"Bust that door, I think he went that way (Catch him) And if this drill goes well, then we're gonna need Rizla, chip, and an ashtray (Bill it)" - K Trap
41,000 feet in the air📍
03:00 am
August 25th'19
The small jet soars over the clouds with the white noise of its engine giving a soft backdrop of an illusion of a peaceful flight.
But inside the aircraft, it was a completely different picture.
While some of the guards were wide awake but resting in the leather seats of the plane, a few tried to doze off, sneaking in a nap before they land. But this was proving difficult as the aggravating sounds of muffled commotion seeping from the cramped lavatory was becoming impossible to ignore.
"Leya please! I have to do this!" One voice pleads. One of Orlando's eyebrows twitch at the noise as his ears perk at the sound disturbing his nap.
"No you don't!" A stubborn voice protests.
"But it's for your own good!" The first voice argues.
"I know! But it's gonna hurt!" The second voice whines.
"Stop being a baby Cataleya! This is important!"
Orlando had enough. Groaning, he stands to his feet and strides over to the bathroom. His knuckles beat on the door in irritation. "Hey! Keep the noise down! Some of us are sleep deprived and trying to catch a few Zzs before we land!"
Inside the bathroom, Rheah and Cataleya twist their face in disgust as they glare at the door.
"Why don't you use the complementary earplugs and leave us alone!" Cataleya snaps back.
"This ain't a luxury flight princess, we don't have that!" Orlando retorts.
Cataleya opens her mouth to finish the verbal back and forth but Rheah responds first. "Okay Sleeping Beauty, we'll try to keep the noise down." She tells him. She waits until she hears a small scoff from Orlando followed by the shuffling of feet as he walks away.
She turns back to her sister. "Cataleya, if we leave it in there, the brothers will continue to track us and we can't have that!" She hisses in a hushed tone.
Cataleya glares anxiously at the small silver scalpel that glimmered between Rheah's fingers as if it was a raging beast ready to break through its cage and strike her at any moment.
Rheah looks on in sympathy, reading her sister's mind. Her face softens. "You know I'm not trying to hurt you Ley. If there was a less painful way, you know I would've taken it, but there isn't. But that's why I have ice. To numb the pain."
"Ice?!" Cataleya exclaims, bewildered. "That's not gonna be enough!"
"Cataleya please!" Rheah snaps, patience depleted.
"Ugh! Fine fine!" The younger groans in defeat and begrudgingly gives her hand to her sister. Rheah wastes no time in placing the makeshift icepack on the tracker's location. Cataleya winces.
"Calm down! It's just the ice!" Rheah scolds. "Here." She passes over Cienna's teddy bear. "Bite down on Simba."
A chuckle escape Cataleya. "Cienna will kill me if she sees bite marks on this thing."
Rheah sighs and sets the scalpel down, much to her sister's delight. But her smile quickly vanishes and was replaced with a confused frown when she notices Rheah untie the small towel she had transformed into a makeshift icepack and take out a couple ice cubes.
"Hold them." She instructs. "If you can withstand the pain from holding them for 60 seconds, you can withstand the surgery I need to perform. If anything, the pain will distract you from what I'm doing."
Cataleya stares at her sister. "Rhee, you want me to distract myself from pain...with pain?"
"It's a mental exercise Leya. Think of it as one of Papa's trainings."
"Yeah but are you sure this will–"
"Leya!"
"Fine!" Cataleya sighs in defeat, aborting her attempts of trying to protest or look for any other excuse. She knew there was no way out of this. Rheah was right. This needed to be done.
Reluctantly, Cataleya takes the ice cubes from her sister and grips them tight within her hands. At first, the frozen solids of water did not faze her, but 10 seconds in and she begins to feel the shooting sting of the freeze. 5 seconds into that and her eyes suddenly shuts as she winces from the piercing sting of the sharp blade scraping across her skin. She grinds her teeth while her eyes watered as blood oozes from the incision. She tries her best to ignore it, putting all her focus on her other hand which was now beginning to go numb from the ice cubes.
Fortunately for the girls, the boys did not tag them too deeply and it was enough for Rheah to get a sterilised tweezer to fish out the small tracking chip from under their skin. But what only took a few minutes felt like hours for Cataleya and she was overjoyed to hear Rheah say she was done, dropping the bloody chip in the sink.
"Alright, now I gotta stitch you up."
Cataleya rolls her eyes in exasperation. "Oh gosh, it never ends!"
Rheah couldn't help but laugh. "Wow...you're an assasin, a boss at knife throwing... and yet... you're afraid of needles and blades? Ironic much?"
"I'm not afraid of them, I just hate the pain." Cataleya corrects with another eyeroll. "I don't receive pain, Rhee, I let others feel it. There's a difference."
"Speaking of feeling pain..." Rheah's voice lowers and her mood turns solemn. "You think they caught him?"
Cataleya immediately knew who she was referring to and sighs. "I wanna say no, but..."
She noticed the reflection of Rheah struggling to fight the tears in the cubicle mirror. In an instant, Cataleya swivels round to meet her sister's face.
"No, don't cry Rhee." She dries her hand and gently places it on her elder's shoulders. "He's gonna be okay."
Her sister flinches from the cold touch. "Leya, you and I both know that's not true."
Cataleya sighs at the truthful rebuttal. "You're right...it's not."
Rheah almost chokes on her tears. Cataleya immediately pulls her sister closer to her and cocoons her into a tight hug. "Rhee, they won't kill him, okay? At the end of the day, they see him as family and you know the boys better than us when it comes to family. They won't kill him. Who knows? Maybe he made it out!"
o~O~o
Negril, Jamaica📍
03:15 am
August 25th'19
"Passports and tickets please!"
At the immigration officer's request, the small queue of early morning passengers fumble around their belongings in search of their documents that would grant them entry onto the night ferry.
The cool night breeze carrying the scent of sea salt sends shivers down everyone's spines. The small band of travellers shudder from the cold, desperate to get onboard the boat. But one little girl seemed unfazed by it.
"Daddy where are we going?" Kianni asks with big bright eyes peering up towards her father.
However her small voice, filled with excitement, wasn't enough to pull Jalil out of his deep rumination. His mind remained elsewhere, with a million worries dominating his thoughts as his frantic eyes constantly scan his surroundings.
Did the sisters get on the plane safely?
Have the brothers found out already?
Do they know I'm here?
Will we be safe where we're going?
Did I really make the right decision?
Will Kiki be okay?
Jalil almost jumps out of his skin from the small tug he felt on his shirt. A deep sigh of relief escapes him and it takes a while for his racing heart to return to its normal rhythm when he realised it was just his daughter requesting for an answer to her question.
"Sorry, baby girl." He apologises, "What did you say?"
"I said where are we going?"
"Oh," Jalil cracks the warmest smile he could muster to conceal his nerves. "We're going on a vacation!"
Kianni's entire face lights up like a Christmas tree. "Really?!"
