Page 29 of Bread in The Oven

“Do we know anything?” I ask anyone who’s listening.

“I pulled the camera footage. Simone’s father came up to the back door. I’m thinking Seamus didn’t know it was him, he was wearing a baseball cap. Deliveries come around that time so it’s not unusual for him to open it. As soon as Seamus opened the door, he shot him.”

“Fuck. Is Seamus dead?”

“He’s in surgery, the guys drove him to Lucciola Memorial. So we won’t know for a while. And Sal is on his way,” Franco explains.

“We also have the roads in and out of Lake Renegade closed. Let’s hope they’re still within our town limits,” Giacomo says.

I hold my phone up and we can hear Simone’s father screaming at her.

“I have it on mute. Simone called me and when I realized something was wrong, I put my end on mute.”

“Good thinking,” Sebastiano says. “Can I take your phone? I’ll see if I can track where they are.”

I nod and hand over my phone just as we hear a slapping sound. I’m going to kill him and then bring the bastard back just so I can kill him a second time.

There aren’t many places he can go where we can’t find them if he’s still in our town. I go over to where Sebastiano has set up a little workstation.

“Has anything else happened?’ I ask him as I sit down.

“No. The mother is calling her names and telling her that she’ll never see the baby. But your woman is strong, Romano. She’s holding her ground.”

That’s my woman, she’s stronger than she thinks she is.

Chapter Fourteen

Simone

“Fuck!” my father yells as he sees a police checkpoint at one of the ways out of town. There are four ways in and out of town, and seeing this here? I’m betting that there’s one at every one of them. Somehow I keep myself from laughing at this situation. My father is so angry that he has no idea where he’s going. It looks like he’s heading back towards the town square. I hope he is, because I know my family is there.

“You and Lucy are coming home with us. I don’t care what you want. And I know you’re not married to that criminal. We had the police check the records.”

How is this even happening? I’m trying not to panic, I know this stress can’t be good for Peanut. I rub my belly.

“I can’t believe you let someone fuck you and now you’re going to pay the price for spreading your legs,” my father snaps at me.

I hate both of them. I’ve never used curse words, but he makes me want to start. Why couldn’t they have left us alone? They don’t love us and they never made us feel like they wantedus. I can see that he’s heading towards the bakery. I don’t think he knows this. As he gets closer, I can see a couple of police cars blocking the street that leads to the bakery. My father stops the car.

“Fine. If this is the way you want it? This is how it’s going to end. Your criminal is going to watch you and that bastard child die.”

He can’t be serious, right? My father has hit me and screamed at me. But kill me? That thought never crossed my mind. My father gets out of the car and my mother follows him. There are guns pointed at them as he comes to my door and yanks me out. I hit my belly on the door as he does and I cry out at the pain that shoots through my belly.

“I’ll trade you,” my father yells at the police. “This whore for the criminal that put this bastard child in her.”

I watch Romano step forward without any hesitation.

‘NO!” I start sobbing as he comes forward. I can’t watch him die.

My father starts laughing as he watches Romano come forward and my reaction to it.

Romano

When that asshole pushes Simone around and says me for her? I don’t even hesitate. I know for a fact that if I die today, my woman and my baby will be taken care of. I will make sure her father dies first. I haven’t pulled my gun out yet. I walk towards them as Simone is sobbing and saying no. Her father is laughing at her pain and that fuels my anger even more.

“I’m here. Let Simone go,” I say to him.

Her father laughs more and throws her to the ground. Simone lands on her belly, and her mother puts a foot on her back. She’s going to die today too, maybe not by my hand. But she will join her husband in hell.

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