46. Luna
FORTY-SIX
LUNA
The car ride was silent. There wasn’t a single conversation that would have been appropriate for the moment they were in. Silence was the best option for the overbearing tension.
Overnight, the sky had dumped almost a foot of snow on the streets, leaving it difficult to drive. Most of the snow was untouched, pure and white. Come later in the day, it would be black and gray from the dirt of cars as they drove by. Cold, dry air accompanied the snow, leaving the dreary sky to feel like an omen of sorts.
She took in long, deep breaths, trying to keep herself grounded. By the time they were pulling into the driveway of their childhood home, her breathing was frantic once again.
Finn drove slowly, surveying the area around them. “Where the hell is everyone?”
Luna gave him a confused look, trying to figure out what he meant. That was when she realized it too. There was no security guard at the gate; in fact, the gate was wide open, allowing anyone to pass through. No guards walked around outside patrolling the area. No one even stood by the front door, waiting to greet people.
Her father was always the type of man to be fully armed at all times, his paranoia forcing him to believe he was never safe. There was no way in hell that he would leave his home completely unattended if he was there too.
“Are you sure you were supposed to meet with him today?” Luna asked. Her unease was growing by the second.
“Yes. He wouldn’t bail on me like this,” Finn said, his brows furrowed.
He parked the car, getting out and leaving Luna to follow after him. She didn’t have a gun of her own, so she trailed closely behind him. He kicked at the front door, smashing it open with brute strength. It was silent in the house.
Finn held up the gun, holding it in front of him in defense. Luna’s eyes were wide, taking in every inch of the home. It looked like her house; everything was still where it was her entire life. The only difference was that the house felt void of life. It was never a comforting home that exuded warmth and happiness, and Luna frequently referred to it as her cage. This feeling, however, was unusually still for their house.
Finn walked into the living room, while Luna decided to take the other side where the dining room was. The nice china was laid out, four plates with the accompanying silverware sitting on a piece of white linen tablecloth. It was completely dark inside the dining room with the blinds pulled down, but a small patch of light from the gray skies outside seeped in from one of the windows where the blinds hung haphazardly. Luna looked to the side, noticing little droplets of some sort of liquid leading into the kitchen.
Luna followed the trail, her blood running cold at the bloody handprints stamped on the walls of the kitchen. Blood was smeared on the floors and on the cabinets. The metallic smell brought bile up her throat.
“Finn,” Luna called out, fear in her voice.
He didn’t answer back. Immediately, panic set in her, forcing her to run back toward the living room.
He stood there in silence.
Her mother sat on the couch with blood covering her hands and most of her nightdress. Her hands shook as she lifted her head to look at Luna.
On the floor lay her father’s dead body. His eyes wide and lifeless, his white button-up completely soaked in the crimson liquid.
“What did you do?” Luna whispered, her eyes wide. “What happened?”
“I did what I had to do,” Eleanora said, her voice shaky. “I did it for all of us.”
“You killed him,” Luna said, clutching her stomach. “He’s dead.”
“You needed him out of our lives, and now he is,” her mother said, standing. “Now, I can see you.”
Luna couldn’t stop herself from turning around, throwing up everything in her stomach. The smell, God, the smell was worse than anything she had ever smelled in her life.
The image of him lying in his own blood, not a single breath escaping his lips anymore, was forcefully engraved in her brain. Her father was dead. Her mother killed him.
“You need to get out of here,” Finn said, snapping out of his daze. “If anyone finds out what you did, they will kill you.”
“You’re in charge now,” Eleanora said. “You make the rules.”
He shook his head. “You need to leave now. Where is your passport?”
“They’ll find me. It’s no use,” Eleanora said, walking closer to them.
Luna wiped her mouth, turning back around now. “You can’t stay here. Not now at least.”
“We’ll send you somewhere, to one of the properties,” Finn said, running a hand through his hair. “There must be a place he kept secret from his men.”
