He needed to create a distraction. He’d found the right point to slash the rope on one of his wrists to give him a shot at breaking free. But if he moved his arm too fast, they would sense what he was up to. The maneuver would require stealth. More importantly, he had to reassure Maria they would make it out alive.
“Oh, Cal,” Maria cried upon seeing him. “I figured it was you when I heard the commotion. I was worried they’d killed you.”
A loud smack echoed against the walls of the warehouse. Maria’s face fell forward. Vinnie had struck her with his open hand, his smile growing ever wider.
“You like that? You should’ve seen me with her earlier. The only smacking you could hear was me against her cunt.”
This time Cal’s growl was audible. He was a lion returning from the hunt only to see his cubs in danger. His heart pounded in a combination of fear and fury, and the only way to make it stop was to pummel Vinnie and save Maria.
He jerked his right wrist against the sharp metal. The rope severed and his hand was free. Fortunately, no one seemed to notice as Cal kept his wrist against the railing. Now that one of his hands were free, he needed to get a weapon.
“Enough,” Alfredo ordered. “It’s time to get to the point of why we’re all here, don’t you think?”
Maria whimpered, her body sagging as if she was struggling to stay upright. Daggers pierced Cal’s heart at hearing her in such pain, and he imagined her enduring the type of torture he’d seen these men deal out to others. Alfredo moved away from Cal and toward Maria. His hands gripped the side of her face just like they had Cal’s moments earlier. The sight of the mob boss putting his hands on Maria, the shining light in Cal’s future, infuriated him.
“By now it’s pretty apparent to everyone why you need to die, Cal. The same reason your girlfriend needs to die. You killed my father and yet you walked free, able to tell the Commission at any time that I’d ordered a hit on a living mob boss, the cardinal sin of the mafia. I trusted you all these years. Then you came to me wanting to abandon the family, wanting to stop killing. I knew then you couldn’t be trusted, you had to go. The same with your girlfriend here. She can rat to the police. Police who aren’t as forgiving as Blutarski over there. I can’t have either one of you breaking the law of omertà. It’s time for you both to die.”
With his right hand free, Cal knew he could reach for the spring-loaded knife taped to his right sock, cut his left hand free, and plunge the knife into Alfredo’s heart. None of the men had guns pointed on him; he’d at least have a chance.
“Dad, someone else heard our secret just now. What do you suppose we do with him?”
“You’re right, Vin.” Alfredo nodded toward Blutarski.
Blutarski removed his police-issued Colt gun from his holster, pointed it at the ringleader from the lobby, and fired into the man’s skull. The blast from the gunshot reverberated throughout the warehouse.
Maria’s subsequent scream provided the cover Cal needed. With Blutarski as the only man to his left, Cal could eliminate one more threat. He didn’t think he could take down Blutarski and the Petrocellis at the same time.
Where the hell was Fonzie when he needed him? He couldn’t afford him to take his sweet-ass time.
Cal moved his right hand to his ankle, ripped at the tape, and grabbed the knife, springing the blade into action. Blutarski was putting his weapon back in his holster when Cal cut the rope from his left hand and charged at him.
He heard the cries of the Petrocellis and Maria. Blutarski saw him charging and went to draw his gun again. Cal quickly reached him and plunged the knife into the nearest body part he could reach as he tackled Blutarski to the floor.
Cal heard footsteps running behind him. One of his hands held on to the knife as the other struggled to push aside Blutarski’s fighting arms so he could resume stabbing the corrupt policeman.
Cal felt a pulling sensation on his shoulders. He figured Vinnie was coming for him. Cal spun around with the knife’s blade extended and buried it into the first piece of flesh he could manage.
Vinnie let out a wild yell and staggered back. Cal saw the fear in Alfredo’s eyes at the realization of what he had done to his son. The blade of the knife was buried just above Vinnie’s knee.
Once it was clear Vinnie was surrendering, Cal removed the blade and focused his attention on the cop pinned underneath him. The distraction had provided Blutarski the opportunity to regain control. He threw a couple of hard right hooks to the side of Cal’s head, dazing his tender skull even further. The force sent him falling back onto the floor, his knife sliding away from him.
