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Chapter Seventeen
SALVATORE
It’s raining, yet again. I’d say this shit never gets old, but that would be a lie. The concrete jungle of Seattle has turned into a muddy mess, raining for days on end. No doubt the mudslides will start happening soon. It’s the worst part about living in the North-West.
I kneel in the room of an abandoned warehouse, eye peering through the scope of my .308 sniper rifle, watching my target move from room to room of his penthouse. From this level, I have the best view of his entire home. I shake my head, seeing a bountiful redhead walking up to him and watch as she kisses his cheek and he gives her a harsh smack on the ass. My mark is a well-known, Seattle businessmen, Rico Vargas. His wife, Antonette caught him cheating and made a call in to the Arcane for us to handle her business. There’s a heavy life insurance policy out on Rico, one that covers our fee and leaves Mrs. Vargas with enough money to start a brand-new life anywhere she desires to be.
It’s rare that we accept a hit that originates from a spouse, but in this case, I couldn’t help but accept. Rico here was found guilty on sleeping with a minor as well as sexually assaulting another. He didn’t do any prison time, my guess is because of the contacts he has in the courts. He’s a man with many connections, one who needs to pay in my eyes. The saddest part of it all is that he has three young daughters with his wife, and while he seems to at least be cheating with her on someone over the age of eighteen, he must atone for his past sins.
I move my gun along with him, carefully analyzing when I will make my shot, and finally I do, right when he turns his head to look in my direction. I could have done it earlier, at any moment really, but I wanted to watch as I took the life from his eyes.
He drops to the floor, and his girlfriend screams bloody murder from the looks of it, but I don’t pay any mind. I pack my gun away and get out of there in less than five minutes. Doing this so long, I now have a flawless system.
It’s just past five in the afternoon, and the only place I want to be is back home with my wife - wife. It feels so odd to say, sometimes I think that marrying Aria was nothing but a dream. We’ve been in Seattle for a couple of weeks now, and I can see every day that Aria is coming more and more out of her shell. She was reserved at first, a bit quiet, but now she walks outside whenever it’s not raining, around the garden. She’s even bonded with my Russian Blue, Sampson, who hates everyone. When I come home from work, I often find them sitting together in the living room while she’s reading a book, my fat cat snuggled on her lap, purring away.
***
I walk through the front door and spot Aria nowhere in sight. Usually, she’s around here somewhere. I pop in and out of rooms, at this rate I’m looking for Sampson, knowing that when I find the cat, she’ll be close.
I go through the entire main floor before huffing after I see no sign of her, next I make my way up the grand staircase, weaving in and out of the abundance of guest bedrooms before walking into ours. I thought she might be in the shower. Sometimes she prefers to take them in the evening, but nope. She’s not here either.
I run the palm of my hand over my face before walking down the hallway, going down the stairs and decide to head into the basement. There’s only one other place I think that she’d be, and off to the movie room I go. Right before Aria came back into the picture I had this room renovated, wanting to have a comfortable place to come to watch movies. Sometimes I think that because of my job I prefer not to be out in the public eye. So, when it comes to going out to the movie theater, I’d rather watch one from the comfort of my own home.
Opening the door, I see her sitting snugly in an oversized chair with Sampson behind her head, staring at the screen. The unmistakable scent of General Tso’s chicken hits my nostrils. Walking up to her, I look down at the cheap container it’s in, shaking my head. “Before you say anything, this is way better than the fancy stuff.”
She’ll be able to sense the disapproval in my voice. “You don’t need to buy the cheap stuff. My money is your money, mio dolce. You only deserve the finest things in life and no part of that is fine dining,”
“It may not be your type of fine china, but it’s mine,” she says with a wink, laughing at her ridiculous pun.
“You’re a Moretti, darling. It’s time to start acting like one.”
Aria looks up at me with the most callous look on her face if I’ve ever seen it. “I may be a Moretti, but I won’t change who I am. If I want cheap Chinese, then I’m going to get it, because you were the one who told me I can have anything I want.” She says the last bit with a smile on her face, and this moment proves that I’m in a shitload of trouble when it comes to her.
My dear wife seems to know she already has me by the balls.
I plop down in the chair next to her, wrap my arm around her shoulder and give her a smirk. “What shall we watch tonight,mio dolce?”
I only hope that everyday when I come home it’s like this, if not better.
