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When I walk through the living room to head outside, Daniella is happily singing along to one of the old Rat Pack Christmas songs. I stop and stare at her for a moment while she’s too busy decorating to notice me. I just want to do what I need to so I can join her and make more memories with her.
I rush out of the house and open my car door to grab the folder and leave. That’s all I went out there to do.
Unfortunately, when I stand up, holding the folder in my hands, I see a shadow approaching from behind me. I turn around to see who it is, but before I can get a good look, a fist is in my face and I fall backward.
14
DANIELLA
The Christmas tree is my priority with decorating right now.
I figure that once I have the tree decorated, I can decorate the rest of the living room to accommodate it. That way, the tree will be the centerpiece. I’m happier than I’ve been in a very long time. I can’t remember a time when I’ve been so optimistic about the future.
I’m singing along to some of my favorite Christmas songs and decorating a tree for Dominic, whom I’ve known for a short time but feel so strongly about. I just can’t wait to see what the future holds for us.
When the box I’m working on is empty, I turn around to look for another. The front door catches my eye. It’s cracked open just a bit and the daylight shines through. At first, I think Dominic must have stepped out and I don’t worry about it. Then I hear movement coming from two different angles.
With my training, I know right away that I’m not alone. I’m trained to be aware of my surroundings and how to escape dangerous situations. Unfortunately for me, I thought I was safe in Dominic’s house, so I let my guard down. I should have been more aware, but there’s no time to dwell on that now.
I survey the room, looking for something I can grab to defend myself if it comes to it. I grab a fireplace poker and grip it firmly in my hand. If anyone tries to rush me, I might be able to scare them off enough to back away at the very least. Two people are moving around. I can only hope one of them is Dominic.
Finally, one of them comes into view and my heart sinks. It’s Gio. He knows I’m a cop, and he’s here in the house with me. Maybe Dominic invited him here, but I don’t think it’s likely.
When he sees me in the living room with the poker in my hand, he stops and laughs. My stomach twists into a knot, and I know I should be nervous.
“You really think that’ll keep me away?” he asks after he stops laughing. “Might buy you a few seconds to run, but you wouldn’t get very far.”
He reaches around his back and pulls out a pistol then waves it in the air.
“Dominic!” I yell, hoping the other footsteps I heard were his.
“He’s a little tied up right now,” Paulie’s voice says from the hall. It takes a moment, but he comes into view with a twisted smile on his face. “All you had to do was follow the evidence you were given and arrest him. It was all there, you know. You had enough to book him. Any sane jury would have found him guilty.”
“W-what?” I ask, slowly walking backward to get away from them.
“The evidence you needed to arrest Dominic was all there,” Paulie repeats, walking toward me. “I made sure of it.”
“You planted the evidence?” I clarify. Paulie nods his head and spreads his arms apart with a smile as if he’s inviting me to praise him. “You killed Daniels.”
“He wasn’t a good cop,” Paulie says, shrugging his shoulders. “Honestly, you guys should be thanking me for that one. He fed us a lot of information. Why do you think he spent his entire career investigating the family but never got anything on us? Money can buy you just about anything.”
“So why’d you kill him?” I ask, shocked by everything I’m hearing. “Why would you kill someone working for you?”
“He knew too much.” Paulie reaches for his belt to grab a burlap sack hanging from it. “I had another little plan up my sleeve too, so I figured killing him would be the best way to get the ball rolling with that. Two birds, one bullet.”
I stumble on an old box as I back away from them. Given the sack in Paulie’s hand, I have a hunch that he doesn’t plan on keeping me in the house for long. I need to escape, but I don’t know how with Gio waving a gun at me. I’m unarmed and no one else on the force knows I’m here. I’ve really gotten myself into a tough situation.
I kick the box I stumbled on toward Paulie, but it doesn’t go very far. He just walks around it to get to me.
“This will be a hell of a lot easier for you if you just cooperate,” Paulie warns me, approaching me slowly as if I were a scared cat in the bushes.
“You want me to just go with you after you tell me you killed Daniels?” I ask with an incredulous laugh.
“It’s either that or Gio shoots you right here,” he says. I look at Gio who smiles while waving the gun at me again. “My old buddy Dominic is knocked out in the driveway. I could set the scene well enough for him to go down for your murder and make it look like you’re working for us. What do you think, Daniella? Should we bring shame to your father’s legacy? Or do you want to come with us and die a hero?”
I take a deep breath and think about what I want to do. There’s no way I can go with Paulie. I can’t trust him, and who knows what he has planned for me wherever we end up? My only chance is to try and take Gio down.
“If death is the only option,” I say, preparing to lunge out of the way, “then I’ll take my chances fighting.”
