Chapter 9 - THE HARBOR'S DAWN
The living room turned into a war zone instantly.
Antonio’s men opened fire. The Bellini guards fired back. The glass walls shattered inward, raining deadly shrapnel across the white rugs.
Through the chaos, I saw Luca dive behind the massive marble kitchen island, flipping the heavy wooden coffee table over to shield himself from the crossfire.
Vanessa screamed, trying to wheel herself backward, but her chair caught on the broken glass. Carlo grabbed her arm, dragging her toward the hallway, abandoning his men.
Antonio stood in the center of the room, completely unfazed by the bullets flying around him. He was a ghost walking through a graveyard he had built.
"Luca!" Antonio bellowed over the gunfire. "You gave away your birthright! You are a disgrace to this family!"
I didn't wait. I raised the suppressed pistol, aimed perfectly at the massive crystal chandelier hanging directly above Antonio, and fired three rapid shots into the reinforced ceiling mount.
The heavy brass and crystal fixture groaned, snapped, and crashed down with the force of a wrecking ball.
It didn't hit Antonio directly, but the impact sent him flying backward into the wall, knocking him unconscious instantly. His enforcers, seeing their immortal leader fall, hesitated.
That second of hesitation was all Luca needed.
He vaulted over the island, grabbed a fallen guard's weapon, and laid down covering fire, sprinting toward the shattered glass doors.
He saw me crouched in the bushes.
"Rachel!" he yelled, grabbing my arm as he ran past.
We didn't look back. We sprinted down the driveway, the sound of sirens finally wailing in the distance. The police were responding to the massive firefight. The Bellinis and the Morettis were about to destroy each other, and we were walking away.
We reached the brick pillar outside the gate. Leo was sitting exactly where I left him, his hands covering his ears.
Luca dropped the gun into the wet grass. He fell to his knees in the mud, pulling Leo into a crushing embrace.
"I've got you," Luca choked out, burying his face in his nephew's curls. "I'm never letting you go. I promise."
Leo hugged him back, burying his face in Luca's shoulder.
Luca looked up at me from the mud, the rain washing the blood and dirt from his face. He reached out his hand.
I took it, dropping to my knees beside them, wrapping my arms around both of them. We sat there in the rain, a strange, broken, perfect family, while the sirens grew louder.
One Week Later.
The morning sun poured through the windows of a small, beautiful farmhouse in upstate New York. It was miles away from Chicago, miles away from the mafia, and miles away from the name Moretti.
I stood in the kitchen, pouring coffee, listening to the sound of Leo laughing in the backyard.
The news on the small television on the counter played softly.
“...massive indictments handed down today in Chicago following the shootout at the Bellini compound. Carlo Bellini and Antonio Moretti, who was shockingly discovered alive after faking his death twenty years ago, are both in federal custody. Authorities seized over four hundred million dollars in offshore accounts, effectively dismantling both crime syndicates...”
I smiled, turning the television off.
Sofia walked into the kitchen, looking rested and healthy, wearing a soft yellow sweater. She took a mug of coffee from my hands.
"Thank you, Rachel," she said warmly, looking out the window at Leo playing with a golden retriever puppy. "For everything."
"He's happy," I said.
"He's safe," Sofia corrected gently. "And so are we."
The back door opened, and Luca walked in. He was wearing faded jeans and a plain gray t-shirt. He had dirt on his hands from working in the garden. He looked absolutely nothing like the terrifying mob boss I had met ten months ago. He looked at peace.
He walked over to me, wrapping his arms around my waist from behind, pressing a soft kiss to the side of my neck.
"Good morning," he murmured against my skin.
May you like
"Good morning," I smiled, leaning back into him.
The secrets were exposed. The monsters were locked away. The boy was safe. And the useless little maid had finally found a home.
