Xander grits his teeth. “You may have gotten close, you may have gotten inside. But you’ll never break us. You will never take what we’ve built!”
His left elbow jabs at my side, sending me flying into a corner, my mother still pressed against me.
Moretti stakes a few steps toward Xander, his eyes daring him to pull the trigger. “You’re as good as dead if—”
Pop!
Moretti’s body drops instantly over Lorenzo’s body.
“Nope,” Xander mutters. “That would be you, Moretti.”
“Oh, fuck,” Phoenix mutters. “Here we go.”
And then the eruption happens.
My eyes slam shut, tucking my mother’s quivering frame into me as I grip onto her tighter. The cascade of bullets and shouting is deafening. I feel like we’re walking through hell’s gates without shoes on, which is perfect since my feet are still bare. Terror crashes over me like an all-consuming tidal wave and breathing is an impossibility. I struggle for air, eyes squeezed shut, afraid to look at the certain carnage. I need this to all be a horrible dream.
I need to wake up!
A large body lands in front me with a thud, a howling groan erupting next to my ear as Xander’s body blankets mine. “Are you okay?” His thick, gravelly voice breaks into my panic, forcing my eyes to shoot open. He’s lying on top of me, his hand gripping his bloody shoulder. The firefight has ended. There are bodies sprawled out everywhere.
I can’t answer. Physically, I’m fine. Mentally, I am so far from alright I don’t even have the words to articulate it. “Oh my God!” I whimper. “You’re bleeding!”
“Yeah, well, better me than you,” he says.
My gaze drifts to the wide, dead eyes of the man who had made my life a living hell since I stepped foot back in Ridgeview. The side of Rossi’s head was blown to bits, as if it exploded from the inside out, pieces of skull and brain matter splattered onto the floor, over his scar and down his neck. Bile rises in my throat and I clap a hand over my mouth, desperately trying to hold it together. It’s the first time I really ever saw a dead body in that state. I feel nothing. Well, nothing except for relief.
And nausea.
“We need to get them out of here,” Phoenix helps Xander scramble to his feet as he winces from the pain of his own bullet wound.
“Don’t ever do that again,” Jase growls at Xander.
“He did what he needed to do to protect his family.” Marco is standing in front of me, holding his hand out to help me clamber to my feet. As he continues, Mr. Iazetti’s stare never breaks from mine. “It’s what I would have done to protect your mother.”
Whimpering pulls me away, making me glance to the opposite corner from us. Carl is holding his side, blubbering and muttering to himself.
Jase strides over to him. “Shut up, you fucking pussy,” he growls, jabbing his boot right into Carl’s neck, the concealed blade popping out and slicing into Carl’s flesh like melted butter.
“It’s finally over,” I breathe out, falling back into the exposed bricks. My knees can’t hold my weight, my entire body feels like it weighs a million pounds. My pulse thumps against my neck as I try to suck in gasps of air, but it barely works.
I feel a tight grip on my hand, my mother finally snapping out of her shocked state. “Thank God you’re alright,” she coos, wrapping her slender arms around my neck. I hold her against me, finally letting my mind calm down just a little.
Turning to Marco, my mother blinks back tears. “Thank you for helping me finally see just how terrible my husband truly was.”
Marco’s head bows a little. “I don’t know if thanks are appropriate for this situation, but I am glad that you’re finally out from under his thumb.”
My mother’s spine stiffens as she holds her head up high. “Now Hawthorne Industries can finally get into bed with the right people and prevent these types of tragedies from ever happening again.”
“We need to move,” Phoenix growls. “I’ll call the cleaners.”
“How is any of this going to be able to be cleaned up?” I choke out, counting all of the bodies collapsed on the basement floor.
Xander tucks me into his side. “A business deal gone wrong will be exactly how the news reports it in the morning.”
Marco chuckles. “You don’t get to our status without knowing how to stage a crime scene for it to be able to work in your favor, young lady.”
