Fate

XIV

Tony had just laid down, hoping to soothe the headache that hit him all at once for too many reasons.

He could feel himself slipping. He was becoming distracted again- the same kind of distraction which almost cost him his life. He knew however- sending Liza away was not the answer. They had to set some kind of arrangement-something that would help her through her grief and keep him clean, and be able to love each other through it all.

He had only just sat on their bed, when a maid came running into the room. "Mr. Montana!" she yelled , panic in her eyes. She knew exactly who she worked for, however she did not want to be in a casket just yet. "Carlito signals you- there's men with guns demanding you in the foyer!" 

Tony immediately prang into action- grabbing his extra shotgun from his closet before telling the maid to stay put. Tony knew Carlito was the best, so when he approached the balcony he had no fear of being hurt. As he propped himself on the railings and his eyes scanned the men who held their hands up in surrender, Tony almost gave the order to finish them off then and there.

"Well, you finally made it to Miami." he spoke first, eyeing Marco Soberano in distaste. "Keep in mind.. because of the daughter you tried to kill-I'm letting you breathe." He sneered, cruising down the stairway as Carlito and his men keep their eyes and guns on the unwanted guests. "I don't want any trouble." Marco spoke carefully. "As you can see, Riccardo is my only company." he gestured to the man Tony saved Liza from, kneeling beside his boss.

As he stepped into the foyer fully- dropping down from the last stair, his shotgun raised- anger bubbling within him from seeing Riccardo's face. He remembered Liza's tears and fear as she recalled that someone she considered family, someone who watched her grow up, try to take her life. Under the orders of her own blood, nonetheless. It made Tony grind his teeth in anticipation, the primal need for blood to be spilt over his marble floors becoming more  irresistible by the minute.

"Give me one good fuckin' reason to not splatter your brains all over the fuckin' floor."

When he didn't receive an immediate response, his cocked the shotgun- the barrel being shoved into Marco's face more forcefully, prompting his men to click the safety off their guns- the loud clicks resonating throughout the eerie house. Marco almost began to sweat, but he kept his cool. Tony knew it took a lot of his ego to come to him, and he was enjoying every minute of it. Marco Soberano was the least of his problems; but now he was in his home- the home he shared with the only person whose safety he cared for. Marco was at his mercy, and he was excited.

"Take them to my office." Tony decided, lowering his gun. "No need to make a scene for the staff."  And Liza.. he wanted to add, knowing she could walk back through the double doors at any minute. On Carlito's signal, the men dragged Marco and Riccardo to Tony's office. Tony followed, his shotgun propped on his shoulder as he strode behind Carlito- ready to spill blood.

"Boss." He was stopped by  Carlito, who watched him with weary eyes. Tony was still coming down from an almost overdose and severely emotional- more than usual. Carlito knew that would get him in trouble more than necessary. "Don't play with your food." Carlito advised. He knew as much as Tony that even though revenge was sweet, Liza would not react well if she knew who was there. Tony however, seemed too far gone. "Fuck you talkin' about man?" he grunted, walking over to the corridor which led to his office. "This is some good shit we got here! And we didn't even have to go looking."

Carlito sighed, but followed anyway. He posted two men at the door and instructed them to not let anyone in. Especially Liza. "Just tell her it's some fancy meeting. Say whatever you gotta- don't touch her if you wanna keep your fingers." The men nodded, and assumed their positions with their backs to the door.

"Talk." An annoyed Tony spat, circling the seated men- awaiting the perfect moment to end it, for Liza and Pedro. "I'm here seeking refuge." Marco answered bashfully. "The men who killed my son have tried to take my life- and it's just a matter of time til' they show up here like we did to try to take Liza's life as well."

Tony didn't buy it.

"Yes, and you led them here to get what they want, huh?" He'd walked behind his desk, menacingly placing his shotgun in the middle of the table as a warning. "You gonna give me answers, okay? Any wrong answers and I'll have Carlito put you both out of misery." he threatened, straightening his back to stand tall before them, placing his hands in his pockets.

"What fuckin' men are you talkin' about?" he slowly pronounced. Marco glances at Riccardo, who had yet to lift his eyes off the floor. "Don't look to him." Tony snapped. "He's gonna die today, and you will too if you don't start squawking." Marco groaned, his age showing on his face more clearly than before. Tony began to wonder where the man who took him in and mentored him had gone. The Marco before him was nobody but a coward. "Well.." he glanced towards Riccardo again, making Tony lose his patience. But before he could signal Carlito to finish them both off, the door burst open- revealing Liza in a little black dress.

Her eyes filled with tears as she recognized the faces sat before Tony- who tried to get to her to explain himself before their relationship could become less than it was. But he hadn't the chance, as Liza bolted before anybody could blink. Tony forgot his thirst for blood momentarily, stepping from behind  his desk to go after her. "Pedro got us into this mess." Marco sprouted out, making Tony pause in his tracks. "He saw something he shouldn't have, then got me involved. I thought getting rid of him would solve everything- but it just made it worse!"  Tears began to roll down his cheeks and Tony clenched his jaw.

"You're wasting my time." He sneered, grabbing Carlito's gun from his waist and delivering bullets to both Marco and Riccardo's heads. "Make sure they're dead and get rid of them." He ordered a slightly disturbed Carlito before shoving his gun back into his hands and taking off after Liza.

As he entered their room, he couldn't miss her as she paced back and forth throughout the room, throwing things into a little bag she had on their bed. "No." he sneered, grabbing the bag off the bed and throwing it into the hallway. "Fuck that, you're not leaving. It's not safe.." He tried to reason with a clearly hysterical Liza. Her face was covered in tears and she felt as if she couldn't breathe. She felt betrayed and tired- at the back of her mind, the thought that getting back with Tony was a mistake; he was not the same Tony she fell in love with and she couldn't lie to herself and say that she would be able to love this version of him.

"It's not safe because you have the men who want to kill me in the same house I sleep in!" she yelled, shoving him back as he tried to grab her arms to pull her to him. "They just got here baby-" he tried to explain as she tried to pass around him to get her bag. "Move, Tony." she hiccupped. "I was a fool to think we could be together when you just lie to me over and over again."

Tony stepped back slightly, her words causing an ache in his chest. "You don't mean that.." he said, mostly to himself. "I have to go- I can't be here anymore-this is too much!" She sobbed, but still somehow was able to keep herself up. "Baby, calm down." Tony soothed, finally getting the chance to grab and hold her in his arms. "He just showed up here.. didn't get to say much, alright? I had no intention of doing anything to him- until he showed up on our doorstep." Liza seemed to finally understand, and her tears calmed slightly. "What do you mean? What did he say? What did you do with him?" She pulled away, looking into his eyes as he used his sleeve to clean her tears and his hands to smooth over her long locks. But as Tony looked at her, and remembered to bag outside their room- he felt it best to withhold the fact that he took her father's life a mere few moments ago.

"It's okay." He answered, pulling her back into his chest-running his hands across her back. "I'll handle it." Liza had finally had enough- "Tell me right now, Antonio." But Tony couldn't help the guilt as he spotted a maid running past their room- bucket and mop in hand. And his face showed it. "Antonio?" Liza mumbled. "Don't lie to me again. Please." She begged, getting back on her feet. She knew exactly what Tony had done- having heard the two shots faintly- but if he failed to give her to correct answer- she would make use of the bag he tried to throw aside.

Tony gulped, knowing Liza found him out. But she needed to hear it.. and the only issue with that was Tony felt like if he would lose her whether he told the truth or not.

Inhaling deeply, Liza prepared herself for his answer- an answer which, at this point in time- would decided the fate of their relationship.