Mafia Fall-Out

Chapter Twenty Six

Luca

Matteo's men brought out two chairs, and they instructed Charlotte and me to sit down. Charlotte was gently crying, her eyes facing the ground and refusing to look up at anyone. He didn't have us restrained, but a man with a machine gun stood behind each of us. I had gotten myself out of all kinds of different predicaments over the years, but this one certainly took the cake. Not to mention I had to get my wife and daughter out of here, too. I had no clue how I was going to put this one off. Charlotte said she left a note for Marco and Angelo, but who knew how long it would take for them to get here? They might not even be back at the hotel yet to even find the note, and I needed to come up with a plan quickly.

Matteo sat in front of us, not speaking at the moment, but he had a smug grin on his face. He was cocky and egotistical, and I had a feeling that this entire operation was shoddy. Aside from Matteo, the two men with Charlotte and me, and the woman who had Lucy, I hadn't seen another person. That meant it was probably small. Still, though, Char and I were severely outmatched. Between the machine guns the men behind us held and the few handguns Matteo had spread out on the desk, they had some pretty high powered weapons and Charlotte and I had nothing.

"Tell me about your family, Luca." Matteo said, leaning back in his chair and resting one ankle over the other knee.

I glared at him, not wanting to play into his games. I had no intentions of getting to know him. I didn't give a shit who he was, my brother or not. I wanted nothing to do with him, and at the first opportunity I was given, I was would rip his heart out with my bare hands.

"No?" He arched an eyebrow. "You don't want to talk?"

"How about your little wife over here?" He stood up slowly, prowling towards Charlotte. When he got close, he bent down and grabbed her chin, forcing her to look up.

I clenched my jaw, using every ounce of strength in my body to keep my composure. He wanted to get a rise out of me, and that's why he was putting his hands on her. I couldn't react on impulse and put us in an even worse position, so all I could do was sit here and watch him touch her.

"Tell me about your family, Charlotte. Lucy and I have been getting to know each other, but you have other children, right?" He coaxed, grinning evilly the entire time.

When Charlotte didn't answer, he ran his fingers through her hair, taking a fistful and pulling her head back roughly. He shoved a gun into her ribs. "I asked you a question." I bit the inside of my cheek, keeping myself in check.

Charlotte winced but didn't cry out. Gritting her teeth, she glared at him harshly.

"We have three more." I growled. "I'll talk to you, Matteo. I'll tell you whatever you want to know. Just leave her alone."

That got his attention and he let go of her, turning towards me. "How chivalrous. I guess you learn how to be a gentleman when you actually have a father in the picture."

I let out a sharp laugh. "I am who I am in spite of our father. Trust me, you got the better end of the deal here. Our father was a monster."

"Better end of the deal?" He arched his eyebrow at me. "My mother and I lived on the streets my entire life. I was lucky to get one meal a day, and most nights, I slept underneath a fucking newspaper. All the while, you and your mom and dear old dad lived like God damn royalty." He scoffed. "We grew up in the same town, Luca. Did you know that? All those years and we were just a few streets away from each other. I watched your family for years, wishing for a fraction of what you had, and then on her deathbed, my mother tells me that she had an affair with your father. We lived with the fucking rats, and she died because of it and it was all for nothing. I had to fend for myself since I was twelve. Somehow, I don't believe that's the better end of the deal."

I fought the urge to roll my eyes. "Did you really bring me here to compare scars, Matteo? What happened to you wasn't right, but it had nothing to do with me, let alone my wife and daughter."

"It had everything to do with you." He bellowed. "Our father chose you. He handed you a faction of the Italian mafia and made you into one of the most powerful Dons ever known."

"He didn't hand me anything..." I started to defend, but he slammed the butt of his gun into my temple, splitting the skin and sending a trickle of blood down my cheek.

Charlotte gasped, covering her mouth with her hands.

"Shut up." Matteo hissed, hovering over me. "All my life you've been an enigma to me and now here you are in my warehouse." He chuckled, shaking his head. "You can't tell me you don't have some questions for me."

I really didn't want to hear anything he had to say, but maybe if I got him talking, it would buy us some time. "How did you find out about me?"

"I've been following you since I found about our father's affair, actually. All these years I've watched how your perfect life just got better and better and it made me fucking sick. And when I heard you were taking back over, I couldn't stand it. That's why I came after your territory with the bad cocaine. I thought the bodies would get your attention, but when they didn't, I had to get more creative."

There was a noise at the front of the building, and Matteo froze. Could it be Marco and Angelo? Matteo nodded towards the front and one of the men behind us went to check it out. Now was the time. I had to take advantage of this opportunity. Hopefully, Charlotte would follow my lead.

"And so you took Lucy." I said, reaching over and putting my hand on her knee. If there ever was a time I hoped she could read my mind, it was right now.

Matteo didn't seem to skip a beat and continued his story. "I had to. Nothing else I was doing was getting your attention, and it was just too convenient. You and all your friends on this lavish trip. It's disgusting..."

Charlotte tensed up, glancing at me and meeting my eyes. She knew what was about to happen and she gave me a soft nod.

Matteo was pacing in front of us talking, and I reached down to get a hold of the chair. When Matteo turned and started pacing back towards Charlotte, I took the chance.

I bolted upright and swung the chair in a fast sweep around me. I hit the guard first, and he grabbed his head in pain. Then I hit Matteo, knocking him off of his feet for just long enough for me to grab a gun. I turned it on the guard and fired three shots at the guard, who fell flat and lifeless.

"Go Charlotte!" I ordered. "Find Lucy and get out of here." I thrust a gun towards her and gave her a pleading look. Matteo had gotten back to his feet and tackled me from behind, sending both of us to the ground.

Char nodded desperately and disappeared down the hallway where Marissa had taken Lucy.

Matteo and I rolled around on the ground in a heap for several seconds, both of us battling as hard as we possibly could. I still had a hold of the gun, but Matteo had lost his and he was trying to wrestle it out of my hands.

"Give up, Luca." He panted. "You're not getting out of here."

I slammed my fist against his jaw, but only deterred him for a second. He came back at me with an anger fervor, flailing his fists all around. He got several punches in and landed a few sharp kicks into my ribs. It knocked the wind out of me and I was losing steam fast.

Suddenly I heard Charlotte scream, a gunshot and then Lucy shrieking. Then five more gunshots. That was all it took. I had to overpower him and then I had to go find my girls.

I maneuvered myself so I was on top of him and leaned my forearm against his throat. Matteo lurched back, and I was able to get a better grip on the gun. I cocked it back and tried to shoot, but nothing came out. Fuck. It was out of bullets. Instead of shooting, I slammed the gun into his head as hard as I possibly could.

Another shot rang out, and Matteo fell limp against me. I looked up in confusion to see Angelo standing a few feet away from me with a gun in his hands.

He smirked, helping me up. "Sorry it took so long. Let's get the girls and get out of here."