"Your orders are to follow me and do as I say." I voice out authoritatively, as my gaze shifted between Emiliano and Soto.
Emiliano's lips curve in a lopsided grin as he stepped back, leaving a narrow space between Soto and him. My anxious eyes met with Lorenzo's expecting him to say something to me, to water down the grim situation but he didn't.
Straightening my spine, I stride toward Gian as he was stepping back from his mother's grave. I slipped my hand in his, weaving our fingers carefully. My heart broke as his dazed eyes met with mine.
"I am so sorry, Zara." He whispered as his hand went limp against mine. I squeezed his palm but his fingers didn't curl around mine. Panic gripped me, I prayed to the angels in heaven to give me the strength to help me not shed a tear now. I need to be strong for both of us now.
I swallowed the thickness forming in my throat, still holding his hand. My nose prickled and my throat ran completely dry. But I stood my ground beside him, not crying. The priest spoke in Italian, I couldn't understand a single word. People came to console Gian while giving me a side-eyed look. Women pretended to dab on the tears over their cheekbones which weren't there to wipe off.
When a beautiful girl came with her family, my shoulders stiffened in full alert. She was looking at Gian like he was hers and I was an intruder. I covered my hand over his wrist and stepped closer until our sides were glued to each other. Her nostrils flared in an ugly manner, making my ego swell knowing that she can indeed look ugly. Her eyes flickered between Gian and my adjoined hand to my face. And she didn't look impressed.
Pegging me to not be qualified to compete for Gian's attention, She started to hug Gian but whatever she saw in his expression she pivoted back. All the guests slowly left but Gian and I stood where we were.
A chill ran down my spine when a pair of angry brown eyes threw a menacing glare at me. "It was very clever of you to show up here. You thought my son will leap on to fetch whatever you have to offer..." He sneered at me. I squirmed, shifting uncomfortably as his gaze shamelessly raked over my body making me feel like I had been naked.
Gian's fingers finally grabbed mine as he spoke, his voice sounding grave. "Zara is a friend, father. And she is here to offer her condolences."
Mr. Armani's eyes narrowed at Gian in repulsion. My own anger spiked at him for making a scene here just because he didn't like me.
"You are not a weak man to need condolences from a puttana. Fuck her behind that tree if you want. But don't malign my name in public by flashing-"
My chin wobbled hearing the profanities against me. He doesn't even know me. I might not have made a good first expression by coming here in this dress. But can't he see my disheveled state.
"My wife wasn't shot dead, father. I am not weak one here." he spoke calmly with a threat of violence underlining them. He squeezed my hand, turning us around to leave. He walked with me until the parking, then his hand slowly left mine.
"G-gian..." I stammered, reaching out to grab his hand as he was walking away without giving me a second glance.
Emiliano grabbed my shoulders, walking us back. He pushed me inside a car, where Lorenzo was behind the wheels. He threw the car into drive without exchanging a word with Emiliano. His body language appeared to be hostile in my eyes. So I sat quietly wringing my hands over my lap.
"That was brave." He spoke, crossing the third green light. Jeez.!
I tuck my hair behind my ear sheepishly, like I have not flirted with him this Christmas. "I thought you would say stupid." I say feebly.
"There is not much difference." He shrugged casually. "Stupidity is getting into something risky without knowing the consequences."
"You think I am aware of the supposed consequences.?" I query, arching my brows at him.
He threw a quick glance my way, smirking as he spoke. "Weeks after leaving my brother high and dry you finally came back and claimed your man. I'm surprised Mrs. Armani didn't rise from the dead after seeing her topino with a pretty girl in a white dress."
I gasped at his disregard toward Gian's mother but considering this is Lorenzo. I bet he didn't mean it that way.
"I didn't claim him. I just-" I purse my lips quickly when he gave me a 'Do not shit with me' look.
"Isabella doesn't take small hints. Next time she comes near him, lick his face." He suggested.
"Ewww..." I shrieked, forgetting the severity of the situation that led me here, for a moment. We drove for the next 20 minutes without any traffic interruptions.
Lorenzo took me to an abandoned place that looked like it had once been a small mart. But like a spy movie when the doors opened I was in a completely different world filled with the computer screen size varying all ranges. It was on the floor below, lit with neon lights. Even the base of the keyboard was glowing in the dark.
"You are too trusting." Lorenzo murmured, as we were walking down the stairs.
"Pardon.?" I asked furrowing my brows, taking long strides to sync with him.
He shook his head smiling as though dismissing what he had just said to me. "You trust Gian. You allowed me to take you here... I was just trying to figure out." he said with uncertainty, losing his tie, taking in deep breathes like it was suffocating his air.
"Lorenzo. I know you. Of course, I trust you." I chuckled. His feet slightly swayed as we reached the down floor.
"Re-" A small boy was starting to say but stopped abruptly when he spotted me.
The air shifted around us I noticed the rapid-fire clicking of the mouse and keyboard pressings has abrupted to a halt. All the malnutrition guys were gawking at me as they have never seen anyone of the opposite sex in their life.
'Ahem...' Lorenzo coughed, It sounded like a warning as they all got back to their screens and I had to stifle a peal of laughter.
"The second door on your left. Gian stays there mostly so it has some of his clothes. Antonio has sent someone to fetch your luggage from the airport. If you want anything else just tell me." Lorenzo spoke dispassionately. I just nodded, walking toward the room. Why is he talking like I'm supposed to be here for a long time?
