Page 83 of The Celtic Resolution
“I’m not the traitor here!” Domenico points his gun toward Rocky. “Tell me, Rocky. Where is your father?”
Rocky’s gaze lifts. “You didn’t…?”
“No, I didn’t. But he’s sunning himself in Italy right now, isn’t he? In fact, he has been for quite some time. And where were you until recently? Oh, right. You were also in Italy, and beforethat,you were on a honeymoon. Before that, it was all about your wedding, then about Sarah, and before that, it was about Noah. Everywhere we turn, everywhere we look, there is shit distracting us from what we really should be focusing on. But Matto is far too old to focus on anything but himself and far too stubborn to give up power. But who would he give it up to? Me? No. He only ever considered you! You, the rat who married a fucking cop.”
“How can you stand there and say that?” Rocky yells. “After what happened to Mary? Sarahsavedher. She saved your daughter. It doesn’t matter that she’s a cop!”
“And Mary never would have been in danger in the first place if Sarah had just died in Montana!”
I glance between them, subtly edging very slowly toward him. They’re caught up in the past and as long as that buys me time, I’m alright with it.
“So yes,” Domenico continues. “Ever since the Russians stepped back from the skin trade, I’ve been filling their shoes. It wasn’t hard to track down who their international clients were, and once I was in contact with one, they put me in touch with a quiet little group still working underground.”
“The Triads,” Rocky spits.
“Yes. And a silent backer buried deep in the Middle East. A money-man, if you will. Together, we filled the market.Initially, I only did it for money. Our businesses, as you know, went through a rough patch after Noah and Matteo were doingnothingto fix it. Nothing worthwhile, at least. So I did. And then you set your sights on a fucking cop!” Domenico’s attention turns down and Saoirse once again covers Sarah with her body.
“Dom!” Rocky steps forward and away from me, adjusting Domenico’s eyeline with his body. “You liked Sarah. You supported me against my father, youhelpedme!”
“Because I thought she was something you needed to get out of your system! And if you were busy, then you weren’t looking too closely at me. Where is the trust, where is the loyalty when the Mafia prince marries a cop! I’ll tell you were. Nowhere! There’s absolutelynothing. So I focused on my own empire and siphoned off the top of our other deals. Honestly, this would have gone on for years if not for this Irish bitch!”
His attention is back down on Saoirse who glares up at him, her mouth twisted and angry. “Fuck you,” she spits.
“You just couldn’t stop digging, could you? And then you had to get my fucking worthless son involved!” He glances at me and I freeze, alarmed. He doesn’t show any indication that he can tell I’m closer because his eyes go back down to Saoirse. “I thought that assassination attempt would be enough to scare him away, but instead, it scared him right into your fucking arms.”
“Wait, that was you?” In all the stress and chaos, it completely slipped my mind that someone tried to kill me. I’d chalked it up to the Triad being pissed that I didn’t kill Saoirse and moved on.
“You didn’t know?” Domenico looks at me with disbelief. “You… Yes, it was me!”
“I should have known,” I snarl. “The way you use Mary like some kind of bargaining chip instead of a person! Using how we feel against each other!”
“What can I say, Bruno? You’re pathetic and you’ve always been pathetic. Always sucking up, always trying to act like you’re better than everyone when all you were destined for was to be a grunt. You’re like a kicked dog, you know that? So eager for any affection. No wonder Saoirse won you over with one conversation. You just want to be loved and it’s sickening!”
Saoirse whimpers and curls in on herself, a sound that cuts through me like a blade. There isn’t time for this anymore. I can’t stand listening to any of his shit anymore.
“Dom, after what happened with Mary and that fucking serial killer… where did your compassion go?”
Domenico turns his attention to Rocky and his eyes narrow. “All I saw was your fucking bitch of a wife endangeringmyfamily. I was concerned she would dig too deep into all of us so of course I wanted that fucker caught. I thought with him behind bars, or dead, Sarah wouldn’t be a problem. And then you had to go and pop the question.”
Saoirse whimpers again and I lunge into action with little thought.
Enough talking.
Enough letting my father control everything.
His greed knows no bounds, and his fake empathy over the years is clearly only a disguise to cover up the narcissist hiding underneath. He’s not my father. Not anymore.
He never was.
We collide with a crash and the gun goes off, causing Saoirse to scream and Rocky to yell in a panic. My father and I hit the ground and roll together, and I try to keep him rolling to get him as far away from everyone else as possible. He’s a bulky man and stronger than me, so I only manage to get him a few feet before his elbow crashes into my throat and utterly winds me.
I can’t breathe. His fist slams into my face once, twice, and then he’s gone as I lay there, momentarily stunned. Saoirse’sface floods my mind and then I’m back up and tackling Domenico’s legs to bring him back down to the ground. His foot flies out and clips my chin, snapping my head back with the force. My teeth crash together and blood spills over my tongue. I scramble back up onto my feet.
Two gunshots ring in the air and it feels like I’ve been punched hard in the chest. Warmth spreads across my chest and when I try to step forward toward my father, the ground wobbles.
“Bruno!”
Saoirse. I see her. She’s on one knee and reaching for me with utter panic in her eyes. I try to move forward again as the pain in my chest spreads but instead of moving forward, I collapse down onto the cold, damp concrete.
