Chapter 11 - THE PRODIGAL SON
I backed away slowly, my heart hammering against my ribs.
Julian stepped forward. He looked remarkably like Luca, but there was a cruel, sharp edge to his features. His blue eyes were devoid of any warmth. The five men behind him raised their suppressed submachine guns, aiming them directly at us.
"Give me the box, Luca," Julian said, holding out a gloved hand.
Luca didn't move. He kept the letters tightly gripped in his fist. "Where have you been for thirty years, Julian?"
Julian laughed, a dry, bitter sound. "New York. Foster homes. Juvenile detention. While you were eating off silver platters in that mansion, I was bleeding in alleys. Father thought I was too ruthless, too violent to lead the Moretti family. So he faked my death and exiled me."
"He was trying to protect the family," Luca said calmly.
"He was trying to protect you," Julian sneered. "I built the Black Serpents from nothing. I manipulated Vanessa into tearing up this cottage to find my birthright. And now, I’m taking back everything that is mine."
Julian nodded to his men. "Kill the maid. I only need my brother alive for the bank transfers."
The men raised their weapons.
I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing for the impact.
BANG.
But the gunshot didn't come from the men in front of me. It came from the trees behind us.
One of Julian's men dropped to the ground, clutching his knee, screaming in agony.
Julian spun around. "Who's out there?!"
From the shadows of the tree line, a figure emerged. He was holding a high-powered hunting rifle, the barrel smoking.
It was Walter.
He was pale, sweating, and leaning heavily on a cane, but his aim was perfectly steady.
"I told you once, Julian," Walter’s voice echoed across the clearing, hard and unyielding. "You lack discipline. That’s why your father chose Luca."
Julian’s face twisted in rage. "Walter. The loyal dog returns. Kill him!"
"Get down!" Luca yelled, grabbing my waist and tackling me behind the large pile of excavated dirt.
Bullets chewed into the dirt mound, raining soil down on us. Walter fired again, taking out another Serpent, before ducking behind a thick oak tree.
"We're pinned!" I screamed over the gunfire.
"We need a distraction!" Luca shouted. He looked at the steel lockbox lying in the dirt near our feet. He grabbed it.
"Hey, Julian!" Luca roared over the gunfire.
The shooting briefly paused.
"You want your birthright?" Luca yelled, holding up the letters and the lockbox. "Come and get it!"
Luca threw the heavy steel box and the letters as hard as he could over the dirt mound, toward the deep trench the contractors had dug for the new foundation.
Julian screamed in panic. "No! Don't shoot the papers!"
He broke cover, running frantically toward the trench to save his precious proof of lineage.
"Now!" Luca yelled.
He lunged over the dirt mound, tackling Julian just before he reached the trench. The two brothers tumbled into the deep, muddy ditch, throwing punches.
I scrambled to my feet. The remaining three Serpents were advancing on the trench, their guns raised. Walter was pinned behind the tree, unable to get a clean shot.
I looked around desperately. My eyes landed on the heavy yellow backhoe sitting idle near the construction site. The keys were dangling in the ignition.
I didn't think. I just ran.
Bullets zipped past me, pinging off the metal of the machine as I scrambled into the cab. I turned the key. The massive diesel engine roared to life.
I grabbed the hydraulic levers, shoving them forward.
The massive steel bucket swung around with terrifying speed, slamming directly into the side of the trench, sending a massive cascade of mud, rocks, and water raining down on the three gunmen, knocking them flat and burying their weapons.
The gunfire stopped.
I climbed out of the cab, gasping for breath.
Walter hobbled out from behind the tree, keeping his rifle trained on the muddy gunmen.
I ran to the edge of the trench.
At the bottom of the muddy ditch, Luca was standing over Julian. He had Julian’s own gun pressed against his brother’s chest.
Julian lay in the mud, spitting blood, laughing weakly. "Do it, Luca. Be the monster Father always knew we were."
Luca stared down at him, his chest heaving. The rain began to fall again, washing the mud from his face.
Then, Luca slowly lowered the gun.
"No," Luca said quietly. "I'm not a monster. And neither is our family anymore."
May you like
He stepped back and tossed the gun into the mud.
"The police are already on their way," Luca said, climbing out of the trench. "You can spend the rest of your life in federal prison thinking about your birthright."
