Chapter 10 #3
“I-it was an accident,” he stammers.
“A fucking accident,” I bellow and let go of his shirt.
The stupid fuck takes that as an opening and tries to throw a punch, but my reflexes are sharp. My hand snaps up and clamps down on the median nerve between his forefinger and thumb.
As soon as I apply pressure to the right spot, it shoots a bolt of pain straight through his arm. If you do it right, it can even make the hand go limp and useless for a while.
When he lets out a blood-curdling scream, my smile returns. Call it callous, but my mum’s half his size, and he didn’t think twice about putting his hands on her. Whatever punishment I’m about to dish out, he earned.
I drag it out, savouring the fear flickering in his eyes, before I start pulling down and twisting his arm backward.
My free hand clamps over his mouth, ready for the next part. He thought what I did to his hand hurt? He hasn’t felt anything yet.
I don’t stop until I hear the sickening pop of his shoulder as I tear it straight out of the socket.
His muffled cries vibrate against the palm of my hand, and the moment I let go and step back, he collapses to the floor like the pathetic sack of shit he is.
“Devon!” my mother wails as she runs to his side and kneels beside him.
“He broke my fucking shoulder.”
My mother’s angry eyes snap up to me. “Why did you do that?”
Is she fucking kidding me?
I stand there struggling to breathe air back into my lungs. My whole body is still vibrating with rage. Every single muscle is coiled tight, and I’m seconds from snapping again.
If it were anyone else, he would’ve got a bullet right between the eyes, so he should think himself lucky that tonight he at least gets to walk away.
“If he lays another hand on you,” I seethe, “next time it’ll be his fucking neck.”
“Romeo,” I hear a soft voice say through the haze, as fingers gently wrap around my wrist. “I know I promised I’d stay in the car, but …”
“Fuck, Lucia,” I groan.
I don’t want her in here.
I definitely didn’t want them to see her.
“The neighbour’s light came on and I saw someone looking out the window. What if they call the polizia (Police)? I don’t want you to get in trouble.”
“Don’t worry about—”
My words are cut short when my mother screeches, “Oh, my God, it’s her.”
When she leaps to her feet and advances towards us, I instinctively move Lucia behind my back.
“Stay the fuck away from her,” I growl.
Lucia may be protective of me, but I’m just as protective of her, if not more so.
I don’t even think twice about what my mother just said because my initial thought is that she’s referring to the woman in my car the other night, but when her gaze moves back to me and she adds, “You’re fucking married women now?”
My head rears back in confusion. “What?”
She points to the woman I’m shielding behind me. “It’s her, the missing woman.”
I’m still dumbfounded, so I find myself repeating, “What?”
“I have the flyer,” my mother replies, rummaging around in her bag. “The one from that man who’s looking for his wife.”
My heart drops into the pit of my stomach when her words register, and as soon as she pulls a folded piece of paper from her bag, I snatch it out of her hands.
My fingers are slightly trembling as I clumsily unfold it, and my anger returns tenfold when I read what it says.
MISSING
HAVE YOU SEEN MY WIFE?
My wife.
Those words have my blood boiling. She will never be bound to that fucking psychopath. Not as long as I walk this earth.
Below is a photo of Lucia, followed by her name and a detailed description. Height, eye and hair colour, etc. But what’s written down at the bottom of the page in large, bold font concerns me the most.
$10,000 REWARD
FOR INFORMATION THAT LEADS
TO HER WEARABOUTS
My gaze flickers back to my mother. “Where did you get this?”
She casually lifts one shoulder. “I don’t remember.”
My hand shoots out, grasping her bony forearm. “Where did you fucking get this?” I ask again, more forcefully this time. I swear I’ve reached my limit with this woman.
She tries to jerk her arm free from my grip, but I hold tight. I have a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach that she kept that flyer for one reason.
“Why did you have a copy of this in your purse?” I ask, already knowing the answer.
“Isn’t that obvious. The ten thousand dollars. Do you know what I could do with that kind of money?” Her reply is enough to make me want to hurl.
“Overdose?” Lucia chimes in from behind me.
Unfortunately, she’s not wrong, and as pissed as I am, I have to roll my lips to hide my smile.
“Fuck you,” my mother spits, her leg jerking forward in a weak attempt at a karate kick, which is aimed directly at Lucia. But she’s so high, she just loses her balance and stumbles sideways.
I instinctively reach forward and grab her arm, effortlessly righting her before she falls on her arse.
“Nice try, Crackie Chan,” Lucia deadpans.
I bark out a laugh because I can’t help it. I love her wit.
“Fuck you, bitch. You won’t be acting so smug when I contact your husband.”
That comment quickly sobers me. “Listen here,” I roar, getting up in my mother’s face. “You mention one word about this to anyone, and I will be the least of your worries. She’s under the protection of the Famiglia. That man is not her husband. He’s a fucking psychopath.”
“You deserve better than that, puttana (Whore),” she spits in reply.
“Watch your fucking mouth,” I warn.
“And Romeo deserves better than you,” Lucia retorts, without missing a beat.
“You deserve whatever’s coming to you, cunt,” my mother snaps, and I don’t like the way her sharp, unblinking stare locks onto Lucia.
My gut is already bracing for impact. No matter what I say, I know my mum’s about to do something reckless.
“You even think about calling that fucking number and I can guarantee Dante will make sure you disappear,” I state as my eyes flicker down to her loser boyfriend, who’s still crumpled in a heap on the ground, a snivelling mess. “He’ll wipe you both out without so much as a second thought.”
“He’d need to find us first. With that kind of money, we could easily disappear.”
“Do you have any idea who you’re dealing with? He’ll hunt you down, and when he finds you, he’ll show no mercy.”
And if Lucia is harmed because of her actions, I won’t stand in his way.