"Mhm." Jalil nods and moves the two of them up the queue, "And you're going to try lots of new things. We're gonna get a new home, you'll make new friends..."
"Can Cienna come too?" Kianni practically bursts with excitement. "And Aunty Rheah?"
Jalil's eyes had left Kianni's a long time ago and were back to looking over his shoulder and frequently scanning the fairly empty port for any sign of danger. He didn't even register his daughter's question but replies with an absentminded nod. Kianni's grin widens. She rambles on about all the things she will be doing with her father and her friend whilst on their trip. Jalil occasionally hums and mutters a few words of agreement to engage with his daughter, but he was far from listening.
He breathes a sigh of relief when he shakily hands the immigration officer their documents. The man with a face void of all emotion flicks through the passports. His flat eyes occasionally advert towards the two awaiting passengers in front of him.
Jalil's chest almost closes in at the sight of the officer peering closer at his picture suspiciously.
"What is your purpose for travelling to Haiti?" The man asks. Kianni stares at him curiously.
"I'm going to visit my family there." Jalil lies. "My daughter hasn't seen them in a while so I figured why not take her now rather than later, you know?"
"Daddy! I can't wait to see the waves and dolphins!" Kianni rambles.
Jalil tears his eyes away from the officer to peer down at his daughter. "Baby I don't think you'll see them. It's dark right now."
Kianni pouts.
"Why didn't you take the midday ferry?" The officer asks Jalil. His face was still unreadable but the young father notices the small undertone of suspicion in his voice.
"I prefer the early morning. It's less busy." Jalil responds, masking his nerves.
The immigration officer stares at Jalil, deciding on whether he should believe him. "What's wrong with your hand?" He asks, noticing the young man's trembling fingers.
"It's cold." Jalil chuckles. "Normally I don't feel the cold of the early morning, but maybe it's because of the ocean breeze I'm feeling now, you know?"
The immigration officer doesn't crack a smile. He hands the documents back to Jalil. "Wrap yourself and your daughter warmly." Was all he tells him before stepping aside to allow him entry.
Jalil's body eases with relief at the response. He sends the immigration a nod of gratitude and gripping Kianni's hand tighter, the two make their way onto the large boat.
"Daddy let's go to the top!" Kianni suggests.
Jalil shakes his head. "Nah baby, maybe later."
Kianni frowns at the answer and it deepens when she notices Jalil lead them further down to a secluded little corner hidden in the back of the ferry. Every nerve in his body was on high alert. His eyes were constantly shifting, scanning the area for any sign of the cartel.
It took him a while to settle down. But as the boat rumbled to life, Jalil exhales a satisfied sigh and eases further into his seat, glad that he and his daughter had made it.
But Kianni wasn't satisfied.
"Daddy, I wanna go see the waves!" She whines.
Jalil sighs, "Not just yet baby, when the boat gets out a little further."
"But daddy, I want to see the boat take off." She pouts.
"I know baby but we have to be seated when the boat first moves, it's apart of the rules okay."
"Okay, so can we sit upstairs please."
"No Kiki."
"But I wanna see the waves!"
"Little girl you better fix your tone."
"Sorry daddy." She pouts, "I don't mean to be rude but I just wanted to see Ariel and her friends."
Looking down at his daughter's sad face immediately pulled at Jalil's heartstrings. It wasn't that he didn't want to take her upstairs to see the waves but he just couldn't afford the risk of them getting caught before they set sail. He wanted to keep them safe but as always he wanted to make sure his baby girl was happy.
"Alright baby. We can go up there, but only when-"
But Jalil didn't get to finish his sentence. With the speed of lightening, the little girl was on her feet and racing towards the upper deck.
Horrified, Jalil chases after her. "Kianni stop!"
But the little girl ignores his outcry, giggling away as she runs away. To her, this was fun! A thrilling game of tag with her father.
With her laugh bouncing off the walls, Kianni takes a sharp turn and suddenly disappears around the corner.
"Kianni come back here!" Jalil yells, chasing after her.
He takes the corner and suddenly halts in his tracks.
"Now Kiki, you know better than to run away from your daddy." The person softly scolds the little girl with a whisper of a sinister smile.
Jalil almost faints and all colour seemed to have drained from his face at the sight of Kianni now held in the arms of the last person he wanted to see.
"Uncle Chris I was having fun with Daddy!" Kianni giggles.
The young druglord chuckles and turns to the young father. "Is that so?"
Jalil was frozen in fear. He couldn't even speak, let alone move.
To make matters worse, his heart crashes to his stomach from the sudden poke of a cold steel barrel now pressing onto his back.
"Hello Uncle Michael!" Kianni waves at who Jalil suspected had crept behind him.
"Hello princess." Michael greets with a small nod. His deceivingly calm voice sends a chill shooting down Jalil's spine.
"Where's Cienna and Aunty Rheah?" She asks.
"You know Kiki, I was wondering the same thing..." Michael replies.
"Oh okay, well daddy said they're coming so maybe they'll come come a bit later."
Michael nods. "Well since your daddy knows so much about their whereabouts, me and him are gonna take a lil trip and discuss how we can get them here sooner." He diverts his menacing gaze towards Jalil. "Walk." He snarls lowly in his hostage's ear.
The young father could literally hear his heart pounding in his ears in fright. There was not much he could do except follow the order.
He couldn't run even if he wanted to. The brothers were well aware of that. They had caught the rat. He had nowhere else to go and attempting to fight his way out would be useless. Not when these ruthless killers were cradling his treasure in their arms while a bullet was waiting in the chamber with his name on it.
It was game over for Jalil.
Swallowing his last morsel of pride. He moves his feet and follows Chris who had begun walking towards the ferry's exit, chatting with Kianni along the way. Behind him, Michael was silent, only evidence of his presence was the gun he was still pressing into Jalil's back.
When the small group had made their way back onto land, Jalil immediately recognises his car parked outside, waiting for them. His thoughts instantly race.
They obviously found out about the sisters' escape but did they catch them? Were all his efforts done in vain?
He was instantly pulled back to reality at the sight of Chris leading his daughter to the car before placing her into the vehicle.
Alarm bells blast in his ear and fear rattles Jalil to the core. He attempts to take a step towards the pair but Michael yanks him back.
"One more step nigga and I'll blow your motherfucking brains out." He growls behind him.
"C'mon Michael," Jalil pleads, "Think about my daughter!"
Michael scoffs in response. "You should've thought about mine."
Jalil's heart crashes to the pebbled ground. There was nothing he could do but shed a tear and watch helplessly as Chris jumps into the car before driving off, taking his little girl away.
The taillights of the car was the last thing Jalil saw before a powerful force smashes into the back of his head and everything turned pitch black.
o~O~o
Negril, Jamaica📍
04:30 am
August 25th'19
The sudden wave of freezing salt water thrown at him jolts Jalil back into consciousness. He gasps and shivers from the shock that had left him disoriented. When his vision cleared, he could barely make out his surroundings but the dim lights, dark rusty walls and pungent scent suffocating the room was enough to let him know he was in an old warehouse. A few cartel members stare at him with disgust and discomfort on their faces.
