Chapter Sixty: The Final Showdown.
Franca Frances, the one who built her dynasty upon lies, fear, and the murder of her own blood, got up from her seat to walk around the table to me.
And for the first time in a while, I took a good look at her.
I observed the nice, easy grace with which she stood, the way she tossed her golden braid over her shoulder, her crystal blue eyes, her simple loose wrap top. She looked like a pretty mom next door... until she tried to kill you, that is.
"Little Violet Adams," she cooed, seemingly pleased to see me, "I cannot decide if you're a blessing or-"
The sound of Hale losing his balance and slumping to the ground cut her off and she sighed in annoyance.
"Hans, pick your son off the ground so he stops being even more pathetic." She made an aggravated gesture and her husband immediately ran to do as she asked.
"Did he not take the painkillers?" She watched Hale get into the seat across from mine, pale and sickly as he was.
"All seven of them, dear."
Hale attempted to speak, "It's only taking a while..."
"Tell him he should be grateful he's not trapped in a hospital, Hans." Franca interrupted, not even sparing them a glance.
I would have felt sorry for Hale, but I was too busy hating him. My eyes darted back to Franca when she turned her attention back to me.
This time her smile seemed tighter, like she wanted to kill me on the spot but had to play nice. "You see? I was just saying how I can't decide if you are a blessing or a curse. On one hand, you turned Hale into... this, but on the other hand, you single handedly got the one person who could actually bring harm to everything I've worked for under my thumb!"
I shuddered despite myself. I already knew I was a bargaining tool, but what if it actually worked?
"Oh I simply cannot wait to see all the things he's willing to do to keep you safe." Franca said gleefully, all but floating over to where I was seated and ripping the tape off my mouth. Then she lowered her face to mine and dropped the façade. "And if I've underestimated your affections, I'll just finish him off while you watch."
"Everyone would know what you've done." I said back, if this was the end, then I'd spend the last hours of my life not being afraid of her for once. "You'll never get out of this the same way, Franca."
She scoffed and stood straighter, staring down at me with those harsh blue eyes. "Being timid and stupid suited you better, small thing. Don't you agree Hale?"
Hale seemed to have gained enough strength to move and he sat straighter, staring across the table at me with a scowl that disfigured his face even more. "It's that Angelo's fault for brainwashing her and giving her all these bright ideas."
"And what do you have to say about this unfortunate situation?" Franca asked.
Hale shot to his feet, newly motivated and his palm slammed the table. "You're coming back to me, Violet. It's for your own good!"
I could have rolled my eyes at the nerve of this guy, but I fixed him with a level gaze. "What did I tell you about talking to me ever again?"
He looked taken aback at my words and even Hans where he stood, gasped lightly when Hale turned to look at his Mom nervously.
"And I thought you couldn't possibly disappoint me more." Franca sighed.
Suddenly, the doors to the dining hall banged open, and every head in the room turned to the direction of the noise.
My heart couldn't decide if to leap for joy or disintegrate with anxiety at the sight of Angelo being escorted in by two hefty men pointing guns at his head.
I couldn't help a small relieved sigh though. He was fine, and his eyes immediately searched the room till they found mine before checking the rest of me to see if I was hurt. I nodded my head, I was fine too.
"Welcome, finally!" Franca stretched out her arms as she walked over to him. One of the guards walked forward with something (the camera?), and handed it to Franca before returning to their previous position.
"Believe me, it's very nice to have you back."
"Drop. The niceties." Angelo emphasized in a low voice, his eyes flashing with anger despite his carefully blank expression. "First, you're letting Violet go, you have me where you want me."
"Do I?" Franca laughed, simultaneously signalling for Hans to cut my bonds. But then the guards behind Angelo went on to shut the doors, sealing us into the room. "Well, she's loose, but no one's leaving till we reach a...civil agreement."
"Angelo." I said, hurrying out of my seat to reach him. "Do you have a plan?" I asked in a hurried whisper, grabbing his arm as I faced Franca and Hale.
