Page 97 of Reaper & Ruin
Gio kicked him hard in the ribs, sending him rolling across the floor. “Shut up.”
His dad coughed, laughing harder despite the obvious pain he was in. “What’s the plan, boy? Kill me? You don’t have the guts. You never did.”
Gio pulled his knife, aiming it at his father. “Watch me.”
“Go ahead,” Giorgio taunted, a bloody grin splitting his face. “Kill me. See what happens when my brothers find out? They’re already on their way from Italy, you know. Do you think they’ll let you play at being a king, Giovanni?” He scoffed. “You and your whore will be dead before the week is out. They know where I am, and how you betrayed my family.”
The word ‘whore’ struck a nerve, and I stepped forward, but I didn’t intervene. I just watched as Giorgio slowly clambered to his feet, and I moved closer to Gio, in case he needed backup.
He spat blood, still smiling. “You’re pathetic. Always have been. No wonder people keep paying the cost for your disobedience. Like that little bitch from your club.”
The air seemed to freeze, the room falling deathly silent.
Gio’s hand trembled, his knife steady, but his fury barely contained. “Shut up,” he said through gritted teeth.
“Oh, yes,” his father continued, his tone mockingly sweet. “Poor Melissa. Such a pretty little thing. It’s a shame she got caught up in all this. But I guess mistakes happen, right? How was I supposed to know which pretty blonde tramp you were obsessed with?” His grin got wider. “She lied to me, you know. I presume she was so desperate for money that she just leaped at the chance to pretend to be your woman. The stupid little bitch never used her brain to realize why I was interested in her.”
Before any of us could blink, Giorgio lunged toward the nearby coffee table, his hand snatching up a pistol that had been discarded in the chaos.
“Get down!” I shouted as he fired, and I shoved Gio out of the way. The shot cracked through the air like a whip, grazing Gio’s side but missing him for the most part. He stumbled but didn’t fall, clutching his ribs as blood seeped through his shirt.
“Son of a—” He growled, his voice tight with pain as he lashed out with his knife, narrowly missing his father.
I didn’t have time to check on him fully because Giorgio was already scrambling toward Heaven. His focus locked on nothing but her. My instincts kicked in, and I bolted after him. Refusing to let him lay a single hand on her.
But I wasn’t fast enough.
“Heather!” Gio roared, his voice sharp despite the pain as he desperately tried to move. To stop what we both could see coming as his father raised his gun once more, aiming it right at her head.
A gunshot rang out again, and my heart stopped.
My pulse beat like a drum. My feet came to a sudden stop.
Every single sound in the world silenced.
“Heaven…” I breathed, my voice catching in my throat as blood pooled over the ground, far too much for anyone to survive.
As I stared at the only reason I had to live, and felt my entire world shift in a single moment.
“I told you I was a hitwoman.” Heaven sniffled. Her gaze flicked to me, her face pale but her eyes fierce. “And I promised Missy I would kill him.” Her voice trembled as her gaze dropped to the ground, where Giorgio lay gasping for air.
Gio groaned as he stopped beside me. But as he looked at Heaven, his lips curled into a small, approving smirk. “Good girl,” he whispered. “You can put the gun down now.”
Heaven’s face crumpled for a moment as she dropped her tiny gun, and then she turned on her heel and bolted toward the kitchen sink.
“She’s going to have nightmares about all this blood,” I muttered, worry creeping into my tone as my heart stopped pounding.
“She’ll be fine. She’s strong.” Gio leaned heavily against me. His eyes fixed on Giorgio, who was writhing on the floor, with more blood pooling beneath him. Gio’s expression hardened, and I knew what was coming next.
“Give me the gun,” he said.
“What?”
“The gun,” he repeated, his tone sharp. He extended a hand, his fingers bloodstained but steady. “If I bend down, I’m going to fall. So be a good boy and hand me a weapon.” He looked at me. “I know we planned blackmail, but it’s too late for that. And you were right. You should have murdered him the second we found out he was guilty.” He swallowed hard. “My uncles could find out what happened here. They may one day know how Giorgio ended and… and I’d rather be responsible for this than Heather.”
I hurried to grab Heaven’s gun from the ground. Gio took it without hesitation, his grip firm despite the pain in his side.
He limped toward his father, his steps slow. Giorgio tried to lift his head, his mouth opening as though he had something left to say, but Gio didn’t give him the chance.
