“You think that stupid thug found me?” Demarco said motioning to Giuseppe. “I allowed him to find me. I wanted to be caught, and I knew it would end this way. I die today knowing that my death will bring about the downfall of your family.”
“Who the fuck are you working for!” Sal shouted, rushing him, as he yanked the knife out of my hand and stabbed him in his stomach. “Tell me!”
Demarco coughed, spitting blood all over his face. “I told him that you would gather your family to seek your revenge and that you would leave the house unattended. I hope you said goodbye to her, Gio.”
35
Giovanni
I ran from the room as I rushed up the stairs to find the house eerily quiet. Reaching around my back, I grabbed both my guns and crept about the house.
Leaving the kitchen, I stopped when I saw two of my guards lying in a pool of blood. Their throats cut.
Sal, Dwayne, and Giuseppe quietly snuck out the side door through the back door.
Carmine stood beside me, armed and ready.
Marko, Enzo, and Paolo were at my back.
Together we spread out.
The house was too quiet.
Motioning to Carmine, we both ascended the stairs, taking our time. I knew Layla would be in my room, and I just prayed she had shut the door, which would automatically lock behind her. She knew about the safety feature, having been trapped in my room before.
At the top of the stairs, I saw that Illyria’s door was open.
Moving quickly, I entered her room to find it empty.
Her room, always neat and tidy, looked as if it had been ransacked. I could clearly see a struggle had taken place.
“She’s gone,” Carmine said, coming out of her bathroom.
Nodding, we left her room, seeing Lorenzo’s door shut.
Carefully opening it, I rushed in when I found my brother laying on his bed, a knife in the side of his chest. He was having difficulty breathing, and I just knew the knife had punctured his lung.
“Gio,” Lorenzo gasped. “I didn’t see them.”
“I know, Lorenzo. Hang on, and we will get you to a hospital.”
My brother nodded, closing his eyes as he tried to control his breathing.
Leaving him, I went to the next room.
Opening the door, I found Antonio’s room empty and everything in its place. Leaving, I headed towards my door at the end of the hall.
It was closed.
Placing my hand on the wall, I waited to hear the door unlock before I opened the doors and stepped in. Carmine and I quickly moved about my room, only to find it empty.
“Where is she?” Carmine asked.
Shaking my head, I had no clue. Nothing was disturbed. Our luggage was still sitting at the foot of my bed.
“I need to check on Don Victor,” Carmine said, and together we rushed downstairs. I counted five more men passing the living room with their necks cut. Running now, I raced to the east wing of the house and saw Mattia sitting on the floor in front of a door, and he, too, had been stabbed.
“Mattia,” Carmine said, kneeling before him. “Don Victor?”