Page 11 of Blood in the Water

“It’s Max,” I breathed. The words were rocks tumbling out of my mouth, heavy and difficult.

“What?” he responded as we reached the service door and pushed outside. Once we got out, we could go through the trees bordering the property and loop around to the garage. “What did you say?”

He stopped suddenly, and I almost slammed into his back. Cas immediately wrapped his arms around me and maneuveredme behind him. A group of five men dressed in all black blocked our path to safety.

“We found them, boss,” one of the men said into his earpiece. “Back entrance, by the kitchen.”

Like they had materialized out of thin air, Cas held a gun in each hand with a murderous look on his face. “What’s going on?”

“Caspian, sir, put down your weapons, and no one has to get hurt,” the same man who spoke into the earpiece said.

“Move, David,” Cas demanded, ice in his voice. Theclickclickof his guns cocking sliced through the air. “I’ll kill all of you before you even know what’s happening. Get out of my way.”

David shook his head. “The boss is on his way.”

Cas’s shoulders tensed while I grabbed the back of his jacket and choked back a sob. “The Don? Is he safe?”

“There’s been a change of leadership, friend,” a dead voice said behind us. The voice that would now haunt my nightmares if we made it out of here alive. Max.

Cas carefully repositioned us so he could keep eyes on Max and the five other men blocking our path to the front. “What the fuck are you talking about? Where’s Don Luciano?”

Max, covered in blood and still holding the gun in his hand, took three steps forward. Another of my father’s men, I think his name was Elio, stood beside him. “I’m afraid the Don is no longer with us. I am taking over the position effective immediately.”

Once again, my world tilted off-axis.

My knees almost buckled.

Max hadn’t just killed my father. He was taking everything from me. He was taking my legacy. My father’s empire.

“What did you say?” Cas breathed, eyes flicking between Max and me and back to Max again. “Tell me you’re lying. What happened?”

Max shook his head slowly. What happened to the handsome face that used to smile and tease me? What happened to the boy who would sing me to sleep and promise me I’d always be safe? How did this monster take his place?

“I shot him in the head myself. Leona was there.”

Tears rolled down my cheeks. I’d never forget the look on my father’s face as that bullet tore through his head. Surprise. Confusion. Anger.Fear.

“Tell me this is all a sick joke. That you’re playing some elaborate prank on me like you both used to do when we were kids.”

Max sighed. Without saying a word, he dropped the clip from his gun and loaded a new one.

My hand tugged on Cas’s jacket. I couldn’t lose Cas too. Not when everything I knew was reduced to rubble right before my eyes. We had to get out of here.

“How dare you?” Cas’s voice dropped. “How could you, Max? After everything the Don has done for us? After all we’ve been through together?”

“Put down your gun, Cas,” Max commanded. That dead voice made my skin crawl. The urge to vomit clawed at my throat. “It doesn’t have to be like this.”

“I’ll kill you for this,” Cas snarled. “Mark my words, Max. I’ll watch the life drain from your eyes. I’ll kill you for everything you’ve done tonight.”

“I know, my friend,” Max said quietly. “But not yet.”

I barely had time to scream before Cas pushed me to the ground. Gunshots rang out, and I clenched my eyes shut, unable to watch more death. We were both going to die here. Me, my father, Cas. The Vero Family was done. This was it.

Distantly, I recognized the sounds of shouting, shattering glass, and bodies collapsing to the ground—but a piercingscream drowned everything out. It took me a second to realize the scream was coming from my own throat.

A bullet sunk into the ground right by my stomach, and I curled into a ball, hands coming over my head. Was I still screaming? Was that someone else? I honestly couldn’t tell.

An arm closed around my wrist and yanked me back to my feet. My eyes flew open to see Cas, guns still trained toward the house, but five bodies lay between him, Max, and Elio.