Chapter 501 - Flame (4)

Gael's first instinct was to put a bullet through Filippo's head. He didn't have time for his games. He still had five shots left and only needed one to kill—and he was a damn good shooter.

However, when he twisted his head to take a look at the man, Filippo clicked his tongue, took out another handgun, and pointed it at Roy's head. They would die if he made a wrong move. Although Gael could take the shot, he didn't want to risk who would pull the trigger first in this situation when they were at a disadvantage. Losing more men was not an option.

"Kick your gun to the side." Filippo jerked his chin to the left where one of his men was. "Slowly. Then put your hands up."

Clenching his jaw, Gael slid the gun away. Then Filippo gestured for them to walk around the bar and come out onto the large open space in the middle of the dance floor with dimmed lights above them. Filippo was a few inches shorter than Gael, and he was stockier—big, meaty fingers holding the gun, arched thick brows that he got from his father, Marino. 

Not letting the man get to him, Gael grinned. Filippo had four men behind him, their guns raised and pointed at them. "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you only want me here to dance with me."

Filippo let out a humorless chuckle. "Don't be fucking cute, De Luca. I'm going to wipe that grin off your face and have the last laugh."

"You can try." Gael shrugged. "…Bruno certainly did before we rammed the knife into him, and he bled like a pig."

The smirk fell off Filippo's face, replaced with a glare that could set the place on fire. "You motherfucker!!!" He shifted the gun slightly to the side and fired five shots.

Gael didn't flinch and kept his stare straight ahead as if death didn't faze him…until the last bullet grazed his shoulder, and he jerked from the sudden burn on his skin. "Son of a bitch." He gritted his teeth, checking the wound and feeling a stinging sensation on the flesh as he peeled off his coat and tossed it to the floor. Yep, the bullet grazed him and the bad burn hurt like a bitch—he almost wished it were a flesh wound.

He was slightly aware that apart from a few grunts and glass shattering on the second floor, there were no gunfires, making him wonder where everyone else were.

"Don't worry. I'm not killing you…yet." Filippo's words had a bite in them as if he'd been waiting for this face-off.

"What the hell do you want? You clearly want something seeing as you've always gone out of your way to get to me!" Gael spat, ripping the already torn sleeve of his shirt and wrapping it around the top of his arm tightly.

"That's because you owe me. And I'm here to collect."

'They killed J and I owe them?' Gael scoffed with an incredulous look on his face. "I owe you? The fuck do I owe you for? Are you sick in the head?" He snorted, shaking his head. "That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. Me…owing a Morelli."

"Yeah… Stay amused…" Filippo curled his lips into a crooked smirk. "By the way… Where's your little girlfriend?"

Hot blood rushed through Gael's limbs. Angela. The confidence on Filippo's face was apparent. They had her. Gael curled his hands into fists, wanting to strangle the other's throat. "I swear to God if you—"

"Oh, I did." Filippo smirked. "She should be floating to heaven by now, enjoying dicks in her tight pussy, screaming in pain and pleasure."

Gael saw red. "You motherfucking piece of shit!!!" He lunged for Filippo, wanting to murder the sick fuck, chop his body, and feed it to Hyenas.

"Ah ah ah." Filippo waved a phone, the screen lit up with a picture of Angela unconscious inside a confined space. "Take another step, and you'll never see her again. Well… perhaps you can collect her corpse."

Gael's body shook in a fury as images of Angela getting abused haunted his head, and he came to a stop. Nostrils flaring, his heartbeat rammed in his chest, and pulse pounded in his ears. His breathing turned ragged as he planned every possible way to mutilate Filippo with his bare hands.

"Would you look at that… Gael De Luca bending for me. I've wanted to see this with my own eyes for a very long time. It's so satisfying to see you so…helpless." Filippo chuckled. "And it's all because of a fucking bitch."

"I'll slice your tongue off for calling her that," Gael gritted out.

Looking bored, Filippo lifted his chin. "Now that I have your attention. Let's get down to business."

"What the fuck do you want?!"

"Every single penny you have." Filippo waved his gun nonchalantly as he began a slow pace from side to side like he was giving a lecture in a classroom. "At first, I was only going to ask for six million. But I thought… I won't have another chance like this. And since you owe me, I figure I add interest and take every single penny you have on your name."

Gael didn't understand how Filippo could think that he was owed. If this were a kidnapping ransom, he'd gladly give everything he had to get Angela back. Money was not an issue. Money could be earned again. Angela was priceless.

He saw some movement in his periphery. And though he couldn't turn his head fully or move his eyes freely, he could make out the outline of Giovanni's form. So Gael entertained Filippo to distract him. "What makes you think I'd do that? That I owe you even a single dollar? I don't remember you doing anything for me to owe you money."

Filippo scowled, raised his gun, and pointed it at Gael's forehead. "You ruined everything! It's because of you that I lost everything! If you hadn't dipped your toes and stuck your nose into my business, we wouldn't be here."

"Get over yourself. Our families have long been—"

"John Wei, you son of a bitch!!!" Filippo yelled, the gun shaking in his hand as his fingertip dangerously grazed the trigger.

Gael's head reared back. "Who? I don't know who that is!"

"Of course, you don't. But I'm sure you remember…Lavro Yanovich."

"Wha…" Gael's voice trailed off as the name rang in his ear. Of course, he remembered Yanovich. How could he forget? Yanovich was once a Pakhan in St. Petersburg, Russia. The man nearly killed Samantha as he sought vengeance on Daniel. Then Gael, Daniel, and their friends Sean and Lucas killed him. Gael remembered, and he could admit he was one of the people responsible for that man's death. But he was still trying to connect the dots. "What's it to you? How is it your business?"

Still seething, Filippo got in Gael's face. "You killed Wei and Yanovich! And all my money went down the drain!"

Gael drew his brows together, slowly remembering another man they had to dispose of with Yanovich. Yeah, that man could be John Wei. How Filippo found out Gael's involvement in it, he didn't know. The man must have gone through hell and back for some information. There were more stealth movements behind Filippo's men, and it took a lot of him not to shift his eyes so he wouldn't tip them off. "What money? What business do you have with them?"

Filippo looked at Gael like he was an imbecile. "I invested everything into their shipping business! I was gonna be rich! I was gonna have everything within my reach, and you took that from me! When they died, everything went to shit! We didn't get our money back, and we're still fucking buried in debt! So you fucking owe me! And I'm going to take everything from you!"

Gael's jaw tightened. That shipping business Yanovich had was human trafficking. Children and adults were sold anywhere in the world like cattle. Yanovich and Wei were tortured, killed, and fed to the sharks—and they deserved it. Gael lifted his chin; he'd never apologize for what he and his friends did to those disgusting people.

And Filippo… Gael sneered. This man wanted to be part of that business? He was just like those two. And Filippo blamed Gael for losing money. How fucking vile.

A strong pull forced Gael to shift his gaze over Filippo's shoulder, and he saw dark locks and beautiful eyes he would recognize even with the lights off. It took everything in him to drag his gaze back to Filippo's despicable face while his heart pounded in his chest at the awareness of Angela being just a few meters away—safe and alive. 'She's here, and she's alive.'

Filippo's men were idiots, leaving their backs open. Gael smirked. "You want my money?" Filippo's eyes dilated in greed and excitement. It was like dangling a bone to a dog. Gael leaned closer until they were a foot apart, lowering his hard voice as he drawled, "Okay. I'll give it to you…if you kiss my ass."

Filippo's expression morphed into rage. "I'LL fuck your girlfriend in the—" He didn't get to finish his words when Gael's fist landed on his jaw. 

Shots were fired…and smoke began to cloud The Manor.