He wanted to lie there and give in to the pain, but he couldn’t. He had to fight his way out of this to save Maria. After all they’d been through, the progress they’d made, he couldn’t lose her.
In all the commotion of fighting Vinnie and Blutarski, he wasn’t sure what had become of Maria. Cal looked up and saw Blutarski work his way to his feet. The cop reached for his belt to draw his gun. Cal had to get up and fight or he would be shot.
He wanted to spring to his feet and take Blutarski down, but the pain in his head rooted him to the ground. As much as he knew he needed to move, it was like an anchor was weighing down his brain to the metal floor.
Alfredo was shouting behind him, warning Vinnie not to get involved. That was how it was going to be, then. Blutarski would pull out his Colt and shoot Cal in front of Maria.
A glimmer of light caught Cal’s eye. The knife he’d dropped wasn’t too far away. Neither Blutarski nor Vinnie had spotted it. This was his chance, if he could only find the strength to crawl toward it.
As Blutarski began to draw his gun out of his holster, Cal shook away the pain and reached for the knife. It would be a race to see who could take the other down first.
Cal had the knife in his grasp and heard Vinnie’s footsteps lumbering toward him. Blutarski had his gun drawn and brought it forward, ready to fire at Cal.
Knife in hand, Cal found the strength to rise to his feet. He managed to spring his leg up to kick the Colt out of Blutarski’s hand just as the officer fired the weapon. Blutarski was left defenseless. Cal turned back toward the approaching Vinnie, planted his feet, clenched his fist, and gave him a hard uppercut to his jaw, sending him flying back to the ground.
Cal saw Maria out of the corner of his eye. She began to run toward Cal as if her presence would help Cal fend off his attackers. Alfredo scooped her up in his large arms before she could get closer.
Cal readied the knife to attack Blutarski. His first lunge hit nothing but air as the cop stepped aside. Blutarski swung at Cal with another right hook. Cal dodged the punch, and the move left Blutarski open for another attack.
This time, Cal used all his strength to lunge the knife forward, the blade heading straight for Blutarski’s throat. The cop began gurgling for air as he tried to remove the sharp blade from his throat. Blood from his jugular vein erupted everywhere, showering Cal in the process. Blutarski sank to his knees and collapsed to the ground.
The only people who now stood between Cal and the woman he intended to spend the rest of his life with were the Petrocellis themselves.
52
Before Cal had a chance to catch his breath, Vinnie was back on his feet, ready to attack. His eyes darted from Cal toward the ground. Cal kept one eye trained on Vinnie and the other on the ground. Blutarski’s discarded gun was only feet in front of both of them. Cal decided not to go for it. He’d wait for Vinnie to make the move. Then he could overtake his adoptive brother, giving himself the position of bargaining power he’d need to get Maria out of Alfredo’s clutches.
Vinnie did exactly as Cal expected and dove toward the ground for the gun. Cal was on him, landing a hard blow to the side of Vinnie’s face. Vinnie absorbed the blow and his next action surprised Cal; he kicked the gun backward—in the direction of his father.
Cal watched as the weapon skidded toward Alfredo, who bent to the ground to pick it up while holding Ma
ria firmly in the clutches of his right arm. With Cal’s attention on the gun, Vinnie punched Cal hard in the jaw. Cal fought back with a punch of his own before reaching back to Blutarski’s slain body and pulling the knife from the cop’s neck.
Holding the weapon, Cal made a stab at Vinnie as his adoptive brother attempted to counter with a punch. Cal slashed into Vinnie’s hand, sending spurts of blood in the air from Vinnie’s fingers. Cal saw the anger on Alfredo’s face, and the mob boss raised Blutarski’s gun to Maria’s temple.
“You hurt him again and I’ll blow her brains all over this warehouse!”
Cal reached out and grabbed Vinnie, holding his arm around his neck and pointing the knife at Vinnie’s throat. If Alfredo made one move against Maria, Cal would take out his only heir.
“Let her go or he dies,” Cal threatened. “I know how important Vinnie is to you. Maria is just as important to me. Let her go and we can both walk away from here with our loved ones.”
