by Cassie May
“It is respectful to make your dad aware of it, ciccina and now get in the house.” Luca winks at her and that shuts her up immediately. Without another word she leaves the car and walks to the house. We wait till she has disappeared inside and then Luca turns the car to bring me home.
Leaning forward I need to know something from him. “What does ciccina mean?”
I see a slight blush creeping up his neck and raise an eyebrow. Noemi didn’t seem shocked, so I doubt it was something dirty, but obviously Luca didn’t think I would ask him. “It means, roughly translated, sweetheart or babe.”
Aww, this is so sweet. Grinning I lean back in my seat and let him drive me home without further prodding. I just hope that this was enough excitement for today.
Yeah. I couldn’t have been wronger.
Chapter 22
Valerie
Later that evening rain has begun to pour from the sky and I get more nervous the later it gets. Matteo promised me to come over this evening and so far he has always kept his promises. He might come late, but he is going to come. I just can’t stand the thought of him outside in that weather. He shouldn’t be on the streets anymore. This whole fucking mess should have been long but solved by now. Why can’t they just ask Clara who her partner is? Why can’t they find those fucking Mexicans so I can go on with my life and really date Matteo?
I have already baked three different panettone and made dinner for the four of us, since Domenico is still absent and engaged in taking care of the boy. Jess seems kind of bummed that he can’t be here with us today. Obviously he grew on her with his persistence.
The darker and wetter it gets outside the more I worry. Matteo hasn’t called or messaged since this morning and after his parting words I am nervous. I feel like something is seriously wrong and that he might be in danger.
Finally I can’t stand it anymore and I dial the number I swore to myself I wouldn’t ever call.
“Yes, Valerie?” The cold voice on the other side makes me question myself again.
“Federico, I am sorry to disturb you, but you said I could call anytime and I worry. Matteo came to see me this morning and he said he would come to me this evening and that I should bake a panettone for him. I did that, well actually I baked three different panettone, but he is not here, yet. He said that he has the feeling that something bad is going to happen today and since then I haven’t heard from him. I worry.”
He exhales heavily and I don’t know what to make from this sigh. “Valerie, I understand your worry, but Matteo is a grown man. A Made Man. He knows how to take care of himself and I am sure he is going to come to you any minute. He didn’t give you a time, did he?”
Shaking my head I answer him. “No, he didn’t say an exact time. So you think everything is all right with him?”
“Yes. I think so. He was supposed to meet with an insider and I think it might took longer than expected. I am sure nothing has happened.”
A relieved breath escapes me. “Thank you, Federico.”
“You’re welcome. Please let me know when he turns up at yours, okay?” That makes me tense again. It sounds like a casual phrase, but Federico is not casual. Nothing this man does is casual. He knows everything that happens around him and with the people that are important to him. For me to call him when Matteo arrives means that he doesn’t know where Matteo is right now and that scares me. It scares me to death.
“I will”, is all I manage to croak out before ending the call. I stare numbly at the wall in front of me and question the danger of calling Matteo. If he is already on his way to me, it would be okay, but if he is in a dangerous situation my call could distract him and he could get hurt.
A soft knock pulls me out of my thoughts. “Can I come in, Val?” Jess sounds hesitating and I sigh.
“Yeah, come in.” She opens the door slowly and steps in.
“Here, sit down.” I point next to me on the bad and she sits down.
“Do you think something happened to him?” Yep, and that is my best friend. No pussyfooting around any topic with her.
“I don’t know. I mean, he is used to all that, isn’t he? He is able to take care of himself. Surely it just took longer for whatever he did today and he comes in any moment.”
Jess smiles. “That is the right attitude, sweetheart. Now come down, the boys and I were watching TV and I think I might have them almost agreed to watch Magic Mike.” She winks at me and I can’t stop the laugh that escapes me.
“How did you do that?”