Once he began to find his bearings, he almost passed out again.
It was the excruciating pain of the bed of nails piercing deep into his rope-bound feet that had caught his attention first. Panicked, he yells and attempts to move his feet away from the nails that was perched on top of an unbalanced chair, raising him a few feet off the floor. But the more he does so, the more the old, scratchy noose tightens around his neck, it's rough fibres cutting through his skin. He tried to wriggle his arms but they were bound tight behind his back.
It was a lose lose situation. He had no choice but to endure the pain under his feet in order to stay alive. For his daughter.
Jalil's senses perk at the screeching sound of the warehouse door opening and the other cartel members immediately stand to attention. He watches as the 6 kings, Dave and Jayceon make their entrance. More cartel members gather around for the upcoming gruesome scenes they knew they were about to witness.
"Oh shit." TJ and Joshua mumble when their eyes fall on the sight of Jalil fidgeting and squirming for his life on the nails. His clothes were bloody and tattered and his crimson stained feet were beginning to swell from the torture underneath them.
Mase turns to them. "This y'all first time y'all about to see the boys torture someone like this?"
The men nod their heads.
Mase chuckles and places a toothpick in his mouth. "Try not to get nightmares."
The two kings stare at Mase with wide eyes before turning their attention to the entrance. The room suddenly falls deadly silent when the Anderson brothers finally walk in. Immediately the tension in the air thickened with all eyes on them.
Jalil could hear his heart pound in his ears and he gulps when his terrified eyes make contact with the brothers who slowly advances towards him. The look of murder in their dark, cold eyes made things very clear.
His saving grace of "family" was no longer with him.
Michael glares at the dishevelled man in front of him pathetically squirming and struggling in the predicament he had found himself in. He shakes his head and sneers. "You fucked up Jalil. You know that right?"
"Please! I'm sorry boss! I'll do anything to make this right!" A tearful Jalil pleads. "I'm sorry boss! Please! I'm sorry! I'm sor–"
"SAY SORRY ONE MORE TIME AND I SWEAR I WILL KICK THIS FUCKING CHAIR RIGHT OUT FROM UNDER YOUR FUCKING FEET!"
Michael's sudden roar shakes the walls of the warehouse and the whole room flinches in fright.
"Unless you can get my daughter back I don't want shit from you!"
"T-they're gonna do a drop in New York!" Jalil spills. "They gonna change planes on the private airstrip at Heights before they get to Italy!"
The brothers stare with disgust as Jalil struggles to withstand the pain of sharp nails piercing his soles.
Chris pulls from his blunt and shakes his head. "You are one pathetic motherfucker, you now that right? Telling us this information ain't finna reverse the shit you just pulled."
"I know, I know and I'm sorry! They told me if I help the girls escape, I wouldn't have to pay back the debt!"
Michael scoffs. "So you're telling us, after our arrangement to help you get the money, you still went behind our back, took the easier lazy bitch ass option and instead of working to pay your debt like a real nigga, you betrayed the Cartel? You betrayed us?!"
"They....they were g-going... To kill me...if I didn't do what they said!" Jalil stutters, exhausted from trying to withstand the pain.
Frustration shoots all over Michael like a lightning bolt. With a swiftness, he suddenly grabs a nearby cylinder metal bar and strikes Jalil hard in the rib.
"ARGHH!"
The room winces as the man groans in agony. The rope tightens around his neck and the nails dig deeper into his feet.
"You know what the fuck you just did, you little bitch?!" Michael roars. "You sent those girls right back to Italy!"
He hits Jalil again in the abdomen. Another groan of pain echoes through the room.
"They took our kids! Our fucking children! I don't know if I'll ever see my baby girl again because YOU wanted to be a fucking hero and save your own motherfucking skin!"
Another hit.
"After everything we did for you! We fucking gave you money to pay for HALF of that debt just so your ass can stay alive! We gave Yanni our WORD that we would protect you! You became a brother to us!"
Michael hits him again.
And again.
When the metal bar smashes into Jalil's face a third time, a tooth and red spit flies out of his mouth.
The crowd winces. Some look away.
Jalil was dripping in blood, sweat and tears. He didn't know how much more he could take.
Panting from his rage, Michael sneers at the battered man. "All that for what? You thought Rheah was gonna drop her panties for you because you helped her?"
The others widened their eyes. Chris shakes his head. Jalil stares into Michael's manic eyes burning with rage.
"You didn't make that shit a secret, Jalil, everybody with eyes could tell you were tryna fuck. You were so fucking bold to be doing that shit around me. I made you her bodyguard to watch over her! Not to be her fucking escape plan! So what? You think doing this shit will impress her? Somehow she'll come back and find your bitch ass?!"
Michael turns and begins to bark orders.
"Get them niggas in the city on the phone NOW! Tell them to gear up and get to the airport! Those girls ain't touching Italy!"
The kings nod and TJ makes the call.
Michael uses the end of the metal bar to move Jalil's face so that the young man had no choice but to look at Michael whose crazed eyes resembled a hungry wolf glaring at his prey.
"Now listen to me good, motherfucker. You better pray we get those women back because if Cienna touches Italian soil, word to my dead Jalil, you will NEVER see Kianni again."
Everyone gasps when Michael suddenly kicks the chair out from under Jalil's feet.
"NO NO!" Jalil screams.
The bed of nails crashes to the floor and Kianni's face flashes before his eyes the moment gravity takes its toll.
Everyone in the room stares with bulging eyes, horrified at the man who was now dangling and gagging in the air from the tightness of the rope. There was nothing they could do but watch him choke and kick his feet aimlessly for solid ground.
A small measure of time passes and Jail's frantic movements begin to slow.
Around the room, everyone watches the life gradually fade from the man hanging from the ceiling. For the majority of the men, it was too much. Some had to look away from the disturbing sight.
Just as everyone turns to leave, a loud thud catches their attention. They swivel their heads back round to find Jalil's limp body now sprawled on the floor, by order of Chris commanding one of the workers to cut the rope.
The room was silent, everyone waiting in anxious anticipation until Jalil wheezes and chokes uncontrollably as the rope was still tight around his neck and cutting deep into his skin.
That being said, he was lucky to be alive.
At his point, Michael was long gone. Through his now swollen right eye, Jalil could just make out the glare of murder from Chris who slides on a glove and advances towards him.
A frightened Jalil now wished he had died from the the rope.
"P-please! I'm sorry! Please!" He scurries away from Chris, begging for mercy.
o~O~o
New York📍
06:00 am
August 25th '19
In the dead of the night, the wheels of the jet touch down on the grey tarmac before the plane eventually grinds to a halt. The minute the engine powers down, Orlando was on his feet.
