MATTEO
The car door slams behind Ella as she gets out and run inside the house to her sister. Anger surged through me after knowing what have taken place.
Slamming the door twice as hard, not caring about the car in this moment, I stalk behind Ella.
When I got the call from one of my man informing me what happened, a rare kind of anger took place inside me. Usually, in these cases, I would be calm and collected but considering on whom this all has happened, I cannot control my rage.
The moment in the car I informed Ella about what happened, she nearly had a panic attack. And because I left so abruptly, Mia and Luca had to come in the other car which meant Ella and I were alone while I told her and because I was driving, I couldn't even calm her down. When I tried to park the car aside to get to her side, she stopped me. No, she ordered me to keep driving.
Behind me, I hear another car arrive in full speed, most probably the one with Luca and Mia in it but I don't bother looking back to confirm as I keep up with Ella but still a few steps behind.
Giulia comes out of Sofia's room the moment Ella brushes past her and rush to Sofia's side. I examine the room and take in all the people inside. A doctor treating Sofia's arm, Silas standing in the corner of the room, anger and the feeling that he may commit genocide any moment now radiating off of him. A nurse stands inside the room helping the doctor and a maid stands near the door.
A small person brushes past me, only for me to realise it's Mia Byrne.
"Tell me the details." I ask Silas, Sofia's new bodyguard and owner of the best security company in the country, about the attempt of shooting them. Though it surprised me that the owner himself became a bodyguard for someone, I do not blame him. Byrne girls really do be affecting men in unknown ways.
His jaw clenches before he releases it. "We came out of the designer's office when the shooting started. It was too abrupt. I acted fast but not fast enough apparently. They got her arm." His gaze turns from Sofia to me. "An inside man was part of it." He declares without a speck of hesitation.
My brow raises at his accusation. "How sure are you?" I ask even though I know the answer.
"Thousand percent."
I nod. "Very well then." My eyes move onto my sweet angel. She is tear eyed, next to her sister and examining the wound on her arm. Sofia seems to be too calm and collected for someone on whom a shooting happened.
I turn to leave only to be stopped by Silas' voice. "Save the shooter for me." I spare him a last glance before stalking about of the room. Luca follows me and a few other men as well.
Whoever the fuck did this is going to pay and wish they had never even thought about doing such a thing in the first place.
* * *
ELLA
"What is happening?" Sofia peaks at the guard, Aldo, who is taking us towards some room in the basement where--and I quote the guard--Capo have called upon us from.
After Matteo told me that Sofia had been shot while exiting the designer's store where to went to have her dress altered, which was about two hours ago now, everything inside my froze and panic took over me. He almost pulled over the car but since I screamed at him to keep driving, he kept driving. I kept trying Sofia's phone before Silas picked it up and told me exactly what had happened.
He said the doctor was treating Sofia's wound, it was not anything serious but a shot on the arm. Though from his voice, I could tell how it definitely was not "anything serious" for him and I'm not just talking about the wound.
Later I called Mia to tell her about all this. Matteo dragged me out of the bakery in such a hurry that we did not even wait for Luca or Mia before he started driving at full speed.
After coming back to the estate, I did not see Matteo again except for a few minutes he came to check up on Sofia. Luca left along side Matteo and a while later Bianca came to check up on Sofia as well.
Silas looked like he was one word away from killing every person on Earth. He put six new guards with us--like we didn't already have enough of those--and went to talk to Matteo.
Now, we are all going to see the guys at the basement.
"Capo have called up--"
"Called upon us," Aldo starts to answer with his thick Italian accented voice only to be cut off by an irritated Mia. "Yes, we are aware from the ten times you have told us the same bloody thing completely dodging the original question for god's sake."
Sofia lets out a soft laugh hearing Mia's small outburst.
"Seriously, though!" She exclaims but Aldo doesn't seem to give a fuck.
He stops in front of the door to the basement and knocks in a pattern on it. Knock-knock-knock... knock-knock... knock-knock... knock.
We stand there awkwardly for a moment before someone from inside opens the metal door. A glimpse of blond hair comes in my view and then the owner of them. Luca smiles at us tightly and all of us enter the basement, walking down the stairs as he closes the door behind us with a few creaks coming from it.
Horror fills inside me when the sound of groaning and screaming comes from downstairs. All three of us glance at each other with the same horror and question in our mind. What the fuck is happening? We are not stupid, we all know what happens in the basements and how brutal it all is. But what we don't know is why the fuck are we here.
My eyes widen and a gasp escapes my lips the moment we step downstairs.
Five guys, all with bloody faces which makes it look like they may have just fought war... or rather the war fought them before they could even lift their hand. Matteo's back is facing me as he raises is fist and punches one of the guy tied to a chair in the middle.