“Just my female charm, sweety. Now come on, we look at some yummy men while waiting for yours.” She pulls me up and drags me down the stairs in the living room where Luca and Sandro are already sitting. Both balance a huge plate with panettone on their knees while looking at me almost remorseful.
“I swear the panettone wanted to be eaten by us. It called to us!” Sandro says while I feel Luca’s proving glance on me.
“Yeah right”, I snort and sit down on a chair. “I’m sure it did, I just hope you left something for the others.” Both men nod and then Jess finally turns on the film.
I try to concentrate on the half-naked dancers that are flashing their sixpacks to a screaming audience of women, but I drift off to Matteo’s body. Not shiny and oiled, but real muscles needed for protection and formed from a live in danger. Scars that show his battle wounds and tattoos that tell a story of love and loss. A choked sob escapes my throat and before I know it there are tears running down my cheeks.
Immediately I am wrapped in a pair of strong, muscular arms and I hear Luca’s voice on my ear. “Don’t worry, cara. Matteo is a strong bastard. He will come home at any minute.” With that he presses a soft kiss on my hair and ruby my back till the sobs stop.
A crashing thunder followed by a bright lightning makes me jump out of his arms. “I need… I don’t know. I need to do something…” My voice trails off to a whisper when there is suddenly a knock on the door.
A dark sense of foreboding comes over me. Matteo wouldn’t knock. He has a key and loves to sneak up on me. He wouldn’t knock. Luca and Sandro know that as well and both switch to warrior mode.
“Lay down on the floor and keep quiet. Both of you.” Luca sounds dangerous and Jess and I follow his orders immediately.
Laying flat on my stomach I look at Jess who looks back at me with wide eyes and a quivering bottom lip. “What’s going to happen now? Who is on the door?” She whisper screams at me.
I can only shake my head. “I don’t know. Now shut up and be quiet!”
“Fuck! Valerie, come here! Jess, bring towels, hot water and bandages! And do all of that fast! Now!” Jumping up I see Luca drag a bloodied Matteo in the living room followed by Sandro who carries an unconscious girl in his arms.
“What happened? What is going on here?” I rush over to the kitchen to boil some water while Jess runs upstairs.
Matteo groans loudly while sitting down on a chair and when he lifts his hand from his stomach I see a wet spot that is rapidly getting bigger. “You… you… you were shot?” I feel blood rushing in my ears and black spots appear in front of my eyes.
“Oh no, you don’t get to faint now, Val! These two need you now. So get your shit together and help me clean them up and stitch back together.” Jess hisses in my ear while pushing towels and a first-aid kit in my hands.
Staring at Matteo and the rapidly growing blood stain on his shirt I look at the girl he has brought with him. She looks even worse than him. Her face is swollen and bloodied, I don’t believe she can see anything because her eyes are completely swollen shut. It seems as if she was tortured, but who does something like this? What is going on here?
“Cara!” Matteo’s groaned shout rips me out of my thoughts and I look at him. “Give me the towel and then call my brother. Tell him where we are and that we need a doc. He’ll know what to do.”
Silently I hand him a towel and flinch when his hand touches mine. Instead of pulling back he pulls me closer while hol
ding onto the towel. When I am close enough for him to touch me he lifts his hand. I stare at it and see blood and dirt on his fingers. Whimpering I don’t really know, what to do now. I want to touch him to reassure me that he is not dead, but at the same time I don’t want to touch him, because I could make his injuries worse. “Cara, please. You are killing me here. I will survive this. I have survived worse, but I need to touch you. I need to know that everything is okay between us.” His voice is a rough whisper and it makes me fall to my knees.
”I don’t know what to do.” I whisper and feel as if my heart is breaking. The man I love was shot and I am completely frozen and not able to do anything. Matteo smiles at me and then I feel his lips on mine. Blood and dirt don’t matter anymore. With this kiss I am rooted in the present again.
