Page 34 of The Sicilian's Obsession
"What the fu…" I heard from a distance. "Arturo," someone shouted, and I felt relief. Arturo was here somewhere. Wherever here was. He would keep me safe. I felt myself being picked up off the ground. Whoever it was ran with me, which made my head hurt and my body throb even more in pain. I didn't think they thought to check for injuries, but after what I'd just endured, I didn't think I should complain.
"Katima," I heard in the short distance. He wasn't calling me by my nickname, so that must mean he was really worried. The blindfold was whipped off my head and I was given to Arturo. I stared up into his green eyes. They were filled with anguish.
"Baby," he choked. "What did they do to you?" I shook my head, but that made black spots appear in front of my eyes. "Jake, call a medic." Arturo rushed me inside, although he didn't run like Jake had. I belatedly realized that we were at my home. How had they known where to leave me? It was chilling, knowing they had information on me.
Arturo rushed me upstairs and cautiously laid me on the bed. My body was chilled. I couldn't get the sight of Rebecca's cold body out of my mind. In a flash, a doctor was hovering over me, with Arturo sitting at the end of the bed rubbing my leg. The doctor inserted a needle in my arm and the pain in my body started to subside. It gave me clarity. I realized Arturo had placed me in a guest bedroom. I was fine with that because I didn't want to bring my stain into my own bedroom. I felt filthy, tainted.
"Baby girl." Arturo's voice drifted through my mind from far away. I moaned and my head lolled to the side. Nausea bubbled into my throat. His touch, brief as it was, was grounding me, helping me, so I wouldn't go back into that room with Luciano in my mind. The very thought of it made me want to vomit. It could have been much worse. What he had prepared for me was the stuff of nightmares.
"I don't want to think anymore," a tiny voice whined. It took me a minute to realize that annoying voice was my own.
"You're safe, baby girl," Arturo reassured me. "Knock her out."
I wanted to ask him who he was talking about. Then it dawned on me. Arturo was talking about knocking me out. A brief flicker of fear hit my subconscious. He wouldn't hit me with his fists. That wasn't the Arturo I knew. I drifted off to the lull of their voices, hoping I didn't see Luciano's face in my dreams.
* * *
Arturo
Fear and guilt, those two major feelings were weighing me down, suffocating me until I could no longer breathe. The moment Katima was knocked out from the medication, I left her alone with the doctor so he could proceed with his examination. I had failed her. This wasn't just some client who had been snatched and subjected to… a shiver hit my body as I tried not to think of what had happened to her at the complex. I needed to call off my guy. We couldn't go to war until I got all the information on what happened tonight. I sent the call, and Jake came in, his face haggard with lack of sleep. None of us had been able to rest while Katima was gone, our operations working overtime to get her back, to make sure she was safe.
"Boss man? How is she?" Jake approached me like I was a man standing on the edge of a ledge at the top of a building.
"She's alive, but I don't know the extent of the damage yet." I shuddered again. I'd almost lost her. If I had been with her the entire time, they wouldn't have been able to snatch her.
"I'll listen to the list, so you won't have to, but we have another problem." Jake looked nervous. He was shuffling his feet. Something must have happened while I was with Katima.
"What?" I barked."
"Her father is here and wants to see her." Jake backed away. He was a smart man.
"Fuck no. He has no right," I growled. I felt like an animal. No way was that bastard getting anywhere near Katima.
"Technically, this is his house, boss man." I didn't want to hear Jake's voice of reason.
"I don't care. I said no, and I meant it. Keep him away," I gritted out. It was his fault she was injured in the first place. What was supposed to be an easy babysitting job, had turned into a colossal clusterfuck. That man had lied to us, used us, and put his daughter in harm's way without a care at the danger. If he had been honest, we would've raised the threat level. We would've had more men keeping Katima safe. She would never have left the safe house. That was my fault. I should have explained to her the severity of the job. Her safety was most important, and I failed her. I failed, no one else. I closed my eyes, drifting back to that fateful night.