"Alright kids, we're here. Wake up!" He claps his large hands together and moves down the aisle to disturb the silence.
The sisters stir in their sleep from the sound but were suddenly rudely shaken up by the other guards who were now wide awake and on the move.
"Ugh we heard him! Don't shake me!" An irritated Cataleya snarls at one of the guards who had laid his hands on her. "Fucking touch me again and see if I don't chop off your arms!"
Behind her, Rheah rubs her eyes and yawns after swatting away the hand of another guard that had landed on her shoulder. She chuckles at Cataleya's vexed response but her smile immediately slides off her face the moment her gaze falls on one of the men making moves to shake Cienna.
"Don't you dare!" Rheahs screams and in a split second, she slides off her shoe and hurls it at the man, the item bouncing off the back of his bald head. The guard, obviously pissed from the assault, turns to meet her frosty glare with his own. But before he could advance towards her, Orlando steps in.
"Alright alright." He chuckles, "Stop this now, it's okay." He turns to Rheah, handing her shoe back to her. "Sorry about that, momma bear. We're still working on Frankie."
Rheah kisses her teeth in response, barging past both Orlando and Frankie to tend to her baby who was still fast asleep. Orlando's eyes follow her with his head shaking in amusement before he turns back to address everyone.
"Alright listen up. We're in New York now. This jet is too small to make the long trip to Sicily so we gotta swap for a bigger one. You three need to stick with me." He sends the Giovannis a pointed stare. "If any of you wander off, I will kill you. Is that understood?"
Cataleya scoffs.
Orlando's stare hardens. "I said is that understood?"
"Just get us off the plane already." Cataleya tuts.
Her refusal to co-operate only infuriates Orlando. Smacking his lips in annoyance, he reaches into his pocket. Rheah quickly stops him in his tracks.
"Yes! We understand!" She blurts out before he could pull out whatever weapon he had stored away in his pocket.
Orlando smirks in response. "Bene, Amunninni (good, let's go)."
The girls glare as he turns and follows the guards exiting off the plane. An annoyed Cataleya stands to her feet, grumbling insults towards Orlando under her breath as she reaches into the overhead compartment to collect her belongings before she begrudgingly follows Orlando.
Behind her, Rheah sighs and picks up Cienna and follows her sister down the aisle with the last guard in tow.
As they were walking down the stairs of the plane, the first guard in the line suddenly falls to the ground, dead from a bullet to the head. Seconds barely passed before Frankie too, falls lifeless, his body crashing into Orlando.
"SHIT!" Orlando curses as he and the sisters duck for cover. "They're here!" He turns to the pilot who was exiting the cockpit. "Close the door and get us the fuck out of here!"
Startled by the alarming demand and the dead bodies on the floor and the stairs of the plane, the pilot and his co-pilot immediately make a U-turn back into the cockpit and straps themselves back into their seats.
Before they could adjust their controls, a shower of bullets pierce through the plane windshield and takes both of them out.
"Fuck!" Orlando screams.
Terrified, Rheah immediately takes Cienna back to the cabin seats while Cataleya ducks for cover. Around them, the clicking sounds of guns loading and taken of safety echoes around the sisters as the remaining guards prepare themselves for war.
"Crap!" Cataleya panics. "Orlando, give us a gun!"
Orlando looks at her as if she was crazy. "Don't make jokes, kid. Now's not the time!"
"She's not playing! Give us the guns!" Rheah demands.
"Give me one good reason why I should."
"Because you're two men and two pilots down and knowing the Anderson brothers, they've probably sent a whole army which means you're outnumbered and need all the help you can get." Rheah explains as if it was the most obvious answer in the world.
Orlando stares at the sisters, still not convinced. Outside, bullets continue to spray.
"Nice try princess but we're not outnumbered. We got some of our boys outside and on the other jet."
Another bullet flies into the aircraft, causing everyone to duck for cover.
"Orlando trust me, you need us!" Rheah pleads.
"You wanted to know what's so special about us, right? We'll show you!" Cataleya bargains.
Orlando studies the two women in front of him. He was torn. While something told him this was a bad idea, another part of him was very curious to see just what Cataleya meant by that. He had a lot of questions running rampant in his mind the moment he received this highly classified assignment.
Why did the command for extraction come personally from the acting Mafia King himself?
What was so special about these girls that Gabriel Giovanni was willing to send his men deep into forbidden territory just to bring two young women and a child urgently to Sicily, unscathed?
Maybe these questions, and more, will finally be answered if he met their request.
Orlando smacks his lip. "Pedro, Alex, give them your spares."
Alex's eyes widen with apprehension. "You sure, boss?"
"Don't fucking question me! Give them the damn guns!"
Reluctantly, the guards obey and place the guns in Cataleya's awaiting hands.
She smirks in response.
Rheah immediately takes out Cienna's headphones and places it on her ears in hopes it would muffle out the sounds of the gunshots.
"Watch her!" She turns to the last guard and places a sleeping Cienna in his arms. "If anything happens to my daughter, you're dead!"
The guard doesn't even have time to protest as Rheah was already running to close the shutter of every window.
o~O~o
Back in Jamaica, the crew had made it to "The Brain", their monitor rooms in one of their headquarters on the island, similar to the one they have in New York. There, with the help of Benny the tech genius, they were able to hack into the CCTV system of the private airport.
While everyone had their eyes glued to the large LED screens in front of them that was showcasing different angles of the airstrip, Chris enters the room and walks towards Michael.
"Is he alive?" The eldest asks before noticing the deep red splashes of blood on his brother's shirt.
"Yeah but he won't be the same." Chris crosses his arms and stares at the screens. "I let him know that the money he owes the Italians he now owes us. But he getting that shit by himself. It ain't working for us that's gonna get him that guap so he better figure it out and figure it out quick."
Michael nods and turns to the monitor, just in time too as the show was about to begin.
"Yo, is that them?" Terrell asks, peering at the large monitors mounted on the wall.
Benny nods as he occasionally types away on his keyboard to maintain his breakthrough of the firewall. "Yep."
"How much men they got?" Chris asks.
"We don't know yet but we've already taken out two plus the pilots."
Chris shakes his head. "Knowing their son of a bitch brother, he probably got more men in the airport cus he know we weren't finna sit back and let him take them. Tell them boys to look out for other Italian niggas and take out the other jet. Those girls ain't going back to Italy."
Jamal was already making the call. "Say less."
o~O~o
Back at the airport, Rheah crouches close to Cataleya who was desperately scanning the surroundings.
"I count 30 men!" Orlando says.
"31 if you include the sniper that took out your pilots and guards." Cataleya corrects.
Rheah's eyes roam the area. "Where do you think he is?"
"Well judging from the angle the bullet came through the plane... I'd say the the sixth floor, east wing." Her sister answers.
Rheah nods. "Okay you take out the sniper while we deal with the others. They're gonna try and take over the other jet. If they do, we're screwed!"