Sitting on the large fucking stone I checked my watch again. 2 minutes more. My gaze traveled over the beautiful river in front of me. 2 minutes is a long time to think. I'd learned this thing from Zara. I have found myself applying her logic in a lot of places these days.
One would think she was stupid and naive to question the smallest thing no one had ever really thought of. And when she wouldn't find a suitable logic to justify it, she would just pin it on the aliens. Like the Stonehenge or the pyramids, the poor slaves must be rolling on their graves to know that Zara doesn't believe in the hard work they had put to build them.
If she would have been with me right now she would have questioned the existence of the stone I have been sitting on as well. It's around 4 feet in height almost like a globe with some irregularities. I looked around to find more like this. Nope. Definitely aliens. I scoff, laughing at myself and my fucking brain.
I remember everything... My naturally sharp memory was trained to engrave the smallest details, to doubt anything and everything. But I had failed, I would have continued to if I hadn't applied Zara's habit of relieving the past.
Her brows would pucker adorably as she would realize the new truth behind the things that were said to her. Fuck knows how many retelling would take her to finally realize that her parents who had adopted her, left her with governesses to raise her, actually wanted to get rid of her. They just couldn't fucking wait for 2 more years for her to go to college. Their plans to play the victim hoping Zara would leave them flopped when she stayed with them.
A faint light appeared from my left, I stood up buttoning up my jacket with my bandage fingers. The two yellow lights were beginning to blink, dimming down then flooding up using the last ounce of energy left in the car.
I scan the stone Remo, Emiliano, Soto, and I had placed on the side of the road. Mark of our calculation where would the car stop as we had malfunctioned its system. The gas shows it's full but it isn't. Barely enough to deliver him where I had wanted.
It stopped exactly at Remo's stone. Motherfucker.!
I threw the pebble I had been playing with and rounded the car. Blank tinted windows rolled down, I propped my forearm on the door smiling at him.
"What the fuck, Gian." he roared, spewing spit on my face. His voice clearly shook, showcasing his fear. His hand slowly slipped from the steering wheel, reaching toward the dashboard to get his gun. But it won't be opening. He knew his time was up and I fucking loved it.
"You killed Lorenzo." I state monotonously looking at him dead in the eyes, memorizing every wrinkle and every fine line forming as his face paled.
"I was working on it for a while. Why he was taken so early...." I murmured, watching him struggle to open the dashboard as the brightness from the flatbed truck lustered on his face. I tilted my head to the side to save my eyes burning from the light approaching us.
"Then you take my mamma. The blunder of your life for taking my queen." I groaned.
"You have another one. That Canadian whore. You think I don't know about her. I know everything. Every single breath you take."
"That cunt distracted you long enough. What happened now.? Got bored of the same pussy." He cackled, forgetting the truck hurtling toward us. My nostrils flared in anger, I lurch forward to grab him by his collars.
"My men will fuck her bloody, Gian.! She will regret the day she met you. My men...."
"Your men are dead. Each and every fucking one of them. And the rest will go down after your death. Whilst my Principessa is in the safest place on earth. Your men can't do shit to her...." I thundered as the lights came closer, I could feel the heat generating off of it.
His head turned to his right, watching the giant truck coming closer at the speed of lightning. I reached over kissing his knuckles as I murmured against his skin, "Forgive me, father. For I have sinned."
I stepped back from the car but still remained close enough to hear him suck a sharp inhale. When his muscles went rigid and the moment he closed his eyes accepting his faith, his lips moved to chant prayers.
The truck even blared its horn before it collided with the car, making me chuckle. The air whooshed with force, threatening to falter my feet glued to the ground. Even the rules of fucking physics didn't apply to me. I was invincible today. The car toppled over the shallow ditch, stopping upside down. His screams rang in the valley. He begged for help during his final moments. I would have respected him the slightest bit if he hadn't. He was afraid of water. Of all the things I have known about him, I wasn't aware of this one. Until I began to think like Zara, reliving the slightest memories that meant nothing. He never got into a pool, I thought he just wanted to lounge around the pool and watch the bikini-clad chicks.
I saw the unhinged fear of death in Alessandro Armani's eyes that looked straight in my mother's before shooting her 5 times. The first bullet was to save himself. The rest for the envy he had been harboring for her all these years.
The car slowly submerged in the San Diego River as he was on his way to his pride and joy Da Vittario that overlooks this river. The truck halted with a loud screech. Soto jumped down from the driver's seat to the concrete floor with a loud thump. He patted my back for finally killing the man. I inclined my head at him for the job well done.
Soto's eyes grazed over the stones. He switched his with Remo's shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly. I waived him off to leave, getting back to sit on the stone. Reminiscing the time when I thought I was some fucking god. Always getting what and who I had wanted. I had it all mapped out, the ways to kill my father piece by piece. Sit on his high chair, with his blood dripping off my hands. I didn't deserve the satisfaction to kill him with my bare hands. That would have meant that I've forgiven myself for my mamma's death.
I was gonna kill each and every fucker, loyal to my Alessandro Armani, and those bitches at the Da Vittaro with my bare hands. But instead, I blew them all on one go by trapping the entire place with bombs.
All to lure are my father out of the house, leaving his bodyguards behind to follow him. All their cars showed full on gas. They all stopped at their designated places as we had expected.
Another thing I couldn't foresee was the loyalty of the made man for me, not my father. The fear of my mother's life as she was surrounded by my father's men 24/7 had maimed me to take the risk and check the waters with them.
I inhaled the air full of freedom... The freedom Lorenzo and my mamma wanted me to have. I choked on the air, coughing, and heaving because they had to die to give me this freedom.
*****
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