by V. Sousa
We were walking into the kitchen when I sighed in defeat. “Maybe Vincent came home and took them out of the house.”
I turned to the left and saw a barely noticeable crack on the wall, and then it hit me. “The basement,” I whispered, running up to the hidden door.
As I was about to open it, Lorenzo stopped me. “I’ll go first.”
He slowly opened the door, and I followed him down the stairs. I tightened the hold on the gun in my hand and mentally prepared myself to see some crazy shit, but when I reached the bottom step, never in a million years did I expect to see what I was seeing.
“Oh, my God.” I covered my mouth with my free hand, freezing at what was in front of me.
“She’s still breathing,” Lorenzo said, pointing to Stephanie. “See? She’s going to be fine, but we have to get her to a hospital.”
I was still frozen, unable to move, my hand still over my mouth, and Lorenzo gave me a confused look. “Here, just help me get her.” He started walking to her but stopped when he realized I wasn’t following him.
Lorenzo walked back the few steps and nudged me. “Stephanie will be fine. She’s breathing. That’s a good sign. She’s probably just passed out.” He followed my line of sight when he realized it wasn’t Stephanie that I was looking at and lifted his gun back up. “Who’s that? Why are you crying?”
Lorenzo wouldn’t know the woman whose ankle was currently chained to a wall a few feet from a very unconscious Stephanie because Lorenzo had never had a chance to meet her.
Hearing voices, she looked up, and her eyes widened. “Rosie?” She gasped.
“Who are you?” Lorenzo asked, still pointing his gun at her.
Unshed tears built in her eyes, and my heart broke for her a little bit, so much pain and fear in a single gaze.
“Is someone going to answer me?” Lorenzo said beside me. “What’s going on? We’ve got to get out of here.” He put a hand on my shoulder to get my attention. “Rose, who is she?”
I could tell he was getting frustrated, but I was just so shocked that I didn’t even know what to say. I put my hand on his gun and lowered it.
“Emilia,” I whispered to him.
Emilia’s gaze landed behind me, and everything happened so fast. I heard someone scream at the same time a gun went off, and Lorenzo jerked back, almost dropping to the ground. He started to fire back but got hit again.
He looked at me and yelled something, but there was so much going on, and my head wasn’t sending the signals to my legs to fucking move.
It wasn’t until I saw Romeo on the ground, pulling on my foot, trying to get me to move, that I finally snapped out of it. I quickly looked around, scanning the room, and I saw six guys down on the floor.
I grabbed Romeo and led him to Emilia, handing him off when I reached her. I quickly ran to Stephanie and dragged her behind the bed next to Emilia to take cover.
“Stay here. Don’t move,” I said to them, loud enough so they could hear me over the shooting.
I looked back up, trying to come up with a game plan, and I saw that there were still two more guys shooting in Lorenzo’s direction, and a little farther back, sitting at a desk with his arms crossed and watching me with a smile was Vincent.
The other men weren’t paying me any attention, so I lifted the gun and fired two shots at one of the guys, hitting his chest.
The other guy finally noticed me and started firing in my direction. I dropped down to avoid the bullets, and that was when I found a knife sitting on the floor beside me. Without giving it too much thought, I hurled it at him. I just needed a few seconds of distraction so I could go in for the kill. I got him right in the eye and finished him off with a bullet to the head.
I had to admit, apart from the beginning when I froze, I thought I’d handled that pretty well.
I heard a deep chuckle coming from behind me and groaned when I remembered Vincent was here. Turning, I pointed my gun at his head, causing him to laugh even more.
“It’s so good to see you, Rose,” Vincent said, moving to sit up straighter. “I must admit, I thought my guys were stronger than this, but if I had known you were a good shot, I would’ve brought more men,” he said with another chuckle. “I see now that I’ve always underestimated you. I thought I had broken my wife well enough long ago, but you started coming around, and all of a sudden, she starts coming up with these ideas and plans, becoming quite bold if you ask me. Then I find out my son is calling you for help? Loyalty is a rare attribute in this house, I guess.”
When I didn’t respond, he leaned back again, holding both hands out. “Well? What are you waiting for? The way I see it, Rose, you can either shoot now or wait until more of my men get here, which shouldn’t be long.” He looked down at his watch. “You’re looking at about twelve minutes now.”
“And what makes you think I’m scared of more men? I just started having fun. You clearly saw what I’m capable of.” I walked up to the man with the knife in his eye, and I pulled it out, wiping the blood on his shirt. “Worry not, though, because as much as I’d love to prolong your death, I have things to do. I’ll make this one as quick and painful as possible,” I said with a sadistic smile.
“Well, if you do that, you won’t be able to ask me any questions.” He grinned at me. “Aren’t you the least bit curious about what happened to your dear Samuel, or do you already know?”
I froze, and my heart stopped the minute I heard my brother’s name coming out of this piece of shit’s mouth.
He started to laugh. “That’s definitely a no. I can see I’ve got your attention now, though. Ten minutes, Rose.”
He looked past me, and his eyes lit up in pure joy. “Perfect,” he continued, “the gang’s all here. Why don’t you ask him what happened to your dear twin? He’s the one who pulled the trigger, after all.”
