Chapter 19: Chapter 19

I winced at the volume of her shout. “Jesus, my ears.”

“Fuck your ears! You’re back with that villain. That asshole. That, that…pendejo, fuck!” She cursed then proceeded to go on a tangent in Spanish, letting me know just how angry she was.

I couldn’t even refute her. Just a few months ago, I’d also been cursing Stefano to hell and back. But he’d had his reasons. I knew that now.

But I doubted she’d be willing to listen to anything I said, though.

“Catalina Sienna Williams! I left you for a few months, and you let him pull you into his orbit again? I thought you were over him!”

I tried to defend myself. “Well, I wasn’t the one who rea—”

“So you just forgave him! Just like that? Where’s your dignity!”

“I have dig—”

“Where is it? Because it’s definitely not on the phone with us. Is your brain even working right now?”

“Well, that’s a bit har—”

“If you say harsh, I will reach through this phone and throttle you. How are you so bad with men? Why would you take him back?”

I said nothing, irritated at constantly being interrupted.

“Well? Are you going to answer?” Her tone was so strict that, for a moment, I forgot that I was the older sister.

“Are you going to let me talk now?” I grumbled.

She took a deep breath. “I’ll allow it.”

I rolled my eyes. “It was a misunderstanding. He explained why he just up and left back then, and I forgave him. He had his reasons too, you know.”

“He’s lying,” she said confidently. “You know men. They’ll say anything to get you back. Then they’ll just leave again. Don’t be that girl.”

I sighed. “Selena, trust me. I know what I’m doing. Can you honestly say that he treated me bad when we were together?”

She fell silent.

“Well?” I pushed.

She grumbled begrudgingly. “He still dumped you.”

“I was being pushy back then. Besides, all relationships have their ups and downs. I’m not as stupid as you make me out to be. I know myself, and if Stefano hadn’t come to me with a good enough reason, I never would’ve taken him back.”

She blew out a breath, seemingly calmer now. “Are you sure? If he hurts you again, I will say I told you so. And then I’ll hunt him down and chop off his balls.”

I chuckled. “I’d deserve it, and so would he. But trust me, please. You don’t have to worry about him hurting me again. I’ll tell you everything when you get back, then you’ll understand. I promise.”

“I hope I do. If I don’t like him, I’m kick—Hold on… Oh, I have to get ready. I have a class in fifteen minutes.”

“Don’t let me hold you up. We’ll talk later.”

“Love you.”

“Take care of yourself,” I said before the line went dead.

I blew out a breath and turned to face the ceiling. That was a roller coaster.

What would her reaction be if she knew who Stefano really was? I chuckled to myself. I couldn’t wait to see her surprised expression when I finally told her.

I rested for a few more minutes before getting up to start my day.

After I’d dressed and ate the delicious breakfast Charlie had prepared for me, I made my way to the office I’d claimed as my own and waited for Sam.

This time, she wasn’t alone. The man with her looked to be in his mid-thirties. He was muscular with a buzz cut. His arms were adorned with tattoos, and his strides were powerful as he approached me.

I was getting strong military vibes from him.

I stood from my seat on instinct, overly aware of the dangerous air surrounding him.

However, when our eyes met, he smiled amicably, startling me.

“Who’s this?” I asked.

He offered his hand. “I’m Rob, your weapons instructor. Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you, Rob.”

Sam smiled excitedly. “I’ve been waiting for this. It’s finally time for the fun part of training. Today, we’ll be giving you a run down on the different types of guns and their uses. Tomorrow, we’ll take you to the range to start shooting practice. Though I’m sure you won’t need much of that.”

“Nope.” I popped the ~p~. “I have experience.”

My aunt’s boyfriend had made sure of that, but with how Stefano reacted last night when he heard about my relationship with Jalen, I decided to keep this information to myself. I didn’t need it getting back to Stefano and him making another fuss.

Rob nodded. “That will make this easier. Once you pass our evaluation, we’ll move on to combat training.”

“Sounds like a plan.” I nodded. I was more interested in combat training as I didn’t have any experience with it. Right now, I struggled to picture myself as a badass, mafia boss lady. I felt more like a kitten just learning to walk.

“I’m here for moral support right now,” Sam added. “Weapons are Rob’s specialty. Though, maybe I’ll refresh my memory as I watch.”

