Chapter 104

Three of us stepped over the debris of the hole we made of the entrance. After a quick debate, Lorenzo told us he could cover himself and not to worry about him. He deployed the drone he had left and it was hovering above us. Keenan and I were leading while Marek was just behind us.

A few shots came from the second floor and I adjusted, looking up and taking quick shots as I moved. If anything, I knew this place like the back of my hand. I knew every squeaky board. Every blind corner, every room and every loud hinge. It was easy to know where the guys were coming from but there were only a few.

“They are holed up in the study. Only a few guards left. Most are injured or confused. They aren’t organized and aren’t poised to attack.”

I motioned for the guys to follow me as I raced up the stairs. Turning to the left, I walked down the open walkway before I turned down the very last hallway. At the end of this hallway was my father’s study. It was where he brought men after they had done business for a drink and social hour.

Motioning to the door, I moved to the side while Marek came forward. He slammed his foot into the door, making the thing splinter under him. Keenan pulled him back by the vest as shots rained from inside. We waited until the bullets stopped and I peaked in.

As soon as I laid my eyes on Ferrari, I let off three bullets. All three hit him in the head and he dropped. Revenge might not fix everything that had happened to me, but I felt a weight off my back. As though a sliver that had been causing me pain every moment of every day was just miraculously gone.

“Well, pet, I guess you did make your way back here.”

Standing up, I looked at my father sitting in the couch with a cigar in his mouth. He had a gun next to him, his hand resting on it lightly but it didn’t look like he had fired it.

“Father.”

He looked behind me for a moment. “And the young Baranov who fell for my broken daughter. How fitting you should be following her back here. I wonder if she will give you a tour of the house. All the corners of the house she fucked my men in. The places where I made sure she was strong enough to withstand anything. I wonder how much she has told you.”

“They know, Father. Both of them do. Soon, the Baranov bratva will all know who I am and who Marek is married to.”

His features twisted from mild annoyance to rage. “You dare tell them! You dare give away our secrets!”

“Our? Our secrets? You mean mine. Kharon has nothing to do with you!”

“I built you from the ground up! I molded you! I made you into something when you were nothing! No one wants some stupid little girl who isn’t even beautiful! What else was I supposed to do with a mutt like you? Being Kharon made you useful and saved you life. I did that for you.”

Shaking my head, I raised my gun up to his head. “You destroyed me. You destroyed this family. Every single one of us, we are fucked up because of you.”

Father threw his head back and laughed. “Because of me? Of course! You think you could have survived this world if I hadn’t? Please, Rosaria.” He spread his arms out over the couch. “You think you can kill me? You think a pet can kill the master? Try. Try to kill me, my daughter. I dare you.”

Stepping closer, the barrel of the gun was a foot away from his forehead. I looked down at him, that stupid grin on his face as he looked up at me. It was the same grin when he looked down at me as tied me to the chair after his latest victim. Shaking my head, I felt my bottom lip shake.

“I hate you. I hate you so much.”

He laughed. “See, you can’t…”

I let off two shots, one in each of his shoulders. “Shut up! I wasn’t done!”

His eyes widened as he touched his shoulders, his fingers coming back covered in blood. “You shot me. You actually shot me. How dare you! On your knees! Now! Apparently you need to learn your lesson!” He was completely delusional thinking that he even could bark orders at me now.

Marek started to come forward but I put my hand back to stop him. Taking a deep breath, I let it all go. Everything that I had been bottling up all these years. My gun slipped back in the holster and I balled up my fist and smashed it into his face. Then again. And again. And again.

My father was too surprised to move at first but then he started to fight back. He got a punch to my side and then to my jaw. Still, I didn’t stop. I let everything out, feeling my fists connect with his flesh faster and faster and faster.

“Ria!” Marek pulled me back as I heaved, struggling against him to continue to beat the man who had caused me so much pain over the years. “Ria, it’s okay. Breathe, zhena. Breathe.”

Tears filled my eyes as I watched him cough up blood. “I hate you. Lorenzo hates you. You’re going to die here and Enzo is going to take over and no one is going to remember you. Except when they talk about the leader who had the most fucking wives. Who couldn’t keep it in his pants. Who tried to fuck his own children. Your name will be forgotten but you will be that one leader who was such a disgrace to society that anything is better than you.”

Father laughed as he wiped the blood from the corner of his lips. “My dear. I will never…”

A shot rang out and my eyes widened. It had gone through his forehead and his whole body fell back against the couch. Looking at the doorway, Lorenzo was holding the gun as his arms shook. He was breathing just as heavy and I opened my mouth but closed it as I looked back at the body of my father.

He was dead. He was finally gone. The being that seemed so otherworldly in my nightmares. The man who I hated the most, who was responsible for everything that I had suffered. Carlo Bernardi was finally dead.

“Lor…”

Keenan reached out and took the gun from his shaking hands. “He…talks too much…”

I chuckled and then broke down. Marek turned me so that he could hug me. I sobbed into his chest as he rubbed my back. He didn’t hush me or try to tell me it was okay. All he did was hold me tight and occasionally press his lips into my head.

“We need to go. Enzo might come back but at the very least, I don’t want to be here when any other groups decide to come. Spaniards got an emergency call not too long ago.” Lorenzo wheeled back into the hallway.

Taking a breath, I nodded and wiped my eyes. Marek’s hands held my head and his thumbs brushed my cheeks.

“How did you even get up here?” Keenan asked Lorenzo.

“Like everyone else. The stairs. Come on.”

I slipped my hand into Marek’s, intertwining our fingers. “You guys go. Keenan, if you could help Lor. I need to grab something before we leave.”

We made our way down the hall together but broke off at the stairs. Keenan stood behind Lorenzo’s chair and helped him get down the stairs while badgering him on how he got up. I took Marek with me further down the hall taking one left, one right, and then opening up the far door on the left.

“Was this your room?”

The room itself was plain. Always ready to take on guests but in all neutral colors to not offend anyone. It hadn’t been used and the layer of dust on everything, even the sheets, was thick. It made the room sparkle as soon as I opened up the door as light shone from the windows.

“No, this isn’t. It’s a guest bedroom.”

Getting on my knees, I hissed as my muscled stretched and pulled. Throwing back the small carpet and feeling around the floor, I found the loose floorboard. I popped it open and pulled out a small little lockbox. Smiling, I held it against my body. It was a miracle that it was still here but I was glad.

“Your personal belongings?”

“The only ones that mattered. Keeping them in your room was a liability. So I kept them here. I wanted to grab them but I never got the chance.”

Marek helped me up off the floor. “We need to go. I feel myself starting to fade.”

My eyes widened and I nodded. We retraced the way we came and raced down the stairs. The van was already pulled around and poised to head out.

“Think we should do one more blast before we leave?”

I shook my head as I shut the sliding door after Marek all but collapsed into his seat. “We don’t have time. We need to get Marek to the hospital.”

Lorenzo looked over his shoulder at Marek and then nodded. I sat down opposite of Marek with Keenan sitting in the front. They bickered over the best route to take to the hospital but I tuned them out. I was holding Marek’s hands in mine, bushing them softly with my thumbs.

“I hate having a beard.”

I smiled, looked up at him. His eyes were closed but there was still a smile on his face. Bringing up his hands, I kissed them softly.

“I don’t care how I get you, as long as it’s in one piece.”

He hummed. “One piece.”

My eyes widened and I jumped up to catch Marek before he fell over.

“Lor!”

“I know! I know! I’m going!”