I felt a hand on my shoulder, and I quickly turned around, ready to shoot, but when I looked up, I saw Emmett looking back at me with a pained expression on his face.
Turning back to Vincent, I gave him a withering look. “You’re lying.”
He was smiling at me again, and I could tell he was really enjoying this. “Oh, but I’m not. Why don’t you ask him if you don’t believe me?”
I turned to Emmett and looked up at him, shaking. “He’s lying, right?” I searched his eyes, hoping that it wasn’t true. He knew what Sammy meant had to me. He would never have betrayed me like that.
“Emmett, tell me he’s lying. You would never do that to me.” He still didn’t respond, but looking into his empty black eyes, I knew Vincent was telling the truth. I was desperate for Emmett to tell me he didn’t kill him even if he really did because I didn’t know if I could come back from this. But the truth had a funny way of always being right there, just waiting to come out, and by the dead look in his eyes, I knew there was no doubt about it.
Emmett had killed my brother.
I was married to and having the baby of the man who had killed my twin.
Betrayal could make the kindest person turn cold, and I swear Vincent could see the transformation in my eyes because his smirk dropped.
Did he really think I would spare him? That he was going to get out of this?
I moved closer to him, then pointed the gun directly between his eyes and cocked my head to the side.
“Love is a weakness.” And I pulled the trigger.
Twenty-Five
Emmett
The look on Rose’s face had me taking a step back, wondering if I was next, but she quickly dropped the gun and ran to Lorenzo, who I just realized was on the floor, losing a lot of blood.
“We need to call someone,” I said to Rose, but she ignored me and continued to put pressure on his wounds.
I quickly called one of the guys I knew who was a doctor close by and asked him to meet me at my penthouse.
I helped Rose carry Lorenzo to my car outside, and just as I was getting ready to hop in the driver’s seat, she grabbed the keys out of my ha
nd, not looking at me. “I’m taking him. There are things inside you need to take care of.” She jumped in the car and sped off without another word.
Walking back into the basement, I stopped when I heard a woman’s soft voice.
“It’s okay, sweetie. Someone will be back soon, and then we can go.”
The voice was so familiar that I paused for a moment.
I tried to place it, but I shook my head and continued my descent into the basement. I didn’t have time to sit here and think. “Hello?” I called out.
Romeo popped his head out and ran to me, pointing behind the bed. “Emmett, you have to help. Mom’s not waking up.”
But instead of seeing Stephanie, my eyes caught someone else.
I didn’t even realize I was walking until I was standing in front of a woman who looked almost identical to my mother. I rubbed my eyes, thinking my mind was playing a trick on me, but then she looked up at me and started to cry.
“Emmett?” she whispered. She got up, and that was when I noticed the chain around her ankle. “It’s me.” She gently put her hand on my face as more tears ran down her cheeks.
“Mom?” I questioned, thinking I was dreaming or something because there was no way I’d missed her the first time I was down here.
She nodded her head and pulled me into a hug. I hugged her back, breathing in her familiar scent, and I look down, following her chain.
It led to where my father was currently lying, and I snapped out of whatever state seeing my mom had put me in when I remembered more men were coming, and we needed to get the hell out of here.
I pulled away and grabbed both her arms. “We need to get out of here. I don’t have any backup.” I looked around for something to break the chain. Instead, I found a set of keys next to where Vincent had been sitting.
I quickly grabbed them, undoing her chain in record time. “Go get all the kids. I’ll grab Stephanie, and we’ll meet out front. Hurry, Mom.”
She gave me a nod, and we got to it.
Ten minutes later, we all got out of the car and went up the elevator into the penthouse.
All I could do was stare at my mom in disbelief. I kept blinking, wondering if she was going to disappear at any moment. I had no idea what to say. There were so many questions I wanted to ask her, but whenever I opened my mouth, nothing came out.
The elevator dinged open, and I rushed Stephanie in to get checked out by the doctor, and my mom followed quickly behind us with the kids hanging onto her. After putting Stephanie down, I ushered my mom and all the kids into one of the upstairs rooms and turned on some cartoons for them.
Going into the bathroom, I threw some water onto my face. So much had happened in the past couple of hours that I hadn’t had any time to think.
I knew something was up when Rose sent me a text saying she was sick, and then a few minutes later, I got a text from some of my men, telling me the helicopter was all set and asking if my wife was ready to take off.
I immediately canceled all my meetings for the day and called a friend to hitch a ride to New York.
I tracked her phone to my father’s house, and I panicked the whole way there, wondering why she would lie to me and go there alone. Then I started to think about what he could be doing to her. I’d never driven so fast in my life.
When I walked in, it was quiet at first, but then I heard guns go off, and I ran to the sounds, but it stopped the minute I found and opened the basement door. I thought my mind was playing tricks on me until I heard my father’s voice.
I ran down the stairs and was finally able to breathe when I saw that Rose was the one with the advantage. That breath was short-lived, though, when I heard what he was saying about Sammy.
I watched as she pleaded with me to answer her, to tell her my father was lying. I could’ve lied, but then that would have kept me in the same place that I’d been in for three years. A coward who couldn’t face the woman he’d betrayed in the worst way.
