the only thing that matters to me.” I walked forward and jammed my finger inside the bullet hole in thigh. His screams almost escaped the rag stuffed in his mouth but cutting his tongue out would fix that if it came down to it. “We’re going to avenge her, Randy,” I told him as I dug my finger deeper into his flesh. “We’re going to avenge her, and then we’re going to use you as an example of what happens when a person dares to go after Francesca Fiore. You are going to be a warning to everyone, and what’s left of you will be fed to the pigs, Randy.”
I smiled up at him as I heard Luca clap his hands once and start rubbing them in anticipation. “I admit, it’s been a while since I’ve had to torture a motherfucker, but I’m sure it’ll be just like riding a bike,” Luca chuckled darkly. “What’s the worst that can happen, anyway?”
I pulled my bloody finger from Randy’s wound and stepped back. “I’ll be seeing you in a couple of days, Randolph,” I promised.
Chapter 22
Francesca~
Everything hurt.
Everything hurt and I immediately thought of Robbie. I reached over and grabbed my phone off the nightstand. I saw that it was already past noon, but I wasn’t surprised. We hadn’t gotten home until after two in the morning, and once the adrenaline dispersed, I had crashed hard.
I called her and after a few rings, it went to voicemail. I tried again, but when I got her voicemail again, I shot off a text asking her to call me when she woke up. I hated that she was at home, suffering alone, but I couldn’t do anything about it until I got through to Phoenix.
If I even could.
I got out of bed and made my way to the bathroom. Even though I had rinsed off before going to bed last night, I still needed a proper shower. I felt dirty and sore and hot water could only ease the pain, right?
The shower was painful, but I managed. I washed my hair and scrubbed my entire body except for my face. I used a washcloth to tenderly do what I could around the cut down my face. After I was done showering, I dried off, and grimaced through the pain as I brushed my hair out and threw it up in a wet bun on top of my head. I applied some of the antibiotic salve Basco had left me for my face and popped a Motrin. I decided to save the hard stuff for when I needed to go to sleep tonight. The pain was horrible, and I knew I was going to need the help tonight.
Wrapping my body in my old, but comfortable robe, I went in search of Phoenix. After he had dropped me off last night, he hadn’t said a word as he walked me up to his apartment. He also hadn’t spared me a second glace as he turned around and left once I was locked safely inside. I had tried calling Robbie after he left, but she hadn’t answered and I almost panicked until I remembered that Basco had given her a mild sedative. After that I had rinsed off and had gone to the kitchen for a glass of water when Ciro had stormed in and dropped my purse, phone, and keys on the kitchen counter. And I knew I was in trouble when he walked out without saying a word as well.
I was on my way to the living room when I heard voices coming from Phoenix’s office. His apartment had an open kitchen and living room floor plan, but the other rooms in the apartment were closed off and private. It had three bedrooms, two and a half baths, a study, and laundry room. The hallway was the corridor to all these rooms with the master bedroom at the end, two guest rooms on the left side of the hall, and the study on the right. The laundry room was behind the kitchen and you passed it on the way to the balcony that was off the kitchen. You could eat outside if you wanted.
So, upon hearing voices coming from Phoenix’s office, I pushed the door open and walked inside. Phoenix was on the phone, pacing the length of the room. I cleared my throat and he immediately looked my way. He still looked angry and it was confirmed when he snarled into the phone, “She just