"I need to know if you're alright." He said to me and I nodded even though I was terrified and anxious.
"I'm okay."
"Please try to stay that way, okay?"
I didn't even get to respond before Franca spoke up, "Now I have to laugh." She said, passing the camera to her son. "You brought a...knife to a gun fight, or is that the saying?"
Angelo shrugged, "Why would you think that is a weapon?"
"I'm almost offended that you'd think I'd underestimate you." Franca said pointedly and Hale let the camera slip from his fingers. The sound of it crashing into a billion bits made me jump while Angelo went stiff next to me.
Susan was going to miss that thing.
"Does that make you feel better?" Angelo asked after a beat.
"Search him." Franca ordered her men and went to lean against the great dining table, keeping a watchful eye as they thoroughly checked him for anything strange.
"So, I don't want to be the one to make outrageous demands, but seeing as I can blast a hole through your sweetheart's head this very moment, I think I can be excused."
"Name your price." Angelo said, adjusting his shirt sleeve.
"You will leave this town and never return, before which you'll cut of all connections to the Frances-Sullivan name."
What?
"Let's just say that you keeping your name a mystery and randomly revealing it one day is making the wrong people ask all sorts of questions. I can't have that."
Angelo gave her a long stare and I started to panic. He couldn't possibly be considering something so outrageous!
"What about Violet?" He asked, finally.
"Angelo, hold on a minute!" I exclaimed, trying to get him to look at me.
"Violet, her family and anything relating to her will have nothing to do with us for as long as they live." Franca rolled her eyes with a smile, and when she stretched her hand, Hans provided her with some papers. "I even took the time to include her in the contract, now I need you to step forward if you don't mind."
"But what about-? I thought that... " I stuttered, as he squeezed my hand before letting go, a gesture probably meant to be comforting, then going to Franca. "You can't sign that!"
But he was going to! And the look on Franca's face as he hovered the pen over the paper was the greediest one I'd ever seen on a person. Even Hale had to peek over as he started to sign...
"You know...?" Angelo paused, "cutting me out of your bloodline does kind of complicate the whole ownership thing."
"Ownership of what?" Franca asked, her feathers successfully ruffled.
"Feather Industries." Angelo replied, tapping the pen on the table and I let out a huge sigh of relief. "Oh, did I forget to tell you, Auntie? I found my parents' will. They passed on their company to their only offspring to do as he deemed fit."
I couldn't help biting my nails in anticipation as I watched Franca process this information, but Angelo still went on to lean over the paper. "But if I somehow stopped being related to you it would be hard to pass on ownership..."
"Stop!" Franca slammed her palm on the paper.
"...unless you think buying it from me would be a better option."
Franca let out a laugh that was borderline deranged before grabbing the paper in her fist and tossing it towards Hans, "Don't be coy." She warned Angelo.
"Wha-" I whipped my head in both directions, noticing that the guards were now on either side of me, armed too.
"I thought you might want to see it for yourself." Angelo said, and took a folded sheet out of his pocket. Franca snatched it, her eyes scanning through the words and immediately growing wide. "Is that writing familiar?"
Franca Frances seemed to grow bigger as she zeroed in on Angelo. "You! You! Where did you find this!? Heather never gave her company to you! You were a child when-"
"When you killed her?" Angelo asked, cold frosting his words.
Franca scoffed, lowering back to her heels, "What a bold accusation-"
"I have proof!"
"YOU AND WHATEVER PROOF YOU HAVE WILL DIE HERE TODAY!" Her voice bounced off the walls and suddenly, guns were being aimed, Franca had one pointed at her nephew and there were two pressed against my scull.
I gasped, hands covering my mouth to hide my trembling lips. Oh God.
"Read the will, Franca." Angelo said, and for crying out loud, how could he be so calm when I was nearly peeing myself here!? "If I don't step out of here alive, Feather Industries would be shut down. And don't even think about touching Violet, one scratch and I'll make sure you have absolutely no shares in this business whatsoever. All your blood and sweat gone in an instant. You can't murder your way out of this one."
