Holding my gun, I charge down the aisle. “Bruno let her go!” I yell.
Startled Bruno looks up and a smile crosses his face. “Ah, just the girl I was looking for.” He shoves the barrel harder into Lucia’s temple, making her whimper. “Typical Cipriani, always putting family before herself. That’s why you’re weak. You’ll putyourself in danger for your family. Drop the gun, Cipi or I’ll paint the wall with her brains.
“Don’t drop it, Cipi,” Lucia chokes out.
“Shut up!” Bruno snarls.
My hands tighten around the grip of Salvatore’s gun. “Don’t talk to her like that Bruno.”
“You’ve already lost, Cipi. You’re out of time,” Bruno continues.
My gaze flicks to the ceiling where I spot a rusty chain hanging above him.
“Then why are you holding Lucia captive?” I snap. “I’m the one you want so let her go.”
“I’m going to deal with you in a minute,” he replies, “Right now watching you squirm while I hurt the people you love is the real victory.”
I take a slow step forward, keeping my gun raised. “I said let her go.”
His eyes narrow, and I see the gun move slightly from Lucia’s head.
All the years of taking orders from me still had a hold on him and that’s all I need.
I shift my aim and fire above his head.
The chain snaps and half of it crashes down onto Bruno’s shoulder with a sickening thud.
He grunts in pain and stumbles. Lucia takes advantage, slamming her elbow into his ribs and tearing free from his grip.
“Run!” I shout.
Bruno recovers fast, gripping his gun and firing off a series of rounds in my direction. I duck behind a stack of crates as Lucia disappears into the shadows.
“Go to Dominic,” I yell.
“You should have never agreed to be capo,” Bruno shouts as he walks down the aisle to where I’m hiding.
Trembling, I lean against the crates as I hear his footsteps come closer and closer.
Emotions flood through me.
With Salvatore it had been a survival reaction.
But this is different.
I had always been closer to Bruno.
“Cipi, why are we prolonging the inevitable,” Bruno taunts. “Come out and face your fate.”
He’s right on the other side of the stack and that’s when I react.
Throwing all my weight against the tower, I slam into it with everything I have.
The crates topple forward in a roar of splintering wood and clanging metal.
Bruno curses as they crash into him, knocking him backward onto the concrete.
His gun goes clattering across the floor in my direction.