Alfredo laughed and pressed the barrel of Blutarski’s Colt harder against Maria’s head. “You wouldn’t do such a thing to Vinnie. Real friendship runs deep. Hell, the two of you are brothers. I think I have all the leverage here, Cal. There’s no room for peacemaking.”
Despite his life being in Cal’s hands, Vinnie smiled with one corner of his mouth. Cal was amazed at how much Alfredo underestimated his love for Maria. He knew if anyone threatened to even touch Susan, Alfredo wouldn’t think twice about killing them. In fact, he’d enjoy every minute of it.
“What makes you think I won’t kill him?” Cal took the blade and ran it against Vinnie’s skin. It was just enough to create a thick scraping sound, as if he were shaving him.
Vinnie flinched with the movement but Alfredo held steady; this was only another part of the game the two enemies were engaged in.
“Because I know what you’ve become, Cal. You’re not the ruthless killer I raised you to be. You used to not give a shit about killing anyone. If we asked you to take somebody out, it was never a problem. But this bitch here changed you. I guess I should’ve known the moment you were willing to introduce her to the family.”
Alfredo gazed at Maria with a false sense of adoration while she shot daggers at him.
“Think how much better your life would be without her in it,” Alfredo said. “If she’s gone, I just might give you the chance to live. Think about that. You can get what you wanted, a life away from the mob.”
Cal didn’t trust one word of Alfredo’s lies. Still, he needed to bargain for Maria’s release. The only way to do that was to let the boss keep talking.
“You want to know how I can promise that? Because I hold the entire key to your future. Either I kill your girlfriend tonight before I take you out or I let you walk away from here with the knowledge that you’ll be the most wanted man in Chicago in the morning.”
Alfredo smiled and laughed. Vinnie’s smile grew wider under Cal’s hold. Cal wasn’t worried about Vinnie trying to escape his grasp. There was no way he could break Cal’s hold despite the pain reverberating through Cal’s body. Yet Cal was worried about what Alfredo was saying. How could he be the most wanted man in Chicago?
“What do you mean?”
“Well, Cal, I’m so glad you asked. Somewhere in this building I hold your Beretta M9, the very weapon you used to kill so many people for me over the years. You may spend your life in jail, but you’ll be free. You won’t have to kill for me anymore. Isn’t that what you wanted?”
Cal growled at Alfredo. He knew they’d taken his gun after knocking him out. At first he’d thought he only had two choices—accept his fate of death or be resigned to life in prison. But there was a third choice.
“How about I kill you and walk out of here with Maria? I like the sound of that better.”
Alfredo laughed again and rolled his eyes. Maria exhaled deeply, seeming relieved that Cal was about to do something to help her.
“Since when have you grown so bold? It’s a shame that you’re finally standing up for yourself at the moment where you’ll no longer be of use to me.”
Cal couldn’t waste any more time with words. He had to take action. He figured Vinnie had to have a holster on his belt somewhere. Since his arms were preoccupied, Cal moved his hips closer to Vinnie’s waist and felt the bulge of a gun on his right hip. That’s when he realized the plan for getting Maria back. It was risky, but he knew that Alfredo had the leverage and that he’d have no chance at saving Maria without taking a risk.
Alfredo could shoot Cal and later find a way to kill Maria. Cal was perplexed over why the boss hadn’t tried the maneuver already. Maybe he really was concerned that Cal would kill Vinnie.
“You know what? After all this talking, I think I’ve had a change of heart.”
Alfredo cocked his brow and smiled. “Really? It was that easy, huh?”
“You bet. In fact, I’m going to send Vinnie back over to you.”
Maria started bawling as soon as Cal spoke. She must have been convinced that Cal was abandoning her, that he hadn’t really changed and become the man he’d promised to be.
“In fact, here’s Vinnie right now.”
In a swift move, Cal dropped the knife to the ground and grabbed Vinnie’s back. He reached for Vinnie’s hip holster and shoved him forward just as he withdrew the pistol.
The look of shock on Alfredo’s face was exactly what Cal had hoped for. He raised the pistol and fired right for Alfredo’s cold heart.