I am still in disbelief. How is this so easy for all of them? How much practice has Xander really had in all of this? Why isn’t my mother hysterical right now? How am I not hysterical right now?
“Let’s get you to the hospital,” I mutter at Xander. “That shoulder really needs to be looked at.”
“Can’t go to the hospital,” Jase grumbles, stabbing the screen of his phone. “I’ll call the Doc.”
I furrow my brow. “Doc?”
“Yeah, you can’t go to the hospital with a gunshot wound unless you want the cops to swarm you like maggots on rotten meat.” Phoenix winks at me. “But it’s okay. We’ve got a guy.”
“You people really do live a crazy life, don’t you?” I whisper with a shake of my head.
“It’s not always crazy. Only about ninety-nine percent of the time,” Xander says, wincing as he shifts against me.
“Is this going to be our normal?” I ask, stroking the side of his face.
“I don’t think I can walk away now, Char. I know what I told you, what I thought I wanted, but I need to take my place.” His jaw twitches. “Can you handle that?”
I bite down on my lower lip. “I know I can’t handle being without you,” I murmur. “And that I need you in my life.”
The corners of his lips curl upward. “I love you, Char.”
“I think you proved that to me ten times over tonight alone.” I kiss his cheek, gripping onto the lapel of his destroyed tux. “I can’t believe you just took a bullet for me.”
Phoenix starts to usher everyone toward the back door. “Save the mushy shit for after Xander is patched up. We don’t want him bleeding out down here with the rest of this fucking scum.”
* * *
Xander
I hobble up to the front door of Doc’s house about twenty minutes later, Charlotte’s arm tight around my waist, and Jase following behind us. Phoenix and Dad stayed behind to deal with the mess we left behind, including Blaine.
Chase and Asher really came through for me. They showed their loyalty and didn’t ask any questions. They had total and complete blind trust in me right when I needed it most, and I owe them big.
“Consequences.” It was the one word I managed to utter as Jase and Charlotte rushed me past Chase.
He just gave me a silent nod in return, and I know he’s remembering our last conversation in the cafeteria.
I think he finally gets it.
Chase and Asher did a good job of keeping Blaine quiet thanks to some box cutter threats and a lot of duct tape, but he’s gonna need some extra convincing to keep his damn mouth shut about what went down tonight.
Convincing in the form of blackmail pictures of his father ass-ramming strippers. And there’s always an attempted rape charge we can have slapped on Blaine if he needs more reason to turn the other cheek.
The story is an easy one to concoct, especially if you have friends in high places, which we do.
If Blaine has any hope of keeping his hands on the money his father had left, he’ll watch his step, especially since the partnership between Carl, Moretti, and Charles pretty much went up in smoke when we blew them into the next life.
He doesn’t have much, but what he does have will go up in smoke if he plays his hand wrong, something Phoenix will make crystal clear.
When we left the event, it was in full swing. A soundproof basement and silencers helped the firefight stay under the radar, although everyone upstairs was too boozed up to notice the host was nowhere to be found. Once she pulled herself together, Cammy hung back to explain away Charles’
s absence to anyone sober enough to ask.
I’ve got to hand it to her.
I dropped the gun next to her, not a hundred percent convinced she’d use it. But she surprised me. For years, she’s played the victim, never speaking up, never challenging Charles, accepting his abuse, always afraid to pop her bubble of a life. Tonight, she grabbed life by the balls and didn’t give a shit about consequences. She took down the monster who killed her son. She made him pay for his sins. She was a total badass.
I have no doubt she’ll make a good business partner.
After tonight, I don’t think she’s gonna take shit from anyone anymore.
It’s about damn time.
The door creaks open after a few short knocks, and the wrinkled face of the old-timer who has been our go-to guy for underground medical attention for years grins at us.
“Xander.”
I nod. “Doc.”
I’ve always only known him as the Doc. I don’t know his real name and never asked. He fixes shit up and makes sure we’re drugged enough not to feel pain. That’s good enough for me.