For the first time, I got to see this powerful, evil woman completely frazzled, red in the face and on the verge of a meltdown. "You bloody, bloody LIAR!"
"Do you want to test me?" Angelo said, staring right down the barrel of the pointed gun, even as she fiddled with the trigger. But then she moved suddenly, swinging her arm sideways in my direction and setting the gun off with a loud "bang!".
I gasped.
Then I doubled over with my hands over my ears, trembling as the guard next to me dropped heavily to the ground. Bloody hell.
"Violet..." Angelo's voice called over my ringing ears and I straightened up right away.
"I'm fine." I said as firmly as I could. He had to do what he had to so we could get out of here. Angelo's widened eyes narrowed as he turned back to Franca.
"Don't think I missed." She warned. "And if you think I cannot survive outside of this company, you are more foolish than I thought."
"Even after all that you've invested to make it what it is? I'm very willing to call your bluff." Angelo dared.
"A bluff!" Franca scoffed, stepping over the broken camera towards him so they were almost nose to nose. "You only think you know what I'm capable of, when in reality you have no idea just how many ways I can ruin your life! I will riddle your girlfriend's body with bullets just so you can watch and I will play it for you to relive over and over while I sleep like a new born child. You think you hate me now? Just wait till I'm done with you just like I finished your-!"
Suddenly, she paused and the whole room seemed to hold it's breath as she looked around with intensity.
Hale was first to be concerned, "Mom-?"
"Shut up!" She spat. Then she looked down at the camera pieces before picking something up from the rubble.
Angelo cursed under his breath, clenching his fists and I looked at him in confusion.
Then Franca began to laugh.
She laughed so hard and so long she had to wipe the tears from under her eyes. She was a certified mad woman now, only explanation.
"THIS was your plan all along?!" She barked, showing the black piece to Angelo. Now that I stared at it, I noticed the tiny red light beaming off of it. "A separate sound recorder attached to your camera. Such a basic little plan, you fiend! And I thought you'd have this elaborate agenda to ruin me. Just look at him." She laughed some more, pointing him out to Hans who could only let out an uneasy chuckle or two.
"So you underprepared to counter my overestimation, how cunning. You could have gotten away with it too but..." She smiled, dropping the recorder and crushing it with her platform heels before taking out the will and unfolding it. "Tell me Angelo, is this truly about saving your precious girlfriend, or just ruining my life for revenge? Better yet, was there ever a will to begin with?"
I turned to Angelo, not sure exactly where this was heading, and I expected he'd answer her questions and stop her from being so cocky. What I didn't expect was for him to look at me with so much apprehension that my heart would drop to my soles.
"I'm ...sorry Violet." He whispered.
I blinked, "what?" I understood nothing. Why was he apologizing?
"I knew it!" Hale seemed excited, suddenly. "I knew he wasn't perfect, he lied!"
Franca laughed once more, a victor's laugh as the ripped appart the apparently fake will and tossed the pieces in the air.
"Wait, what's...?" I stepped forward. I wanted him to explain exactly what was happening, the exact lies he told.
"You're bait, you stupid girl!" Franca pointed at me, "That's all you've ever been and you didn't even know it. Your boyfriend has been playing the long game! A game that I have now won."
I couldn't look away from Angelo even as everything decended into chaos. He didn't try to deny what she was saying, he just watched me back. But his eyes said plenty.
"Oh." I whispered, holding myself together with my own arms as tears started to spill from my eyes. "I can't believe I-"
Franca's gun clicked and I looked up to see that she was aiming it at Angelo with a satisfied smile. "I changed my mind, I'm killing you both, saves you the stress of having to buy a plane ticket, aren't I generous?"
"You'll never get away with this." Angelo said, taking a step back, hands up and eyes widened now that he seemed to have nothing to hold against her.
"I believe I have." Franca grinned and Hale came to stand by her side, a cocky grin on his bashed up face, "lots of times in fact. Montgomery, Evans, Madam LaCroix...name them."