Matteo's suit jacket is off and his shirt sleeves are pushed up his forearms. His white shirt is probably going to be covered in blood when he turns around but I already know that not a single drop of the blood will be his. Silas stands in the corner, his eyes fixated on Sofia. His knuckles are red, his hair falls on his forehead and you can clearly tell he had a part in what happened to these men.
"Matteo." His name was meant to come out as an announcement that we are here but it came out as a soft whisper. So soft that I am surprised he heard it.
He turns out, his hair sticking to his forehead, the front of his shirt covered in a lot more blood than I expected that it is possible to have someone mistake it as his.
"Untie them all." He orders, his eyes fixated on me but the order for someone else. Right now, he is the Capo of the Italian Mafia speaking. Five guards go ahead and untie the hands and legs off all the men on the chairs.
The more I look at the one in the fourth chair, I start to recognise him. He is one of the man who was there at the day of my kidnapping. He is the guy whose arm I shot. The one in the middle who Matteo just punched is the man who was selected to be on the security team for Sofia the day we came to Italy.
The shooting included people from the inside. What the fuck?
Other than these two, I do not seem have to seen the rest before today or maybe I cannot recognise them since their faces are brutally covered in blood and bruises. Matteo comes forward and stands next to me, taking my hand and catching me by surprise. Silas comes forward to Sofia as well but Luca stays a bit behind us.
"Bow to your Queen."
My eyes widen and my gaze goes from our intertwined fingers to Matteo's face. But this time he is not looking at me nor the emotion in this eyes are of love or comfort. A rare kind of anger is radiating off him which he is trying to control. His eyes are completely blank, his face betraying no emotion.
The guy in the middle spits blood on the floor. "Fucking Irish is not our Queen." He voice is filled with hatred.
Matteo lets out a bitter laugh. A shiver runs down my spine and goosebumps rise on every inch of my body. "Oh yes, she is. She is your fucking Queen and if you do not bow to her, you do not exist anymore."
The guy continues to glare between me and Matteo with nothing but pure hatred in his eyes. He doesn't move one inch while two of the men go down on their knees to bow.
"Mother fucking cowards," The fourth man spits.
"Very well then." Matteo leaves my hand and goes to stand behind the guy. He pulls out his gun and a loud noise rings in my ear making me flinch. Besides me Sofia gasps loudly. The guy starts to scream and curse.
"Luca get Mia out of here, right now." I order without turning around.
"No." Mia starts but I do not give her a chance.
"Now!"
Even after being shot on one leg, he manages to stand with the help of the other leg. But Matteo doesn't hesitate for a second before making a tsk sound and shooting him on the other leg. If it was possible, the guy starts to scream even more loudly. A sob rips out of Sofia and Silas shields her protectively.
The man falls on his knees, his blood covering the concrete floor really quickly. Matteo lifts his leg and roughly jabs his foot on the man's nape. He shouts more as Matteo slowly twists his neck with his leg while bringing his head down on the floor.
"Now, would you two rather bow this way or at your own will?" He asks in a calm but deadly tone. The rest two passes a look to each other before glancing at the guy in the middle and bowing.
"Who's your Queen?" Matteo's voice booms through the basement.
"She is." The men mummer.
"Louder!"
"She is!" Every single Italian in the room says it together.
"If a single person tries to hurt your queen, my wife, or anyone nearly precious to her, what will we do?"
"Kill them." A familiar female voice says from behind me. When did Bianca come?
Bending down, she pulls out a dagger with her gloved hand from her high boots and tosses it to Matteo. He catches it and in a split second, he removes his leg from the man's neck before grabbing him by his hair and slashing his neck.
My eyes shut close in a reflex action. "Silas, take Sofia away from here this instance." My eyes are shut tightly but I hear the faint footsteps of them going back. More screams and pleads for forgiveness come but eventually stop.
A hand touches my shoulder and I jump, all my braveness leaving me. That is if I had any.
Oh my fucking god.
I open my eyes and Bianca looks at me with concern. "Are you alright?"
For some reason, I can't manage to get a word out. Involuntarily my eyes goes towards the five men who had initiated the shooting at my baby sister but Matteo's figure comes in front of me, blocking the vision but not before I catch all their throat's slit, lying on the floor and the guards picking them up except for the one who was at my kidnapping.
Matteo takes my face in his hands, making my focus fully stay on him. "This needed to be done." He searches for my eyes, his own soft unlike how they were before.
"I.. I need some time to process whatever just happened."
"I understand." He kisses my forehead and takes my hand into his, leading me out of the basement.