“I don’t want to go anywhere,” Eleanora insisted.
“You don’t have a choice. You killed the don,” Finn screamed. “None of us get a choice in anything anymore.”
“You were coming here to do it as well,” she said. “I know you were. I just beat you to it.”
“What changed?” Luna asked, shaking her head.
“I won’t go my entire life without seeing my children or my grandchildren,” Eleanora said. “I’ve suffered enough, don’t you think?”
For most of Luna’s life, her mother had remained emotionless, numb. She did whatever her husband asked of her, choosing him over her own children. It drove Luna wild, making her wish she had some family on her side for once.
Now she did.
Finn turned to Luna this time. “Take her upstairs and get her cleaned up. Pack her some clothes. I’ll find her documents, arrange a flight for her.”
Luna nodded, grabbing her mother’s hand smothered in her father’s blood. She pulled her along and up the stairs to the bathroom, forcing her out of the stained dress. She turned on the water, instructing her to scrub every inch of blood off her.
Luna made her way into the closet, grabbing a duffle and filling it with the essentials. She threw in some of the important jewelry, leaving all of the fancy dresses her mother used to wear.
Luna helped her mother out of the shower, getting her dried off and dressed.
She stopped for a moment to stare at her, seeing someone so broken. She wanted to cry out for the woman her mother once was, but it was no use. She would never be that person again and maybe that was a good thing.
This way she could start fresh. Find out who she was when she wasn't married or in the life of crime. She could get the new beginning women in their world only dreamed of.
Luna realized that while she needed her revenge, her mother deserved it far more than she did. She never had the support to make it out the way she did. She had taken it into her own hands.
They both deserved fresh starts.
A part of her still felt bitter, wishing the woman in front of her had done more in their lives, but Luna would never get those years back. She could either let it hang on her shoulders like a burden for the rest of her life, or she could move on from it.
“Look at the woman you have become,” Eleanora whispered, pushing back a piece of Luna’s hair. “You look just like me.”
“I’ve been told that a lot.”
She grabbed Luna’s hand, looking at the two rings on her left hand. “You got married?”
“I did,” she said, pulling her hand back. “I’m sorry you couldn’t have been there.”
“I don’t want to miss any more events,” Eleanora said, holding her hands together. “Please.”
“We’ll see what the future looks like,” she told her. It was difficult to promise anything. Maybe once everything was done and settled, she could consider what that would look like in her life.
“Don’t ever settle for less.” Eleanora shook her head, her eyes glazing over. “Whatever you do, never settle for the abuse, for the hurt, for everything you don’t deserve.”
Luna didn’t expect the first sob that escaped her mother’s mouth, or the second, but by the third she wrapped her arms around her, holding her the way she wished she had been held her whole life. They cried together, mother and daughter, the only two people that would ever truly understand what the other had been through in their life.
“Thank you,” Eleanora whispered, wiping her eyes and pulling away from Luna.
“For what?”
Her mother gave her a small smile. “You know what.”
With that, Luna led her down the stairs, finding Finn waiting. He looked up from his phone, holding a passport in his hand. “I put you on a flight on the jet. You’re going to Munich for now. Once everything is settled, we’ll consider you coming back,” Finn told her. “This is the safest option for you.”
Eleanora nodded. “I understand.”
“Grab anything else you need,” he said. “You won’t be returning to this house.”
“I have everything I need,” she said, holding tightly to the handle of her duffle bag.
As a new family of three, they walked out of the house. It was only then that Luna smelt the gasoline, a bottle of it sitting on the front porch. Finn helped Eleanora into the back seat, while Luna climbed in the passenger seat. He got in himself, opening the window and tossing a match out. Luna saw the trail of fire lead up to the front door before it was completely engulfed in flames.
They drove away, leaving the fire behind them. Soon, not a single trace of the home would remain. Her childhood and her father would both be ash, just a distant reminder. She closed her eyes, letting the tears run freely.
It was done. She was finally free.