaque windshield, we were stuck.
We could run for it on foot –
But if Cesare made it out of the hospital alive and we weren’t there, he’d hunt us down and torture us to death.
As much as I hated to admit it, Cesare had impossibly good luck. If one person walked out of the hospital alive, it was likely to be him.
So… as unappealing as it was… there was really only one choice.
“Let’s go,” I said as I opened the door.
“Where?” Romeo asked.
“Check a couple of SUVs,” I told him, “but if they’re locked, we’re going inside.”
“Towards the shooting?”
“If I’m right, then more shooting is heading straight for us, and I’d rather have plenty of armed men around us.”
Romeo nodded and followed me out onto the sidewalk.