Brando’s expression turned to stone. “Four years have passed, and you still don’t understand how the Mafia works. Power matters more than anything, even loyalty.”
Tears poured down my face. “Please don’t hurt Carlo. We’ll leave, I swear. You can have your stupid throne. Don’t hurt him, I’m begging you.”
“As long as the old predator’s still breathing, the new one can’t rule in peace. That’s the first law of nature.”
“Damn you, Brando!” I shouted at him, using every ounce of strength I had left. “We’re not animals! We’re human beings!”
His voice was calm, almost mocking. “Nowhere does the law of the jungle run stronger than in human life.”
The doctor finished dressing my shoulder and gave me another injection before standing. My eyelids grew heavy, the world already tilting, but I managed to cry out one last time, “Please, Brando... don’t do this.”
Brando knelt beside me, his hand gently resting on my head. For a fleeting moment, his voice softened, like an echo of the man I once knew. “Calm down. This’ll all be over by tomorrow. Sleep. Don’t think about anything.”
As the drugs kicked in, I closed my eyes. A warmth pressed against my shoulder, and when I opened them again, Carlo’s worried eyes were staring back at me.
I threw myself into his arms with relief. His embrace felt like safety. Like home. For some strange reason, I didn’t feel any pain.
“We need to leave, Carlo. Brando and Giuseppe have teamed up. They want to hurt you.” I looked up at him and whispered urgently.
There wasn’t the slightest flicker in his expression. Carlo gently stroked my hair and replied calmly, “I know.”
I stood up abruptly, grabbed his hand, and tried to pull him up. “Then why are you sitting here? We have to go!”
He rose to stand and cupped my face in his hands. His calmness unsettled me.
“You need to go,” he said, voice quiet but firm. “I can’t leave anymore.”
My eyes widened in fear. It was the first time I’d ever heard Carlo, the strong, invincible Carlo, admit there was something he couldn’t do. Desperation clawed at my chest. I rushed to the iron bars, pulling at them with what little strength I had left, trying to force the door open.
“It’s useless,” he said gently.
I turned back, but he was already retreating into the shadows. Panic took over. I ran toward him, yelling his name, only to be stopped by iron bars rising from the ground, trapping me in place. He disappeared into the darkness, and I cried out again, my voice hoarse and broken, like a wounded animal desperate not to be left behind.
I woke up drenched in sweat, gasping for breath, only to fall back asleep, helpless and exhausted. And each time I did, I saw the same nightmare. But now, Carlo wasn’t fading into the dark, he was covered in blood.
***
The cell door clanged open, and a muscular man stepped inside. He grabbed my arm and dragged me out. My body was so weak I could barely stand. He was practically pulling me across the floor. As we left the foul-smelling basement, sunlight hit my face, piercing my eyes and making them sting.
Brando appeared, holding a small vial. Without a word, he forced the bitter liquid down my throat. I gagged as it burned its way down.
“This’ll give you enough energy to walk a few steps,” he muttered.
I seized his wrist, desperation pouring out of me. “I’m begging you, Brando. Don’t do this. Please, don’t hurt Carlo.”
His jaw clenched, voice like gravel. “It’s something that has to be done. Save your strength, you’re going to need it.”
Then he shoved me into the helicopter.
The liquid kicked in fast. A faint surge of energy flickered through my limbs and kept me upright. The chopper lifted into the sky, carrying us over a wide stretch of green. As we descended, I spotted a line of black cars in the distance.
And there, standing apart from everyone else in the swaying grass, was Carlo. Tall. Unshaken. His eyes fixed on the sky.
Tears blurred my vision as I stared down at him. Deep in my bones, I felt the truth I didn’t want to believe:
This was the last time I’d ever see him. This field, this beautiful, sunlit stretch of green, was the end of everything.
THIRTY-FIVE
