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They must be somewhere close by. Bullets start flying again as there are more of Tony’s men here. We need to move forward. We need to find them, but these fucking thugs are raining bullets down on us.

Our men fire back. We fire back, and we inch closer to the corridors. I see Francesco move into the corridor to the right and down it, shouting for Gia and Giovanni. Cosimo moves next to me and fires at the men.

He waits for cover, then runs to the next obstacle that can provide him protection as he moves more into the warehouse.

Bruno and Lorenzo radio in. I barely hear their voices as they confirm that the enemies outside are neutralized. They’re all coming in.

Matteo shoots two guards near the left and motions for me to follow him. The scent of gunpowder fills my nostrils and the metallic, rusty smell of blood clogs my throat. It hangs in the air like honeysuckle on Southern summer nights.

Men shout. My body is tense as I follow Matteo as closely as I can, still firing at the gangbangers. Gia is somewhere here, and if we don’t find her or the boy soon, Tony could hurt them or worse.

We make it to the corridor, and it’s empty. We glance at each other, then take either side and creep along as the sound of gunfire plays as the soundtrack to our rescue mission.

We branch off down one corridor and find an office. There’s blood on the floor, and I look at Matteo, who frowns. We move further up and find storage rooms.

Ones for guns, ones for drugs, and ones for what looks like stolen goods. Matteo exits before me, but as he does, I notice movement to the right. I roll out and start shooting, putting down one of Tony’s men who was about to sneak up and shoot Matteo in the back.

Matteo looks at me and nods. I know he appreciates me saving his life.

We backtrack to the main corridor back past the office.

We reach the end and turn down another corridor. There are only two doors here, and I feel like we’re reaching the precipice of where we need to be.

We both stand by the first one, Matteo swings it open, and we both enter with our guns up. Giovanni is in the corner crying, hugging his knees. Gia is in Tony’s arms, struggling to get away from him as he presses a gun to her head. Her face is tear-streaked, and there’s a bruise on her cheek.

“It’s over, Tony,” I growl, my heart thudding in my chest at the sight. “Let them go.”

“I don’t think so,” Tony spits. “Put down your weapons, or I'll put one in the girl's head.”

Both Matteo and I are frozen on the spot. My blood turns to ice as I watch Gia’s face, then rage burns away the ice in my veins.

I glare at Tony. I don’t want to give up my gun. I know he’ll just put bullets in Matteo and me and be done with it. I glance at Matteo, who hasn’t moved an inch.

He’s glaring at Tony, his gun trained on the man. We could try to shoot Tony, but we might hit Gia in the process, and I don’t think that’s a risk either of us is willing to take.

“Put your mother fucking guns on the fucking ground,” Tony roars, pressing his gun into Gia’s temple.

“Fuck,” I mutter.

I hold my gun up to show my fingers are off the trigger, then I bend slowly to put it on the ground. Out of the corner of my eye, I notice Matteo as he gives the minutest of nods.

Before anything else can happen, Gia drops to the floor like a sack of flour. Without a second’s hesitation, Matteo puts a bullet in Tony’s head.

I grab my gun and stand up straight again as Tony drops dead. I stare at his body and then at Gia, who struggles to her feet, then launches herself in the boy's direction and wraps her arms around him.

“Oh Gio, it’s okay. We’re okay. We’re saved,” she gushes, hugging him tightly. The boy clings to her and sobs into her shoulder.

Matteo and I stand there a moment, simply watching the exchange. Neither of us is sure what it is they were put through, and for me at least, I’m not sure if I want to know.

At least that fucking gangbanger asshole is dead and won’t be a threat any longer. Matteo moves first, and I follow. We go to kneel on the blanket by the sobbing pair.

I touch Gia’s shoulder softly, wanting to comfort her myself.

Suddenly Matteo drops and rolls onto his back. In a flash, he raises his gun and fires. One of Tony’s men, who was by the door, pointing a gun at me, gasps and drops dead to the floor.

I take a deep breath and look at Matteo.

I nod, hoping he knows we’re even.