by Jake Biondi
“Let’s make a toast,” Justin suggested, handing Marco the glass. “To you, my handsome husband, who has made me the happiest man alive today. And to us and our bright future together.”
Marco laughed and put his glass down on the nearby table.
“What’s the matter?” Justin asked.
“You don’t even know the man you love.”
“What are you talking about?”
Marco pulled out his gun from his coat pocket. “You’re pathetic. You didn’t even know you married the wrong man today. You must not know or love my brother at all.”
Justin dropped his glass. “Marco!”
“You both left me for dead. If it weren’t for Camille, I wouldn’t be standing here today.”
“That’s not true. Gino moved heaven and earth to try to find you.”
“No. He took over the company and enjoyed that I wasn’t around anymore. Now it’s my time to turn the tables on both of you.”
“Where is he? What have you done to him?”
“I haven’t done anything to him. The best way to hurt him is to get rid of you. It’s a win-win for me, too, don’t you think?”
“Marco…you have it all wrong. What did Camille tell you?”
Suddenly, Patrick and Emmett stepped onto the deck of the boat.
Seeing them, Marco grabbed Justin, putting his left arm around his neck from behind and holding the gun to his head with his right hand.
“Don’t take another step,” Marco told Patrick and Emmett. “Stay back.”
“What the hell is going on?” Emmett asked. “I knew something wasn’t right.”
“It’s Marco,” Justin said with difficulty as Marco tightened his hold around his neck.
“Let him go,” Emmett demanded. “What the hell are you thinking?”
“It’s time to put an end to this family feud,” Marco said. “Isn’t that what you wanted all along?”
“Not this way,” Emmett said.
His gun drawn, Gino rushed onto the deck near Emmett and Patrick. “Let him go, you bastard.”
“He’s my husband now,” Marco laughed. “How funny is that?”
“I said let him go. And return the key you stole from me.”
“That key belongs to me. You don’t even know what it’s for. And as for Justin? I’m sending him to hell where he belongs,” Marco said. “And you can join him there for all I care.”
Suddenly, Justin thrust his elbow into Marco’s stomach in an attempt to get free. Marco hunched over and Justin attempted to get the gun from Marco. As the two men fought over the gun, Emmett and Patrick rushed forward to take Marco down.
Justin and Marco struggled ferociously. The gun fired in one direction and then in another direction soon after, causing quick flashes of light and sound. Blood splattered in every direction.
“No!” Gino yelled as his gun fired, causing even more bloodshed.
From the pier, three bodies could be seen falling from the deck into the dark waters of the lake. The water disturbed by the bodies splashed high into the air and then calmed as the smoke from the fired guns slowly dissipated into the air. The moonlight danced on the surface of Lake Michigan without a care in the world.
545
