Page 59 of Condemned to You

Ghost continued to lash out verbally. “Pussy can make you do crazy things. Like sleep with the boss’s sister.”

I punched him square in the face, but still he persisted.

“I don’t blame you. She’s good.”

Unsure if he was playing mind games with me or if he was telling me he had a taste of Bethany, I knew I wouldn’t let him speak that way about her. Another punch and blood began spilling out of his mouth. His victorious smile got under my skin knowing his intentions were to get in any final jabs.

“Good luck working for your father’s killer,” Ghost said now focusing on Alfie. “You could have claimed your throne but instead you stay serving as his peasant.”

Alfie pulled out his knife and flicked it open. A sharp blade popped out shining in the dim room. “You lied. He never killed him.”

“You’re right. Luca didn’t kill him. I did.”

That struck an instant nerve and Alfie stepped up to ghost, and with a quick slash, under the belly from left to right, let his guts just fall out one by one. Ghost screamed in pain and passed out. Letting someone bleed out was never a quick death and that was the point.

“Let’s wrap this place up,” I said.

Taking the remaining explosives from the museum, we planted them all around the warehouse and a few close to the body. Ghost would suffer but we couldn’t risk anyone finding his body. He would remain a ghost. Although Luca wanted him to suffer, I refused to leave without knowing he was dead for sure. I needed to witness it with my own eyes. We pushed through the door and stepped into the daylight, our eyes taking their time to adjust to the sunlight. As we reached the car, I glanced back, a surge of adrenaline rushing through me.

I took the keypad that controlled the explosives and handed it to Alfie. “Eye for an eye.”

He took the keypad and nodded to me in gratitude. Ghost killed Alfie’s father, and in return, it was only right that he avenged his father’s death. The car was a good distance away yet we still felt a low rumble reverberate through the ground once he pushed the button. An intense flash of light exploded, the shockwave of the ground as flames leaped high into the sky. We remained still, breathless and wide-eyed, watching as the warehouse became a fiery spectacle, the culmination of secrets and sins consumed in a roaring blaze. The heat washed over us as we stood together leaning against the car.

“Did we really just put an end to this?” Alfie said, a mix of disbelief and exhilaration in his voice. I nodded, a grim smile breaking through.

“Yeah, we did. And it feels damn good.”

Getting into Alfie’s car, I knew either I’d be taken to the airport or taken to my doom. There was no saving me this time, and I felt that I cleared my name with Luca so what he saw fit, I would accept. Down the road, I saw Luca’s car parked off the side of the road where Alfie pulled over.

“He wanted to talk to you,” Alfie said to me. I wasn’t even sure what the outcome would be.

“You’ve done a good job, kid. Your father would be proud.” I patted the back of his head then got out of the vehicle.

I stood in front of Luca with Alfie behind me.

With a gun in hand, Luca raised it in my direction toward my head. “You knew this was coming right?”

I nodded my head looking up to the sky so that my last image engraved into my head would be heavenly clouds moving against the blue sky.

Chapter Thirty-Four

The gun went off and I felt something swiftly pass me. I blinked once, then twice, then a third time. Am I dead? Looking straight, I saw Luca standing there lowering the gun in his hands. He never missed.

“You could have run,” Luca said coldly, “But you came here instead so that I can put a bullet in your head.”

“You make it sound like it’s a crazy thing,” I replied with a light smirk.

Luca took a deep breath as he placed the gun back inside his chest holster. Neither one of us moved.

“You served me and this family even knowing that your life would end over it. You don’t deserve to die in my eyes,” Luca replied.

“You know loyalty is non-negotiable. If betrayal was forgivable, then the devil himself would still be sitting next to God.”

“You forget the devil is a fallen angel. In rebellion, he tried to become God’s equal. That’s why he was cast out of heaven.”

Surprised at his knowledge of that detail, I understood what he was saying. In no point in time did I ever rebel or try to take Luca’s place when he’d given me power to be able to. He trusted me and knew where my loyalty lay without questioning it.

“So, I’m giving you an option. You continue your role in this family, or,” I watched as he pulled out a set of keys from his pocket, “You start a new life.”