Page 43 of Reign of Fate
Through the darkness, we see Leno’s car, barely visible outside the gate. He must have just arrived. I see him scaling the high iron gate to get over to the other side. We never kept the security team on the house and find it strange that there’s a padlock on the gate.
By this time, Leno is up and over and trying to open the gate for us. “Back away,” I say, aiming my gun at the lock to shoot it off.
“He’ll hear,” Aris says, pushing my gun aside. He quickly takes a run at the fence and makes it to the other side. We follow his lead, me being the next one over. I hit the ground with a thud.
We’re in!
ELISA
Ruggero’s gone mad. I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me when I saw him standing behind me through the mirror of the ladies’ room. I didn’t even have time to scream. He pounced so quickly and suddenly, I had a knife to my throat before I could react. He told me that if I didn’t do as he said, he would have his men kill Adriana. Ruggero is wild-eyed and dangerous. He could be lying, but I couldn’t take that chance.
In the scuffle, my beautiful beaded purse was ripped out of my hand. He rummaged through it to find my phone. It was already in my hand, and when I saw what he was looking for, I hid it behind my back. I was relieved that he assumed I didn’t bring it with me and was careful to keep it concealed through the dark ride in the car. I hit whichever button I could, hoping to connect with anyone I had on speed dial, praying they would be able to find me. I spoke loudly to Ruggero to mask the response of whoever might try to talk to me on the other side.
“What do you want with me? Why are you doing this?” I shouted. That earned me a backhanded slap that made my teeth rattle and the side of my face sting. I could taste a trickle of blood from the corner of my mouth.
“Quiet!” Ruggero yelled like a madman. “Or I’ll kill you right here.”
I knew he wouldn’t, but I wasn’t looking for another slap in the mouth. He wouldn’t have taken me this far if he only wanted to kill me. He’s after something.
When we pull up at my old house, it dawns on me that this is about Guido. Ruggero was adamant about going through all of Guido’s belongings personally. If it weren’t for Ivo being there that day Ruggero came to call, I’m sure he would have pushed his way past me and into Guido’s room.
“Leave this car, and I swear you’ll regret it,” Ruggero warns. I have no doubt he means it, but I look around anyway, wondering if I can get as far as the treeline in these heels or even barefoot. My best chance is to get in the house and see if I can bolt into the basement and lock myself in. The cell phone has terrible reception in the basement, but it might be worth a try. With any luck, help will arrive before Ruggero can get through the steel door. Ruggero returns and drives the rest of the way to the front of the house and proceeds to drag me to Guido’s office.
He tosses me toward the sofa. It jars the phone loose from my sleeve. I shove it between the cushions before he notices, praying that it’s still on. Ruggero paces the room like a caged animal. He knows there’s no turning back, and when an animal is cornered, it can turn vicious. Ivo will hunt him down and kill him for betrayingUltimo Morteif he’s found,and he’ll be on the run from now on, should he manage to escape this mess.
“I didn’t want to have to do it this way,” he babbles. “I need those USB keys. Guido found out and managed to get a hold of the information. I still can’t figure out how he did that. He’s been holding them over my head. He threatened to expose me to Raffaele after finding out I was taking money. But I needed it. I didn’t have a choice. You knew him better than anyone. Where did he put them?” Ruggero stalks toward me to point his gun at my temple.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. What USB keys?” I ask. My heart is pounding so fast, I’m sure it’s going to explode. I’m going to die, right here in this very room. I’ll never get to hold Adriana again. I’ll never be able to tell Ivo how much I love him. I should have told him. It wouldn’t matter if he returned my feelings for him; my loving him was enough.
“Don’t fuck with me, Elisa. You’re the only one Guido trusted, and he has the information I need to keep Raffaele from finding out. This is Guido’s fault too. I begged him for money, and he refused me. I had no choice. Don’t make me hurt you.”
Whether I tell him the USB keys have already been found or not, I’ll end up dead. There’s no way I’m going to betray Ivo.
“I wish I knew, but I don’t.” Ruggero pulls back his arm and smacks me across the temple with his gun. I cry out in pain as my head whips to the side and hits the arm of the sofa. The ringing in my ears makes it hard to concentrate on what Ruggero is shouting. I try to push myself up, but before I do, his huge hands grab my arms and pull me up from the sofa. He tosses me across the room onto the floor. Then all I feel is the crunch of his boot stepping on my hand and several quick kicks to my ribs.
When he finally stops, he bends to grab me by my hair, forcing me to look at him, although I’m so rattled, I can’t focus. Everything is blurry.
“Not so pretty now, are you?” he sneers.
I hurt so much. The pain is so deep. I can’t let him win. I may not have much fight left in me, but I won’t let him win. I do the only thing I can think of and sink my teeth into his arm, and, with as much might as I can muster, I punch him in the groin.
He lets go, and I see my chance, my only chance. I scramble to my feet and hobble to the door of the basement, where I rip it open. The gun goes off, and a searing pain rips through my leg. I keep going, manage to slide the lock closed, then crumple to the floor into a sweet, painless abyss.
FIFTEEN
Love You Too
IVO
I hear the shots inside the house. Nothing else matters but getting to Elisa. While Leno and Massimo took the front of the house, Raffaele, Aris, and I moved to the back. Even though the curtains are drawn, there’s a slit that reveals Ruggero getting to his feet, cupping his private parts, and staggering down the hallway. I can hear him slamming into a door and swearing profusely.
I grab a large rock from the garden and slam it through the window of the French door, then stick my hand through it to open and unlatch the lock. Ruggero hears the noise and starts shooting. Raffaele shoves me to the side and gets off a shot of his own. Just then, Massimo rushes into the room and sees Ruggero taking aim and fires a shot. The bullet hits Ruggero’s hand, and he drops his gun. He lunges for his fallen pistol, but Leno is on him fast and pounds his fist into his face.
All I want to do is find Elisa. I call out her name and run in the same direction that Ruggero emerged from.
“Elisa, baby! Elisa! Elisa!”
I wrench open the first two doors but find no sign of Elisa. I yank at the third door to find it locked. I rattle the knob, stopping when I hear Elisa’s soft voice.
