sixteen #2
“You’re gonna die either way. Altieri will make it long and painful. I hear he really likes water.” I whisper the last part. De Luca’s breathing changes. His Adam’s apple bobbles with a thick swallow.
“I could make this quick,” I continue. “He’ll never know you told me anything. You’ll die with honor. If he kills you, you’ll die a failure.”
“He… No.” There it is. The doubt.
“What is Altieri doing with Giuseppe Santos’ company?” I ask.
With that name, something shifts. De Luca’s eyes move too fast, and his chest pauses on a sharp inhale.
I think I’m right, but the thought doesn’t sit cleanly. I know I’m missing more of the puzzle. Does Giuseppe even know the mafia is manipulating him and his company? Some people are actually oblivious.
“Who?” De Luca asks. It’s too fast. It’s the wrong answer.
“Don’t play fucking dumb with me.” My voice is threatening as I grip De Luca’s face firmly, my blunt nails digging hard into his cheeks.
“Fuck you,” De Luca says, and whatever Altieri is doing with Giuseppe’s company must be important if De Luca has this much fire back in him.
“Tell me.” I keep my voice level. It takes effort I don’t acknowledge.
“Tell you what?” De Luca asks, and I’m confused for a second. De Luca smiles sadistically, his teeth coated in blood as he continues, “Tell you how your sister tasted like honey? Yeah. Fuck, her pussy would have felt so good. It’s better when they fight.”
“You’re not gonna get to me,” I say, recognizing his tactics.
“Since your mom died, she is desperate for money. She begged me for this job. Pretty sure she would have put my dick in her mouth then and there if I had asked her.”
“What?” I ask, unsure if I heard correctly. My mom is dead? What happened to Dad? Nausea rolls in my stomach, and I’m feeling conflicted. A part of me wishes I had known. That I could have gone to her funeral. The other part of me wishes I didn’t care because she left me for dead.
“Sexy bitch would have done anything to take care of her little sister,” De Luca continues as if I hadn’t said anything.
“Sister?” I ask, numbly, but I ask it too late. He’s already continued, and my mind jogs to keep up.
“Well, I suppose she’s your little sister.” He smirks, licking the blood off his lips.
“I only have one sister,” I insist, my head spinning.
“Now that’s a pretty little thing. Thirteen. Perfect age. Young and innocent. A flower I’d love to pluck, if you know what I’m sayin’. I was planning to invite her to the house next week. Show her what a real man is...”
Silence. The blood roars in my ear, drowning out whatever he’s saying. I have a thirteen year old little sister? I swallow, unable to stop the lump from forming in my throat. How did I not know? All those years I followed Violet, yet I had no clue. A sister. Thirteen. I never met her.
Despite the chaos in my head, a stillness washes over me. I know what needs to be done, and I know I’ll have consequences for doing it. But I’ve already signed my death certificate today, may as well cross the T’s and dot the I’s.
My limbs shake with fury and my heart drops to my stomach in protest. I bend over, wrapping my hand around the knife in De Luca’s thigh. With one quick yank, it's free of the bone it was lodged in. De Luca screams in pain, but I don't hear it.
“You want your dick sucked so bad?” I hiss, then I grab the blanket covering De Luca’s lap.
His cock is angry looking, surpassing red and going to blue.
It looks swollen and painful, and I smile as I grab a hold of the appendage.
“Why don’t you do it yourself?” The knife is so sharp, slicing through the skin and muscles is as easy as cutting fog.
De Luca screams, fighting against the bindings in a weak attempt to get away from me. It doesn’t work. He barely moves an inch. I would laugh if I was feeling at all tickled, but every cell in my body explodes with rage and the need for revenge.
Blood sprays everywhere. The red substance is warm and sticky on my hands, matching the temperature of De Luca’s body for a few seconds before it cools, losing the life it once gave.
De Luca’s scream fills the room, but I don’t give a single fuck. I’m too fucking furious to think about how we need to keep De Luca alive. I don’t give one single fuck about Peadar’s wishes. I wanted to kill this fucking bastard, to see him bleed out from his dick.
Once De Luca’s dick and balls are free of his body, I shove it down his throat mid scream. His eyes are wide for a split second, his own dick deep in his throat before they roll back in his head. His body twitches for the next few minutes then goes limp.
I know he’s dead when a wet spot develops then spreads across the crotch of his pants, the smell of excrement filling the room, mixing with the coppery smell of blood. My heart races with exhilaration, replacing the rage that was there before.
Everyone is quiet. Too quiet.
I realize that my hands are still clenched around nothing. I let go. Flexing my bloody fingers into my palms, trying to relieve them of the tension still gripping my nervous system.
The room hasn’t changed, but something feels slightly off, like a microscopic drop of blood on an otherwise clean canvas.
I’ve been steady my whole life. This isn’t steady. Then why does it feel so right?
“Should we clean this up?” Fletcher asks, finally breaking the silence that has settled over the room.
“Let them find him. It will be a message to back the fuck off. Let’s make sure there isn’t anything in here or the office we can use.” I look at the room with fresh eyes. I had been so enraged since we got here, I didn’t take a look at my surroundings.
Fletcher and Daron nod, going to find the office, leaving me alone in the room with what used to be De Luca.
I ransack the space, trying to push De Luca’s last words from my mind.
I have another sister, and my mom is dead.
The words keep repeating through my mind, though, and I cannot seem to stop them.
After a few minutes, I locate a safe behind a painting. Typical.
I inspect it, realizing that it’s fingerprint activated.
I go to De Luca’s body, using a knife to cut off his good thumb.
I hope it will work. It’s not too swollen or stiff given that he died a few minutes ago.
I press the digit to the high tech scanner on the safe, hearing an audible click a moment later.
I open it, finding at least fifty thousand dollars in unmarked bills along with some papers that look important.
I clean my hands as best as I can on the expensive comforter then put all of the money in the backpack I have with me, zipping it up as Fletcher and Daron come back, telling me that they also found some papers that may be important.
“Okay. Here are a few more.” I hand the stack of papers I found in the safe along with De Luca’s phone.
It may be useful, and Evan will probably be able to break into it, no problem.
“Will you all take them to Peadar? Tell him that De Luca accidentally died while we were questioning him, a heart attack from shock or whatever. Hopefully the papers will be enough to suffice, and Peadar won’t be too pissed. Also, if he asks, tell him that one of you killed Violet.”
“What?”
“Don’t ask me questions on this. Just make it look right. Tell him she’s at the bottom of the river with a bullet in her skull. Anything. Just make sure he believes she's dead.” Something in my expression must convince them that I’m serious.
“Okay,” they say in unison, nodding.
“I found some cash. I’m gonna go home and get cleaned up then make a run.”