by Anna Widzisz
The girl looked uncertainly at him and then at the gun. It was much different than just learning about shooting. To stand in front of the target, with a real weapon and be expected to put a bullet into the target was a scary thing.
She closed one eye, focusing and breathing deeply and quickly. Her heart began to beat a little harder as if it was warning her that she shouldn’t do it. She decided, however, to ignore this unpleasant feeling by firing several shots in a row.
“Are you sure you’ve never used a weapon?” Asked Jason after the round of shots. He went to the target, picked up the piece of paper, and then pulled it out so that the girl could see. There was only one hole which confused her. “All your shots went through the same point. That is why there is no trace of them but this one,” he explained.
“That’s not possible, Jason.”
He chuckled. “I know, I was kidding. Only one shot was accurate. Or should I say was fairly accurate.” The hole was in the bottom of the paper, close to the edge. “You focus too much on the goal rather than your actions. If you don’t pay attention to the way you do things, you won’t accomplish exactly what you want.”
It was said in regards to shooting, but Lynette wondered if it could have a deeper meaning.
§ § §
They finished training only in the late afternoon. Jason was surprised by how well the girl was picking up. It was true that she knew weapons better than firing them, however, when they moved to try out the knives, it went well. He taught her how to throw them, which came to her with such ease as if she’d been practicing for years. Pride was flowing out of her. It gave her some kind of peace of mind.
Lynette got into the car, waiting for Carnovale to get everything together so that they could return to Seattle. Her father had called for them, wanting to talk. She pulled the phone from her jacket, taking it off silent mode. She had several missed calls from Severo and a new message.
From D: Why aren’t you at school? Did something happen? Please call me back when you have time. I'm worried.
She smiled slightly, noting the boy's concern for her. At the moment she was about to answer him, she got a second message.
From unknown: Look at that! You like playing with such things? A gun is not a toy, doll.
Looking up, she scanned the area. At the edge of the forest, she saw a figure whose face was covered with the Joker's black and white mask. Judging by the posture, it was definitely a man. He was looking straight at her. He lifted his phone up, letting her know that the message had come from him. Lynette instinctively got out of the vehicle, running a few meters towards the forest, but she couldn't see the mysterious form anywhere. She shook her head, wondering if she'd imagined it or if it had really happened, growing more and more convinced that she was going crazy.
Santa Marta, Colombia 2011
The abandoned hotel in the suburbs of the city was the perfect place when you didn’t want uninvited guests. Such buildings could easily be the main area to do business in. Far from curious eyes, right under governments nose as they belonged to them most of the time. And this was exactly why Severo Selvaggio travelled all the way to Colombia and chose this hotel for a meeting.
Not long ago, Capo used to negotiate with his old friend Aggeo Binenti business deals where drug deliveries were concerned. The man had three cartels under his wings and distributed the goods very successfully to Sicily and later to the United States as well. Severo trusted him completely. However, after killing Mailo Venas and his whole family, he had to be certain that whoever had been associated with the traitor, wasn’t out for the revenge.
Aggeo was a good friend of Venas and as time passed by, he became less and less careful who he was talking to. The man was expressing his thoughts out loud, but still kept on shipping the drugs to Seattle as if nothing was wrong. Today this was supposed to change.
Two cars parked in the underground parking place and Aggeo got out with his seven soldiers, all armed to the teeth. Selvaggio was no different. He had his two enforcers and four other soldiers. Jason among them. Best of the best. No one would stand a chance because the meeting was organized out of the blue, so Aggeo had no time to put snipers in place. The men regarded Severo and his people, trying to come to some kind of conclusion as to what this was all about. Only Benenti seemed to be calm and familiar with the reason why Seattle Famiglia’s Capo flew all the way to South America.
”Welcome to my beautiful city, Severo.” Said Aggeo, smiling widely. He was playing nice, as always. Thinking back, Selvaggio could never see him anything but happy and cheerful. Optimistic.
Capo was nowhere near as excited to be so far away from home. But this task was something he couldn’t delegate to anyone. It needed to be taken care of in person. ”I’m not sure you have a reason to be so welcoming toward me, old friend.” He insisted.
”I know why you’re here. Despite that I am happy to see you, simply because whatever you think you know is false.”
”Is that so?” Asked Severo, raising his eyebrow. ”So you’re not conspiring against me on Mailo Venas’ behalf?”
Aggeo shook his head. ”I would never do that. You had your reasons for doing what you did. Who am I to question them?”
Benenti’s expression didn’t change. He spoke with confidence and restraint. His eyes settled on the Capo and didn’t move an inch. Whether he was such a good liar or telling the truth, that could be debatable at this point. Many people would back out with the accusations.
Severo stepped closer to the man. Aggeo’s men put their hands on the guns but as they were ready to withdraw them, their boss raised his hand, stopping them. If they opened fire, this meeting could only end with a massacre and many victims on both sides.
