“What’s happening?” I whisper, desperation tightening my throat.
“Shhh,” Mattia hushes me. I’ve never seen him like this. I turn to Rocco for answers, but his gaze is also fixed on the docks below. He shakes his head to signalshhhh.He won’t answer me either. Great!
Carlo and Stefano release the men, letting them fall in front of them. Luciano stops pacing, standing still in front of the men. Then, I notice the subtle signal—a stretch of his neck, a shoulder roll—and Mattia fires. The second man drops dead. At the same time, the third man tries to run but collapses moments later, clutching his thigh where a bullet found its mark.
“Wow,” I breathe out, awe and fear mingling in my chest as Mattia grins like a kid.
“Like what you see, Red?” He winks, reloading his gun. I’ve only seen that in movies. Looking through the binoculars again, I see Carlo tying the men’s hands, but a noise pricks my ear. Rocco is on his feet within seconds as two more men charge toward us.
“Arghhh!” I scream an ear-piercing note as I scramble to get up, but I trip over my own feet.
Mattia is up instantly, tackling the other guy to the ground. He grabs a knife from his boot and stabs him in the shoulder. “Run, Charlie!” he yells while he wrestles him. I look over at Rocco, who is also battling to stay alive against his attacker.
“Where the hell am I supposed to go?” I shout back, terror clawing at me. Mattia pulls out the knife and drives it into his attacker’s stomach. The car is too risky. There could be others waiting.Think, Charlie…
“Fucking run, Charlotte,” Mattia bellows again with more aggression.
I risk everything, hurling myself down the steep hill, the quickest route to Luciano. Each jagged rock and sharp stick tears into my skin and rips my clothes as I slide down. The pain is raw and biting, but theadrenaline starts to flood through me, drowning out the pain. Every step I run towards the shipment yard is a frantic plea that I need to get Luciano’s attention. Just one flicker of recognition from him would be my lifeline right now. But he’s still ages away from me.
I push myself harder, channeling the endurance Carlo has drilled into me, ignoring the searing pain down my side. Luciano’s figure is visible through a narrow opening in the trees, but it’s too dark for him to see me.
Snap. A twig breaks behind me, and panic spikes as I spot another man now chasing me. Fuck, how many guys are trying to kill us? I dart faster between the trees. I scream, my voice desperate, “Luciano!”
Fumbling, I pull the gun from my back pocket, firing wild shots behind me. Each bullet misses, but maybe they can slow him down just a bit, or maybe the noise can catch Luciano’s or any of our men’s attention. I scream again, louder, begging silently,Please, Luciano, look this way.
Emerging from the tree edge into the open shipment yard, a sudden, violent yank jerks at my hair, hurling me to the ground and dragging me back into the shadows of the trees.
A scream rips free from my throat as he kicks into my ribs, trying to silence me. Desperately, I scramble for the gun I dropped, my fingertips brushing against the cold metal only for him to stand on my hand, crushing it beneath his boot.Ouch!I turn my head, catching sight of Luciano through the trees. He’s heard me, but he can’t see me, those damn trees and darkness of the night blocking his view. Why can’t he have Mattia’s amazing hearing?
“Luciano!” I scream again and again, only angering this man further.
His eyes snap sharply toward me. He may not see me yet, but he’s looking. He finally hears me. His fingers signal, and I see Carlo, Stefano, and two of our soldiers moving fast in my direction.
The man snarls, spitting at me, “Not today, whore.” He hauls me up, and I know that if he succeeds, I’m done for. Panic surges within me. Not again. I won’t let this happen to me again.
Carlo’s voice enters my head:Find his weak point.I fight back fiercely, trying to claw at him enough that I can drive my knee between his legs. He crumples to the floor, clutching his balls in his hands, but I don’t stop. I start to kick him relentlessly in his ribs and stomach. I’m just about to stomp on his head when his hand reaches out to grab my foot, pulling me down to the ground. Within seconds, he’s on top of me, straddling me so I can’t move.
“You’ll pay for that,” he growls, his hands closing around my neck. I choke for air, terror gripping me. My hands try to reach for his, trying to loosen his grip, but he’s too strong and pushes down harder as darkness edges my vision. A sickening thud and dead weight falls on top of me, followed by warm blood splattering across me. I freeze, too shocked to scream or move. I close my eyes and silently beg for it to be over.
Luciano shakes me urgently. “Charlotte,” his voice tinges with panic. I didn’t notice him move the body off me. “Where’s Mattia?”
My eyes snap open. Mattia and Rocco were wrestling the other men on the hill. “Hill. We were attacked,” I gasp, struggling to breathe.
Luciano helps me sit up. “What was the last thing you saw?”
I shut my eyes, trying to piece it together. “He was wrestling a guy. Mattia stabbed him in the shoulder and stomach. He told me to run.”
“You did good, Charlie.” Luciano’s voice softens before he turns to Carlo and Stefano. “Take any hostages to the bunker and dispose of the bodies. We have a rat.”
Carlo’s grin is cruel, eager for what’s next; his specialty. “With pleasure.” He snaps his fingers as two of our soldiers move forward and haul the dead body away from me.
Luciano lifts me off the ground, carrying me out of the tree’s edge. “Put me down, Luciano,” I say, struggling in his grasp.
“No.”
“I need to find Mattia,” I insist, urgency thick in my voice while I writhe against him.
A flicker of irritation and jealousy crosses his face. “He’s fine.”
