Chapter 7 - The ChoiceThe heavy metal of the automatic pistol felt cold and impossibly heavy in my hand.
I looked down at Carmine Moretti, the man who had ordered the explosion that destroyed my teenage years, who had forced me to abandon my real name, live in hiding, and wash dishes in grease-stained aprons just to survive.
He looked back at me, his eyes filled with fear now. The arrogant mafia Don was gone, replaced by a terrified old man facing the barrel of a gun.
"Do it, Elizabeth," Victoria shrieked from the corner, tears streaming down her face. "Kill him! He ruined everything! He ruined my life!"
Alessandro stood behind me, his hand resting gently on my shoulder, a solid rock in the middle of a storm. "Whatever you choose, Elizabeth, I am with you."
My finger rested against the cold curved trigger. All I had to do was squeeze. One inch of pressure, and six years of nightmare would be over.
My father’s voice echoed in my mind. "Elizabeth, law and truth are the only things that separate us from the animals in the dark."
My father hadn't died so I could become a murderer. He had died trying to put these monsters behind bars using the law.
I slowly lowered the gun and handed it back to Alessandro.
"No," I said, my voice strong, echoing across the silent penthouse. "Death is too quick for him. Let him rot in a six-by-eight cell for the rest of his life. Let him watch from behind bulletproof glass as the Vitali family takes everything he ever built."
Alessandro stared at me, his amber eyes shimmering with a profound, terrifying respect. A faint smile touched his lips.
"As you wish, my queen," Alessandro whispered.
He turned to his head of security. "Call the federal marshals. Tell them we have a present for them in the penthouse of the Obsidian Hotel."
"Alessandro, wait!" Victoria screamed, running forward, reaching into her jacket. "If he goes down, you go down!"
She pulled a small silver snub-nosed revolver from her pocket, aiming it straight at my chest.
"Victoria, NO!" Alessandro roared.
BANG!
A shot echoed through the penthouse.
I closed my eyes, braced for the burning pain of a bullet. But it didn't come.
Instead, a heavy weight collapsed against me. I snapped my eyes open just in time to see Alessandro fall to his knees, his hands clutching his abdomen, dark crimson blood rapidly soaking through his white dress shirt.
Behind Victoria, Marco had already fired his weapon. Victoria dropped to the floor, her revolver sliding across the polished floorboards as she collapsed, motionless.
"ALESSANDRO!" I shrieked, dropping to my knees beside him, catching his upper body before he hit the ground.
"Elizabeth..." he gasped, his teeth stained red as blood began to spill from his mouth.
"No, no, no! Stay with me!" I yelled, my nurse's instincts kicking in amidst the blinding panic. I placed both of my hands over his abdominal wound, pressing down with all my strength to stem the spurting artery. "Marco, call an ambulance! NOW!"
"It's... it's fine, mia cara," Alessandro whispered, his voice growing weak, his amber eyes losing their fire as he looked up at me. His blood-soaked hand reached up, gently touching my cheek. "The baby... is the baby okay?"
"The baby is fine! You're going to be fine!" tears flooded my eyes, blurring my vision as I pressed harder on his wound, feeling the warm, sticky life fluid of the mob boss pouring over my fingers. "Don't you dare die on me, Alessandro Vitali! You brought me into this hell, you don't get to leave me alone!"
"I... I loved you..." he breathed out, his hand slipping from my cheek, hitting the bloody carpet. "Since the... night... you tripped..."
May you like
His eyes rolled back, and his body went completely limp in my arms.
"ALESSANDRO!"
