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Oh, I’m going to enjoy killing these men.
Only one of them sees me. He backs away, melting into the shadows as I use an Aikido roll to get closer. My hands are tied, but they’re still weapons.
And I enjoy a challenge.
One of them glances behind himself at last. “Wha—?” His words are cut short as I punch him hard in the throat.
“Fuck!” A third Bernardi lunges at me, but I twist, slamming my elbow into his solar plexus, then nose. He drops to the ground, clutching his face, and I land on his neck with my knee. A satisfying crack breaks the shocked stillness of the remaining men.
“You think you’re some kind of hero?” one of the others spits, bloodlust glinting in his eyes. “You’re just as much of a monster as the rest of us.”
“You’re quite wrong,” I tell him, rolling back up to my feet again. “I’mmuchmore monstrous than any of you little lambs.”
I smile as his certainty falters—and keep smiling as he charges for me.
“Remember, now,” I murmur to myself as I prepare for the impact. “You’re doing this forlove.”
My back slams against the cold concrete floor as he hits, and then another jumps on as well, so that the two of them have me pinned, their combined weight making it difficult to breathe. My vision blurs momentarily, but I regain my focus, preparing to counterattack.
“Big mistake, cocksucker,” their leader sneers, knife gleaming wickedly in the dim light as he closes in. “I’m going to enjoy cutting you open.”
I’m just about to kick him in the balls when an unexpected ally appears out of nowhere. The Bernardi who didn’t call out when he saw me—the one who looks younger than the rest—
He comes up fast behind the knife holder, swinging a metal pipe that connects hard with the man’s skull. Knife Guy crumples to the ground, unconscious.
“Get up!” the young Bernardi barks at me, already launching himself at the remaining men. The two pinning me down have released their grip, startled by their comrade’s actions. I use their momentary distraction to my advantage, throwing them off of me with all the strength I can muster, and then I roll over and grab the nearby knife, cutting the ropes between my wrists in one sure stroke.
Good knife.
I stand, testing the weight of the hilt in my hand, and smile in welcome at the man approaching me. He stops, backs up, but I’m too fast for him, cutting him open from balls to throat.
Verygood knife.
I move on, trying to make sense of my ally’s actions. He certainlyseemsto be on my side, and his actions are wild and frantic, a wonderful distraction as I slide here and there, leaving spilled guts and gushing throats in my wake. I rely on this stranger’s movements to guide me through the chaos, trusting that he has his own motives for turning against his Family.
I can always kill him when we’re done.
“Behind you!” he shouts at one point, his warning giving me just enough time to duck as a fist sails over my head.
I retaliate with a swift kick to my attacker’s kneecap. He crumples to the ground, screaming in agony, until he’s silenced by the knife.
A screaming of metal catches my attention. Leo, still bound to the chair, has wrenched the bolted legs out of the cement floor. It's a glorious thing to see my Lion rising, soaked in blood but still roaring, still alive.
But my momentary lapse of concentration costs me. I duck a fraction too late from an incoming attack, the ragged metal slicing open my shoulder.
I tumble back, barely avoiding the follow-up strike—
And then Leo is there. He charges straight at my attacker and sends him sprawling, then turns to land the chair legs into his torso with a crunching noise.
And the fight is over. I turn to the last Bernardi standing. “Now you?” I ask, holding up the knife.
He puts his hands up at once. “Man, I’m on your side.” He gestures with his head. “And Leo’s. Don’t you recognize me?”
“No.”
“Gino,” he says, staring at me with bug-eyes. “Roxy’s guy?” he adds, when I don’t respond.
“Ah. I see.” Leo’s favorite brother. Now I understand him, this Gino.
