“Ettore, you swore my family would be safe. Turned out your word wasn’t worth shit.” Dad peeks over his shoulder.
“Krew, give Mom a scalpel.”
Both men began to lose consciousness. Dad releases their necks. They cough uncontrollably. Not giving them time to catch their breath. Mom curls her fingers around the scalpel. And Krew slips a hammer into Dad’s hand.
“The men weren’t at my house to threaten my family. They were there to kill them.”
Dad brings the hammer down on Ettore’s thigh right above his shattered, bandaged knee.
He lets out a bloodcurdling scream.
Krew slams a switchblade into Aleksandr’s shoulder.
“Fuck,” he roars.
Mom slashes the scalpel across Ettore’s chest, taking pleasure in his pain and the blood dripping down his chest.
“Big Lux, are we ready?” Dad asks.
Big Lux stands off to the side beside Nico now, hands cupped in front of him. “Yes, sir.”
Dad nods at Nico.
Nico produces a TV remote control from his pocket and taps the power button. We glance at the screen hanging on the wall behind us.
Mom and Dad, step aside.
Ettore’s eyes widen. “No!” he yells.
“How does it feel, Ettore?” Mom asks. “To see your family helpless?”
Ettore’s two sons and their mother sit in wooden chairs, gagged with zip ties securing their wrists and ankles.
“They’re helpless,” I say in a low, wicked tone.
“Lucky for me your brother was a disgusting asshole. I believe the only reason I wasn’t tied up, he wanted to feel my fists bang against his chest while he raped me.”
I notice Nico curl his fist at his side. He wants to beat Ettore to death.
“How would you like it if I have your family gutted in real time?” Dad’s chuckle borders on maniacal.
“Please, no,” Ettore cries.
“I had no choice. To hold your family hostage. I was in bed with the devil. Aleksandr threatened to kill my family if I didn’t get product moving through the Newark underground pipeline at any cost.”
Ettore’s eyes harden. “My men were there to kill your family. Not rape or torture.”
Mom slices Ettore’s chest again. “Liar. You sent thirsty savages who didn’t care about women and children. That big motherfucker killed my baby,” she roars.
Tears stream down her cheeks. “You killed our baby.”
My stomach twists into knots. I hurt for my mother. Nico’s at my side, pulling me close. His lips press against my forehead.
“At the same time your men stole my innocence. I take pleasure in knowing I killed them. Because of what Lurch did to my mom, I didn’t want to bring a child into this world. That day I snapped. I was no longer sweet and innocent mafia princess Serenity Cichello. I was a psychopath. Had to be checked into a mental facility. I couldn’t marry the man I loved because there was no way I could have his heirs. I’m still fucked up,” I shout.
I peek at my brother, who’s staring at Aleksandr.
“You didn’t care who died as long as you could push your product through our territory,” Krew says as he swings a sledgehammer into Aleksandr’s shin. The sound of crushing bone and screams fill the room.