Cataleya nods her head and focuses her attention onto the sixth floor.
While she does that, Rheah and Orlando aim at the incoming opponents who were flooding onto the airstrip.
After finally spotting her prey, Cataleya shoots and takes out the sniper.
Meanwhile, Orlando and Rheah race down the stairs of the plane, shooting down their targets. Cataleya soon joins them and the game changed. Orlando looks on in awe as the sisters move as a unit, barely batting an eyelid as they took down their opponents. Their precisions were with pin point accurate and they showed no sign of letting up.
In The Brain, everyone was now on their feet. Their eyes barely strayed from the massacre unfolding on their screen. They watch in complete silence as the sisters fire rounds at their opponents and almost every target was hit.
"Damn..." The Six Kings mutter, equally stunned. With clenched jaws, the Anderson brothers silently watch as their mission they had sent their men to complete, was failing.
One by one, the numbers of the cartel men dropped drastically.
Noticing the odds were now in their favour, Rheah looks to Orlando. "I'm going back for my daughter."
"Wait–"
But she ignores him and was already sprinting back towards the first jet.
From the brain, the brothers and the six kings lean in closer to the monitor as they watch her duck stray bullets and race up the stairs of the plane until she disappears out of sight.
Their eyes widen when they notice her emerge into view again, carrying her little girl closely to her while a blanket concealed her from the chaos. Michael's heart skips a beat as his mind conjures up devastating scenarios of the situation at hand. His child was literally about to get caught between the crossfire of a rival war.
"Fuck! Tell the boys to stop shooting! Switch to close combat!"
Jamal was quick to relay the message and a few seconds later, the shooting was brought to a halt.
Back at the airport, Rheah continues to hold her baby close to her as she makes a run for it to meet up with Cataleya and Orlando who were holding it down on their end. Orlando had already given an order to the men in the jet and other Mafia reinforcements to defend it with their lives. No matter how many men they would lose, he WILL complete this mission.
It was this inner urge that drove him to instinctively send his feet crashing into the ribs of a cartel member who had ran at top speed behind Rheah before he could get his hands on her.
"Get to the jet!" Orlando shouts at the young mother.
He didn't have to tell Rheah twice. Like a quarterback desperate to make a touchdown, she holds her daughter tight to her body and sprints as fast as she could towards her end zone—the big white jet desperate to take off. In the midst of her racing, she makes sure the blanket enveloping Cienna stayed hooded over the little girl's head and the headphones she had placed on her ears stayed put to drown out the sounds of the commotion surrounding them.
Orlando wasn't the best marksman compared to the two Assassins he was travelling with. But what he lacked in sharpshooting, he made up for in close combat. The man was swift, strong and brutal and after knocking his first opponent out cold within a few seconds of assaulting him, Orlando was quickly onto the next one. Rheah held her own as best as she could when more cartel members came her way but was restricted in her movements. Orlando was quickly by her side, taking her opponents on, snapping bones and crippling limbs with rapid, accurate precisions in each kick and punch he reigned on his victims.
Closer to the jet, Cataleya and the other guards were handling their own problems. They shot at their targets until they heard the sound they dreaded the most. The clicking of their guns, signalling no more bullets.
"Shit! I'm out!" Cataleya panics.
One of the cartel men in front of her laughs menacingly. "Looks like you're coming with us."
"Think again, dickhead." Cataleya suddenly throws the magazine of the gun in his face at such speed, it knocks him out cold.
She charges at the other men. The remaining Italian guards were so perplexed that she would do such a thing as there was one of her and 13 of them.
Cataleya punches one of the men and dodges his jabs until she trips him up. He falls and she steals his own knife he had pulled out and drives it into his head. The brothers in Six Kings in The Brain wince at the sight.
The young woman doesn't stop to take a breath as she immediately takes on another target. He lunges for her, only to be locked into a tight chokehold before she twists her arms and hears the 'snap'of her victim's neck.
Upfront, Rheah was almost at the finish line when she was suddenly yanked back by her ponytail. She yells in pain and panics, not for her sake but for her daughter's. She could barely fight back, not when she had Cienna in her arms.
But before her tall, bulky built attacker could do any more damage, Rheah watched as he was suddenly kicked in the back, sending him off balance and releasing Rheah in the process. But the man only stumbles and swiftly turns to meet the person responsible for catching him off guard. He glares at Orlando and charges at him like a raging bull, not even noticing Cataleya had made her way into the fray. With the knife she had pulled out of her first victim's head, she thrusts the blade deep into the leg of the man before he could reach Orlando, dragging the knife down while it was still in his body.
The man roars in agony, but it was cut short when she pulls the knife out of his leg then uses it to slit his throat. He crashes to the floor like an old building.
"Thanks." Rheah tells them, almost breathless.
"Save the gratitude for when get on the jet." Orlando, who was already on the move, throws over his shoulder. The sister quickly follow until they were a few metres away from the plane.
In the Brain, the Six Kings were on the edge of their seats and the brothers were fuming.
"Don't let them get on the fucking plane!" Chris roars at the screen.
It was as if their soldiers on the ground had heard his command because with newfound energy, they were racing towards the small trio while others focused their attention on the jet. The Italian guards were fighting for their lives trying to keep them at bay.
By now, the trio were racing up the stairs of the jet. The sudden sound of a gun firing blasts through the air as the trio dive into the plane. More bullets hurled their way as the stairs were retracted and the door of the jet was quickly sealed shut.
Seconds later, whether passengers were strapped to their seats or not, the plane was zooming down the runway and taking off, despite the bullets sent its way.
Exhausted and injured, the small band of Italians were slumped in their seats, panting and sweating but glad to have made it out alive.
"We made it sis!" Rheah pulls Cataleya in for a hug.
"Yeah." Cataleya pants and smiles at her sister, "We did."
Rheah turns to Orlando. "Thank you." She sends him a small smile.
He grunts in response. Rheah's smile drops to a frown. "You okay?"
"Yeah." Orlando winces with a nod. "I'm good."
But Rheah wasn't convinced. She gasps faintly when she notices his bleeding shoulder. "You got shot!"
Orlando shakes his head. "It's nothing."
"Regardless, I'll take a look and fix you up." She says stubbornly. Orlando doesn't even protest when she takes his hand and guides him to the back of the cabin.
"Grazie."
o~O~o
Classified location, Jamaica📍
06:45 am
August 25th '19
In the Brain, the atmosphere was miserable, to say the least. There were no sighs of relief or celebratory high fives. Instead, there were clenched jaws, shaking of heads in disappointment and humiliation, hands gripping onto the arms of chairs in anger and huffs of dissatisfaction echo throughout the room.
"FUCK!!" The brothers suddenly explode in unison.
Michael slams his fist on the table in rage while an infuriated Chris hurls a few chairs across the room before storming outside, almost tearing the door off its hinges in anger. Seething, Michael paces the room until he too follows his brother to check on him. The rest of the men could only sit or stand in the tensed atmosphere, reeling in the aftermath of their defeat.