“Come in,” he says in a hushed tone. Jase claps him on the back as he walks in behind us.
I clutch my shoulder, wincing with every step I take.
Doc pulls my hand away from the injury once we’re safely inside. “Let me see the damage.” He peers at it, then looks at the back. “It doesn’t look terrible. Whoever shot you has shitty aim.”
“Thank God,” Charlotte murmurs. “And your mother is going to flip when she sees you like this. She was a wreck before we even left the house.”
“Fuck,” Jase groans. “Ma was all, ‘find my baby, take care of my baby.’ She’s gonna kick my ass when she sees you and she won’t believe ‘her baby’ is the reason why he got shot in the first place.”
I take a deep breath as Doc leads me into his makeshift exam room and helps me onto the table. “You need to call her, Jase. Tell her everyone’s okay.”
“That’s a conversation I can’t wait to have,” he grumbles. “Doc, you got any whiskey while we wait for you to sew him up?”
“I stocked up after the last time you were here.” He smirks. “You know where to find it.”
Jase places a hand on my good shoulder and the corners of his lips curl upward. “For a guy who’s always bitching about consequences, you pulled a real dick move for starting that whole shit storm. But you did good.” He nods at Charlotte. “You were trying to protect us and your girl. I know we haven’t really seen eye to eye, you know, like ever, but I’m glad you’re okay,” he says in a gruff voice. He scrubs a hand down the front of his face. “Now on to the fun stuff.” He pulls out his phone and wanders out of the exam room. “Ma? Yeah, it’s me.”
Then his voice trails off as the Doc finishes hooking my wire up to the IV at the top corner of the bed. He looks at me with a smile. “In a few minutes, you’re going to feel no pain,” he says. “I’m going to grab some supplies, and I’ll be right back.”
He closes the door behind him and I look at Charlotte. “My mom was really worried, huh?”
She nods. “Yeah. I felt really bad, but your dad insisted she stay home. I really thought for a second she was going to stow away in the trunk or something.”
“She’s always been on my side,” I murmur. “The only one, really.”
“You know, I get that you think your brothers and father are on a different side, but tonight, they heard you were in trouble, and nothing could keep them away. They love you, Xan. You have to know that.”
I let out a deep sigh. “I know.”
“Especially Jase. Him saying all of that right then?” She shakes her head. “He was worried. Really worried.”
“That’s nice to know since he’s usually the one threatening me with death,” I say, the overhead lights blurring my vision slightly.
“You’re just a really difficult prick who thinks things should be his way or the highway,” she murmurs, her lips gently grazing mine. “You need to trust a little more, be open-minded. Just because people have different opinions, it doesn’t mean they’re out to get you.”
“You’re right. I’ll try to be nicer. I promise.” The room spins as I try to lift my head and it crashes back down to the pillow. I reach up to stroke the side of her face, her features swimming in front of me. I blink fast to keep the image of her smile steady. “I think we need to get out of here. To start our own life, one that we control. I love you, Char. I want to be with you forever. I want to protect you. I want to make you happy,” I slur, my voice thick and heavy as if I’m talking through a bag of cotton. “Let’s-s get married, okay? We can elope. Vegas-s...tomorrow...” My words fade out as I tumble head first into my pain-free euphoria, but in the depths of my mind, I hear her response. It’s the last sound I hear before blackness consumes me whole.
“Okay,” she replies in a soft whisper. “Tomorrow.”
Epilogue
Xander
One Year of Tomorrows Later
“So, I’ll see you tonight?” Charlotte says with a grin before opening the car door.
“Every night for the rest of your life,” I murmur, grazing her lips with mine.
She lets out a breathless giggle against my mouth. “You’re insatiable.”
“Thank you,” I say with a wink. “Have a great day at school.”
She gets out, hoisting her backpack over her shoulder and blowing me a kiss. “Love you.”
“I love you, too,” I say with a smile, watching her turn to walk into the building where her first class is being held.
