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“No, I won’t – and neither will my brothers. I swear on my father’s grave.”
“And why should I believe you?”
“Because I’ll take her place,” Dario said calmly.
Alessandra screamed beneath the tape over her mouth.
“Shhh, it’s fine,” Dario comforted her, then addressed the Turk again. “Take me hostage, and you’ll walk out of here a free man. All you have to do is aim your gun at me, not her.”
“…get rid of your pistol first.”
“Alright… don’t shoot.”
I heard the slight clunk of metal being placed on wood, then the sound of the gun skidding across the floor as Dario kicked it towards the Turk.
“I’m defenseless. Take your gun away from her… and aim it at me.”
When it happened, it happened in the blink of an eye.
The Turk swung his pistol away from Alessandra’s head and pointed it at Dario.
As he moved the gun, the Turk pulled his head away from Alessandra’s – to give him a clear line of vision so he could shoot Dario.
“Fool!” he snarled –
Just as I squeezed the trigger.
The suppressor on my rifle barrel rendered the gunshot a muffled PTOK –
And the Turk’s head exploded behind Alessandra’s.
Then he collapsed to the floor.
Everything after that was a blur.
I slung my rifle over my shoulder and raced for the stairs. Underneath my sweat-soaked shirt, the metal of Rachel’s ring pressed against my skin.
Dario yelled out to confirm everyone was okay; the brothers yelled back that they were fine.
Our foot soldiers – Emilio, Gustavo, Giorgio, and the others I’d trained – cheered and gave each other celebratory high-fives.
Dario was holding Alessandra tightly in his arms as I reached them.
I ripped off my balaclava and asked Alessandra, “Are you alright?”
I knew she was alive, obviously – but I was terrified that I might have grazed her.
“What, you couldn’t see that from the kiss?” Niccolo shouted from above.
Alessandra half-laughed, half-sobbed as tears of joy ran down her face. “I’m fine!”
“That was the most stressful shot of my entire life,” I said, and I meant it.
Dario looked me in the eyes, grinned, and put a hand on my shoulder.
“I knew you could do it,” he said, and I could hear the profound gratitude in his voice. “That’s why I entrusted it to you.”
It was a moment that only the two of us understood.
