Page 32 of Bittersweet Endings (Agostino Crime Family #6)

CARMINE RAGETTI

T he intoxicating scent of blood filled my nostrils. The distinct burn of gun smoke lingering like my favorite cologne. Chaos erupted around me. Screams, bodies hitting the floor, the deafening crack of bullets splitting the air.

This was what I was made for.

I moved fast, my gun raised and my eyes slicing through the smoke as I stepped over the dead and dying. Somewhere to my left, Lucky and Apollo were tearing through Peiro’s men like the ruthless bastards they were.

I didn’t like them. Hell, I’d offer each a bullet to the brain if given the right excuse. But right now, there was only one thing that mattered. Killing these motherfuckers and sending a message.

A shadow shifted ahead. I didn’t hesitate. I pulled the trigger, and his skull snapped back before he dropped. One after another, dead. The thrill hummed in my veins, the goddamn drug that kept me burning alive.

In the middle of it all, though, something else was crawling through the back of my mind. Octavia. The way she stood her ground. The fire in her eyes when she threatened Peiro. She wasn’t afraid anymore. She wasn’t just surviving. She was fucking fighting.

She was the kind of woman a made man needed when he took the throne. A queen fit for the empire I was carving out with blood and bodies. And she was coming back with me.

Even if I had to tie her up and throw her over my goddamn shoulder to do it.

I vaulted over a table, my boots landing hard against the slick floor. My gun was raised before my feet were steady, my trigger finger already squeezing. I was moving on to the next guy before the first one hit the ground.

Through the haze of gun smoke and screams, I spotted Lucky a few feet away, raising his knife before blood sprayed against his face like war paint.

“Where the fuck is Peiro?” I demanded, firing a shot over Lucky’s shoulder.

He barely flinched as the man behind him dropped. “How the hell should I know?” he shouted back, slamming the butt of his gun into someone’s jaw. “I was too busy saving your ass.”

I snorted, ducking as a body lunged at me. I caught the bastard by the throat and drove my knife between his ribs, twisting it before shoving him aside. “You’re fuckin’ delusional.”

“Yeah? And you’re fucking slow,” Lucky threw back, spinning to fire off another round. Violence splattered the room around us.

Then movement caught my eye. A group of men pushed towards the kitchen door. Shielding that little bitch Peiro as they ran.

“There,” I growled. “He’s making a run for it.”

Lucky followed my gaze, cursing under his breath .

We plunged into the slaughter, our blades carving through flesh like it was nothing. But as we made it through the kitchen doors and out into the alleyway, we were met by… nothing.

We paused at the end of the alley until we noticed them. Lorenzo and Matteo walking towards us with blood stains on their knuckles and clothes. As usual, Lorenzo was grinning like this was all one big joke.

Matteo got straight to business as we headed back inside. “It’s all clear out front.” He jerked his chin towards me. “But we need to move. Sirens are coming.”

Lucky snorted, casually reloading his gun. “Let ?em come. Cops are in my pocket.” He tilted his head at Matteo and smirked. “You worried? You wanna go confess to the nice officers?”

Before Matteo could reply, Lorenzo started wandering through the sea of bodies.

Taking it all in like he was admiring a goddamn art exhibit.

“Jesus, we really went all out, huh?” He nudged a corpse with his foot, wrinkling his nose.

“Look at this fucker. Took three shots to get through the fat. What a waste of bullets.”

Apollo glowered. “Is the famiglia in California financially insolvent? Are you in dire need of conserving your ammunition?”

“You’re too fuckin’ smart. It makes my brain hurt.” Lorenzo shrugged. “First, fuck you, Apollo. Second, I’m just saying—” He crouched next to another body. “Damn. This one looks like he got run over by a truck.” He glanced up at me. “That you?”

I rolled my shoulders, ignoring him. Lorenzo loved to get a rise out of people. He smiled and laughed his way through life, but this shit was what we lived for. To be the heathens we were raised to be.

Lorenzo whistled. “Brutal. I like it. ”

Matteo, ever the practical one, sighed. “Can we move past the comedy hour? Sirens or not, we need to be gone before anyone else decides to be a hero.”

Apollo stepped forward, facing off with my brother.

One psycho to the next. Only Matteo hid his crazy much better.

“Should law enforcement arrive and we determine that your existence no longer warrants our attention, we would relinquish you to their custody. Your attempt to escape would prove inconsequential, as we’d take every measure to ensure you never reached the confines of that prison. ”

Lorenzo shoved Matteo back, clapping his hands together. “All right, all right. Let’s haul ass. Don’t want you boys getting pissy and ruining a good night.”

The humor did nothing to cool the fire in my veins. Peiro had slipped through my fingers. Again. I glanced at Lucky, my jaw set. “I’m taking Octavia to my safe house in the city.”

Lucky’s expression darkened. “ Your safe house?” He shook his head. “Christ, how much fucking real estate do you own in my city?”

I smirked. “Enough.”

His nostrils flared. “Yeah, well, last I checked, my sister isn’t your property.”

“She’s mine to protect,” I countered, my tone razor-sharp.

Lucky stepped closer. “She’s been through enough. I won’t let you put your hands on her again.”

I tilted my head and narrowed my eyes. “You think you can stop me?”

Lorenzo sighed, cutting in before things escalated. “Jesus, you two need fucking couples therapy.” He sighed lazily. “Look, after that little display Octavia put on with Peiro, maybe—just maybe—we let her decide where she wants to go.”

With that, we all turned towards the table she was supposed to be behind. Only to find it empty. A beat of silence stretched between us before it clicked?—

That little bitch.

Lucky cursed, and Lorenzo laughed. “Oh, she’s got some fucking balls.”

