♠♠♠
Innocent caterers scream and go into hiding, after seeing the lineup of guns. My neck is under tremendous pressure, yet Rick restricts my air flow even tighter. The dark atmosphere around the gang is unbearable. It becomes silent.
I worry for Judah—for a moment, because there is no possible outcome for him or me.
I don't want to die, especially not like this. Heaving too hard to catch a breath, my stomach aches.
"I hope you know Judah," Rick hints, while he pokes my head with his barrel. "That I'm killing two birds with one stone."
The boss closes his eye, as though he's ready to sleep through this commotion.
"Put your goddamn gun down, Rick," the boss commands calmly.
"And let this fucker get off scot free? I don't think so!" he points his gun to Judah now.
Judah and Rick glare at each other, ready to pull the triggers.
I swiftly ram my heel, as hard as I possibly can, into Rick's foot, piercing through the shoe's leather. Rick groans out, throwing me hard to the floor.
Gunshots pop off in every direction, shattering glass and bleeding bodies out. He then points his gun at me, but his arm gets shot. Bullets that hit the columns create a powdery debris in the air. I watch Rick cling onto his bleeding forearm.
I crawl to the edge of the veranda, in the midst of this aggressive shootout.
My ears hear my name called out through the beating noise. Judah is suddenly next to me, and he grabs my sweaty palm.
Before I realize it, he dives right off the veranda, holding me against him. The fall lasts a lifetime.
My eyes shut, as I pray for some kind of survival.
Judah, who seems to know what he's doing, and I land in green bushes. I still hear a series of shots being fired. Without a second to lose, the two of us hop in a Ferrari.
Judah zips down the road, pressing the pedal to its limit, while I fight to put on my seatbelt. The loud engine noise breaks my hearing. My heart jumps constantly in my chest, frightened to death.
As soon as the rear window smashes, I scream and cover my head.
Rick and his men follow us.
We speed away towards the curvy road, in between a valley.
Judah swears infinitely.
I bite my lip, hoping that we'll somehow make it out alive.
Rick and his army won't give up, as they shoot at us until they're out of ammo.
Judah steadies his grip on the gear, racing through the empty road.
I become troubled, when we arrive in a small town. He doesn't slow down, yet rolls the car into a few drums of goods and fruit stands. Italians crossing anywhere are forced to run to safety. I glance back and spot the numerous SUVs behind us. They are less generous and crash straight into shops.
I grip my hands over my seat, trying not to fly out of it, when we meet a bump in the road. Judah swerves and curves the car effortlessly through traffic, trying to confuse our predators.
Unconsciously, my palm spreads over my stomach.
Now police cars are in the mix. Their lights flash in the background, though they can't catch up to our speed.