”Jason,” said Selvaggio, extending his palm towards the soldier. Carnovale gave the cartel boss iPad. There were photos of a few men displayed. However, Aggeo was more interested in seeing Jason on such a mission. He was too young to be entrusted with keeping his Capo safe. Then he turned his head to look at the screen at last.
”Care to share what you are showing me, Severo?”
”Those men accused you of reveling your true thoughts to them.” Selvaggio explained.
”If that was true, my friend, you would have already killed me the minute I got out of the car.” Aggeo said. He gave the device back to the soldier. ”And it won’t be true because I have never said anything of such kind to any of them. You know me, I don’t mix friendship with business. There’s time for both on different occasions. Here I am standing before you and telling you, friend to friend, I would never betray you for Mailo Venas. He was a far cry from being a saint and isn’t worth dying for.”
Capo nodded, taking in everything Aggeo had said. ”I hope you’re telling the truth because I remind you that some of your family lives in Seattle. Your younger sister with her husband and their son David, isn’t it?” He said. A threat was as clear as day. ”I need you to swear loyalty to me.”
The man didn’t think long. He took his holster and lay it on the floor between him and Severo. Then kneeled, lowering his head.
”With the blood on my hands and the loyalty in my heart, I swear to always put the interest of The Seattle Famiglia above all. With a sin in my veins and and the truth in my mind I pledge my life to you, now and forever.”
Those were the usual omertà vows but slightly transformed to work with who Aggeo was and what place he had with the Famiglia. With this there should be no doubt as to where the man’s loyalty laid.
Severo seemed satisfied. He exchanged a few more words with the boss and they parted ways in a friendly manner. As they got into the car and drove away, Capo started laughing loudly. It was bitter and fake. After a minute he stopped and with all the hatred and anger, he hissed.
”Kill that figlio di puttana.”
CHAPTER 18
Lynette
She stared at the phone’s screen with such intensity that it could burn a hole through the device. Not sure where she was exact
ly or what was happening around her. Only when passing through the pedestrian crossing did she hear the car's honk, making her jump, phone falling out of her hand. She felt the wind on her face as the vehicle drove by right in front of her and the driver sneered some unpleasant words to her. She let out a breath without even realizing she had been holding it. Stepping back to the curb and lifting the cell from the ground, the message was still highlighted.
From D: Are you okay? Why aren’t you answering? I heard about the accusation. Can you meet tonight at the lake?
Drew didn’t give up. He’d tried to contact her all the time, and in spite of that, she rejected the calls one by one. She had mixed feelings about the boy as there was nothing easier than being around him. The way he carried himself, without giving a damn. As if he didn’t care what people said or thought. He had his own opinions and stuck to them. Still, everyone liked him; the boys wanted to be him and the girls wanted to be with him. It was clear each day that Lynette saw him in school. As much as she wanted to admit that she was different, it wasn’t true. In the eyes of others, she was a villain. While people ran towards Drew, they ran away from Lynette. And with the number of times that she’d rejected him, he shouldn’t be coming back time and time again for more.
But he did.
Lynette wanted to deserve him more than anything. However, her family came first and his safety second. At this time, those two things converged, so there was no doubt about what she needed to do. Even though she wished there was a different way.
She couldn’t afford to follow her heart. Her mind was telling her what she should truly do. Which was right. And even if Drew got under her skin so deeply that she wasn’t sure about her reaction, she had to try to do the right thing.
In front of her, there was Ryder’s house. It had not been that difficult to find his address as soon as she managed to use Diego’s laptop. He dealt with some of the IT parts of the business; searching for information that could be useful to Severo, but luckily, he’d left his possession unattended for a few minutes, giving Lynette a small window of opportunity.
And it was even simpler to persuade Ricci to drive her to the library, where she supposedly planned to spend the rest of the day studying. She knew that the man had a lot of work, so he would leave her there and pick her up later. And Severo thought it would be a much better idea for her to be away from home in case the police wanted to come knocking on their door.
Everyone realized that it was only a matter of time. Even if they didn’t officially arrest her, prosecuting for murder, they would want to talk to her again. Lynette was just wondering whether it would be the police or the FBI.
Mark Ryder wouldn’t give up and she’d unintentionally pulled his son into this whole mess. It was an explosive connection that shouldn’t have ever occurred. Ever. If she had been the parent, she wouldn’t have allowed her child to approach a person like her. No matter if the rumors had been proven or not. Gossip seemed to follow her, and it usually didn’t if you were a good, honest and uncomplicated person. Lynette could be a good person in the depths of her heart, but her life was nothing short of being good. She was certain that she would be going to hell according to every religion that existed.
In the driveway, she noticed only Drew’s Cadillac. She hoped he was alone and probably should’ve made sure of it first before knocking at the door.
Well, that didn’t happen.
After a few moments, she heard murmurs inside, crushing her hope for a face to face conversion without being seen. Turning on her heels, with the intention of leaving the house quickly, she wasn’t given the chance to reach the gate before hearing Drew’s voice. She paused and looked over her shoulder, noticing him, followed by Isaac. Both were staring with obvious surprise. They weren’t expecting her there. Hell, Lynette herself hadn’t expected to come there.
