Page 50 of Mafia Kings: Dario

I thought of what I had seen in the pantry – Cat and Valentino coupling in the shadows –

And though I wanted it, I knew my soul was in danger.

If I stayed, I knew Dario would pursue me…

And I knew that I would eventually give in.

I let go of the door.

It swung closed behind me and latched with a metallicCLANK.

I tried the handle to be sure –

Locked.

The die was cast. There was no way but forward.

I fought through the vines and shrubs into the daylight, and left the Rosolinis – and Dario – behind…

…forever.

15

As I left the thicket of vines, I looked back over my shoulder.

The western wing of the mansion was 200 feet behind me, and the house stretched far beyond that to the east.

I turned and ran.

It was just as Filomena had said: a field, then a patch of forest.

I stumbled through the trees until I reached a stone wall at least 10 feet high.

There was no way I could get over it – and then I remembered what she had told me:

Go left.

I did as she said until I found a break in the stones: a huge gap like an earthquake had cracked the wall apart.

The breach was easy enough to squeeze through, and I found myself on a hill overlooking a tiny village.

Careful of snakes like the one I had encountered the other day, I made my way down the barren hillside until I reached the deserted cobblestone streets of the village.

It was an old place – and far smaller than Mensano, which only had 200 inhabitants.

If I had to guess, I would say fewer than 50 people lived here. It was a dying village populated by old folks who refused to leave their homes.

There were only a handful of stone buildings, but one of them was a church. It towered above me, a relic from centuries past.

I looked all around, but there was no one to be seen in the streets…

So I opened the wooden door of the church and went inside.

The interior was rustic, with a giant vaulted ceiling. Unlike the chapel in the mansion, it felt cold and impersonal. There was no art adorning the walls here – only bare stone.

“Hello?” I called out timidly.

Dozens of wooden pews surrounded me on all sides, and I slowly walked down the center aisle. Everything was quiet around me.

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