Page 8 of Runaway Queen

dutiful daughter and beloved sister.

May she find the peace that eluded her in life, in death.

“Dutiful daughter?”I snorted into the still air. “Fuck you, Tony. I’ll get you for that.”

I backed onto a bench, positioned to look at the boring patch of ground that now held my little swallow’s cage. A prison she’d never escape. A bird flew from the underbrush right then, and I gazed upward, following its flight. Maybe I had it all wrong. Maybe in death, she’d escaped. Maybe she’d finally flown far, far away.

“I’m sorry he buried you here. You’d hate it.” I looked around the place. There wouldn’t even be a good view of the stars with all the trees overhanging her grave.

“They didn’t let me come to the funeral. We weren’t family, well, not in the way the penal system can understand.” I opened my palm and stared down at the S carved into my skin. It was a light scar now, silvery, but still there. If it ever disappeared, I’d cut it back in.

I eased a hand over my shaved head, the stubble bristling against my palm.

“I’ll be visiting your father soon. I hope you can forgive me for the things I’m going to do to him, but even if you wouldn’t, that won’t stop me. I’ll ask for your forgiveness, instead of your permission, prom queen, when I see you again.” I stood then, feeling cold through and through. “In the next life, or the one after. I’m a man of my word, after all, and I promised you I’d always find you. Wait for me.”

I pushed myself to my feet. The chaos inside my chest was screaming at me, louder than ever. It hurt. It really fucking hurt.

“First,lastochka, since I know how much you’d hate it here, I brought a little ‘fuck you’ to your father, so he understands that I’m coming for him. Nothing is better torture than fear, and I want him to be afraid. I want him to understand that his end is near. I’ll see you soon.”

Turning from the silent grave, I looped around the other De Sanctis family plots and found the small church on the grounds and went inside. It was reserved for the De Sanctis family alone, a place where Antonio could come and not worry about getting shot, apparently. It seemed he didn’t come too often, as I hadn’t seen more security than CCTV cameras. Antonio had always been sloppy, and now he’d only gotten worse. It’d would only make terrorizing and killing him easier.

There were a few chairs for prayer, an altar with flowers on it, and not much else. The chairs were padded and opulent-looking. Even when praying, Antonio thought a lot of himself. I couldn’t wait to teach the arrogant bastard the ultimate lesson.

I uncapped the gas can I’d brought with me and poured it liberally over Antonio’s chair. I could tell exactly which one it was, since it was the most obnoxious. I was surprised he hadn’t had it bedazzled with his initials or something equally tasteless.

When I flicked the lit match at it, it went up in a whoosh, and I enjoyed the sight.

I watched it burn, the air growing thick inside the incense-scented room, before leaving.

Soon, De Sanctis, I’ll be doing the same to you.

I strode from the graveyard, with only more darkness dawning inside me. I’d thought I’d feel closer to her there, but I didn’t.

There was no hint of Sofia in that dreary place. Bones and decomposing flesh wasn’t people, and mylastochkahad been in the ground long enough to be both.

She wasn’t here. Not even a trace remained.

She was gone.

4

NIKOLAI

“Please, don’t… don’t!”

The sound of the gunshot echoed around the warehouse, accompanied by laughter.

Mine.

“I asked you for Antonio’s routine… his death is on you.” I crouched before the man I had tied up.

He was sweating bullets, and his eyes were bulging out of his ratty face with fear.

I had three men tied up total. One had just died, and two were left. The one I was focused on was the one before me, the dirty accountant who scrubbed the De Sanctis family books. He was a man of power in the family and the first one I’d gotten my hands on. In terms of underling men, I had to be closing on nearly fifteen deaths so far. They made it too damn easy. One week after I’d gotten out of jail and I was really finding my rhythm.

The man beside the accountant grunted.

I turned to him, lowering his gag for a second. “Yes?”