SURRENDER - Mafia Romance

• CHAPTER 38 •

"Ace," Talia called.

"Talia," I mumbled.

She was standing at the end of a dark alley and for some reason, I couldn't step closer to her. I was held back in place. She was crying, calling me to help her. A man came from behind the wall and stood behind her, bringing her to her knees.

"Ace!" She screamed.

"Talia."

He looked straight at me and pointed a gun at her head.

"No!" I yelled when he pulled the trigger.

"Ace," she cried.

He shot and I screamed.

"Talia!" I screamed and sat up in bed. I placed my hand on my heart as it banged into my chest. I took a deep breath, trying to catch my breath.

No. No. No. No.

How did it switch? How can the dream change? I had been having the same dream for years. Images of what happened with Lily mixed with guilt and pain. Why did it turn to Talia? My fear increased. I quickly jumped off the bed, got ready in a few minutes and walked down to join the boys. I kept my eyes on my steps as I walked into the meeting room. I didn't want to see them look at me broken. I didn't want them to think I could mess up again. I couldn't see Joe's eyes blaming me for what happened.

"Boys," I started, breaking the deafening silence, "it's today." I took a deep breath, "I don't want any mistakes. As I said before, we only have a few minutes before the cops show up. We need to have the necklace to have Talia back."

"Don't worry, man, we will have her back," Niko spoke. I heard Joe click his tongue and saw him rub his face, not liking the conversation. I didn't blame him, though. I was stressed too.

For the first time in forever, I felt my heart beat differently. I felt fear, a feeling I had been numb about for years. Fear of failure, fear of losing her too.

We grabbed our weapons and revised the plan, not wanting anything to go wrong. I checked with all the men to make sure they knew that we didn't have much time. I never thought that a necklace would be a trade for my life. Maybe that was what I needed to realize what Talia really meant to me.

"Let's go?" Romeo asked. I grabbed my gun tighter in my hand, put it in the back of my jeans and followed him out to the car.

We parked close to the museum, watching the security tell the people that this door was closed and they had to go in by the other door. We watched them open the car, place a safe inside, and lock it. I smiled when I saw my target.

"Keep your masks on at all times, boys, the cameras need to be sure not to catch anyone of us." I reminded them, pressing on mine. "And remember, we don't want to kill the securities, we just want to knock them out so we have the time to take the necklace and leave."

When the car started moving, my heart started beating faster. Even this feeling was foreign to me. I never stressed doing any of my missions. But this time, my mission was different. This time, I cared.

"Let's go," I said and drove behind the car. I was counting the street cameras. I counted the streets, ensuring I didn't miss the spot where we would attack the car and stop it. My heart skipped a beat when I realized it would be the next turn. My heartbeat quickened as I told them, "Get ready, boys. It's right after this turn." I felt them all get ready and grab their guns. I had faith in them.

"Give me the fire gun," Joe groaned.

"Remember, boys, we only have minutes," I repeated and they all nodded. When I followed the car in the turn, I pressed on the engine, making the car jump.