“Call my brother, cara. Everything will be okay. I promise.” That does it. Him promising me that everything is going to be all right makes me realize that even though it looks bad, it could look even worse. Pulling out my phone I walk a few steps away from the injured so that the others can care for them.
Before it even rings one full time Federico is barking in my ear. “Is he with you?”
Choking on a sob I nod. “Yes, yes, but he was shot. And he was not alone. He brought a girl with him. He said you should send a doc.”
Federico curses for at least five minutes before getting his shit together. “Okay, thank you for telling me. I am on my way. Tell Luca to keep everything on lockdown till I am there. He must not open the door to anybody till I get there with reinforcements, do you hear me? I will arrive before or with the doc, so you are not allowed to open the door to anybody who claims to be a doctor, do you understand me?”
“But… Do you think they could come after us? I mean… Who did that?”
I hear Federico gritting his teeth while cars honk in the background. He must drive like a maniac to get here. “Oh, I will find that out, believe me. And no, I don’t think they were getting followed. I just want to be extra careful. What is it you Americans say? Better safe than sorry?”
I bark out a short laugh. “Yeah, something like this.”
“Okay, good. Now go back. Be there for my brother, because he needs you now. I’ll be there in under five minutes.” He ends the call and I stare at the display for a moment, before I pull myself together and stalk over to the others.
“Put me to work, I can help now.” My voice is secure and I can’t decide which person needs help more. Sandro and Jess have taken care of the girl who moans softly. Matteo seems to need help more and Luca is already waving me over.
“I need you to distract him. The bullet is still in the wound and I need to get it out”, he states matter-of-factly while laying Matteo on the floor.
“What? But, shouldn’t we wait for a doctor? Federico will be here at any moment and he said he is going to bring a doctor with him!” How can he be so calm while announcing something so horrible? I mean… There has to be a way to numb him.
Rushing over to the kitchen I grab a bottle of vodka from the fridge and sprint back. I unscrew the lid and hand the bottle to Matteo. “Here, drink that. A lot. I hope it helps with the pain.” He grabs the bottle and takes three big gulps before handing it to Luca who has already ripped off the stained shirt and pours the vodka over the wound. Matteo hisses and reaches for the bottle again to take another sip.
He grabs my hands and pulls me down to him. “Don’t leave me, cara. Seeing your face is going to make everything bearable.” Nodding I press a kiss on his lips and stroke his cheek.
Suddenly I feel an intimidating presence behind me and turn around to look at a pair of legs clothed in expensive suit trousers. Federico. He kneels down next to me and grabs his brother’s hand. “Teo, how are you feeling?”
Matteo smiles weakly. “Been better.”
Federico bends forward and presses his forehead to Matteo’s. “You get through this, fratellino. You don’t get to leave me as well, do you understand me?” After that I think I hear a choked sob before Federico stands up and wipes over his eyes. Luca and I pretend not to see anything. I am sure Federico would find a way to make us disappear without a trace if we should ever tell someone about this breakdown.
He turns around and greets a man who has entered the house with a bag obviously full of medical equipment. “Take care of him first. He has a bullet still sticking inside the wound.” Federico’s voice is back to harsh and commanding, but Matteo shakes his head.
“No, Luca can get the bullet out. You just have to hold me. Please, Theresa needs it more. I don’t know what they did to her before I arrived.” On point the girl on the couch groans in pain and the doc looks unsure between her and the two brothers that pay his salary.
“Please, Rico. Let him look after her before. It is my fault that she is hurt.” Matteo sounds weak and his words begin to slur. I don’t know if it is from the vodka he keeps on drinking or if the pain is finally too much for him to bear.
Federico kneels down again and forces his brother to look at him. “Are you sure? I would not have a problem with letting her die to save you, you know that.”
Wow. Talk about a cold bastard. Matteo nods and closes his eyes. “I won’t die, Rico. I have just found happiness, I won’t let it get taken from me.” With that he grabs my hands and presses them shortly before placing them on the floor next to him.
