42. Antonio
Chapter forty-two
Antonio
I recline back in my office chair, exhausted. My palms rub my eyes until they stop stinging from staring at the same set of numbers for the last couple of hours.
The door to my office cracks open, and I pause my actions to take a peek of the person.
Theá beams as she pokes her head into the room. “Are you busy?”
“Never too busy for you. What’s up, tesoro?” I drop my hands to the armrest of the office chair.
“I just wanted to check in on you. You’ve been in here for a while without a break,” she says as she closes the door, padding her way over to me.
Her curls bounce on her shoulder as she skips across the soft, plush carpet, rounding the desk and coming to a stop in front of me.
Happiness radiates off her in waves, and as she smiles, I can’t help but mirror the action.
Reaching forward, I wrap my hands around her thighs and pull her until she’s seated on my lap. I rest my head on her chest and inhale her sweet, vanilla scent.
“Long day?”
“Hmm,” I hum in response, letting relaxation envelop me as her fingers gently massage my scalp.
“Too many numbers?”
“So many.”
“You’re so smart,” she purrs, and my head shoots back. It’s not a compliment I receive all too often, especially since it’s just assumed I am because of my job. It’s often something that’s taken for granted.
I reach up and push some of her hair out of her face, allowing my hand to just linger on her cheek.
“Tell me you love me,” I say.
Her eyes widen as she searches my face, like my expression alone will tell her I’m joking. “What? No.”
“C’mon, tesoro. Tell me you love me so I can die with a smile.” I can feel my eyes growing heavier and heavier as the seconds tick past. “Please,” I beg.
“Fuck, fine. I love you, and I’m sorry,” she blurts. Her hands cup both sides of my face as she tries to shake me awake.
I smirk as my eyes completely fall shut. “I knew it.”
“You’re such a little shit,” she says through her giggles.
“A little shit that you love.”
Cold water crashes over my head, and I sit up, gasping.
“ Cazzo ,” I groan as the pain rushes in a second later.
I wipe my eyes and try to use whatever dampness is left to remove the crusted blood on my face. My nose is swollen and feels very fucking skew I gently touch it, noticing just how odd the angle is.
“Wakey, wakey,” Kylian’s voice echoes through the room. It’s a different room now, one with wooden floors and what seems like a window.
Definitely above ground this time.
There are also two other men with him this time, and Enzo seems to have disappeared the same way my hallucination of Theá did.
“Time for round two. You still have a few more ribs that are unbroken, right?” His sickly smirk pulls across his face.
“Barely,” I cough and wince in pain immediately after. I’ve definitely broken something, because every time I breathe, pain shoots through my abdomen. The slightest worry passes through me at the realization.
What if it pierces my lung? At least I’ll die faster then, instead of putting up with this sick fuck.
“This pain you’re feeling is for my uncle Mattheo.”
“That’s stupid,” I quip, shifting so I can try to sit up and lean against a wall. “It’s not like he suffered; it was a bullet straight through the brain. I’m sure he was dead before he could even realise what was happening.”
The sound of the hammer of a pistol clicking next to my head has me falling silent.
“How about we test your theory, and when I meet you in hell, you can let me know if it’s true?” Kylian is crouched down in front of me. And as much as I want to hate him and spit in his face for all he’s done to me, all I see is Theá.
“Pussy,” he scoffs, rolling eyes as something hard makes contact with the back of my head, sending the room spinning into orbit again.
Next thing I know, my head is being ripped back, and a blindfold is being tied around my head. “Woah, guys, I’m not really into this sort of thing. I mean, Theá was, but I’m all about catering to her needs and—” A hand flies across my face, smacking me before I could finish my sentence. I smirk, knowing I’m irritating him.
“Speak about my sister again and I won’t hesitate putting bullet in your head again, dipshit.”
“Fair enough,” I pout and shrug. I want to laugh because even in this state, it’s clear as day that Theá will always be his weakness.
He doesn’t know where she is, and right now, I think that’s the only reason I’m still alive. She may be the reason I’m here, but she might also be the reason I’m alive—the irony isn’t lost on me.
“Get up,” one of the men grunts, and I can hear the tinge of an accent. It’s different from Kylian. It’s Italian.
“Does the Cosa Nostra know you’re working for the cartel?” I ask, and the hand pulling me to my feet freezes before moving slowly.
“You’re a dead man, so they’ll never know.”
“Yeah, yeah. So I’ve heard. Who can I talk to about my funeral arrangements? Because I have very specific requests. I can’t have Aunty Rosalia and her daughters there, because the tears will never stop. And Adriano can’t be the one to do the eulogy, because he’ll expose all my secrets… Then again, neither can Ambrose; he’ll bore the entire church. Maybe just get Mattia to do it. At least he’s funny sometimes.”
“ Putain! Do you ever shut up?”
“I do, but since I’m a dead man, I may as well talk while I can. Besides, your sister loves the sound of my voice, especially when I’m whispering all the things I’m going to do to her—”
A punch lands on my side, the side where there must be ribs broken, and I groan out in pain.
“He told you to shut up about her.”
“Let him continue, he’s digging his own grave.”
I slump into the grip of the large man holding me up, and he doesn’t even flinch as he drags my body to wherever he wants me to be.
“You know, she talks about you a lot,” I say, but hear no response from Kylian. “Even more than Pierre. She misses you a lot.”
“I didn’t go anywhere she did,” he says softly, and I can hear the faint hum of engines. We’re going to be moving, but to where.
My best guess is I was at the house up until now, but they’re taking me to a second location for some reason. The building’s safety has probably been compromised.
“She misses who you used to be. Before all this. She wishes you didn’t choose to go down this path after everything that happened, especially with your mamá—”
“You know nothing about our mother, so do not speak of her,” he snaps, and I can feel him dangerously close to me. “Actually, I’ve had enough of your uncontrollable yapping. Gag him.”
“Oh goodie, I’ve always wanted to be….argh,” I groan as Muscles next to me shoves a large piece of fabric into my mouth. The next second, I’m being hoisted into a seat, presumably in a car.
Doors shut, and I do the only thing I can, which is try to sit upright despite every nerve in my body telling me to collapse right now. My head is aching, hell, my entire body is aching, and I know in my soul I can’t take any more beatings to my abdomen before it becomes detrimental. I’m sure it already is, but then I remember Enzo’s words.
I suggest you hold onto whatever stupid sense of hope you have left and start praying.
I do just that because hope is the only thing I have right now. Hope to see my mamá again, hope to see Mattia again, fuck, even hope to see my annoying brothers again.
I have hope that despite everything, I might get to see Theá again and get the chance to talk about all of this. Hopefully, it will be done under different circumstances.
That’s when I realise, right here in the stupid back seat of some random car going fuck-knows-where, I want it all. I want everything I thought I didn’t. I want the real wedding. I want the happy family. I want to come home from work to my gorgeous wife reading in her library. And more than anything, I want it with Theá Auclair. I want to make her Theá Vitale. For real this time.
Immediately, as the prayer leaves my lips, I feel my consciousness slipping more and more. My head gets heavier, my breathing slows, and I repeat her name in my head over and over again because that’s all I want. Another chance.
Screeches echo through my distorted hearing, and the car makes impact with something massive, throwing my already frail body around the inside of the car.
Heavy breathing from everyone around me is loud as I feel what I assume is blood dripping down the side of my head before I’m yanked from wherever I am.
“ Va tutto bene, fra, siamo con te .”
And with that, I let go. They’ve got me.