Deadly Vows - Chapter 28 (Patreon)

Luca

“Luca, listen to me very carefully.” I look at my father with wide eyes. He is speaking to me as if he has something very important to say. I live to please my father, and now he is giving me something important to do, and I will not fail him. “Today, I want you to do something very important.”

We are sitting in the shadows of the car. A woman walks past us with a little girl that looks to be about four years old. She is yanking the little girl along, causing her to fall and stumble, unable to keep up with her mother’s frantic pace.

“We have been given a very special opportunity by our brethren in the South, and I want you to carry out this mission.”

I nod, feeling the pride swelling in my chest. Papa has been training me for this all these years, and now he is going to finally let me become a man.

“Now, look, mi figlio. Do you see that woman? She has done something very bad to upset the capo. He wants her dead.”

I look at him, confused. “But why, Papa?”

My father slaps me across the face. I can taste the blood welling in my mouth. But I don’t dare cry. I just spit the blood out in the car, showing him I feel no pain. I am strong.

“Don’t question me, boy.”

I make sure to wipe my face of emotion. Papa feeds off fear. If I show him no fear, he won’t continue to beat me. I nod.

“I want her disposed of. And you know what to do when it’s over.” I nod. Dispose of the body. Except the capo has strange instructions for us.

I then remember something.

“What about the girl? The little one?”

My father responds immediately, “He wants her back. But not without bruises.”

I nod. I don’t understand the capo of the South’s thinking. He wants his wife dead and his daughter brought back to him? But I am not one to question things. I follow orders. If I pull this off perfectly, I will have Papa’s unconditional pride and love.

I hop out of the truck with my gun and knife. The woman is frantically looking around, pulling the little girl with her. The poor little girl is tripping over her own feet, trying to keep up. I don’t hesitate. As soon as I am in close-enough range, I aim for the woman’s head and fire. I smile to myself.

“Bull’s-eye,” I murmur aloud.

The woman falls flat on her face, pulling the little girl with her. I

hurry over to the little girl because she is screaming now.

“Mommy? Mommy!” She spies me and immediately begins crying to me. “Please, is your mommy or daddy around? Something’s wrong with my mommy.”

She is staring at me with big almond-colored eyes that are red and puffy from the tears, her dark hair blending in with the night. I don’t speak as I step closer to her, taking the butt of my gun and ramming it into the side of her head. She collapses.

I check my watch. I have about four hours until the girl regains consciousness. The mother is bleeding profusely from her skull, tainting the dirt below her. I pick up the little girl by her coat collar, looking at her unconscious face, which causes me to hesitate.

Then my father’s words flash in my head. I ball my fist up and swing at her unconscious body.

* * * * *

I am jolted awake in the bed, breathing heavily. That memory always causes me panic. I quickly take in my surroundings. Where the hell am I? There is a monitor next to me, and there are IVs in my arm. I immediately yank them out. I don’t like being pumped with anything. I look around and finally figure I am in the hospital. The last thing I can remember is Elise’s panicked face, then nothing.

That bastard Stefano went back on his word. He shot Matteo and tried to kill Elise. She would have been dead, too, if I hadn’t been there, jumping in front of her.

I quickly survey the room, and to my utter surprise, she is sitting in the chair near my bed, her feet balled up and a hospital blanket draped around her. I smile as I take in her form. She has grown so much from that little girl all those years ago. The thing is, that memory never seemed to bother me up until now. I’ve had a hand in everything that has happened to Elise. I’m the one that killed her mother and beat her to a pulp when she was four. Of course she doesn’t remember any of it, because it was so long ago.

I struggle profusely but eventually get out of the bed, trying not to make a sound. I bite my cheek, trying to focus on something else other than the excruciating pain that is erupting throughout my chest. If Elise is in here, that means Romelo or Nicolai are somewhere outside the door. I try not to make a sound with my weak body as I pass Elise. I step into the hallway and see Romelo standing near the door.

He turns when he hears the door creak a little, and shock appears clearly on his face when he sees me.

“Capo!” He immediately makes his way toward me with joy in his expression. He falters a little as he nears me.

“Are you okay? Do you need something? Has Elise seen you yet?”

I shake my head and open my mouth to speak but immediately cough from the dryness of my throat. Damn, how long have I been asleep?

I point toward the sitting area, wanting to be away from the doorway just in case Elise awakes and tries to come looking for me. We finally reach the sitting room, and Romelo comes toward me with a water bottle. I take it from his hand and drink it down until the bottle is empty.

“What the hell happened?” My voice comes out rough and groggy. Probably from the lack of use. “How long have I been out?”

Romelo looks at me and takes a deep breath before answering. “A week and a few days, Capo.”

I tense in my seat. I’ve been out for almost two weeks? That means I’ve been in the hospital that long. Which means there is now a file on me. Damn.

“What exactly happened? And where the hell is Nicolai?”

Romelo looks a little uncomfortable, and I brace myself for the bad news I am sure is to come. “Elise gave Nicolai leave. He was shot.”

I can feel the white-hot rage boiling up inside me as Romelo tells me everything that happened.

