Page 12 of Days Of Valentino

“Huh?”

“The phone. It’s for you.” Tapping my arm, Cassidy holds my phone out to me—my cousin’s name staring back at me from the screen.

“Dante, I swear to God, there had better be a damn good reason why you’re calling me,” I grunt.

“It’s Tilly. You need to come to General Hospital. Now,” he says.

My blood goes cold. “What happened?” I ask him.

“She’s been shot. I don’t know. Just get here.”

“Fuck. I’ll be right there.” I cut the call and look down at the woman who just promised me forever, the reality that forever isn’t always a long time suddenly sinking in. “My cousin’s in the hospital. I have to go.”

“I’ll come.” Cassidy jumps up and throws on her clothes. She doesn’t ask any questions. She simply places her hand in mine and walks by my side as we leave the apartment.

Episode Five

“Where the fuck is she?” I yell out while shoving through the emergency room doors. Only to stop short when my older brother presses a hand to my chest.

“She’s in surgery,” Theo says.

“What the fuck happened? Where is he? I’m going to fucking kill him.” I pull my piece from behind my back. I don’t know why my daughter is in a surgery room with a gunshot wound.

How the fuck did this happen? She was supposed to be protected. He was supposed to be fucking protecting her.

“He’s in there.” Theo gestures over his shoulder, using the moment of distraction as a means to snatch the gun out of my hand. “You’re not shooting up a fucking hospital. Andthisisn’t on him, Romeo.”

“What do you mean it’s not his fucking fault? Matilda was fucking shot!” I push at my brother’s chest. If it’s not her no-good boyfriend’s fault, then who the fuck is responsible for my daughter getting shot?

“You need to calm down,” Theo tells me.

“You. Who the fuck did you piss off?” Antonio comes charging towards us.

“Me?” I direct a hand to myself and laugh. “You have a lot of fucking nerve, kid,” I hiss at him.

“This was a direct attack on you, asshole. Tilly is laid up in that bed because ofyou. Now, like I asked the first time, who the fuck did you piss off?” he repeats.

“What the fuck do you mean because of me? She’s in there because you couldn’t protect her. I knew better than to let my daughter get mixed up with a fucking Gambino.” I shove past Theo, my fist making direct contact with Antonio’s jaw. I don’t need a gun to end this fucker.

“That was your one fucking shot, asshole,” Antonio grunts.

“Pops, stop. You need to see this.” Dante yanks back on my shoulder. I glance his way and he hands me a tablet. “It’s the security footage of the store Tilly and Aurora were at today,” he says.

“Aurora was there? Where is she?” I look around and spot my niece pacing up and down the waiting room, her arms crossed and her jaw set tight.

I return my attention to the tablet, pressing play on the video, and watch the girls walk into the store. Fast-forward a few seconds and the feed shows them browsing the various clothing racks. Tilly goes off to one side and Aurora makes her way towards the back. A minute later, the doors open again and a man in a ski mask rushes inside with the barrel of a gun aimed at my daughter. I can see his mouth moving but there’s no sound on the footage.

“What’s he saying?” I ask Dante. And then I see it, my daughter taking a fucking bullet to the chest.

My blood boils. I can feel my rage reaching its tipping point as it surges through my veins. My hands shake while my eyes remain locked on the screen. And then, out of nowhere, the guy is falling to the ground. Aurora standing over him with a knife in her hand, its razor-sharp edge now covered in blood.

“Aurora mentioned that the guy said something to Tilly before he pulled the trigger. He saidtell your father not to run,” Dante explains.

“This shit’s over fucking politics?” My arm launches back and the tablet flies across the room, bouncing off the wall and shattering when it hits the ground.

“Yeah, didn’t need that anyway,” Dante mumbles. When he looks up again, his eyes go wide as he stares behind me. “Ma, she’s okay.”

I quickly spin around and Livvy throws herself against my chest. The look on her face tears me apart as she peers up at me with tear-stained cheeks. “Tell me she’s okay, Romeo,” she pleads.

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