Chapter 4: Letting go

“Alexio will you be loyal to me even when my Dad passes away?” I inquired and sat up.

The car came to a stop as we parked along the side of the road. He reached over and took off my sunglasses, then took my hands in his.

“My Cuore, I am loyal to you. Not your father. I am loyal to you till the day you tell me to leave. I will always be here for you, in any way you want me.” He softly responded and leaned in to place a kiss on my forehead.

“Thank you.” I blushed and pulled him closer to give him a proper kiss. He deepened the kiss for a moment then pulled away.

“We can’t stop here for long.” He stated and started up the car.

“Can I play some music?”

“This is your car. You can do whatever you like.”

“Oh yeah, right.” I giggled and grabbed the USB out of my purse. I plugged it in and put it on track 9. Montero (Call me by your name) by Lil Nas X started playing.

I sang along to the song while we drove and Alexio joined in.

“Call me when you want, call me when you need.” We sang as the car sped down the street.

We stopped at Starbucks and I jumped out of the car.

“I’ll be just a minute,” I yelled as I walked away and put on my mask. Stupid corona.

The queue contained two other people so it wasn’t going to be long until I was served. I decided to go for my usual, The veranda blend. A smooth combination of soft cocoa and lightly toasted nuts. Hmmm, delicious!

“Next.” The woman at the till called out and I stepped forward while lifting my sunglasses onto my head.

“Oh hey, beautiful. What can I get for you?” She asked and twisted her hair around her finger.

I blushed and replied, “The veranda blend please.”

“Which size?”

“Oh yeah, a large please.”

“Number 69.” She winked and handed me the slip after I swiped my card.

I went to stand aside and waited for my order. I felt someone step closer to me. Urgh, people! Don’t you know what personal space is? I spun around and was about to snap at the person when I saw Alexio standing next to me. He tilted his head and raised his eyebrow at me.

“I was about you give you a piece of my mind for being so close to me.” I laughed.

“I couldn’t leave you alone. A rival mafia might be on the watch since word of the election tomorrow could get out.” He added and scanned the people in the shop.

“You do know I can protect myself right?” I replied and tapped my purse. I had a revolver safely in my bag. She was a beauty; engraved with a gold and silver pattern and 6 bullet chamber. I also had a dagger strapped to my heel, it matched my gun and the blade had roses on them that were a beautiful red when covered in blood. Plus years of training on how to defend myself. My Dad had trained me to excel in aikido, judo, karate, savate and boxing. I was also taught gymnastics which gave me the advantage to be both flexible and agile.

“There you go, sweetness.” The lady from before chimed and handed me the Starbucks. Alexio stepped forward with his hands in a fist next to him. I put my hand out and touched his arm which made him step back.

“Thank you,” I smirked and turned around to walk away. Alexio followed close behind me.

“She had no right to call you by a nickname. Why did you stop me? These people need to know who the next Padrino is.” He hissed and opened the car door for me.

“She didn’t mean any harm, I don’t want to cause a scene for nothing. Now drop it okay.” I demanded as he closed the car door behind me.

“I just find it disrespectful, but I won’t say anything else on the subject.”

“Here have a sip, it will make you feel better.” I offered and handed him my coffee. He shook his head no and pointed to my mouth. I knew exactly what that meant. I took a sip then pulled him closer to allow the warm liquid to flow from my mouth to his. His tongue swirled around mine and the delicious taste made each taste bud start tingling.

“You right that did make me feel better.” He smirked after we pulled apart. The engine then roared to life and we were off. We drove past my favourite sculpture in the city, which was on the route Alexio purposely chose just to see me excited.

“Are you hungry?” He asked and turned down the music. The car came to a stop by a traffic light.

“No thanks babes, I’m good.” I turned and leaned in to place a kiss on his cheek. As I pulled away everything around us seemed to slow down, but I was unable to react at all. I sat there frozen as a black van headed straight for us.

“Alexio!” I eventually screamed as the van collided with the left side of my car. The Starbucks flew from my hand as the car flipped over and tumbled down the sloped street. All the glass had shattered by the time the car came to a stop. My head was throbbing and warm blood flowed down my face. Luckily the car had stopped upright, but the dashboard had been smashed in and my legs were trapped.

I looked at Alexio, he was unconscious. He had a big bruise on the side of his face and his arm was twisted into an unnatural position. It was probably broken.

“Alexio?” I yelled and my throat felt like it was on fire. “Wake up. Please. You need to wake up.” I pleaded. My voice was rough and sounded like a loud whisper. He didn’t respond, he didn’t even move. My head hurt so much, I felt like throwing up then passing out. I closed my eyes and swayed forward. I quickly opened them and sat back upright. The music from my USB was still playing.

“Alexio. Wake up… you…” I mumbled and swayed forward as my eyes forcefully closed.

“Get her and the driver out of the car!” Someone ordered in Italian. The sound of their voice bought me back to reality. My door then fell off and I felt hands grab hold of me. I closed my eyes again and drifted away.

“She keeps drifting in and out. The male is still unresponsive.” The same person yelled. I opened my eyes and saw a woman lean over me. I noticed she had a caduceus on her arm before everything went black.

The sound of doors banging bought me back once again.

“Don’t worry Miss Nova. You are at the hospital.” The woman stated and smiled down at me. The bright lights hurt my eyes, but the soft pillow beneath my head helped ease the throbbing. I wondered where Alexio was. Was he even alive? He deserved to have a long and happy life. I’m sorry, was the last thing I thought before I finally let go.