"They're good..." Joshua nods his head, still amazed by what he had just witnessed.
"Too good..." Terrell chimes, equally stunned.
"I ain't gon' lie tho," Dave shrugs, "Watching Cataleya fighting was sexy as fuck."
A chorus of groans fill the room.
"C'mon man..."
"This guy..."
"Nigga, read the room!"
"What?! Y'all were all thinking it!" Dave defends.
"Yeah but the difference is, we kept that thought to ourselves." Benny tells him.
Dave smacks his lips and waves them off dismissively. "Whatever niggas."
Meanwhile, outside of the room, the brothers were still irate. They paced around, heated to the core.
"That was our chance, Michael! That was our last chance of getting those girls back and it's fucking gone!" Chris kicks a nearby bin.
Michael clenches his jaw as he stares into space. "I might never see my baby again."
Just letting those words slip out of his mouth causes a sharp pain in his heart. After knowing Cienna for just under a year, he couldn't imagine life without her. And although he knew Rheah would have never left for Italy without Cienna, he still grew angry towards her. He didn't even get the chance to say goodbye to either of them or tell Rheah how he felt. Things ended on horrible terms between them and he was desperate to make things right with her.
But she didn't even give him the chance.
"I'm not gon' see my sons!" Chris yells his distress. "She took my fucking sons! I'm not gon' be there for their birth, I won't even know what they look like! FUCK!"
The thought of not ever getting the chance to meet his children burned Chris to his core! Cataleya's exodus rattled him in a way he had never experienced before. But deep within him, he wasn't surprised by her hasty retreat. The possibility of those girls attempting to escape was always sitting in the back of his mind. He just never thought they would succeed.
And now, Cataleya is gone. Evidence to show for everything they once had, now gone with her.
"We need to get them back!"
"How?" Michael looks to his brother. "It's not like we can just waltz into Italy."
"You did! Ain't that how you got Cienna in the first place?"
"That was different. We weren't beefing with the Italians that time. Even if just the two of us rolled into Sicily, we wouldn't even make it out the plane!"
Chris stops his pacing and lets out an aggravated sigh. "So what the fuck do we do? Just sit back and take this L?!"
"We ain't got no other choice, bro! Their brother had to, now so do we."
"Don't compare us to their bullshit brother!"
"That's not what I'm doing, bro. I'm saying, we gotta wait for an opportunity to arise. And it will, I know it will."
o~O~o
36,000 feet in the air📍
07:15am
August 25th '19
The jet was soaring over the Atlantic, enroute to Italy. Inside the aircraft, everyone was tending to the aftermath of their bloody battle.
Cataleya had changed out of her sweaty and blood stained clothes and offered to keep Cienna busy, allowing the Rheah to tend to Orlando in the small bathroom of the jet.
"Alright," Orlando sits on the sink of the bathroom. "Get to work."
Rheah rolls her eyes at his commanding tone.
"I gotta clean it with alcohol." She tells him.
"Don't give me a tutorial, principessa, just do it."
"I'm not–" Rheah snaps but reigns in her temper and sighs, "I'm just warning you because it's gonna sting."
Orlando raises an eyebrow. "So what? You think I can't handle it?"
"That's not what I said."
"We're wasting time! Just get me fixed up."
Annoyed, Rheah tuts at his crude tone and wets a cotton pad with alcohol from the first aid kit. Without warning, she stamps the soaked pad onto his shoulder. Orlando immediately flinches from the sting and winces but quickly tries to play it cool.
Unfortunately for him, Rheah had already noticed his expression of agony and smirks with a shake of her head. "I thought you said you could handle it." She comments, carefully disinfecting the wound.
"I can." He rebuts through gritted teeth. "I just wasn't ready that's all."
"Mhm..."
There was awkward silence between the two of them. Orlando stares at her, watching closely as she works to attentively clean the wound, making sure to be gentle but precise until all the blood was gone and she could see the wound clearly. Her eyes were also quick to spot the Ómerta tattoo everyone in the Mafia had apart from the sisters.
Her heart sank as her mind drifts to her father and brother. She was instantly transported back to the days where she was a little girl snuggled up against her father, and she would trace her tiny index finger along the same tattoo while he softly whispered stories about La Famiglia and their large dynasty.
"What's the diagnosis, Doc?" Orlando's question pulls Rheah out of her thoughts.
She inspects his wound. "Hmm.. well, lucky for you, it was just a scrape."
"So I'll live?"
"Yes, you'll live." Rheah chuckles. "It's a pretty deep scratch though, but nothing a little stitching won't fix."
"Bene." He nods with a smile.
Silence falls between the two again as she continues to work on his wound. But it was brief as Orlando decides to speak up again.
"What's your name, principessa?"
The young woman's eyes peer up at him before drifting back to his shoulder. "Rheah."
"And the girl with your daughter?"
"Cataleya, my sister."
"Cataleya and Rheah." Orlando repeats as he curves his lips up into a small smile. "Beautiful names."
Rheah slides him a quick glance before focusing on his cut. "Thank you."
"No problem." Orlando smiles and lets silence linger between them once more. But again, it does not stay.
"So, Rheah, where did you and your sister learn to fight and shoot guns like that?"
Rheah's lips twitch in amusement. She knew that question was bound to be asked sooner or later. She could practically hear it jingling in his mind.
"A magician never reveals their secret." She answers with a small smile.
Orlando breathes out a small chuckle. "But I'm curious, principessa. Because from what I was told, I was meant to bring three girls back to Italy. Didn't think much of it." He shrugs, earning him a small tut from Rheah when he moved his shoulder. "But when I heard your rescue was an order that came straight from the Mafia King, it got my wheels turning..."
"Mhm... I'm sure it did." Rheah sarcastically drawls, earning her an amused side eye from the young man.
"Obviously there's something very special about you three, especially from what I saw today." He leans closer to her as his voice drops an octave. "So...who are you?"
He suddenly curses when Rheah pricks him with the needle.
"You ask too many questions Orlando." She says and peers up at him. "But like I said to you before, if you want answers, you'll have to ask your boss."
"Oh, I haven't even begun to start asking questions, bella." He meets her gaze with a mischievous smirk. Rheah exhales a heavy sigh through pursed lips.
This one was persistent.
"Why were you two in the custody of the Jamaicans?" He interrogates.
Rheah draws her attention back to her stitching. "Ask your boss."
"Are you two a part of La Famiglia or something?"
"Ask your boss."
"Do you owe the king money?"
"No."
"So what is it? What does the king want with two young women and a child? And don't say 'ask your boss.'"
Rheah halts her stitching and smiles, meeting his pale blue eyes sparkling with curiosity. "Orlando, you're familiar with Omérta right? I mean you got the tattoo and I'm sure you made an oath to keep it just to join La Famiglia, correct?"
"Sí."
