“I brought my phone,” Maddalena whispers, glancing worriedly at the twins.
I hear Leone and Primo moving closer to the water to make their hasty plans. The guard dogs are barking in the distance, and there’s more gunfire.
Who’s here? And why come after women and children? We don’t control the Trio. Did that guard betray us? I told Frankie something I shouldn’t have last week which could narrow down our location. But I can’t believe her husband has any reason to hurt us.
Swiping Maddalena’s phone from her hand, I hurriedly call my husband. The signal is spotty a dozen yards past the house and barn and probably horrible out here, but I have to try. If he’s already on his way, he needs to be ready. If he’s not… I don’t want to think about that.
“Eager for your surprise?” Nico answers, sounding much more at ease than I’ve heard him in months. I hate to ruin that mood.
“Someone is here, Nico,” I whisper. “There is gunfire.”
One quiet in-drawn breath, and then his words are steel. “How many? Where are you? Are the children with you?”
I hug the babies, struggling not to let panic overwhelm me. “Yes, they are here. I don’t know. We are…” I hesitate, afraid of giving too much away in case someone has a way of listening to our calls. “Sorrow’s Cascade. Find us.”
The words are barely out before the call drops. I wish I’d asked him where he is. The phone buzzes in my palm. He’s calling back, but the sound of gunfire draws closer. Peeking out, I see Leone heading that way, risking his life for ours. Primo ducks his head into the tent again. “Here.” He raises his trouser leg and hands me a gun that was strapped to his ankle. “Take it. I’m going to help Leone.”
“No, stay here,” Maddalena pleads.
“I fight for my Capo's family and for you,la mia bella,”he argues, rushing off.
Maddalena cries quietly while Yana offers what comfort she can. “The men are fighters. The tent blends in with the surroundings. Unless they’re looking for it, we shouldn’t be seen.”
I’m glad for my children’s sake, but I don’t like feeling powerless again, waiting and wondering when and if we’ll be saved.The children need you,I remind myself.
Just then, there’s a barrage of gunfire not very far away. A man gives an agonized shout. “Primo!”Maddalena gasps, loudly.Too loudly.
The three of us freeze, staring at each other, wondering if she was heard and by who. Then, Maddalena caresses the babies’ cheeks, choking out the words, “I’m sorry. I’ll lead them away from you.”
Before I can stop my sister, she dashes from the tent. My children need me, but I can't just sit here frantically worrying over Maddalena. “Stay hidden. Protect them. Promise me,” I beg Yana, and she nods, hugging my children.
Stepping outside, I'm determined to bring my sister back to relative safety when I nearly run right into an armed man I’ve never seen. His eyes crawl all over me, the slow perusal of a man confident he can overpower me, an underestimation that will cost him his life.
Remembering my training, I raise Primo’s gun without a second's hesitation and fire. Struck right in the heart, he crumples to the ground. Shock, disbelief and relief. I never wanted to kill anyone but for my family…
“Smith?” another stranger grunts as he emerges from the trees behind me. Oh no. He wasn't alone. By the time I turn, the man has me in his sights. “Lower it.Slowly, honey.”
I am not your honey.
But I do what he says, relieved he hasn't spotted the camouflaged tent nestled between the fallen tree and the water.
With his weapon still trained on me, he lifts a handheld, two-way radio. “I’ve caught the Capo’s wife. Or her twin. Can’t tell. She killed Smith.”
“Bring her to me,” a woman replies – Cosima.
47
Nico & Matilde
Nico
Gripping my phone tightly, I keep trying to call her back. No answer. The panic, the fear of failing my loved ones, the utter despair of losing her threatens to unravel my mind, but her final two words are stuck to my brain like glue –Find us.Matilde called me because she believes I can save them. I can't let her down.
Fighting against the hollowness of defeat, I pour my mental energy into the coming attack. The farm is close, and I’m armed with more than blades today. I wish Dante was with me, but I pray Leone and the guards haven’t all been eliminated. And I won’t discount Matilde. I know she’ll do whatever she must to protect our children.
“We won’t sneak up on them in a helicopter. Land in that field and prepare for gunfire,” I warn the pilot.
Two men hurry out of the barn when the helicopter is hovering a few feet off the ground. I jump out, braced for the impact, and open fire, taking down one before they get a shot off.