Page 153 of The Silence Lies

“Gio!” she barks through gritted teeth. “Do it!”

“No!” I swing my arm around, aiming for Luciano- but yet again, he’s too quick.

He smacks the gun out of my hand, the weapon clattering to the ground. My heartbeat drums in my ears as I try to gain balance, but my legs are too weak and I collapse. Pain radiates through my shoulder as my legs give way. I know it’s dislocated when the agony takes my breath away and Luciano uses this to his advantage, stepping towards me, brandishing a larger knife than before. I don’t know where he was hiding that, but the size of it tells me it had to be nearby.

With one smooth lunge, he thrusts the blade into my abdomen, twisting it until his hand is covered in crimson and dark spots dance before my eyes. I cry out, but it all feels empty, like my voice has been stolen from me.

“Gio!” I hear Sera scream through the depths of darkness blanketing my vision. “Figlio di puttanas!”

I hear the chains containing her clink and crash under her weight as she throws herself, but we both know it’s no use. Her screams and cries are redundant here, her attempts to free herself will be fruitless and it’s all because of me.

I should have known this was how my story would end. There were plenty of times I could have changed this path, veered away from it if only I trusted enough. I should have trusted Sera sooner. I should have told her from the start instead of keeping my silence. I shouldn’t have lied or kept this from her.

But that’s the thing about regret—you can’t regret something that hasn’t happened, and nothing happens without regret.

Serafina

"Faccia di merdas! Micios! ” I scream and scream, battling the exhaustion pumping through my veins until my cries become nothing more than wisps of air. I kick out my legs, thrash against my restraints as the tears fall, but it doesn’t matter.

Nothing matters anymore.

The door to this shitty room slams shut, but I’m not alone. I feel his breath envelop me. I sense his sinister presence before I see it.

I hold my breath, expecting the same knife that just killed Giovanni to plunge into my own flesh, but it doesn’t come. I open my eyes, staring straight at the man who tried and failed to protect me in so many ways. His blood paints the ground below. His body fills the room with the reminder of my inevitable fate.

All of the sudden, I plummet to the ground, my knees cracking on impact. There’s nothing to soften the fall, no energy in my legs or arms to stop myself as my face smacks off the concrete with a sickening thud. I groan out through the pain radiating from my face, through the thick waves of nausea plummeting into my stomach.

But as soon as I feel the cold concrete beneath me, I relax into it. It’s a brief reprieve from hanging by my wrists. I’m already aware of the lacerations breaking my skin and the fact one shoulder doesn’t feel quite right.

A shoe digs into my side, flipping me onto my back. “Let’s come to an agreement,” Luciano taunts, crouching in front of me. “I’m a respectable man. You’re a…” He doesn’t finish his sentence—probably reluctant to give me any kind of compliment.

Luciano’s blue gaze pins me in place. I’ve seen that look before. It’s the same one he used to give me when chaos was out of his control. It’s the look of a man still searching for power.

“Rescind your position, and I’ll let you live.”

As much as I want to believe him, it’s all lies. Every goddamn second spent in this place has been filled with them. From Giovanni’s betrayal to Luciano’s torture methods. Neither of them can be trusted. It’s just me. Though the longer I’m here, the more I feel like I can’t even trust myself.

“Fuck… you,” I croak weakly.

“You always were stupid, cagna,” Luciano sneers.

I look up at him, feeling every level of hatred and disgust for the man I once believed I loved. But that wasn’t love at all. It was toxic, poisonous. Luciano wouldn’t know how to love, not like Levi, not like Luca. Not like Giovanni. He just snakes his way into your life and before you know it, he’s taking you down like a viper. Topolina

That last thought mixed with guilt pushes me upright. Luciano might still tower over me, but I refuse to let him win.

“You always were a prick,” I grin sadistically.

Luciano’s hand slices through the air, the back of it whipping so hard that when it connects with my cheek, my arms give out beneath me. My head snaps sideways as Luciano backhands my face. I roll across the floor, slumping in a naked mess on my front. My chest heaves as I manage a cough, blood smattering the damp concrete, but my defiance wins out as I turn back to grin at him.

“Is that all you’ve got?” I taunt.

“Oh, you want pain?” He crouches over me, gripping my throat and hoisting me up. He slams my back against the wall, winding me for a split second. “I gave you so many chances, so many opportunities to walk away from this. Now, I’m just going to have to do it myself.”

Fear wraps around me, accompanying Luciano’s vise grip on my neck as he points my face in the direction of Giovanni’s slumped form, still hanging from his one cuff.

“You did this, Topolina. You killed him. Now his daughter has nobody. Nobody but me.”

Another tear falls, my heart breaking and gut wrenching. I’m torn between my anger and sorrow. I’m angry that Giovanni didn’t come to me and tell me what was happening. I’m angry that he felt he could do this all on his own. I’m sad that even after everything, he didn’t trust me with this. But what hurts the most is knowing his poor girl is still out there, now without a father.

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