Page 10 of My Sweetest Temptation

“We get rid of them,” the leader replied.

Without warning, the front door swung open, slamming against the wall. “Police! Freeze! Put your hands up where I can see them!” a man shouted.

“Drop it! Drop the weapon!” a female officer commanded.

The tension in my gut tightened as the man slowly stepped out of the closet and calmly turned around to face the officers. The police officer screamed, followed by the sound of furniture crashing to the ground. I could hear the police officer’s grunts and the clatter of objects being thrown around.

“Get off me!” the woman yelled.

“No, no, no, no!” the man pleaded.

I wanted to help them, but all I could do was listen to the chaos unfolding, feeling helpless while Uncle Malik kept his hold on me.

“Stronzo!” the other man erupted in rage. “You fucking bitch!” He spat out some words in Italian, his voice thick with anger, and then...

Silence.

“Let’s go, Vito!” the first man urged.

“What about the daughter?” Vito shot back. He returned his gaze to the mirror, as though he suspected there might be something behind it.

“We still don’t know if she’s here or not.”

“Forget the damn kid!” the first man snapped. “Let’s burn this fucker down and get the hell out of here. We’ve drawn too much attention already.”

“The boss ain’t going to like us coming back without her.”

The other man muttered something under his breath in Italian, the words laced with bitterness. “Not our fucking problem. If he wants the bitch so bad, he can come find her himself. Let’s go before even more cops come.”

The monster stepped out of the closet, slamming the door shut behind him. Their retreating footsteps were a small relief. A few minutes later, I realized the danger was far from over when smoke began to fill the small space, swirling around us like an evil spirit.

Is the house on fire!?

Uncle Malik’s whisper broke through the silence, his voice steady. “I’m going to carry you out of here, Gigi.”

I nodded, tears flooding my vision.

Uncle Malik lifted me into his strong embrace, but a part of me wanted to rage out and scream, to beg him to leave me there to burn with my parents.

We stepped into the hallway, the stench of smoke making me cough violently. Uncle Malik pushed my head into his neck, shielding me from the smoke.

“Where are we going?” I murmur.

“Somewhere safe,” Malik promised. “I’ll keep you safe, Gigi. I swear it.”

As the smoke stung my eyes and the unbearable reality of my parents’ death settled like a heavy fog in my mind, I knew that Malik was my only hope for survival. But my heart raced with uncertainty and rage, and I couldn’t help but wonder… Did I truly want to be saved now that my parents were gone?

Waking up from a deep slumber, I blinked my eyes open several times, only to find myself enveloped in confusion. The scent of leather and mahogany hinted that I was in an office, an office that felt unfamiliar.

Wait. Where am I?

The beating of my heart quickened as the puzzle pieces refused to connect. Instead, my thoughts began to wander like a lost soul in limbo. The agony of my parents’ murder gnawed at my insides, a festering wound I knew would never heal.

Who killed Mom and Dad? And why? None of this made any sense.

Were they CIA or part of some covert operation?

Oh, God. And those poor police officers.

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