"Mhm, well, look at it this way, my sister and I are following the same code. So you can continue to bombard me with questions but you will still get the same answer, which is..."
Orlando rolls his eyes and sighs. "Ask your boss."
"That's right." Rheah smiles and continues to sew his open flesh back together. "I'm glad we got there in the end."
Orlando chuckles in defeat and he stares fondly at her. "Alright Rheah. Whatever you say. But I will get my answers."
"Mhm, good luck with that..." She finishes the stitch and wraps a bandage around his shoulder before giving it a small pat. "And you're done."
Orlando hops down from the sink counter and meets her eyes with a warm smile while she cleans her hands.
"Grazie."
Rheah nods in response before leaving the bathroom. She makes her way back to her sister and daughter who were busy invested in a game on her aunt's phone.
Cataleya's eyes look up to see her sister, with Orlando following not too far behind. "You good, sis?"
Rheah nods her head. "Yeah, everything's fine."
Cataleya appeared satisfied with the answer. Her eyes fall on Orlando who had taken a seat opposite them, watching the little family. He didn't even bother try asking Cataleya. If the older one wasn't going to talk, he knew her younger one definitely wasn't going to either.
But he was still intrigued. These girls were enigmatic and he was a sucker for that. He knew one way or another, he would solve the mystery of these two young attractive women and their business with La Famiglia.
o o o
9 hours later and the nerves of the sisters had finally kicked in once the pilot announced they were a 30 minutes away from landing. The girls couldn't deny they were a little relieved. Finally after months of being away, in less than an hour, they would be back in Sicily, their home.
But they weren't naive either. Both Rheah and Cataleya had imagined what their entrance back home would have been like since the moment they had first moved to New York. In times where homesickness took over them, all the girls wanted was to be back in their home, embraced in the arms of their father and brother.
But they knew, this time, there was no happy reunion. A welcome home party with a cake and balloons weren't waiting for them. They weren't sure what was awaiting them and that was terrifying, to say the least! After all, they were returning home without successfully completing their mission. They knew Gabriel was pissed but neither of them were ready to see the state their father was in.
If only the plane would make a U turn and take them back to New York.
But both Rheah and Cataleya knew that was wishful thinking.
o~O~o
Sicily, Italy📍
15:00
August 25 '19
Touch down.
As the wheels of the plane softly crashed onto Sicilian soil, the hearts of the sisters skipped and bounced within their chests.
At last, they were finally home.
The view outside was spectacular. The plane had landed on what looked to be the family's private airstrip, not too far from their home. There were a few other sleek jets and planes owned by the Giovannis waiting in the hangers. The sky was a beautiful shade of baby blue with not a cloud in the sky. There were lush, date palms, fan palms and other beautiful tress everywhere to radiate the Mediterranean atmosphere of the island.
The girls had been staring out the window the whole time, feeling whirls of emotion flow through their bodies.
Fear, Relief, Guilt. Happy to have made it home but anxious for what was to come.
It's been a long time coming and a day they had once anticipated with excitement and satisfaction. They had once longed to reunite with their family who would welcome them with open arms after a successful mission. The proud smile on their father's face.
But that was no less than a fairytale now.
Nevertheless, everything felt so surreal, but as they set eyes on the fleet of cars and figures standing outside of them, one in particular, the reality set in heavy.
The other guards in the aircraft were slightly startled at the sight of none other than the Mafia Prince himself standing outside with his entourage.
They weren't told that he would be at the pick up point.
Almost immediately, they all tended to their appearances, cleaning up their outfits, brushing up their hair with their fingers, straightening their stances. All in an attempt to make a good impression on their boss.
Two of the men who were escorting them, took the girls' luggages and began to descend off the plane when it had finally taxied into a halt, leaving Orlando and a few guards behind with the sisters who couldn't take their eyes off the window.
"Well Principesse, as I've been informed, your ride is waiting outside."
Hearing Orlando's voice, Rheah reluctantly tears her eyes away from the window to look at him. She sends him a soft smile. "On behalf of myself and my sister, I wanna say thank you Orlando. You got us here alive and made the trip a little more bearable than what I thought it would be. Well, I mean, your attitude stinks but other than that... I guess you're an okay guy."
Orlando rolls his eyes with a smirk. "You could have kept that half-assed compliment but thanks or whatever. You two ain't that bad either... è stata un'esperienza interessante ( It's been an interesting experience)."
Rheah chuckles and shakes her head before shifting her gaze to Cataleya who seemed to be stuck in a trance. She knew exactly how overwhelmed Cataleya was feeling in that moment and it compels her to lean forward and takes her sister's hand in hers and give it a tight squeeze. It seemed to have done the trick as only then was Catalaya able to peel her gaze away from the window and turn to meet her sister's.
"Hey," The eldest whispers softly, "It's going to be okay. Ti ho preso (I've got you)."
Cataleya manages to nod her head and exhale. "Thank you sis. I've got your back too, always."
Rheah sends her a gentle smile. "You ready to face the hurricane?"
She was glad her words were able to pull out a soft burst of laughter from the younger woman who shakes her head. "Like I have a choice if I'm not." She comments. Her eyes return to the window and lands on the dirty blonde headed figure who was effortlessly standing out above the rest. His face was unreadable and too far away to decipher his emotions, but his stance–two muscular tatted arms crossed over his broad chest– was intimidating enough. Cataleya looks back at Rheah. "When the time comes, can you at least tell them to save the babies after they kill me?"
Rheah chuckles in response while she stands to her feet with a sleeping Cienna cradled in her arms. "You're telling me as if I won't be the one to go first." She throws over her shoulder as she makes her way towards Orlando who was waiting for them at the plane's exit. His eyes dance between the sisters, trying to decode what they could possibly be talking about.
Cataleya follows behind her sister. "You ain't the one coming back pregnant. Trust me, when he wakes it will be the end of me."
Rheah looks back at Cataleya, sending her a sympathetic frown before turning back to the exit.
The moment she steps out of the jet, the cool and inviting Sicilian breeze instantly soothes her nerves, just in the slightest. It wasn't much to rid herself from the stomach churning anxiety that had taken over the moment they landed but it was enough to briefly pull a smile on her face.
Cataleya follows her sister's lead, proceeding down the steps with the guard behind her. She too couldn't help but secretly indulge in the calmness of the familiar scent and warmth of her homeland.
But her short moment of bliss was immediately cut short when her feet make contact with the tarmac and her eyes latch
onto the person she had been staring down on the plane. As they got closer, her eyes watered at the sight of her older brother who surprisingly looked good. His pastel yellow fitted shirt with white tailored trousers and black suede loafers easily distinguished him from the other men who were dressed in all black ensembles. His olive skin looked better than ever, glowing even. He looked clean, healthy.
She expected him to look disheveled, stressed and weak knowing that's how she would have been if she was in his shoes. Nevertheless, she was relieved he didn't look like how he probably felt. She didn't know how she would have held up if she saw him in that state.
