Giovanni De Rege

Chapter 16

After Giovanni dropped Isabella off at her home, he proceeded to drive himself to the De Rege hotel. He stood in front of his apartment's entrance and reached out for the door handle.

Giovanni froze at the sound of shuffling from inside. There was an unexpected guest. He reached to his back, grabbing his gun and flicked the safety switch. One hand was on the handle and the other pointed the gun in his line of eyesight.

Silence floated through the air. He took one last breath before entering his home.

With barely one foot inside, a man fired at him. Giovanni got hit, the bullet grazing his upper arm. Quickly, he took cover behind a pillar. Blood ran in a slim stream down his arm, the fabric of his shirt now clinging to him. He peered around the corner, waiting for a chance to strike back.

The man was on his knee behind the couch. When he saw his target, he shot again but missed.

Giovanni retreated. More shots were heard and was followed by a clicking sound. The man was out of bullets. He checked again and saw him reloading his gun. Giovanni seized the opportunity and shot the man in his chest.

With the gun still pointing at the bleeding man, he walked over to him.

''Who sent you?'' Giovanni demanded an answer.

The man looked at him from the corner of his eyes and his lips turned upwards. Before the man could get any words out, it was already too late.

Crimson pooled around them. Lifeless eyes stared back at Giovanni as he stood next to the body.

''He smiled.''

What does he know?

Not lowering his defences, he checked the rest of the apartment. There was no one else.

Was he the one here last week? Giovanni shook his head at the notion. There would be no reason for him to come back.

He headed back to the corpse in the living room and crouched down beside it. Examining the man hadn't given Giovanni any information on him. No wallet, no tattoos, no accessories, no car keys. Nothing. The gun seemed to be the only thing he had carried with him.

Giovanni immediately knew what was going on. He cursed under his breath and called his father.

''Is everyone safe over there?''

Silvio frowned at the urgency in his voice. It was rare for his son to lose his cool.

''Everything is fine here. Why? What happened?''

''Are you sure? Check if everyone is safe. Now!''

Giovanni paced back and forth as he waited for confirmation from his father. The beating of his heart boomed in his ears. In his head, he kept reassuring himself that his family was safe.

''Everyone is safe. Now tell me what has gotten you like this.''

''There was a hitman in my house.''

Silvio stiffened as if he had turned into a statue. The news shook him to his core. Protecting his family was of utmost importance to him.

''What are you talking about, Figlio? Did you get hit? Where is the hitman now?''

(Son)

''Nothing that can't be fixed. It will heal. As for the hitman, he is dealt with.''

''Good. Good. I want you to come here tomorrow. We'll discuss it with the others.''

''I'll be there.''

Giovanni hung up and made his next call. Since he didn't know whether the man was after an heir of the De Rege family or specifically after him for personal reasons, Giovanni had to make sure Isabella was fine.

''Giovanni?'' She sounded disoriented.

Without realising, the muscles in his body relaxed. Her voice soothed him.

I woke her up but she sounds fine.

Isabella called his name again after being met with silence. ''Are you there?''

He cleared his throat. ''Yes, I wanted to see if you were alright.''

''Why wouldn't I be?''

''I was only wondering,'' he said and settled into an armchair.

''Did something happen? You don't sound-''

''Nothing happened.'' Giovanni needed the topic to change. He didn't want her to needlessly worry. ''I enjoyed our night.''

''Me too.''

''What part did you enjoy?''

Even though Isabella wasn't in front of him, he was certain that heat had bloomed into her cheeks. A sight he would have liked to see.

A low laugh passed by his lips. ''I won't keep you up any longer. Good night, Isabella.''

''Sweet dreams,'' her voice had become significantly softer.

Giovanni put his phone aside. The metallic scent brought him back to reality. Once he had called the cleaner of the family in and gotten the hitman in a body bag, Giovanni brought it out of the hotel using the back entrance.

''Open the trunk,'' Giovanni said to Michele.

With the help of the cleaner, they would make it look as if the incident never had taken place.

Michele was a loyal soldier who worked directly under Giovanni. His assigned capo.

Giovanni and Michele got into the car and drove to the bay. The sky was dark with the moon hiding behind the clouds. The streets getting less crowded as they neared a deserted place that was known for its dangers.

Michele parked the car and opened the trunk. While he wrapped the body in barbed wire, his captain was on the lookout. As soon as he was done, Michele called Giovanni over.

The two of them lifted the body and dumped it in the Sarno River. The perfect place for the corpse to disappear into the Gulf of Naples.

''Who was in it, Capo?''

''A man with a death wish.'' Giovanni lit up a cigarette. ''The Don will decide what happens next.''

Michele bobbed his head and pointed at Giovanni's arm. ''Shouldn't you get that cleaned up?''

''Already taken care of. It's only the clothes that are dirty. Haven't gotten a chance to change. Want one?'' He offered a cigarette.

''It's always welcome.''

''It was a hitman.''

Michele looked at him with widened eyes. ''Fuck. How worried should I be?''

''I'm fairly certain he was after the De Rege name.'' Giovanni looked at the tranquil waters. ''To be on the safe side, spread the word to the other soldier families. Tell them to be wary.''