So, I remained silent, begging her with my eyes to forgive me. But looking into her eyes, I knew damn well that nothing in this world would change how she felt about me at that exact moment—pure hatred.
I saw the shift the moment she concluded that what my father was saying was true, and I swear the room dropped five degrees. She whispered something and then shot my father without so much as a blink.
The knock on the bathroom door stopped my thoughts from continuing. I quickly opened the door to find Rose on the other side.
“The doctor is finished with Lorenzo, so I’m taking him with me to my parents’ house to recover for a while. I’ll be staying there with him until I figure out my next move, and until then, I’m going to need you to do me a favor and leave me alone. Don’t call me, don’t text me, don’t check up on me. Just don’t do anything.”
She walked away before I even had a chance to say anything.
I followed after her, but she turned around, giving me a cold dead stare, and pulled a gun out from the back of her pants. “Please don’t make me do this. The least you can do right now is give me what I’m asking.”
Nodding, I put my hands in my pockets and stepped back.
She lowered her gun and turned back around, continuing her exit.
I waited a few minutes, and with a sad sigh, I went back downstairs and sat next to my mom.
She pulled me into her embrace, and I laid my head on her shoulder.
“So, what happened?” I asked her, not moving.
She sighed and grabbed my hand. “While I was on my way to your school that day, somebody smashed into the side of my car, causing it to flip. The car rolled over a few times, and when it finally stopped, two men grabbed me and pulled me out. I thought they were helping me out until I was thrown into a car and knocked out. When I came to, I was in the basement. I looked up to see your father standing over me. He threatened to torture then kill you if I ever escaped. I tried to kill him a few times throughout the years, but the asshole was always two steps ahead of me.”
She continued to tell me how she and Stephanie got to be very close and how she helped Stephanie raise my half-siblings.
Sometimes, Stephanie would sneak her some pictures of me and gave my mom updates on how I was doing. They’d made a plan to escape, but Vincent found some money that was stashed and beat Stephanie half to death.
“I heard what your father said to Rose before she shot him. I don’t know what happened, but I do know you loved those two growing up, and you would never hurt either of them unless you had no choice. She’ll come around. She just needs time, is all.”
Maybe the Rose I knew back then would forgive me, but I wasn’t so sure about this Rose.
Twenty-Six
Rose
We came to a stop outside my parents’ house, and I quickly got out, rushing around to open Lorenzo’s door to help him out.
He put an arm around my shoulder, and we slowly made our way to the door, stopping right before we got inside. “For what it’s worth, I know he loves you. Everything he does is in your best interest. I know you probably want space, and I’m on your side, always, but I do think that at some point, you should at least hear him out.”
“Maybe one day,” I said with a small smile. “Let’s get you inside before you start bleeding again.”
Lorenzo was in a lot of pain, so I didn’t want to argue with him. I knew I couldn’t avoid Emmett forever, but as of right now, it was still so fresh that the last thing I wanted to do was have a conversation with him.
I just couldn’t wrap my head around the fact that not only was he there for Sammy’s death, but he pulled the trigger. I always had a feeling Vincent was somehow involved in the murder, but damn, I sure as hell wasn’t expecting Emmett’s part in it also.
I hadn’t seen my parents in a few weeks, and even though they were a mess these days, I would rather be here with them. The thought of being home with Emmett right now made my stomach turn.
My father saw us in the entry and ran up to help
me with Lorenzo.
He didn’t even ask me what happened. He just grabbed Lorenzo’s other side and gave me a sad smile. Somebody probably already informed him I was coming.
“I’m sure you’ve already heard about most of what happened, but can it wait until tomorrow to go into detail? I’m exhausted, and I don’t think I have enough energy to rehash the whole story.”
He nodded. “Sure, no problem. I have a few meetings to discuss Vincent’s death, but we can talk whenever you’re ready.”
Two of my father’s men came up to grab Lorenzo from us, guiding him upstairs.
“Can we put Lorenzo in one of the rooms next to mine? I want to be close to him in case he needs me,” I told the guys, and they both nodded, continuing up the stairs.
I grabbed our stuff and dropped it off in my room—well, my old room now—and I went in search of my mom.
Her bedroom door was open when I walked by, so I knew she wasn’t in there. Doing a quick walk-through of the house, I found her in the library, smiling down at one of the old photo albums.
I stood in the doorway and watched her for a little while. It had been so long since I’d seen a smile on her face. It wasn’t like the smile she used to wear but a smile no less.
She looked up at the sound of my footsteps as I entered the room, and her smile dropped when she saw my current state. She quickly put the album down and opened her arms. “Come here, baby.”
I picked up my pace and crawled into her lap once I reached her, laying my head on her shoulder.
“This life is a hard one to live by,” Mom said as she kissed my head, “but I wouldn’t trade it if it meant I couldn’t have you and your brother. In a world full of death and darkness, I can still say I found my light. It’s going to get hard before it gets easy, but you can’t give up yet.”
Mom pulled a tissue out of the box on the table and handed it to me. I quickly cleaned up my face, and she wrapped her arms around me.