In front of her, similar thoughts crossed Rheah's mind as she stares at her younger brother. She tries to read his face to get any inkling of what he could be possibly thinking or feeling and her breath catches in her throat the moment his eyes shift towards her.
His face and demeanour may have appeared guarded and vague but his eyes said it all.
Relief, Anger, Happiness, Sadness.
Rheah could feel her heart rip in two. She wasn't there for him when he needed her most. She had left him all alone to deal with so much all at once while she indulged in her own selfish desires.
The guilt crashes down on her like a cloudburst. It almost sends her feet racing back towards the plane. She had failed not only as a daughter but as an older sister, and that was what troubled her the most.
The girls watch wearily between the 8 men standing on either side of Gabriel. Their nerves grew when they mentally tallied the number of men in the three cars behind them as well as the remaining number of guards that had travelled with them. There were outnumbered by Italian soldiers just waiting to follow their commander's orders.
Between the exhausting battle they previously had in New York, the long flight to Sicily and just the overall reluctance to fight their brother, Rheah and Cataleya were not in the mood for another showdown. But if push were to come to shove, they needed to make sure they were ready.
And they both knew the person who was the biggest threat to them was not one they would kill.
When they were a few feet away from the convoy of cars, Gabriel finally takes a step towards them. The women halt in their tracks. Anxiously, they watch as he closes the gap until he stood tall in front of them.
Cataleya could feel her heart trying to burst out of her chest, its fast rhythmic beats drumming loudly in her ears.
Beside her, Rheah was desperately fighting to hold back her tears.
Gabriel, with a face still remaining poker, looks between his sisters, studying them until he lifts his eyes towards Orlando. The man immediately gets the silent message and with a respectful nod, he turns and walks back to where his men were standing behind him. He assumes position but his ears strain to eavesdrop on the interaction between the prince and these women.
Rheah almost flinches when Gabriel suddenly stretches his hands out towards her.
"Can I hold her?" His voice was deep and surprisingly soft as he motions towards a sleeping Cienna.
Adrenaline still racing in her system, Rheah sends him a quick nod before eventually handing her daughter towards him. The sisters watch silently as Gabriel gently lays Cienna's head onto his shoulder and plants a soft kiss on her forehead. Finally, his little Cici was back in his arms. He stares at the little girl, studying her little face and taking it all in. She had grown since the last time he saw her but she was still his radiant bundle of joy he had missed so much.
Rheah quickly lifts her hand to swipe away the stay tear that had fallen from her eyes. She bit her lip in a failed attempt to control the guilt and sadness that was drowning her as she watched Gabriel reunite with his niece.
"Bentornato a casa piccolo girasole (welcome home little sunflower)." Gabriel chuckles softly with his eyes still on Cienna. "Ti sei mancato tanto, e non sei nemmeno sveglio a vedermi (I've missed you so much, and you don't even stay awake to see me)."
Around them, the guards remained placid and emotionless, trying their best to resist the urge to impose or delve in their leader's business no matter how curious they were to see him interact with the child.
Cataleya lowers her gaze and wipes the tears that were streaming down her face while Rheah pulls a soft smile.
"Sh-she actually wore herself out talking about how excited she was to see you and Papa again. I tried to tell her to calm down but you know how she gets when she's excited about something."
Gabriel's eyes never leave his niece. "Well it's nice to know you're still the same at least, Mia amore."
The girls couldn't ignore the hurtful sting of Gabriel's subliminal shots.
His smile drops once he finally tears his gaze away from Cici, towards his sisters. Tensed silence stifles the air between them as the siblings stares clash with each other. It was suffocating to say the least and where the sisters' eyes showcase a plethora of emotions, Gabriel's was now void.
Cataleya's nerves shoot through her body like a lightning bolt the moment Gabriel's eyes land on her round baby bump.
"Are you going to kill us?" She blurts out before she could stop herself.
Gabriel's frosty blue eyes meet hers once more before it shifts towards Rheah's whose also held a questioning gaze. His eyes lands on Cataleya once again who catches the flash of hurt within them before his stare turns rigid again.
"Gabe I'm so sorry I–"
Gabriel doesn't give Cataleya the chance to finish. He abruptly walks towards Orlando with Cienna still in his arms.
Rheah looks over at Cataleya who was rubbing her hand across her face before looking back at Gabriel. She watches as he informs Orlando and his men that they would have to split between the two cars and once they were escorted back to his home, they would be dropped off to Giorgio. The men nod and begin to move according to his orders. Gabriel strides towards the middle car and speaks to one of the guards before another man moves to open the door for him. Puzzled, the sisters watch Gabriel climb in the car with his niece. The same man he had spoken to had now begun to approach the confused women. It baffles them even further when the man stands before them and gives them a respectful nod.
"Le Signore, il signor Giovanni ha detto a voi due di seguirlo e di salire in macchina. (Ladies, Mr Giovanni has said for you two to follow him and get in the car)."
The girls peer at each other, then back at the man before following him towards the sleek black vehicle.
Two of the men wasted no time to open the doors for the women who hesitantly climbed in on either side of the car, each taking the seats next to a silent Gabriel who was sitting patiently in the middle. Once the men had closed the doors, the other guards split into the cars in front and behind them before the three cars set off.
The journey to the house was an ominously silent one. The tension was so dense in the car it could fog up the windows the sisters had fixated their eyes on, taking in the familiar sights of the beautiful greenery of the Sicilian countryside, with olive and lemon orchards and vast vineyards spanning distances to create a tranquil backdrop of their beautiful home.
But their thoughts were far from the nostalgic scenery of their island. They had no idea what severe punishment awaits them at the black metal gates of their grand mansion.
And they weren't ready to find out.
........................................................
Cataleya Giovanni:
Rheah Giovanni:
Cienna Giovanni:
Gabriel Giovanni:
Michael Anderson:
Christopher Anderson:
Sebastian Stan as Orlando Leone:
........................................................
A/N:
Hello lovelies!
Happy new year! We hope 2023 started off great for everyone and if it didn't, that's okay, we hope the rest of the year turns out great for you ❤️
Yes we know, as always, we're late on the update. We're really sorry for keeping you guys waiting and we'll try to do better. Having said that, I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. Let's get into it!
First off... Jalil! 😢 Poor guy!
We know the boys didn't kill him but what to think happened to him?
Next we have that dramatic layover! They were turning that airstrip upside down! What are your thoughts? And what's your thoughts on Orlando? 👀
Finally.... After many many months... the Giovannis have finally reunited. What's the verdict guys? We praying for mercy for the girls or will they get what they deserve? 🫣
That's all for now lovelies. See you in the next chapter! But just to let y'all know... the next few chapters might take us a little bit of time so updates will be slower so please please pleaseeeeee bare with us. We want to deliver a great story for you so we really appreciate your patience! Please stick with us! ❤️
Love you guys, byeee!