How the fuck could I get so lucky?
We’ve been in Chicago for a year now. Yeah, she has a dorm room at Great Lakes University where she’s going to school for her teaching degree, but she stays with me at my place almost every night. I want her to move in, but our mothers would have a conniption if I didn’t marry her first.
I mean, I already proposed.
Kind of.
Unfortunately, I had to find out about it from Charlotte. I don’t remember it at all because of the drugs the Doc pumped into me before patching up my busted shoulder a year ago.
How fucking romantic is that?
And Vegas?
Jesus.
What the hell kind of drugs were they, anyway?
I want to do it right next time, something neither of us will ever forget.
A smile lifts my lips.
It’s all part of my plan.
But first, I need to secure my place out here. I’ve worked hard to prove myself to Phoenix, and I’m ready to take the next step.
It’s time for me to climb.
* * *
The elevator doors open on the sixth floor, and I walk into the foyer of Iaza Capital Management, Phoenix’s investment firm, at eight o’clock sharp. I know my brother has already been here since at least seven, which is why I’m gripping his favorite coffee concoction in my hand. He never stops on his way in. He’s always in too much of a rush to get the day started, so he lets his natural adrenaline kick in until his bitch gets here an hour later with his caffeine.
I’m the bitch.
But it’s all good.
I finally have exactly what I want, a real life where I have control, where I manage myself.
I’m not the math brain of the family and the crap he does with numbers blows me away, but the guy knows how to spot deals and make money.
And after he closes the deals, I run the construction and keep shit in line with the workers. My projects are always done on time, and so what if I use some creative ways to keep them on task?
“Morning, ladies,” I grin at the blondes sitting behind the reception desk and they give me their best come-hither looks in return.
Just like always.
“Morning, Xander!” One of them, Chrissy, jumps out of her chair. “Do you want some coffee?” She must really want me to get a look at her wiggle her body around the place in that tight dress because I am clearly already carrying two
cups.
“I’m good. Maybe tomorrow.” I wink at them and continue toward Phoenix’s office. The whole place is an open concept. Below us is the pit, where all of the traders sit and fire off buys and sells all day long. And around the perimeter are glass-enclosed offices where all of the senior managers sit and count their profits.
Phoenix, of course, has the biggest one. It spans half the floor and it’s pretty spartan. He hates clutter, and besides his monitors, laptop, and phone, there isn’t a single piece of paper on his desk.
That’s how Phoenix rolls.
No messes. No trails. No questions.
I see him standing next to the window overlooking Lake Michigan and pull open the door. Early morning sunlight streams through the glass, the shiny surfaces of his desk and polished furniture glinting.
I sink into a chair in front of his desk, unable to keep the smile from spreading across my face as he speaks in hushed tones to whoever is on the other line.
It’s been a year, and I still strut around like I have a new lease on life at the age of nineteen. Chicago took some getting used to. The winters are long and fucking brutal. Part of me wishes Phoenix had chosen to run this company somewhere down south, like Florida. But I have more than enough to keep me warm at night.
Like Charlotte.
The other reason why there’s a permanent smile plastered across my face.
“Wait, so you want me to teach it?” Phoenix says, sweeping a hand through his dark hair and rubbing the back of his neck. He twists around to look at me and rolls his eyes. “Yeah, I know I am.”
I take a sip of my double espresso, the shit-eating grin still there even though the fiery hot liquid just singed my taste buds.
It doesn’t matter.
I’ve got my girl.
I’ve got my life.
And the future is fucking blinding.
“Okay, I’ll think about it. It’s a big commitment, and I don’t know if I’ll have the time. I have a lot on my plate right now.”
I furrow my brow at Phoenix. Time for what? Whatever it is, he should make the time. As it is, he’s in this office way too much crunching numbers or whatever the hell he does. I’m sure the blondes at the front desk would love it if he threw them a bang.
Princess: Ridgeview Prep Book 2 Page 20