Federico gestures to the doc. “Do as my brother says. Look after her while we are getting that fucking bullet out. And Doc… I don’t care what he said. If my brother dies tonight, you will as well.” The man nods and gets to work, stripping the young woman from her clothes to examine her bruised and bloodied body.
Luca and Federico take disinfectant to clean their hands before looking at Matteo. “Are you ready, fratellino?” Federico asks and Matteo nods.
“As ready as I’ll ever be. Just make it quick.” Both nod and Luca sits on his legs while Federico holds is arms to fix him on the floor. Luca gets tweezers handed from Sandro and pours disinfectant over the wound before bending over it.
“I’ll count to three. One. Two…” He doesn’t wait for three instead he dives into the wound and I feel Matteo’s body tense next to me. He grits his teeth to not shout out and I see beads of sweat glancing on his forehead. Finally after what seems like an eternity Luca pulls the tweezers out, holding a bullet. New blood pours out of the wound and Matteo is scarily pale, but everyone seems to breathe out in relief. I hand Federico a towel and he presses it on the wound to stop the bleeding.
“This one is out. Doc, I think he needs stitches, but for now the towel should be enough”, Luca states matter-of-factly and the doc nods. He is still bend over the woman, Theresa, on the couch.
“I need to bring her to my place. I don’t have everything I need with me and it would be a better place to check Matteo out as well”, he finally says to Federico.
Federico nods. “I have enough men with me to transport them. Valerie, Luca, Sandro and Jess, you are coming with us. I don’t want you here. Not after this night and the possibility that someone might sneak up on you. Pack a small bag as fast as you can while we make everything else ready to leave. You have ten minutes before we leave.” He turns to me and his eyes soften a little. “I’ll make sure that everything here is cleaned up when you return here.” He motions to the bloody chaos that is all around us and I nod.
Jess and I stumble upstairs, the events of the night finally catching up with us. I randomly pull clothes out of my closet and cram them in a backpack. The same I do with my toiletries and a few minutes later I stumble back down to see that Jess is already finished and somewhere between us going up and coming down, Dom has arrived and is holding her shaking body in his arms. At least one of us gets comforted. As soon as I have thought that I feel a strong arm coming around my shoulders and warm lips on my ear. “Just keep it together a little longer, Val. As soon as the Doc has stitched Matteo back together you can lay next to him. I promise. Everything will be good.” Nodding at Luca�
��s words I push my tears down and straighten my spine.
“Bring me out of here, Luca. I don’t know how long I can hold it together.” I feel him nodding and get guided outside to a big van.
“Matteo’s already inside. He refused to ride without you. I’ll be right behind you, Jess and Dom will come with another vehicle. We’ll gather at the Doc’s at first before we decide where to go.” Nodding I take my seat next to Matteo who has his eyes closed but reaches for my hand.
“Val? Are you okay?” His concerned question makes new tears rise in my eyes. Here he is laying with a bullet wound in his stomach and yet he asks for me.
“I am okay. Don’t move too much. You are still losing a lot of blood and I need you to get completely better. There’s so much we wanted to do together. You’ll have to get better to do them”, I whisper in his ear and press a soft kiss on his forehead.
He nods obediently and the rest of the drive is made in silence.
Chapter 23
Matteo
A few hours earlier
After leaving a happy but nervous Valerie in the bakery I make sure that Luca knows what is on the line today. I need to know Valerie is a hundred percent safe to be able to make the showdown today work. Theresa has contacted me in the night and told me that she has found out something about the partner of the bitch and that she needs to meet me.
No place.
No time.
I will get those during the day. It’s how we work, even though today I feel uneasy about our system. Something is not right and I can’t put my finger on what is making me nervous. Pulling out my phone I call my brother to tell him the news.
“Talk to me.”
“I am meeting with my spy today. T found something about Clara’s partner and I just wanted to let you know that I might be off the grid for the rest of the day.”