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Chapter 9
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2024-04-03 14:18:05
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The Life Sacrifice Chapter 10
GABRIEL For the next week and a half, I played chess with human pawns while she got sucked into etiquette classes and dress shopping with the women. I knew from experience how time-consuming these debutant balls are and used her distraction to line things up for just the right moment. Just as before, I didn't want her here when shit went down, so I had to be very meticulous. I had men watching Becky, who seemed to be having a crisis with public meltdowns and temper tantrums which only made her look bad. Either Felix had canceled her credit cards or had her on rations because she was staying at a mid-range motel, which I was sure to make known to the right people. Since she didn't want to be seen in her lowly state, she stayed indoors most of the time, making calls that went mostly unanswered. I couldn't get a bead on Felix, who had kept to himself most of the first week and had only just started showing signs of life. Even when he was at home, all he did was stare at his wife's p
Last Updated : 2024-04-03The Life Sacrifice Chapter 11
GABRIEL "Mr. Russo, nice to finally meet you." If Jimmy had a hat, he'd be turning it round and round between his fingers. He looked totally out of place, but the thief in him couldn't keep his eyes from roaming around the room with excitement. They finally landed on his long-lost daughter, who was lying on the floor, having a toddler tantrum. Now here's the thing about Jimmy. Had he had any redeeming qualities, I would never have sought him out; why? Because I'm a vengeful fuck who thinks people should pay for the shit they do, especially shit done to women and children. I make no apologies for this stance, and anyone who doesn't agree can pretty much get fucked. So, when I was doing my little background investigation on Becky and found this specimen, it was like striking oil. I want Victoria gone, but I don't want her going into something cushy, if you know what I mean. Had Jimmy been a well-off upstanding citizen, I would've kept him out of my plans, but seeing as he's a piece
Last Updated : 2024-04-03The Life Sacrifice Chapter 12
GIANNA "Why do I have to put these on again?" "They're made of sheepskin; they'll protect your hands, especially your knuckles, from bruising. Just trust us." I was the one to ask for this, but now that we're here, I'm getting nervous. "Okay, let's go." It's best I do it now while I've got the nerve anyway. After hanging my mother's portrait temporarily in the room, I now occupied at the Russo mansion; I felt like my head would explode with anger after everything that has transpired these last few weeks. Listening to that Jimmy person had opened my eyes to more of the truth of what really happened when I was too young to understand. From what I gathered, Becky had targeted my mother somehow. Jimmy didn't know exactly, but I doubt even he knew that I was reading between the lines of all he said and drew my own conclusions. Somehow knowing that made my anger towards Becky burn brighter than before, and it was the last straw for me. Throughout this whole ordeal, I never gave m
Last Updated : 2024-04-03The Life Sacrifice Chapter 13
GABRIEL "What kind of big brother are you?" "Well, hello to you t…wait a minute, big brother. What happened to the twins? Did something happen to them?" "It's not what happened to them but what they did." "What did they do this time?" He came further into the room and plopped down on the divan in my sitting room. "They took Gianna to confront Becky, no scratch that, they took her to fight her." "Come again." "Yep!" "Was Gia hurt?" "No, thankfully, she wasn't." "Good, I hope she broke her fucking neck." "Lance!" I looked away from my laptop long enough to glare at him. "Not the response I was expecting. She could've been hurt." "But she wasn't right." "That's not the point." "Let me ask you a question. Were the twins with her?" "Yes, of course." "Do you think they'd let anything happen to her?" "Of course not." "Then what's the problem? The way I see it, you and I would've done the same thing. She tormented the girl her whole life. You and I bo
Last Updated : 2024-04-03The Life Sacrifice Chapter 14
VICTORIA "What is this? Turn it off; I don't want to see it." This had to be another one of Gabe Russo's sick twisted jokes. "I'm sorry, Miss, but I'm afraid that's not possible. If there is nothing else." The stewardess bitch walked away like a drone leaving me seated next to this ass who kept going on and on about how he was going to make it up to me for being gone as if I care. My body still shook with anger and humiliation at the way I'd been treated, but the kernel of fear I feel in my gut stems from the fact that my money was gone. After Gabe and Gia left, I held onto that one thing, knowing that no matter what, at least I had my little nest egg. It was more than a few thousand dollars and more than enough to get me started over somewhere until I got back in the game. I'd learned from Becky that with money, you can do anything, no matter how bad everything else might be; with money in my pocket, I always stand a chance. I bet it was that bitch Ella who seemed to have just
Last Updated : 2024-04-03The Life Sacrifice Chapter 15
VICTORIA "What's this place?" I squinted my eyes against the brightness of the room that seemed to reflect the sunlight no matter where I looked. There was a weird taste in my mouth, and my head felt like it was stuffed with cotton balls. I looked over at the two people in the room who didn't seem to have heard me and realized that I'd said the words internally and not out loud. When I did try to speak, my lips seemed weirdly stuck together. I was in that strange place between sleep and wake, just before the fog lifts completely, and it took a few tries to clear my head before reality dawned. The last thing I remember was getting off the plane, but I have no idea how long ago that was or what the hell happened between then and now. The events leading up to the plane ride came back in bits and spurts, and I cleared my throat to speak again. "Where's Jimmy?" The two people in the room didn't answer, just kept staring at me without saying or doing anything. I started to think they w
