Page 28 of Memento Mori
“He’s my goddamn father!” The nurse flinched as Tony forcefully slammed his palm on the counter. “Where is he!”
“Tony, calm down,” I said, squeezing his arm.
Chantel emerged from a room opposite the nurse’s station. It was a relief to know that she was safe. I hadn’t seen anyone but Alessandro and Papa Rizzo after the shooting.
She wrapped Tony in her arms and the tension left his body. The bridesmaid dress she wore was stained with blood, and her eyes were bloodshot. She let go of him and gave me a hug, then ushered us across the hall into the room. I was surprised to see Alessandro sitting with the rest of the family. Laney’s death had hit him hard. Whenever he was emotional, he liked to be by himself.
Marianna’s tear-streaked face caught my attention. I didn’t buy her tears for one second. While to most she looked like a wifedevastated by her husband being almost killed, but her eyes showed something totally different––glee. Shining brightly like stars in a cloudless night sky.
She enjoyed that this might be the last day of her husband’s life. But when she looked at me, that was when I knew the truth. The bullets that killed Laney, the bullets that might kill my father-in-law, were meant for me. And even though she didn’t wield the gun, she was behind it all.
“The family of Antonio Rizzo?”
Hours had passed, but it was a relief that we were finally getting some information. A doctor stood in the entry way pulling my focus away from the woman I’d eventually kill. Not today. Maybe not tomorrow, but I would kill her and enjoy every last minute of it.
The doctor’s blue scrubs, like everyone in the room except my mother-in-law, were stained red. He removed the blue cap worn by surgeons and tried to maintain a stoic expression.
“Right now, he’s sedated.” The doctor took in a tired breath and released it. “He was shot multiple times, the most serious being to his torso.”
Everyone in the room gasped. While Papa Rizzo was in decent shape for his age, he was still sixty-two years old. Surviving one gunshot wound would be difficult, but multiple, I was amazed he was still alive.
“The next few days are crucial,” the doctor continued. “We will closely monitor him through the night. But right now, his chance for survival is pretty low.”
I squeezed Tony’s hand as he stoically stared at the doctor letting the news sink in that his father may not survive the night.
“Can we see him?” Chantal asked her voice full of pain.
“I’m sorry.” The doctor gave a sympathetic look. “Not tonight. He needs his rest.”
He pivoted on his heels and made his exit. Hushed cries filled the room. I led Tony to a secluded waiting room chair, away from the others. My husband was a family man, but when he was emotional, he liked to be alone to process whatever was happening much like his brother. There was no way we were going anywhere tonight so, we just needed to get comfortable and wait. Wait to see if Papa Rizzo made it through the night.
“I’m sorry,Bella,” he whispered.
He looked so tired. His eyes were red and swollen, with dark circles underneath.
I cradled his face. “There’s nothing to be sorry about, my love.”
He leaned his elbows on his knees and glanced in my direction. “What did I do to deserve you?”
“You already know the answer to this question.” I smiled. “He’s going to pull through.”
“And if he doesn’t?”
“Then you do what a Don does. You kill them all.”
He let out a breath. With everything going on I didn’t think he even thought about his father not making it, and him having to step into his rightful place.
“She had something to do with this,” he mumbled not focusing on Marianna.
“I know.”
His mother may have very well killed his father. How he would handle it had yet to be seen.
“She tried to have you killed.”
“She did,” I said.
“She’s dead.”