Eight Years Ago, Somewhere in the middle of Kosovo
"Weiss, report in, over," I radioed over. Recon missions were the worst. There was never anything to see and my squad had been on recon for a few months now at least. They were getting antsy, so I made the call that we split up to recon larger areas. I was waiting for my brother, comrade, best friend Paul Weiss to radio back his location and report. According to our intel, the Serbians were smuggling something through Kosovo to Albania and then out to sea. We weren't sure what it was, but so far, we hadn't caught a hint of any Serbians.
"Weiss, report in, over." It had been a minute, and I was cold. I wanted a cigarette but didn't want to get caught off guard. After Weiss gave his report, we could meet at the drop point with everyone else and find a relatively safe area to bed down. If this knucklehead would just report in, that was. He was probably playing with his dick. Can't say how many times I've caught that fucker with his pants down. I thought I'd seen the last of his dick in boot camp, but alas, he still flashed it often.
"We've got a problem, over," Weiss radioed in after another twenty minutes.
I couldn't be angry with him; it probably wasn't safe to speak. "Send your coordinates, out." I never made him call me by my rank unless we were around other commanders. We were too close for that. We'd seen some shit together and no matter what, he was my brother. Even if we didn't share a lick of blood between us. I'd trust him with my life. The coordinates hit and I was on the move. If Weiss said there was a problem, I needed to lay eyes on it so I could see what happened. I approached Weiss from behind as silent as I could be, until I slammed my hand on his shoulder. He whipped his gun to my face, but I didn't flinch.
"Jesus, Cruz, I could've shot you," he whispered and glared at me. Weiss was my complete opposite, blond hair, blue eyes, and short as fuck. I used to call him midget until I realized it was super offensive to people smaller than I was.
"Pay attention, dumbass, or I'll tell Ma that you just let anyone get the drop on you," I barked, keeping my tone down. While I loved Weiss, being that oblivious could get a man killed.
"Look over there." He pointed northwest, and I almost didn't see them. I took out my binoculars to get a closer look.
"Smugglers all right, although I can't see what's in the cargo containers at all." I was frustrated. We needed to know what they were smuggling, not just that they were smuggling something. We kept watch for another hour before I called it. The vehicles had already left, and I sent scouts to follow them.
"There's nothing left here; let's go." There was a niggling feeling that felt out of place, but I told myself everything was fine, there was nothing wrong. We were in and out just like usual. At least we were able to put eyes on them and follow them. Hopefully, we would be able to figure out what they were smuggling and take them down. After this mission, we were headed back to the States. I couldn't help that I was super happy about returning home. My family was starting to settle down. Siblings were getting married and having babies. I missed home. I missed the monotony of doing nothing. The thing about war was that it was the quiet times when one was caught off guard. One minute, Weiss and I were hustling back to the drop point and the next, bullets were raining down on us. I couldn't remember the orders I yelled; I just knew that I turned my back to return fire, missing the guy right behind us. Weiss grunted and yanked me down. There was blood all over his uniform and he was shaking.
"You've got to run," he rasped in my ear. Did I listen? Fuck no. I was young and invincible. I could save us both. I didn't even realize the bullet had lodged into his throat, but he did. He kept fighting me off. I was trying to sling him over my shoulder when a bullet ripped into my leg. Another ripped into my side. A third lodged its way into my shoulder, ripping through me and sticking into Weiss.
"Drop me and go, Cruz," were the last words he ever spoke to me. Of course, I ignored him. I was bringing him home. He was my brother, no way I was leaving him out there. I dragged myself and his body to the drop point. The rasp coming from his throat that showed me he was still breathing in my ear had stopped. About ten feet from our meet, he exhaled for the last time. Once I reached the point, I dropped to the ground and wailed. My brother was gone. He was gone and I was still here. I had failed him.
I snapped out of it and went back upstairs to Katima. I had failed her as well. I wasn't sure how I was going to make it up to her. She would probably hate me on the spot and send me away. If that was what she wanted to do, I would do that for her. I wasn't the man she would want in her life anyway. I was broken. I was a failure. Everyone I loved died. The worst part about the service was that they'd touted me as a hero. I was honorably discharged and sent home. I didn't feel honorable. I damn sure didn't want to go home. But I didn't fight it. Every time I closed my eyes, I heard Weiss rasping in my ear. I heard his voice telling me to leave him. I saw the despair in his eyes because he knew his life was cut short. There was no happiness for men like me. Ever.