Last Updated : 2024-04-03The Life Sacrifice Chapter 16
DRACO "What am I paying you four for again?" "Sir?" Reel it in Draco; you can't blame them for not being able to do what you yourself can't. Yeah, but I'm at the end of my rope. I've been racing against the clock in the last couple of weeks, trying to get ahead of my son and failing miserably. It's not just the Sicily situation that has me on edge these days either, but my son seems to have gone rogue in a way that not even I expected. I'm almost embarrassed to admit that the only reason I know anything about his doings is because he's allowing me to. What do I mean by that? The boy has straight-up run an Op singlehandedly from his bedroom where he knows I can easily see what he's up to. I'm not sure, but I think my guys are having way more fun working with him than they ever did with me. Of course, I'm the mook who's trying to go legit while these fucks live for the dark side. I guess they were getting bored with my shit, and he's lit a spark under their asses. It would be fun
Last Updated : 2024-04-03The Life Sacrifice Chapter 17
GABRIEL "Hey, your guy just moved a shit ton of cash in the last few days. I traced the transfer to an account that has been open in his daughter's name since she was about three months old." "Oh really!" "Yeah. Not only that, but from his movements, it looks like he's tying up loose ends almost like he's preparing to go away or something." "Ok, thank you." I sat back and smiled after hanging up the phone with one of dad's people who specializes in financial forensics. I've been keeping my eye on Felix this whole time, watching his movements listening in on his calls to get a feel for where his mind is at. He had no idea that Becky had been attacked and was in the hospital until I made sure that one of the women she'd tried so hard to befriend knew about her circumstances. Of course, word had already got back to him that she'd been staying in a motel, and then once she was moved to the homeless city, I made sure those same women were made aware. Just to up her embarrassment a
Last Updated : 2024-04-03
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The Life Sacrifice Chapter 39
GABRIEL "Pop, I'm back." "Gabe, are you okay?" He looked me up and down as he came around from behind his desk, where he'd been sitting gazing off into space. His hug was meant more for someone coming back from war than a son who'd only been gone for a few days, less than a week, in fact. He pulled back and clasped my shoulders while looking into my eyes. "I'm sorry… "No, you're back, you're okay, that's all that matters. Are you going to tell me what you did over there?" "Not yet!" I could tell he had a hard time accepting that answer, but, in the end, he let it go. I already knew he'd gone to see nana; she's been keeping me up to date on his activities. "You needn't have worried Uncle Guy had someone on me the whole time I was there. I was never in any real danger." "You knew you were being followed?" "Of course!" "Ah, stupid question, sorry. So, you should go see your mother. She's been worried about you. And call Lancelot before he drives both his dad and I
The Life Sacrifice Chapter 38
GABRIEL I wasn't surprised at the results the next day, but I was by the fact that Sal cried. He never stopped thanking me and was already making plans for me to come to his palazzo and meet the rest of his family. I begged off with the excuse that I had to get back home. "Ah, it's Alonzo; you do not want to meet him yet. Still, this is your home, the home your great-great-great-grandfather built, and where all the eldest sons have continued the line." "Yes, but I'm not part of that." "Who says? You are the eldest grandson; of course, you must come." "Doesn't your sons have any children?" I knew, of course, that Alonzo had a son and a daughter. "Si´ but you are the eldest; this is the way it's done." "Do you really think that's fair? I'm not here to take anything away from your grandson. My father has more than enough.…." "No-no, this cannot be. I won't have it." I wore a confused expression, but in reality, I already knew this. I knew that his sense of honor
The Life Sacrifice Chapter 37
DRACO "Sofia, upstairs, now." Both she and Sheila, who was in the kitchen having one of their gabfests, turned to me in shock. I hadn't raised my voice, but it was obvious that I was pissed. I turned and walked away, heading up the stairs to our room. Like I said, I've never raised my voice to my wife, was never even tempted to, but when she walked into our bedroom, I was barely holding back my anger. "Draco, what's the matter? Did something happen?" "Do you know where our son is?" "Gabe? Did something happen to Gabe?" She walked towards me, and for the first time since we'd met, I stepped back away from her. I could see the hurt and confusion on her face. But I was way past caring at this point. Gabe is smart; he's the smartest person I know, truth be told, and I went to one of the leading Ivy League universities in the world. But he's a child, my child, and I can't help but hold her responsible for this. There's also the guilt of not stepping up and putting an end to this s
The Life Sacrifice Chapter 36
