Under My Skin

Chapter 16

Shaken from the sight before my eyes, I almost forgot to move. Enzo urged me towards him and the window. I climbed over the windowsill and into Enzo's arms. He cleared his mind from the shock in an instant. Enzo knew his window of opportunity closed soon.

We repelled down the wall together where Enzo put me on my own two feet when we reached the ground. He grabbed my wrist and pulled me in the direction he wanted to go, but I pulled away.

"Now's not the time," Enzo whispered.

"My friend is in trouble. Please, we have to help her." 

Enzo shook his head, and justified, "I'm sorry. We don't have time for that."

"We have to help her. Can't you help her?" I pleaded.

"We only have a few minutes before the guards finish the shift change. That's not enough time." Enzo flashed an apologetic look, but I refused to leave Marlena behind. An alarm began blaring throughout the property. It sounded like the raid sirens you hear in movies.

In one swift movement, Enzo picked me up and threw me over his shoulder. My body tensed up in his grip, but the roaches remained in their hiding places. He ran to make up for the lost time. As he carried me, I continued to squirm in his grip.

When we arrived at the front gates, I saw Marlena from my position over Enzo's shoulder. She ran out the front door. Her body was a silhouette outlined in the light pouring out from the mansion's foyer. She waved to me.

"Marlena!" I cried out as Enzo carried me through the gates. He shook his head and I felt it tap my hip as he continued running.

Niccolò stepped behind Marlena. I saw the shape of a gun in his hand. I cried out for her again. I had to warn her. Niccolò lined up a shot to stop Enzo and me from escaping. Enzo dashed towards a car that sped up the driveway after colliding with the iron gate that closed it off from the street. Marlena jumped in front of Niccolò as he pulled the trigger. I flinched from the sound of the explosion. Marlena's body fell limp to the ground. She smacked the stone floor with such force that her body bounced once before laying completely still.

My breath was trapped in my throat. There were so many questions swirling in my head. She made another sacrifice for me. Why? She gave up her life for me. Why? Why? My words swelled up in my throat until I screamed out for her, "Marlena!"

I wept her name through hoarse breaths. Over and over, I called out for her. My hands covered my mouth as tears poured down my face. Her name was all I could say as the doubts and grief spiraled out of control in my head.

"Marlena," I sobbed. My fingers pulled on my teeth until it hurt. The tears kept falling. My lungs kept begging for air. I kept begging for Marlena. All I uttered were desperate whimpers.

The car skidded to a stop as it flipped its orientation to face the way it came. Niccolò's men opened fire on us. Enzo shoved me in the back seat and closed the door once he was inside. Angelo, who was at the wheel, slammed on the gas before the door shut.

A barrage of bullets hit the car. Sergio rolled down his window to fire his gun back at Niccolò's bodyguards to wound a few men, or possibly kill them.

Enzo pulled me into his chest as I continued to wail at the loss of my only friend in that hell hole. He lied down in the back seat and held me close. He positioned us in a way that his back was pressed against the seats and his body concealed mine from harm.

He smelled like star anise and oranges.

Once we cleared the property and put a few miles between us and the Barbieri estate, Enzo sat up and let go of me. I never knew the comfort of a hug before. Every hug I had experienced in my life made me want to peel away my skin.