I looked at Antonelli and wondered if he’d ordered the hit.
“I understand,” I said. “I’ll be in touch.”
I hung up. As I slid the phone onto the table, Antonelli said, “Problem?”
I thought about playing dumb, but there was nothing to be gained.
“Stefano Trotta is dead,” I replied. “Murdered.”
Antonelli’s smile fell. Even the beige linen suit he wore seemed to darken as his face clouded over.
“You must be mistaken,” he said.
I shook my head. “My people don’t make mistakes about this kind of thing.”
He and Luna exchanged fearful glances.
“We should leave,” she said, and he nodded.
“Why? What do you have to be afraid of?” I asked.
Antonelli glared at me. “Is that why you’re here? Even after all you’ve seen and heard, you still think I’m behind this?”
He got to his feet and issued commands to his men.
We hurried around the house to the Land Rover. The tallest of the trio of bodyguards got behind the wheel and gunned the engine.
“Switch it off,” I said, as Antonelli and Luna climbed in the back.
The driver looked at Antonelli for confirmation. When his boss nodded, he killed the powerful engine.
I stood half in, half out of the car and strained to hear in thesudden silence. Then came the sound I hoped I’d imagined beneath the noise of the engine: the crack and pop of distant gunfire, likely silenced weapons. Someone was on their way to finish the old gangster, and I saw from their fearful expressions that Antonelli and Luna had heard the shooting too.
“Let’s go,” I said, jumping into the cab. “Now!”
The driver started the engine, stepped on the accelerator, and the powerful old SUV rolled out of the courtyard.
CHAPTER94
WE WERE RACING along the track toward the estate boundary. The driver and another of Antonelli’s men were in the front. Antonelli, Luna and a third man were in the back, and I was in the trunk space on one of the bench seats, being bounced around over every rut and pothole.
“Who’s behind this?” I asked.
Antonelli turned to answer, but his breath became a gasp when dozens of bullets peppered the windshield, shattering it. I looked beyond him to see a team of men strafing the vehicle with machine guns. They stood behind a low wall that had concealed them as we’d approached. My guess was the earlier gunshots had been the sound of them killing Antonelli’s perimeter guards.
“Get down!” I yelled, pushing him and Luna toward their footwells.
They ducked, but the driver and front passenger weren’t so lucky. Their bodies bucked as the windshield collapsed and they were riddled with bullets. The large SUV veered off the road and I braced for impact as a tree suddenly loomed ahead.
The Land Rover smashed into the trunk at full pelt. I was hurled against the back seat, the impact winding me.
“Is everyone okay?” I asked, the moment I could suck in a breath.
Antonelli and Luna were dazed, and so was the man beside them, but he didn’t have the sense to stay in the vehicle.
“Stop!” I yelled, as he opened the door and staggered out.
I tried to grab him but he was beyond my reach. He stumbled forward, blood oozing down his face from a head wound, fumbling for a pistol in his waistband.