GIANNA Traumatized! What made me think I could do this on my own? Giving birth was the easy part. Connie yelled for them to give me every drug available once the pain started. Well, not exactly easy, but the pain was nowhere near what I expected. But once the ordeal was over and I could breathe again, the real fear set in. I spent the first few minutes after marveling at the fact that I'd given life, imagining it and living it are two separate animals altogether. But once the adrenaline wore off, all the fears came at me hard. I'm terrified. I'm giving serious thought to going home, or at the very least to grandma's. One minute I wished Gabriel was here, I wanted to share this with him, and the next, I was mad at him for not being here. I hid my fear well once I was allowed visitors, and Connie and Ron came into the room. I didn't correct the staff who thought they were grandma and grandpa, but it reminded me that my parents weren't here. That thought only made me break down ag
The Life Sacrifice Chapter 35
GABRIEL I stepped off the plane in Palermo and into the car that was waiting there for me. I'd planned ahead because even though I'd never been there before, I knew where I was going and that I needed to be there at a specific time. It had taken weeks of research to pin down the specifics once I came up with a plan. I couldn't act right away; I had to be sure before making my move. Now that the routine was set, I was almost certain, barring natural disaster, that my prey would be there when I showed up. I'd given myself a few days here just in case things didn't happen the first day because I know Pop won't let me out of his sight no time soon again, so there was no room for failure. No one back home knew where I was, but I'd brought the ninja turtles with me just to keep Pop off my scent for as long as I could. I could hear the four of them mumbling once we got off the plane, the words 'not again' were said plenty, but I ignored them, only talking to them long enough to send the
The Life Sacrifice Chapter 34
DRACO "So, where we at now? Still nothing?" All four of them shook their heads at me the same way they've been doing every time I asked for the last eight months or so. I'm beginning to think we're never going to find this kid, and I'm not sure what that means for my son. Watching over him is like babysitting a tiger; you never know when but there's always the possibility that he'll strike. For the first few months, when we all held out so much hope of finding Gia, he was able to keep an almost positive outlook on things. But, somewhere in the last couple of months, he'd switched into some sort of mode that not even I recognized. Of course, life for everyone else has moved on, but my boy, I don't know what's true and what's not. He tells me daily that he's fine. He'd thrown himself into his new studies at my old alma mater even though he'd opted into studying from home instead of heading to campus. His mother and sisters spend almost every day worried about him, and since he move
The Life Sacrifice Chapter 33
GABRIEL Nothing! I spent all night into the morning looking. It's like she never existed. There's no way she could've disappeared that fast on her own, but then again, she had help, didn't she? The contact I got from Diego is lucky she does good work for women in need, or I would've ended her already. She gave me nothing when I called and even refused to meet with me face to face. I've played around with the idea of holding someone hostage until I get some answers, but that's the monster in me. I have to keep that shit on lock, he's already cost me more than enough, but it's hard not to lose it at every turn. I even paid Felix a visit, but he had no idea where she was and was now spending his days worrying about her instead of the sentence he was facing. Good, the monster is very pleased that he's not the only one suffering. Her grandmother had returned home with a promise to come back soon. For some reason watching her go was like losing my last connection to Gianna. Now I'm beg
The Life Sacrifice Chapter 32
GABRIEL It only took five minutes into the car ride back home for me to realize what Pop had said to my Uncle Marvin, or at least for me to get the gist of it. He spent the time switching off between trying to comfort his son and keeping me calm. I don't know why they thought I would do something; I hadn't said a word, and Lance didn't give a shit about some low-wage scumbag with one too many bags of Doritos under his belt using some outdated insult that really just boils down to calling him lazy. And as if to prove my point, Lancelot said just as much to his dad. "Dad, that word doesn't mean the same thing to me as it does to the people on television and in the news. Gabe and I defanged that word when we were about ten." "Oh! How did you do that?" Lance looked at me as if to ask if I wanted to explain. "You do it." "Okay, remember how Gabe and I met? When those kids used to bully me? Well, when Gabe went back to New York that time, I think we were like seven, he did some res
The Life Sacrifice Chapter 31
GABRIEL I admit to blanking out on the way up the steps and into the building since I could pretty much guess where this was going, and my mind was rightfully still back in that little grove where I'd last spoken to her. Lance's words were making me on edge a bit as well. Why did her grandmother have to come get her? Of course, I expect her to be upset, I'm upset at the situation, but the thought of her hurting so much she had to leave school is making me feel like even more of an asshole than I already do. Whatever this is Pop's about to do, I want over with, so I can get back to the house and have the twins go look after her. Levi, the snake charmer, met us inside the doors, and that's when my focus shifted. Why the heck is Pop bringing him in? Somebody's feelings are about to get hurt and hurt real bad. "Gabe, Lance, you boys have grown." Since when? He just saw us a few weeks ago at the twins' sweet sixteen. I didn't say a word, though, because he was wearing his yellow tie.