I didn't think Angelo would take it literally. "Yale Griffin?" He asked.
"Absolutely."
"General Yasuf?"
"A tricky one, but yes! Things like murder get easier after you do it to your own sister." Franca gestured with the gun. "Too bad Felix had to get caught up in it all, too bad you escaped. But not for long, I get to finish you just like I did them."
"You know what?" Angelo sighed, dropping his arms. "You're one heck of a woman, but I think that'll do. How's that, Mayor Madison?"
Franca's victorious look flickered with confusion just before the sound of a phone ringing cut through the air.
Hans was the one to pick it up. "Hello?" Then he looked up at us all. "It's the Mayor, and the... Sheriff."
"What does she want!?" Franca snapped and went to snatch the phone from him. After listening for a moment, she looked up, livid.
"What have you done?! How can she hear us?!?" She roared. Angelo came to take my hand, ignoring her.
"I didn't know you could cry on command." He said, impressed as I wiped my cheeks. Franca was back on the phone now, yelling at the Mayor in a last attempt to salvage her situation.
"I've had a lot of practice, though I haven't gotten around to stopping it on command." I sniffed with a little laugh when he kissed my temple just as I noticed the last bodyguard sneaking out the door.
"What did you do! What's going on?" Hale asked us, giving up on listening to his mother's side of the argument. "Answer me, you sick, son of a-"
"I'd watch what I say," Angelo wagged a finger at him, "your entire house is bugged. I would know, I did it all myself."
"Really?" I asked, it was my turn to be impressed.
"That's crap" Hale yelled. "You haven't been here in ages!"
"I know that," Angelo drawled scratching his chin, "do the math and that's how long we've been able to tune in to your family's conversations. Did you really think I came here to live with you? All you eat is salads."
Suddenly, the sounds of sirens filled the air. They were here.
"Oh GOD! We're done for!" Someone screamed and we turned to see it was Hans, to my great surprise, clawing his hands through his hair. "I'm going to prison, I'm going to die!"
"Shut up you maniac! Panicking is useless!!!" Franca screamed, tossing the phone to the ground so that it shattered.
"NO!" He screamed at her, spit flying from his mouth. "You promised nothing would happen to me! You said they'd never catch us!!" I'd never seen him like this, he looked like he'd completely lost it.
"Hans-" I took a step forward only for Angelo to hold out his arm to stop me.
"What are you doing?" He asked.
"He's innocent."
"Yes!" Hans agreed instantly, turning his red, crazed eyes on me with such an intensity I took a step backwards. "I'm innocent you see, Violet? I never hurt you like Franca and Hale did."
"Dad what are you doing!?" Hale asked just as the man threw himself at my feet and grabbed my leg, his sharp nails digging into my skin.
"Hey!" I yelped, pulling back. He was scaring me. "W-wait, just...."
"Tell them not to take me!" He shouted just for Angelo to send him flying back with a kick.
"Don't ever touch her again." He spat before looking at me, "He may not have done anything to you, Violet, but he watched it happen and did nothing."
"I was afraid!" Hans wailed, sobs wracking his body. "Franca would have killed me."
"I don't care! You. Did. Nothing." Angelo's eyes were burning and he seemed to hate Hans even more than Franca.
Hans panted, staring at me and I watched him back, helpless empathy swelling in my chest.
Then he picked himself up and ran for the door.
Bang!
I screamed as he dropped and stayed there, blood flowing out from under him.
Lockdown activated. Franca's house announced just as windows started closing and locks started clicking into place. Dammit! Dammit!!
"Stay behind me, okay?" Angelo said, pushing me back under his arm, and in that moment I loved him more than anything else in the world.
Hale started to cry; ugly, unhinged sounds as Franca reloaded her gun. "You're killing everyone!" He sobbed.
"I'm well aware." She said, boredly and aimed this time for Angelo's heart. "Him next."
Bang!!
All the air left my lungs at once as Angelo lost his balance and slumped to the ground.
A//N:
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THE END.
Rhodes.