I wasn’t sure what I’d do once I caught up to them. I didn’t want to have to use the Glock in the console. I knew it was there, just in case. I’d checked upon entering the Escalade. The thought of using it against him caused goosebumps to form along my skin.
I’d shot people before, so that wasn’t the issue. It was shooting my brother. It was a last resort, and I was looking to approach this in a diplomatic way, without the violence. I would avoid it if I could. I had the strange feeling that it might come to blows, and I hoped that Gianni wouldn’t use his, either. The cabin was so remote that help wouldn’t arrive—if injured, one of us would bleed out and die.
I clenched my teeth as I pulled off the highway and sped through the country road which was an unpaved path. I wasn’t too far away. It would be another five minutes or so until I got to them.
I braced myself, preparing for the worst. If I couldn’t get through to him, it would all be over. I just hoped that Lucia would stay out of the way. The last thing that I needed would be for him to use her as a pawn. If she was hurt during the confrontation, I knew that Chiara wouldn’t forgive me. She would hate me forever. It was bad enough I hadn’t yet told her about Antonio.
I turned off onto the track that I knew led to the cabin. I kept my foot heavy on the pedal, only to come to a screeching stop when I saw the limo up ahead. He’d taken the goddamn limo from the church. I could see his face in the side mirror and honked my horn as loudly as I could.
I took in a deep breath, unsure of how to proceed. I could storm the limo, but that might upset him. I wasn’t sure what kind of state he was in. There might be paranoia involved, especially since he’d kidnapped Lucia. He would be on edge. He might even threaten her to get back at me and the family. He was also high on drugs, which meant that he was unpredictable. I’d have to approach the situation cautiously, being as calm as I could, despite the circumstances.
I swallowed hard and grabbed the Glock from the center console. I wiped the sweat from my brow as I opened the driver’s side door. I was ready for anything as I placed the gun in the inside pocket of my suit jacket.
It was only when I closed the door that I saw my reflection in the window. I had Romeo’s blood on my shirt, smeared like lipstick on a woman’s face. It only hit closer to home just how desperately I needed to fix this. I had to take Lucia back and make things right—no matter what it came to. I just didn’t want there to be any more bloodshed.
I strode up to the limo, taking my time. I wasn’t sure where Lucia was sat, but I needed to deal with Gianni first. The blood was pumping through my veins, and my adrenaline from before was kicking in again. I had to be ready.
The driver’s door on the limo swung open and Gianni stepped out, staring at me wildly. He was clutching the same gun he’d used to shoot Romeo. I put my hands up, not wanting to cause him to worry. There was no telling what he would do but shooting me was definitely high on the list of probabilities.
“Where the fuck are the others? How did you find this place?”
A cool breeze swept through the trees around us, causing the leaves to rustle in the silence. Birds sang their chorus behind us, and something passed through the bushes next to me. It was clear that we were far from civilization. No one would hear a gunshot all the way out there.
“Gianni, put the gun down.”
He gave me a wide, sinister smile as he swung the gun around his finger, as though it was a ring. “You want me to put the gun down? Is that what you really want?”
“Yes, Gianni. I don’t want to hurt you. Come back, explain why you did what you did. We’ll understand, man,” I said, trying to keep my tone light. “We’re family.”
Gianni laughed loudly and shook his head. “You think we’re fucking family? When Romeo gets whatever the fuck he wants all the time? You should be tired of it, too, Marcello. He had what was coming to him.”
I could see the bruises along his arms through the dress shirt. His hair was messed and his eyes sunken. There were small cuts along his arms and towards the main veins along his wrists, most of which had scabbed over. The manic look in his eyes was telltale, and I’d seen it many times before.
This man wasn’t my brother. No. He was a drug abuser who’d gotten wild ideas, and I didn’t know how to calm him. He was different and I wished I’d been there to help him when he needed it. I didn’t want it to come to this. I thought I could help, but I was too late.
I tried to think of a way out of this, but I’d never seen Gianni like this before. He’d done some crazy things in our past, but nothing like shooting his own brother and kidnapping his bride-to-be. He was manic and the way he held the gun towards me was uncaring. He seemed aware that he could kill me at any moment, and he didn’t seem to care.
“Don’t do this, Gianni. Don’t.”
He pointed the gun at me. “Don’t do what, huh? What I did to Romeo? He wouldn’t fucking care if I stole away his little mafioso princess. He doesn’t give a shit about any of us. Where were you guys when I needed you, huh?”
“We thought you were dead!”
He laughed harder, using the gun to wipe away the dribble around his mouth. “You thought I was dead? Of course, you’d think that. God forbid anyone would actually just ask me.”
“You disappeared, Gianni. We thought the worst, especially when your phone was found with a Bonifacio goon.”
“You mean my dealer?”
I clenched my teeth harder, trying my best to just keep my hands up, and to keep him from growing more irate. “You could have contacted us, or come home. Done something to let us know you weren’t dead.”
“You wouldn’t understand, man. You never did. None of you.”
“Why are you doing this? Just come home.”
“Fuck what you say!” he yelled and aimed the gun at my head. “You know I always liked you, Marcello, but I can’t let you just come in here and take her away. You know I can’t. She’s mine now. My goddamn bride. First time in my life that I’ve actually had something that was mine. Took it for myself, too, just as dad always told us to do.”
I lowered my hands slowly, watching as he turned towards the limo. I hated this. I hated everything, and I hated that I had to do what I was about to do. It was the last resort. It was either him or me. I reached into the jacket for the Glock and held it at my side, causing him to look over.
