17
Nico
Ipace in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows, watching heavy dark clouds consume every last sliver of light in the sky. Dad is still in surgery, and nobody can tell us if he’s going to be okay. All I keep hearing from Sloane is that the doctors are working hard to put him back together. Seems like a collapsed lung was the least of his problems. His body was crushed like a fucking accordion, and there was more internal damage than they’d anticipated.
I glance back at where my mom is sitting with Lily. They’re huddled together, and Mom is rubbing Lily’s back the way she rubbed mine earlier. She’s always been focused on other people, making them feel safe and secure, instead of worrying about herself. I know she’s devastated, and I wish to God for the millionth time I’d have done things differently today. It would have only prolonged the inevitable, but at least Dad would be with us right now instead of lying on an operating table somewhere in the bowels of this fucking hospital.
Air. I need some air. This hospital lobby is toxic—the air is polluted with fear, anguish, and pain. I need to get away from it all, even if only for a few minutes. I push open one of the doors and take in a deep breath. I can smell the rain coming. The impending storm is so close, anxious to unleash its force through pelting rains and crashing thunder.
Exactly how I feel at this moment.
I sink onto a deserted bench and stretch out my legs, hunching my body forward. I squeeze my eyes shut, but the scene continues to loop through my mind, complete with the chilling sound effects. But this time I’m on the outside watching myself react…seeing myself jump out of my car, taking a few cautious steps toward my dad, falling to the ground when I see the tangled mess in his front seat….
I fist my hair as if that’s going to black out the images.
It doesn’t.
I need to leave. I have to find these fuckers. I will make them pay…every last one of them.
My iPhone vibrates against my leg, and I grab it out of my pocket. Nobody but Shaye knows what happened, and I don’t feel like rehashing anything right now. My finger hovers over the Decline button on the screen with the unknown number but before I can press it, my index finger hits Accept. I can’t explain it. I just needed to do it.
“Yeah?” I ask the “unknown” person on the other end of the line, unknown since the number didn’t even come up when I answered. For all I know, it could be a fucking telemarketer.
But still I answered.
“Salesi,” a deep gruff voice growls.
Tiny hairs on the back of my neck prickle. “Who the fuck is this?” I ask the question even though I know exactly who the fuck it is.
“It’s been a long time, Salesi. But lemme refresh your memory. I’m the guy whose life you fucking destroyed five years ago. And guess what? I’ve been waiting a long time to pay you back. But every time I call you out, you run away like a scared little bitch. What the fuck is up with that?”
“Fuck you, Luca.” My hand shakes, but my voice remains strong and steady. There is no way I’ll give this bastard the satisfaction of knowing what’s going on in my head.
“You’re just weak, Salesi. Always were. Pretty rich boy, banging chicks three at a time, without a care in the world because you had Daddy and Grandpa feeding you money and power. You had a great fucking life. But it wasn’t enough. It was never enough unless you had everything. You had to be the best, have the best. You could never be happy knowing someone may have had more than you, right? So you picked me because I was on top. And you couldn’t rest until you knocked me down, you sonofabitch.”
“Don’t give me your fucking sob story, you asshole,” I hiss. “You brought it all on yourself. What you did…” I slap a hand to my forehead to block out the images, images that I’d stashed away a very long time ago. “Jesus Christ, you deserved everything you got and more. I didn’t give a fuck what you had. I only cared about what you took. And I’d do it again without a second thought. The world doesn’t need a scumbag like you in it. You ruined lives, Luca. Not me. You.”
“You don’t know shit about my life, Salesi. But then again, you never bothered to find out because it was always all about you. At least I’ve made it about other people—Carlo Batta, your dad…whoever comes next…”
I clench my fists, struggling to control my breathing. “Only one person is left, Luca. You.”
Luca snickers. “Such strong words. You got anything behind ’em, Salesi? Are you finally gonna show your fucking idiot crew that you have a set of balls? Or are you gonna keep hiding from me, you pussy?”
“Does it make you feel better, Luca? Hurting people to get back some of the control you lost when your father cut you out, humiliating you?” I seethe, swallowing past the growing lump in my throat. “You tried to get his attention and approval, but he got rid of you like the trash you are because you were a fucking cancer to his operation.”
“Keep talking, asshole. You’re just giving me more reasons to blow your fucking head off.”
“I’d rather save the rest for later…when I find you and bust a cap in your fucking skull.”
“I’ll be waiting. I know you remember the place. Oh, and hey, sorry about your pops. I was gonna send flowers, but I hear they don’t take them in the ICU. Maybe I’ll just save ’em for the funeral home.”
“Go ahead and save them for your own funeral since you’ve got no one to mourn your sorry ass now…but I hear Daddy is waiting for you in hell. See ya soon, motherfucker.”