***

A few hours later, laughter echoed throughout the room as Sam, Rob, and Charlie conversed among themselves.

Charlie had invited herself into the office shortly after Rob set me up with a weapons training manual. They all seemed to know each other, and I listened in on their story time with barely concealed interest.

I wasn’t even pretending to study the manual anymore.

“You remember that time the main warehouse got attacked?” Sam asked. “I thought I was going to fucking die. Almost pissed myself with how close a bullet came at my head that day. I don’t know what stroke of luck made me go to the basement.”

Rob snorted. “Luck? You ain’t seen luck until you see where my scar is. Got shot right in the fucking chest. The bullet grazed my heart and had me thinking I was gonna die.”

“Oh, I heard about that. You barely came out of that alive, dude,” Sam commented. “I heard you took the bullet for your brother.”

Rob nodded and cursed. “I did, but the ungrateful bastard died by another bullet that came after I fell. I gave him just enough time to dodge behind the damn wall, and he didn’t take it. Served him right.”

My eyes shifted between the two of them in disbelief. Surely this wasn’t a normal conversation between friends, talking about almost dying like it was a fucking medal.

What kind of life was I now living? I was scared shitless just listening to them talk. I couldn’t imagine laughing my head off about almost dying.

Was I going to have to be on the lookout for fire fights as well? Unease grew within me. How did they raise children in this kind of environment, when every day could be your last?

As if hearing my thoughts, Charlie chimed in with a nervous chuckle. “I can’t imagine living through stories as exciting as that one. I’m just a chef, and that’s how I prefer it, especially after hearing about those near-death experiences. I don’t need to undergo that myself.”

“Right,” I agreed, nodding my head but instantly regretting it when all three pairs of eyes turned in my direction.

I was currently sitting behind the desk, the training manual closed tight in front of me.

Rob raised an amused eyebrow. “Are you finished reading already?”

I nodded obediently, an innocent smile crawling onto my lips. “Of course. I wouldn’t be eavesdropping on the conversation if I wasn’t, would I?”

Rob chuckled. “I’m going to choose to believe you. So, how was the read? Interesting?”

I shrugged. “It was as interesting as it gets for anyone who was forced to study it.”

“In other words,” Charlie chimed in, “she’s only doing this ’cause she has to, not because she wants to.”

I flashed a smile her way. “Bingo.”

Sam shook her head. “So, what’s your favorite gun then? Which one caught your attention?”

I thought about it for a while then admitted, “I’m interested in the sniper rifle.”

Rob’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Oh? You’re a sniper type of girl? I wasn’t expecting that.”

“Well, I’m a coward. I’m not denying that. Snipers are long ranged. If I was using one of those, I wouldn’t be mixed up in the chaos. I prefer the role of an outsider looking in. Getting myself actively involved in a gunfight is a big no.”

Charlie nodded her head in understanding. “I’m with her on this one. I’d rather hide behind a tree and shoot than walk into a building where bullets are barking at me.”

“Fair enough,” Rob acknowledged. “There’s nothing wrong with showing a bit of fear. It’s your awareness of death that helps you avoid it. I’ll bring some sniper rifles over and have you practice. We’ll start with the easy stuff, then ease you into the more difficult-to-control guns.”

Sam glanced at her watch. “Well, I think this session is over. We’d better leave before Mr. Roscotto gets home. He’ll probably want some alone time with his lovely wife.” She winked at me.

I rolled my eyes. “I swear, no one is rooting for us more than you and Christina.”

She shrugged. “What can I say? Young couples make my old heart go pitter-patter.”

Charlie stopped on her way out the door. “Before we leave, you never told me how the first game went.”

“I’ve seen the results,” Rob said. “You finished third.”

I nodded. “It was pretty chill, surprisingly. I thought it would be more difficult. Are all the games like that?”

Sam shook her head. “Don’t lose your focus, not now. The games get progressively harder throughout the year. That’s why you’re training. I shouldn’t say anything but…you have to stay on guard. We don’t want your rank to drop in the next game.”

Her words made my heart sink, and my wariness came back full throttle.

This was her warning to me. It was like she was telling me she knew exactly what the next game was, and that it was going to be a shitfest.

I wished she’d tell me more, but I knew she wasn’t allowed to.

I watched as she and Rob tacitly glanced at each other, and my heart thumped against my rib cage.

Were people going to die in the next game?