Angel wasn’t going to take the shortcut backstage. It’d be too convenient and suspicious if the situation was real. I even told her music teacher to stay with her in the theatre until she finished. The teacher would get hurt a little in the way when Andretti arrived, but she’d be heavily compensated. Andretti would drag Angel backstage, and that was when I did my part. He wouldn’t even see it coming.
The music stopped just in time for his arrival. I had my gun ready. Time to be her savior. She was a sucker for that. She’d fall for me and never look back.
“Excuse me, the theatre is closed,” the teacher said.
Thud.
Scream.
Heels coming…not my way. The sound was rolling away, fading. Che cazzo?
I strode to the stage, careful not to blow my cover in case—
Another man’s voice shouted, and curses flew.
Bang!
More screams. Angel’s.
I ran to the theatre, my heart roaring in my temples. What the fuck was going on? I’d torture the son of a bitch if he hurt her.Bang!
I leapt off the stage, the teacher passed out in the middle of it, and reached Angel in two strides. She was standing her back to the wall, blood on her face and clothes, her mouth hanging open but she wasn’t breathing, two men bleeding on the floor one by each foot of hers.
I put a bullet in Andretti’s head when I saw his face. Then I pointed the gun at the other bleeding body balled next to her left foot, kicking the gun beside him out of reach. “One move and you’re dead.”
As he groaned and turned his head toward me, all the blood in my body rushed out and then was pumped back in all at once.
“Don’t shoot. It’s Leo,” Angel sobbed.
“Hey, Dad,” he mumbled in pain.
I put my gun down and squatted next to him, applying pressure on his wound. “You motherfucker.”
Chapter35
Lina
This couldn’t behim.
I barely sawhisface as he came from backstage and knocked down my teacher.Heheld me from behind as always, but it didn’t feel the same. It was rough, violent, fast.Hehad a gun pressed to my head for God’s sake, andhedidn’t utter a single word.
This couldn’t behim.
Whenhedragged me to the entrance unlike where Tino and I had anticipatedhewould, I kicked and screamed, almost yelling Tino’s name. Something was wrong. This couldn’t behim.
Then someone slammed the entrance door and swore.Heswiveled us, and I saw Leo’s face, a gun in his hand.Hisgun left my head and pointed at Leo. What the hell was going on? Why was Leo here? Tino promised me he’d take care of it, not Leo. Leo had to stay away. To be safe.
They yelled at each other in Italian, like they’d known each other. This couldn’t behim. This wasn’t the voice that rendered me speechless and wreaked havoc on my body. Something was wrong. Leo shouldn’t be here.
Bang!
Leo dropped on the floor. His blood had splattered on my face and streamed out of his stomach, pooling out fast and reaching my shoes. This couldn’t be happening. It was a bad dream. I’d just close my eyes, and it’d be all gone.
Bang!
Something else dropped on the floor, and no hands were on my body, no cold metal pressed to my skull. More thick, wet splatter on me. My back slammed against the wall so I wouldn’t collapse. As I opened my eyes, Tino was running my way, a bleeding body on either side of my legs.Hewas gonna die. Leo was gonna die.
Bang!
