Page 88 of The Viper

My body vibrates with fury and I shoot Ruben a look.

“Dante is close,” Ruben says.

“Now, Adrian!” Tony yells. “They’re nearly here.”

“Fuck!” Adrian screams. “I’ll be back for you bitches.”

“He’s stopped,” Rosa whispers.

“Stay where you are until I’m there.”

“We won’t move.”

“Is he really gone?” Eliza voice trembles with fear.

“He’s gone.”

“Don’t move,” I say to Rosa.

“We’re not going anywhere. I promise you, Dominic.”

The plan is already forming in my head. I’ll find him, and slit his throat. I should never have left the girls on their own. I should’ve moved them into my house. I’ll fucking kill him. He’s a dead man.

“Dante’s there. Adrian is gone,” Ruben says.

Pain shoots through my tight jaw. I turn to Ruben. “He has to die,” I say to Ruben. He lifts his brows, not giving me a definitive answer.

“Dominic,” he says in his controlled voice. I make eye contact and wait. “He’s done.” That’s Ruben’s way of saying Adrian is now excommunicated. Adrian is no longer Sacco family. He’s not for us; he’s against us. Adrian must die.

Frank pulls the car up outside the motel. “Rosa, I’m here. Stay where you are.”

“I will,” she says between the sobs.

I’m out of the car in a heartbeat and run toward their room. The door is destroyed, but Rosa managed to push the dresser up against it. I easily push the old piece of shit out of the way. “Rosa,” I call once we’re inside.

She runs out of the bathroom, tosses the phone on the bed and throws her arms around me. “He was going to kill us.” She sobs uncontrollably into my neck. “Eliza’s a mess. She’s in the bathroom.”

Ruben walks into the room and heads straight to the bathroom. Rosa is clinging to me as she cries. Eliza is sitting in the empty bathtub, her hands over her ears and she’s rocking back and forth. Ruben kneels down and slowly extends his hand to place it on her shoulder. Eliza cries out in pain and he jerks his hand backward. “Eliza, you’re safe now,” he croons to her. I’ve never seen Ruben so tender with anyone in my entire twenty-nine years.

“Did he hurt you?” I pull back to run my hands over Rosa, pushing her hair away from her face. Her eyes are red and puffy and her chin is quivering. “Did he hurt you?” I repeat as I stare into her hurt eyes.

“No,” she says as she shakes her head.

“Dominic,” Marco says to gain my attention.

With my girl in my arms I look at him, but he flicks a look to Rosa then Eliza. Ruben shakes his head, silently telling Marco not to deliver whatever news he was going to. Marco nods and backs out of the room. “I didn’t know what to do. I found the lighter, and we had some deodorant.” Rosa digs around in her pocket and with shaky hands she holds up the lighter. “I was going to burn him.” She blinks several times and stares at me. “I’m sorry, but I was going to do it. There’s no way I was going to let him take my sister.”

I kiss her forehead and wrap her in my arms again. “Good.”

“I was going to hurt him, Dominic. I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry about. He came after you.” Her burning him might have slowed him down enough until we got here, but the cowardly bastard ran instead.

“There were other people here. I heard Tony but there were others too,” Rosa says with a trembling voice.

“Who? Have you seen them before?” Every fucker involved in this is going to die.

“I only heard them. I didn’t see them.” Ruben and I exchange a knowing look. He’s on the same page as I am.

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