The shot from Vinnie’s weapon rang out like a firework. The bullet struck Alfredo square in the chest. The mob boss’s face slackened. He glanced down to his chest wound. Cal wondered when the man would fall and drop his weapon. Could his power-hungry ways extend to his moment of death?
Vinnie had finally slowed down from Cal’s shove. He looked at his wounded father before turning to Cal. Cal saw his eyes fill with a rage that he was all too familiar with. Their once sincere friendship and brotherhood had now fallen apart.
Cal knew he had no choice but to kill Vinnie. He knew this was how it worked with the Petrocellis. Kill or be killed.
Cal didn’t hesitate when Vinnie reached inside his jacket. Perhaps he had another weapon. Cal shook his head. A lone tear rolled from his eye as he pulled the trigger. Vinnie was down in an instant, his wound appearing more fatal than the impressive wound Alfredo had sustained.
Alfredo fell to the ground, his attempts to stand strong in the face of death failing. He dropped Blutarski’s weapon. That’s when Cal knew he would make it out of the warehouse with Maria alive.
Maria must have sensed the same thing as she looked back at Alfredo before rushing forward toward Cal. Cal dropped Vinnie’s gun and opened his arms, ready to hold her close, take in the lavender scent of her hair, kiss her lips.
He saw Alfredo move toward his coat pocket. Cal remembered Alfredo saying he had his Beretta in the building. The same Beretta that Alfredo finished pulling out of his pocket.
“Maria, no!”
Alfredo took the shot, hitting Maria in the back.
Maria fell to the ground midstride. Cal reached for Vinnie’s gun in retaliation but Alfredo had given up, falling back to the ground in what Cal assumed would be his final act. He raced to Maria, praying that her wound was not fatal.
A loud bang sounded from the warehouse floor below. Cal heard the shouts of several men rushing in. They had to be reinforcements. If he was going to be thwarted, he would ensure Alfredo’s death in the process. He went back for Vinnie’s gun and ran toward Alfredo, determined to shoot the bastard in the head and send him to his death.
A set of footsteps sounded, marching up the stairs to the catwalk. Just as Cal reached Alfredo, he pointed the gun upward at the intruder.
“Wait a minute, Cal, it’s just me,” Fonzie said, holding his hands up in the air. “There’s more of ’em coming. We’ve got to get you and Maria out of here.”
Cal lowered the gun and focused his attention back on Alfredo.
Fonzi
e ran toward Cal, holding him back before he could fire. Why was his friend betraying him in a moment like this? And why the hell had it taken him so long to get inside?
“Save it, Cal. He’s dying. Look at his face and you’ll see that he’s dying. Think of Maria. We have to get her out of here. We have to save her.”
Cal’s insides quaked in anger, but he knew Fonzie was right. He looked back to his girlfriend and realized her safety was more important. Alfredo had to be dying. The shot he had taken was right below the heart. Surely he’d die.
Cal and Fonzie walked over to Maria. Her body was cold and shaking, but she was alive. Fonzie put his jacket around her and pressed the material against her back.
Seeing the only person he’d ever truly loved in pain crushed Cal. Tears of fear and guilt stung his eyes. It was all his fault. If he’d done the proper thing and kept the weapon in his hand, Maria wouldn’t be fighting for her life.
“Baby, I’m so sorry, I never should have put that weapon down. We’re gonna get you out of here, okay?”
Maria whimpered while gazing into Cal’s eyes. Cal wished he’d been the one Alfredo had shot at. It was exactly in Alfredo’s nature to leave someone in complete misery, even if he couldn’t control the outcome from beyond the grave.
“Cal, I can’t feel anything. I’m not in pain, but I can’t feel anything.”
53
Fonzie sped away from the warehouse, exceeding the speed limit by a good fifteen miles an hour, until they were a safe distance away. He said nothing about heading for the hospital, but Cal assumed that’s where he was headed.
Their escape from the warehouse was even more dangerous than Cal’s entry into the facility. They were greeted by a swarm of freshly arrived mafia soldiers, each one vying to make the kill that would make them a made man. For they knew if they managed to kill Cal when even Alfredo and Vinnie couldn’t, they’d be seen as the next big thing by the higher-ups. That was something worth putting your life on the line for.
One Last Kill Page 26