“Is everything all right?” Ryder asked.
It seemed like a usual sentence that he’d got used to saying to her. It would be annoying if not coming from a place of care. He knew her well enough to be sure that the girl would never show up at his house without a reason.
“Yes. I came to tell you that you cannot contact me anymore.” She swallowed the words she really wanted to say more than anything. It wasn’t the time to act on her feelings.
Drew looked as if he’d expected it. After all, as much as he always made sure she was okay, the girl was used to pulling away from him. Nothing had changed. “Lynette, you're doing it again. You're pushing me away, completely unnecessarily.”
He walked up to her, not worried about the fact that he didn’t even have his shoes on. He looked at her in the same way as during their last meeting at the lake, which made the girl doubt her decision.
She’d known it would be so.
Biting her lip, she tried to stop the words that would refute all she’d said before and which were heavily hanging off her tongue. She could not afford a moment of weakness, because moments like those seemed to have gotten her into this mess in the first place.
Drew saw that she didn’t mean it.
“You should have understood how bad it is by now. Damn it, Drew. Your father is involved in the investigation and you're completely unmoved by it,” she snarled as soon as Isaac decided to leave them and entered the house, closing the door behind him.
“He wants to help you. Same as me,” he said, stepping closer to her and leaving little space between them. He raised his hand slowly, placing it gently on her cheek. His thumb slid lightly over her lips, but his eyes were still fixed on hers.
“I shouldn’t be here,” she whispered, moving away from the boy.
She risked coming here as the police could be watching this house. Or her.
“Lynette, this is the only place you should be now. I am here,” he whispered. “You can talk to me or not, but I am here.”
The sense of belonging overcame her and she found herself believing his words. She even opened her mouth to confirm it. Until the car approached the house and stopped just in front of the gate. There was no need for her to look its way. The roar of the engine was all too familiar.
Lynette immediately jumped back as if burned. The car’s door opened and Noah got out. He was dressed in a suit like he was coming straight from a business meeting. However, that wasn’t the thing that captured her attention but his stone-cold face. It was almost too calm. He was standing next to his Maserati, staring at the girl as if waiting for her to come up to him.
As she should.
Lynette knew that she had to do it. She was about to turn around and get into her fiancé's car before he decided to force her himself. And he wouldn’t miss the opportunity to threaten Ryder or worse.
“Today, Lynette,” she heard his rough voice.
She went to the car, trying with all of her strength not to look back at Drew. He must have been very confused about it, and the only thing he knew about Noah was that the girl was afraid of him. He wouldn’t leave it be, although Lynette wanted to be wrong about her assumption.
“Get in,” Falcone muttered, not even glancing at her this time. His attention was drawn to Drew.
“Per favore," she began but didn’t want to give him any ideas about what he could do to Ryder. But at the same time, she hoped that her incomplete plea would have some impact on her fiancé.
Noah said nothing. He opened the passenger side door as to rush her, being clearly on the verge of losing whatever remained of his patience. Lynette didn’t have to read his mind to realize it.
“Lynette, you don’t have to do what he tells you,” she heard Drew, as the boy walked toward them, beyond his property.
Come back home.
She shook her head slightly, trying to make the boy understand that he mustn’t intervene. He did not realize who Noah was. How could he when he didn’t believe that she was a part of mafia? He was so blindly staring at one side of the situation that he completely ignored the other.
“Ora,” Noah thundered, making the girl jump at
the sound of his voice. He was an alpha male at the moment and she would do well not to try and test him now.
“Lyn,”
Ryder's pleading voice spread across the distance.
“Drew, no.”
It stopped the boy from taking another step towards her. Noah put his hand on the girl's hip, pushing her toward the seat. This time she let him do it without resistance. She got into the vehicle looking down. She wasn’t ready to see Drew's wounded expression. It was something that she wouldn’t survive.
The door slammed shut behind her rather loudly. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Isaac coming out of the house, worried that his friend hadn’t come back yet. Lynette could only hope that he would stop Drew if he wanted to contact her again after today.
Noah surprisingly walked around the car and sat behind the wheel without a word. There was no confrontation.
The tense atmosphere was so tangible that it terrified Lynette even more than the mere presence of her fiancé. They drove in complete silence, even though the girl could have sworn that her heart was beating so fast that it could be heard. She didn’t know what to think. Any word that came out of her mouth would worsen her already hopeless situation.
She’d been caught escaping by Noah yet again. However, now she’d been found in front of a boy's house, which might as well be treated as treason in the mafia world. Was Falcone taking her to her father to get justice? Or maybe he thought he had the right to bring justice himself? She couldn’t deny that such a possibility existed.
Her eyes went to the man's hands. One was clamped on the gearbox and the other on the steering wheel. Both almost white from the pressure. He was trying to stay in control if his eyes were any indication.
“You forced me to postpone a business meeting,” he finally said stopping at the traffic lights. “You know how that looks like?”