He tells me how Stefano shot Matteo and me and how we should have been dead but we are two lucky sons of bitches. He tells me how Nicolai was shot and how Elise tore her dress to staunch both Matteo’s and my bleeding. I can feel my heart softening at that. Elise could have let me bleed out in that room, but she didn’t. She tried to save me. I am shocked when Romelo tells me that Elise shot Stefano and almost shot her cousin at point-blank range. She didn’t kill Stefano, thank God. She would probably hate herself once the anger receded and she realized she killed someone.

She did end up saving us, though. All the traitors were captured and taken downtown to our underground cave. Once I am well enough, I will go and visit all of them. How the hell do I keep getting rats in my family? Something has to be done, and soon.

“Has Matteo awoken yet?” I ask as I stand to go back to my room.

“No. Your wounds were greater, but him being his age and the extent of his wounds … it’s a miracle he’s alive at all. They’re keeping him on a breathing machine until he wakes and is able to breathe on his own.”

I cock an eyebrow at him in confusion.

“His ribs were shattered and punctured his lungs.”

I nod. Damn. “I want to be out of here tomorrow. I hate hospitals.”

Romelo nods and helps me walk to my bedroom.

I step in to find Elise still asleep. Good. I quietly get back into the bed and ignore the pain shooting through my chest. I stare at Elise’s beautiful form and finally let sleep overtake me.

Elise

“We cannot recommend that, Mr. Pasquino. We have to keep you at least seventy-two hours after you wake to make sure your vitals are nor—”

“I don’t give a damn about what you recommend! You can’t keep me here if I don’t want to stay. And I don’t.”

My heart jumps, and my eyes fly open to see Luca sitting up in his bed, his face contorted in anger at the nurse. She slowly backs out of the room, mumbling something about paperwork, and leaves us alone. Luca’s eyes immediately turn to me when he realizes I’m awake. His anger immediately dissipates from his face. I can only sit there and stare at him. I don’t know what emotion to feel. Luca is alive and acting as if he hadn’t been shot.

I look down at his bare chest and look at the scars on his chest. Most of them are covered by the most frightening tattoos I have ever seen. I move my eyes farther down to one tattoo I hadn’t noticed before, covering the area where his heart is. Elise

“Elise.” I look up in shock and see Luca watching me. “Come here.”

I stand slowly and walk toward where he lies on the bed. Once I reach him, he throws his legs over and pulls me in a tight embrace.

I slowly wrap my arms around him in return.

“When I saw him aiming that gun at your head, God, I thought for sure …” His embrace tightens around me.

I open my mouth to reassure him. “Thank you for saving me, Luca.”

He jerks my body away from his and stares me in the eyes.

“You don’t ever have to thank me for that, Elise. I am your husband. I will protect you no matter what.” He reaches out and cups my face. “Because I love you, Elise.” He gives me a soft smile.

I can only stare back into those eyes. Each time he tells me he loves me, it makes me that much angrier. How can you tell someone you love them and do the things he has done? This whole mess is his doing. He wanted to make a spectacle of Ari’s death and drag Matteo into it with him.

Luca’s smile falters as he takes notice of the tears that are slowly forming in my eyes.

“What is it?” he asks.

I shake my head vigorously, not wanting to make him angry or cause a scene. He opens his mouth to say something else, but the doctor walks in with his paperwork before he can.

* * * * *

It’s a whole other week until Matteo finally awakens. His eyes open, and he immediately begins to look around frantically. It brings me joy when his eyes land on me and he relaxes. We fill him in on everything that happened. Personally, I don’t want to tell him, but Luca thinks he should know.

Matteo is finally breathing on his own, and so the doctors move him off the breathing machine. When we are in his presence, he is happy. But sometimes I catch him with a hardened expression on his face.

We are finally able to take Matteo home after a few days. Luca is at the front desk, signing him out, and I sit in the room with him to keep him company.

“Elise.” Matteo’s voice suddenly pulls me from my thoughts. I stand up from my seat across the room and immediately walk to him. “Are you all right?”

He nods and takes a deep breath. “I wanted to do it, you know. I still want to.”

I look at him with a confused expression. Before I can say anything on the subject, Matteo looks at me with his deep-green eyes.

“I want to talk to Luca. Alone, please.”

I don’t know how to respond; I only stand from the edge of his bed and walk out into the waiting area. Surely, he doesn’t mean what I think he means?

I round the corner and pause when I see Luca standing by the wall of brochures. He has one in his hand and is reading it very intently. He turns to the side slightly, and I am shocked to see a pamphlet on babies in his hand. I look back at his face to see if he is just doing some bored scanning, but he is very focused on whatever it is he is reading.

I hope he doesn’t want a child. Living with Luca is already torture enough, but trying to raise a child and protect him or her from their father will be too much. It will be a punishment in itself. If there is one thing I know, it is that Luca Pasquino is not ready for kids. I don’t think he ever will be.

“Luca.” His head shoots up, and he nonchalantly moves the pamphlet behind his back.

“What?”

“Uh … Matteo wanted to see you.”

I am having trouble looking at him. The way he is watching me makes me feel squeamish. He doesn’t respond to me as he takes a step around me and walks into Matteo’s room.