Page 324 of The Devil's Fire

As soon as the firearms hit the ground, my men shot them, and their bodies dropped lifelessly to the ground one by one. I released my hold on Maximo and pushed him away, making him stumble forward as I aimed my own gun at him.

“Wait, you said -”

I didn’t let him finish and shot him in the head.

“I let you go, didn’t I?” I scoffed at his dead body.

A weeping sound caught my attention, and I spotted Miciela hiding behind the car. Stepping closer, I took a good look at her. She really got messed up good.

I shook my head in disapproval at Maximo for not getting her medical attention immediately. Instead, the son of a bitch brought her with him.

Miciela tried to crawl away from me but slumped to the ground due to her injuries. To my left, my mother came to stand next to me.

“You’re fortunate I taught my son never to harm a woman.” My mother remarked, taking the gun from my hand, which made Miciela cry out loudly. Without saying a word, my mother pulled the trigger and shot her in the head.

I arched a brow at my mother as she handed back my gun.

“No one hurts my children.” My mother gave my cheek a light pat before returning to the car. Her words brought a slight smile to my face as I followed her.

“Have someone clean up this mess.” I instructed Antonio. The once black street was now drenched in blood and scattered with dead bodies. “And find Sofia. I’m putting an end to her for good this time.” I firmly ordered before getting into the car, desperate to see my wife.

one hundred two

Damiano

I walked quickly through the house until I heard muffled voices coming from the den. The door was already slightly open, and I saw Althaia sitting on the couch with a doctor attending to her hand. Her gaze was on the floor; her usually bright green eyes seemed dull, and her expression was blank.

Stepping inside, her head snapped in my direction. I watched her take a sharp breath, ignoring the doctor as she walked quickly toward me. I immediately wrapped my arms around her, holding her close to my chest, and felt the tension slowly melt away.

Leaning slightly back, I placed my hands on her cheek, examining her face to see if she was hurt anywhere else.

“Damiano, I’m sorry. I didn’t -”

“Shh, baby.” I gently shook my head as I saw her eyes glisten with unshed tears. “Don’t apologize for anything.” I reassured her softly.

“Are you hurt anywhere else?” I gently took hold of her hand. She had a few pieces of glass stuck to her hand, and she had several deep cuts, but nothing that would need stitches. I took a deep breath to keep my composure in front of her. She was in a vulnerable state, and I didn’t want to add to it.

“No, I just cut my hand, but Gio got hurt. He was bleeding!” Althaia, despite her injuries, looked at me with concern for Giovanni’s well-being.

“It was just a flesh wound. No need to cry about it.” Giovanni’s voice sounded from the door. He walked to us, showing he was okay with his bandaged arm. “You’re lucky it hit me, or you would have gotten a pretty nasty scar. And your husband would have detached my head from my body.” He crossed his arms with an amused look.

“But you got hurt because of me!” Althaia’s voice was laced with guilt.

“It’s my job to keep you safe. As if I would let them hurt you.” He tsked but let out a small smile. She looked a bit hesitant when she glanced at his arm.

“Is that you admitting you care about me?”

“Woman, didn’t I just prove I would take a bullet for you? Do you need me to spell it out for you?” Giovanni scowled.

“Yes.” She said immediately and he let out a sigh.

“Fine. Yes, I do care about you. I don’t know why, but there’s just something about you that makes me care for you. Happy?” He shot her a blank look. She took him by surprise when she suddenly embraced him.

“Very happy. I know it’s your job to protect me if anything were to happen, but now I know you don’t hate me.” Althaia told him, and he looked taken aback by her words before he lightly patted the top of her head.

“I don’t hate you… I’m just Uncle Grumpy.”

“You are.” Althaia chuckled, looking relieved by his words.

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