chiara
I walked out of the restaurant, my hair basically matted to my head, my dress soaked all the way through. I needed a damn shower after Alessandro and his little stunt. Sure, I was the one who had started it, but he hadn’t had to be the one to end it. That was my job.
My phone buzzed with a text from an unknown number.
Unknown: 5th Ave and 40th. 1:30.
I checked the clock, gazing at the bright white numbers that read 11:21 p.m. I had enough time to shower and drive there without Tommy noticing. Since he was out on actual business tonight, I was hoping that he would be gone all night long.
The elevator doors began closing ahead of me.
I jogged to it. “Hold the elevator!”
Before it could close completely, I snuck my hand through, and the doors reopened. I stepped in, saw Alessandro, and immediately wanted to walk back out.
I pulled my purse higher up my shoulder and waited for the elevator to open on the ground level. Alessandro followed me out. Conveniently, he had parked right across from me.
“Good night, reginet—”
“Fuck you, stronzo.”
He suddenly stopped and grabbed my hand.
I yanked my hand away from his. “What do you think you—”
Three gunshots rang out through the night. He ducked behind my car, pulling me with him.
“Fuck.” He shook his head and pulled a gun from the waistband of his pants. “Stay here.”
He looked through the car windows for a moment, then stood. He pointed the gun toward his car and pulled the trigger, then pulled it twice more in different directions. A window shattered, its glass falling onto the ground.
I gazed under the car, seeing feet walking toward us from the left. Alessandro walked out from behind the car. My heart thumped against my chest. I had only been in a shoot-out once before. The night Mom had died.
And no matter how much I hated Alessandro, I couldn’t let him die like Mom had.
I unzipped my purse and grabbed my gun. Besides, no way I was going to let him have all the glory and treat me like I could do nothing.
From beneath the car, I aimed my gun at the man’s kneecap and shot, making him collapse to the ground. I hopped up and watched Alessandro walk to the man, press his shoe into the man’s hand, and shoot him straight in the head.
Alessandro looked back at me, jaw clenched. “I told you to stay there.”
I crossed my arms over my chest and walked over to him. “I saved your ass. A simple thank you would do.”
Alessandro put the gun back into the waistband of his pants.
“Who is he?” I asked, bending down to pull the man’s wallet or phone out of his pocket.
Alessandro grabbed my arm and pulled me quite harshly away from the man. “Nobody you need to worry about.”
“Well, he shot at us, so, yes, I think I need to worry about him.”
He shook his head, his face becoming paler. “Leave it alone. It’s too risky for you. I told you, you’ll just fuck things up for me.” He dragged me to my car and opened the door. “Get in.”
The light from inside the car flooded out. His baby-blue shirt was stained red with blood near his hip bone. He covered it with his arm, hiding it from me.
I knotted my brows. “You’re shot.”
“No shit. Now, get in the car and leave.”
He continued to stand by the car, one hand on the top of the door, the other clenched like he was trying hard not to show any emotion.
Men. Always had to be so prideful. It would kill them one day. Natural selection at its finest.
I could leave him in the parking lot, bleeding out, but I needed him alive. He was going to give me a second chance, whether I had to force him to or not.
“I can help you,” I said, gazing at the wound.
“I don’t need your help.”
“I know someone who can take the bullet out.”
“I can take it out myself.”
I clenched my jaw and dug my finger into his side, close to his wound. “Get in the damn car, Alessandro.”
He winced as my finger dug into him deeper, threatening to hurt him. “You’re fucking crazy.”
I pushed him to the passenger side, then slammed the door in his face. I hopped into the car and sped out of the lot, dialing Ray’s number.
“Meet me at my place now. Bring something to remove a bullet.”
“Chiara, are you ok—”
“Just do it.”
I ended the call and focused on finding the quickest route back to my apartment. As I took a turn onto Fifth, a car sped out of a side street and began tailing me. He drove closer and closer, his high beams shining brightly into my car.
“Qual è il loro fottuto problema?” Alessandro shook his head and removed his gun from his waistband again. “Step on it.”
I pressed my foot to the floor, and we sped down Fifth Avenue, running red lights and skirting around bends. Someone began to shoot at us. The back windshield broke, the glass littering the floor.
“Vai! Vai!” Alessandro shouted, pointing ahead, like I already wasn’t hitting one hundred miles per hour.
“Will you please tell me who the hell these guys are?”
Alessandro reloaded his gun, opened the window, and stuck one hand out of the car. “Sicilian Mafia. Is reginetta happy now?”
He shot twice, and the car swerved.
“Fuck me. This is not how I wanted tonight to go.”
“Then, drive!”
I stepped on the gas, pressing it down as far as it would go. I couldn’t lose them, no matter how many turns I took or how fast this car drove. They were on my ass, and they weren’t leaving.
There was one way I knew I would be able to get rid of them. I slammed on the brakes, made a quick U-turn around a bend, and drove as fast as I could to the dock that Alessandro had made me wait at yesterday.
I continued to speed as Alessandro shot at the men behind us. The car swerved into a building, the airbags blowing up. I sighed in relief, stupidly thinking that we had lost them, when another car pulled up behind me.
Alessandro swore under his breath and pulled himself back into the car, reloading his gun. “I hope you know where you’re going.”
I had the urge to say something rude to him, but I shut my mouth and focused on getting to the dock.
When we finally approached it, I pulled off the side of the road, steering straight for the water.
The car behind us followed, and I called to Alessandro, “Shoot out his left tire when I tell you to.”
“What?”
I pushed down on the gas. “Just do it! Now!”
He shot all seventeen bullets into the front tire of the car behind us as we approached the edge of the dock. I slammed on my brakes, and their car pulled to the left at full speed and drove right into the water.
My heart raced as I put the car in reverse and backed out onto the road. Alessandro rolled his window up and leaned against the seat, clutching his stomach.
Then, I drove to my apartment with a broken back windshield and bullet holes covering my car.