“Don’t do anything stupid, Leo. It doesn’t have to end this way.”
“It’s the only way it can end.”
“No, Leo, please,” Ravenna gasped. “Please give him the gun.”
“Just give me the fucking gun,” my father said, and then he mouthed, “trust me.”
“Tino, you can’t kill him. He has to tell me where my wife is first,” Domenico shouted.
I’m gonna silence this motherfucker forever.I aimed at him, but before I fired, a bullet that didn’t come from my gun landed in his chest and sent him tumbling on the floor.
I looked for the smoke trail. It was coming from my father’s gun. Il Lupo had shot Il Coyote.
CHAPTER 30
Ravenna
Twelve Hours Earlier
The idea that I wouldn’t see Leo again shouldn’t have been so hard to accept. Since graduation, seeing him again alone was a dream. But I didn’t only see him. I touched him and I loved him. That should have been enough. I should have wrapped the past couple of days in a blanket, put them away and locked the memory up for good. I should have been grateful for the moments we stole from time. I should have been grateful for my safety and that I got out of this experience alive. I should move on and focused on rebuilding my family like I was supposed to do.
But I couldn’t stop my tears all the way to Palermo. I couldn’t convince myself to forget. How could I ever forget? How could I ever let go?
The love of my life was set on a destructive path because of what I’d done. I couldn’t let him pay for my mistakes. He needed help. My help. Even if it meant I’d pay the price with my own soul.
He was worth it.
I asked the fisherman as he dropped me at the bed and breakfast if I could have a phone. He said no. Leo didn’t give him permission to allow me one. I tried to reason with him and convince him it was for saving Leo’s life, but he wouldn’t listen.
I didn’t blame him. He was loyal to the man who saved his sister, and I was an untrustworthy captive. I’d tried to run before that Nicky had to shoot at me to stop me.
“How long do I have to stay here?” I asked him.
“He said it’s not safe for you to leave before it’s all over. You’ll know when it is really over.”
When Leo was dead. When my heart was ripped to pieces with him gone forever.
I wept so hard the man had to hug me. He was so kind that he didn’t notice when I stole his phone from his pocket and slid it in my boot. One day, he’d have to understand I did it to save the man he was grateful to.
I simply couldn’t let Leo die.
The family that ran the bed and breakfast was very kind, too. They gave me a comfortable room, clothes and food, and said I could stay as long as I needed. I was surprised they didn’t lock me in. Leo was doing this solely for my safety. I was no longer a captive.
He trusted me now. He set me free. The feeling warmed my heart and encouraged me more to go ahead and do what I should do to save him. What I should have done a year ago.
I locked myself in the bathroom, called Don Bellomo and told him everything.
He FaceTimed me immediately, apparently to assess my body language to validate the credibility of my words. I told him the whole story again.
His face curdled the blood in my veins. The amount of malice and fury he harbored were undeniable and utterly scary. “If you’re lying, you’ll pay heavily.”
“I have no reason to lie. The truth grants my death, too, but I accept it. I accept all consequences, Don Bellomo. The only thing I beg for is to keep my family unharmed. The Lanzas are going to retaliate, and I know you want to do the same, but I’m begging you. My mother, she had nothing to do with what happened to your family. She changed her name a long time ago even before the gruesome murder. She wanted nothing to do with the Seppis. Please. She’s suffered enough.”
Without losing his scary face, he tightened his jaws, his eyes turning red. “I’ll send some men to Highland Park and Filicudi. Pray the Lanzas haven’t reached them already.”
A heavy sob escaped me. “Please, Don Bellomo. Don’t let them kill my parents.”
“You should have come to me a year ago. I could have protected you all then, but I realize I might have left you no choice. We’re all paying for our mistakes. You’re paying for yours, and I’m paying for mine. Text me your location. I’m picking you up before we go to my son.”
