Page 54 of Rotten Men

The sound of his laugh is as melodic as his voice. He takes a step closer to me, and places his gun under my chin, tilting my head back to look straight at him. The endearment in his eyes alarms me more than the cold barrel against my skin.

“Why would I ever do that? We belong together, you and I. It’s time you understood this too,cara mia,” he utters sweetly, letting me know that death won’t be my escape from his tight grip.

“You are insane,” James spits beside me, tightening his squeeze on my hand.

Ciro takes a deep breath, his chest rising and falling in one slow movement. He turns his menacing eyes and simper onto my friend, and I wish James didn’t antagonize the beast in our living room.

“You know, since I’ve known him, my cousin has been one big disappointment after another. I thought for sure he would beat me to killing my brother when he learned Selene was promised to him, yet he never made a move to kill Pietro for his betrayal. Butyou,though? How hard is it to kill you? Why keep you alive when you kept our love away from us all these years? Deeply disappointing,” Ciro mutters, annoyed, and swings his gun back to James’ head.

I jump out of my seat, putting myself in between the two men.

“Ciro, no! It’s me you want, not James. Please, just leave him be!” I plea breathlessly.

His aggravation dims slightly, and a small spec of life returns to his gaze.

“Of course. I understand now. Vincent didn’t kill him, because of you. How you turn us all into lovesick fools, willing to abide by your every desire, even if it goes against our very nature,cara mia,” he says, but his gun continues his true aim at James’ temple.

“Please, Ciro,” I beg again, this time taking a step closer to him, putting my hand softly on his wrist.

His eyes become hooded, as I watch him take in each detail of my face. I trace my thumb over his cool skin, and he slowly points his gun to the ground. His other hand reaches out to the nape of my neck and brings me in with one quick pull.

“I’ve been haunted without you,” he whispers tenderly in my ear, placing a chaste kiss to my cheek.

In every interaction we have had in the past, Ciro has always treated me with a tenderness most would think him incapable of possessing. It hurts my heart to know he is just as much a product of all the vile, evil things he had to endure as I am. So starved of love and filled with an abundance of hate.The Thornis just a tortured soul who did the best he could to survive, just as my rotten men and I attempted to do. The only difference is we always had our bond to keep us intact, while Ciro simply had no one.

As much as everything he embodies scares me, my own dark soul understands him, too. I wish it didn’t. It would make it much easier to hate him. But to this day, only my father has ever gained that sentiment from me. Ciro doesn’t merit my hatred. But he has earned my fear. A terrifying fear I’m reminded of when I hear the meek voice of my son call out to me.

“Mammà?” Jude stutters, seeing the whole ordeal before him.

Ciro’s gaze turns from adoring to a full-blown hurricane, and I shake my head pleadingly as I walk backward, trying to reach my son and protect him from Ciro’s fury.

“No, Ciro! Please, no!” I yell, finally turning my back to him, and running to my boy to protect him from the evil that lives and breathes in this room.

It all happens so fast after that. From my peripheral I watch James taking advantage of the diversion I have inadvertently caused to tackle Ciro down to the ground. All I hear is grunts and jabs as the two men fight, breaking every piece of furniture in their way. The violent noise is so loud that aid will undoubtedly be on its way. I’m about to shout at Jude to run when the most blood-curdling sound deafens my ears.

Bang!

“DAD!!!” Jude yells at the top of his lungs, breaking my hold on him and running to his fallen father on the floor.

My son’s gut-wrenching screams mimic my own, as we try to cling to a life already fading before our very eyes. I press hard on the bleeding stomach wound, but the crimson liquid just flows too fast, tainting everything it touches.

“Jude…” James gurgles, gaining another loud shriek from my heartbroken son.

“That was stupid. I had no intention of killing you today,” Ciro states, matter-of-fact, standing arrogantly above us.

Then my horror increases tenfold, when Ciro picks up Jude into his arms, kicking and screaming in an attempt to escape his grasp.

“NO!!!” I yell, not able to take my hands off James’ wound and grab my baby back from his monstrous hands. “Please, Ciro! PLEASE!!” I scream.

“This was not how I wanted to end our talk, Selene. But time is ticking, and I need you to come home. The boy will come with me, as you settle this,” he states bitterly, pointing at the dying man at my side.

“Please! Please, Ciro!” I cry, the tears rolling down my face, as the blood from James’ wound flows through my fingers.

“Come home, Selene.” Ciro beckons, before vanishing from my sight with my screaming son in his arms, leaving me alone with my beloved dying friend in mine.

Twenty

Dominic

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