My grip tightened on my gun, my blood running hot. Octavia wasn’t hiding. She was hunting.

Lucky was already barking orders. “Apollo, call Sienna. Now.”

Apollo didn’t hesitate, pulling out his phone and stepping away from the chaos. The rest of us stood around, weapons still in hand, watching the restaurant’s entrance like a pack of wolves waiting for the next fight.

Lucky crossed his arms. “She’s not dumb enough to go after Peiro alone.”

I exhale sharply. “Not dumb. Just stubborn.”

Lorenzo snickered. “So… dumb.”

I slapped the back of his head, sending a silent warning, and watched Apollo continue to pace with the phone pressed to his ear. The distant wail of sirens grew louder, and then?—

The cops stormed in.

Lucky groaned, scrubbing a hand down his face before marching towards them. His men step forward, forming a wall between us and the incoming uniforms.

“The fuck happened here?” One of the officers approached us.

Lucky put on what I assumed was his version of his Capo voice. “Nothing for you to be concerned about.”

A captain pushed past the other uniforms, his face a bright red. “Nothing?” he shouted. “You think you can just turn my goddamn city into a war zone? ”

“Your city?” Lucky laughed, and the cop flinched. “ My city . I’ll do as I please. And you’ll clean it up like a good boy.”

The cop pointed towards the smoke still seeping through the building. “How the hell are you planning to cover up an explosion ?”

Lucky cocked his head. “That’s what I pay you for.”

Sienna’s voice on speakerphone interrupted their pissing match. “I found her. She’s moving fast, heading east towards the docks.”

Lucky spun on his heel. “Get the crew together. We?—”

But I was done waiting. I met my brothers’ eyes and jerked my head towards the back door. They didn’t hesitate. We were getting her ourselves .

I moved first, slipping into the shadows as Lucky kept ordering people around. Matteo and Lorenzo followed close behind. By the time they were done planning, I’d already have Octavia back in my arms—one way or another.

The car was thick with tension, the kind that settled into your chest like a loaded gun ready to go off. The streets blurred past in a haze of streetlights and shadows, but none of us were relaxed. Matteo was gripping the wheel, his knuckles tight, and I was barely breathing through my anger.

And then there was Lorenzo in the back, stretching out like we were on some boys’ trip. He released a low whistle, tapping his fingers against his thigh. “Man, you ever notice how killing just…” He exhaled with a grin. “Shit makes my dick hard.”

Matteo groaned. “Jesus Christ.”

Lorenzo chuckled, leaning between the seats. “What? I’m just saying, a little bloodshed makes a man feel alive.” He jerked his chin at me. “Come on, Carmine, tell me that crazy bitch firing that gun didn’t do it for ya. ”

I didn’t answer. Not because he was wrong. But because I was too focused on what was to come.

Matteo pulled onto a quiet street, killing the headlights as we slowed down.

The house was up ahead, nestled between a row of homes that screamed normal, but we knew better.

The men on the porch were trying too hard to look casual.

They were leaning back in their chairs, cigarettes glowing, but I saw they were armed.

We parked a few blocks down and I scanned the area, my muscles coiled tight. “Anyone see Octavia?”

Matteo checked the mirrors. Lorenzo leaned out the window slightly, his eyes narrowed. “Nothing.”

I gritted my teeth, a dark thought creeping in. “You think they already found her?”

Matteo caught the edge in my voice and grabbed my arm before I could move. “We don’t know that. Let’s wait a few more minutes.”

Lorenzo shifted, resting an elbow on the seat. “We also don’t have a solid plan, boss .” His voice was laced with amusement, but his eyes were serious. “You want to run in there blind? Get lit up before we even know if she’s inside?”

I breathed hard through my nose, my hands flexing over my gun. Matteo glanced at me. “Give it five. If she doesn’t show, then we move.”

I hated waiting. But I hated the idea of running in stupid even more. I prayed to whatever god still listened—or the devil himself—that Octavia wasn’t already in that house, bleeding out while we wasted time. Because if she was, there wouldn’t be a single man left breathing in this city.

I pulled a cigarette from my pocket, lighting it with steady hands even though my insides were a live wire. The burn of nicotine did nothing to settle the storm brewing in my chest. I exhaled smoke, my eyes locked on the house.

And then, I saw her.

I straightened in my seat, my heart slamming against my ribs as Octavia materialized from the shadows of a parked car. The entire time she was a driveway away.

She moved like a ghost. But, fuck, she looked like something out of a nightmare. Her dress was torn, blood smeared across her skin. Her hair wild, arms cut up, but there was no fear in her movements. No hesitation.

She walked straight for the house. Not sneaking. Not hiding. Walking. Like a goddamn siren stepping out of a storm, ready to drag a bunch of men to their deaths.

I pushed forward in my seat, my cigarette forgotten between my fingers. “Octavia.”

She didn’t look or pause. Didn’t acknowledge me at all.

Lorenzo watched her with an amused smirk. “Man, you better control your woman.”

My head snapped towards him.

His grin widened. “She’s hot, but she’s fucking crazy.”

I didn’t think. I didn’t register that he was family. All I felt was rage. So I swung. My fist connected hard with his jaw, snapping his head to the side. The car rocked slightly from the impact.

Lorenzo let out a low grunt, blinking as he rubbed at his face. Then he laughed, because of-fucking-course he did. “Goddamn, brother. Hit me any harder and I might start thinking you like me.”

Matteo sighed while gripping the steering wheel. “Can we focus on the problem instead of punching each other?”

I was already moving. Because Octavia? She was almost at the porch. And if I didn’t get to her first, she was going to get herself fucking killed.