Fratelli: The Awakening (The Vampire Cartel #1)

53. Fury （Lucio’s Perspective After the Fight）

Chapter 53

Fury (Lucio’s Perspective After the Fight)

B ellagio Casino, Las Vegas - Nevada

April 16, 2018

(5 Days Before Death)

Alone with his darkness, Lucio Di Salvo struggled to constrain, cage, and settle his fury. He sat amidst the destruction, dazed and confused. What had happened? How did it all go so horribly wrong? His phone beeped. He lifted a shaky hand from the blood-covered floor and then froze, transfixed by how much blood there was.

Was it his blood? Dolly’s blood? Sometimes, when his fury and Draca merged, he slipped so far into the darkness that he could barely recall his actions. The suite was where he had tried to reason with Dolly. And then… he lost her, Darlene and Dolly both. He closed his eyes, remembering her disdain and his pathetic appeal to her for acceptance. He’d destroyed the suite and taken the life of a man whose only job was to serve vampires. How was he different from his father?

Lucio’s phone beeped again.

He reached into his pocket and removed it. His vision wasn’t clear at first. When he stood, he felt himself stabilize and the Draca retreat. He checked the text message.

Meeting Now - Eclipse

Lucio stared at the message, uncertain. It came from Marcello. He had no choice but to respond to the summons from the brothers. To not do so would give Domencio even more leverage. He reached out into the atmosphere and whispered in Tristan’s ear to return to him. Within seconds, his consiglieri walked into the suite. There was no judgment in his eyes, just a look of concern. Lucio, embarrassed, ignored it.

“How bad is it out there?” he asked.

“I’m working to contain it. The hotel is swarming with those fuckers. Our kind, wolves, even the djinn, are here. All of them have heard about her. The good news is it’s not viral on social media. There is no video captured of you or Domencio. And with Darlene gone, the scent she was giving off is gone too. That means no traceable trail to Dolly. That makes her a little easier to conceal.”

“Where is she?” Lucio paced.

“Maybe we should speak, boss?” Tristan said.

“Answer me first!”

“Private party. It’s sealed. No one can get to her.”

“I can’t read her. I think she’s blocking me,” Lucio said. He wiped his bloody hand across his brow. Involuntarily it left a crimson smear. “Does she hate me? Did she say she hates me? I can’t remember, I think—I think she did,” he mumbled.

He stopped. His eyes went large. “Did I touch her? I think I touched her. I scared her, didn’t I?”

“May I speak?” Tristan tried again.

“Yes. Go ahead,” Lucio mumbled.

“Shakespeare sent a text. A summons to the Eclipse. They demand a hearing about what happened here. Who she is, and where she is from, is number one on the agenda. They said you either come or they are coming here and there will be no talking. You pulled the trigger prematurely, and I understand your reasons. I supported them. You had hoped Dolly and Darlene would become one when they saw the kid. Now we have to act. You need to calm this war with your brothers. Find a truce that protects her and you before Don Vittorio gets news of her existence. If you want her, boss, you have no choice but to play by the rules. Marcello is the only one keeping your brothers at bay now. What if he loses faith in you? You’ve exposed her, and I’m telling you, without Darlene to protect her, she is a walking target.”

Lucio looked up from the floor at his consiglieri. Clarity returned to his mind.

Tristan nodded encouragement. “You cannot protect her against your entire family alone. They will take her. There is no doubt about it. We may already be too late to stop it.”

“Why did I bring Darlene here? What was I thinking? Yes. Yes. I fucked up, Tristan. I think I’m losing control,” he said. He paced the floor, unable to stop the manic movements. “She thinks I violate her. Dolly thinks I’m mentally raping her. I could see it in her thoughts. She’s disgusted by me. Am I… Did I do that to her with Darlene? What have I done?” Lucio paused. He looked down at the blood on his hands and turned them over. All of his memory returned. The Draca was still angry over his actions and punishing him with an internal flame.

Tristan approached him and touched his arm to stop him. Lucio looked at him, dazed and confused. Over the past few days, you’ve taken in an excessive amount of her blood. You played with your immortality, becoming closer to humans than any of us. You do not know what you are doing with her, but it is affecting you. Not just physically, boss, but mentally. I have been your counsel for decades. I have seen you remorseful, regretful, and protective of these women who you’ve hunted. I’ve seen it. But with Darlene and Dolly, I’ve never seen you this way—erratic, secretive, less focused, and obsessive.”

Lucio nodded in agreement.

“That is dangerous for our cause. For everything you have worked to build. You must go to your brothers and buy us time. I’ll protect her. We have our ways to keep her safe, remember?”

Tristan grabbed Lucio’s face to stop him from staring at the blood on his hands and forced him to look into his eyes. Lucio’s dilated pupils reminded him of junkies, except he knew that in this case, Lucio was suffering some kind of blood withdrawal. The lack of regular feedings on mortals, other than Darlene, had mixed in with his emotional attachment to both women. It eroded his sanity.

This was the true nature of the curse of Julia Brown. The old woman said there would be one, and only one, who would be the bringer of death. Tristan had seen a semblance of it before with Wanda. Lucio’s erratic behavior was self-destructive when he sought acceptance and love from his family and from the women who turned away from him in fear.

At first, the priest in him found it odd. Why would someone so evil and powerful seek acceptance, or even need it, from those he stalked? Over time, he learned that the evil wasn’t Lucio; it was the darkness within him. And Lucio wanted to escape it. His entire existence since he was forced to kneel before the Draca had been about trying to escape it. That was really what it was all about. Tristan had vowed to help him; it was Tristan’s only purpose in life.

“Do you hear me, boss? Clean yourself and face Domencio’s lies. Stand him down and buy us some time,” Tristan advised. “We are far from done with our cause.”

“You’re right. I… I was confused, and I fucked up, but I’m okay. I’ll go, now,” said Lucio.

Tristan stepped back, giving Lucio a curt nod of respect. Lucio summoned his darkness and cleansed himself. The stained ravaged attire he wore transformed into a crisp suit; all traces of blood were gone. Lucio gave a half smile, which was as close to a thanks as Tristan would get. Then he left.

Tristan surveyed the damage. He faced a tough assignment. He reached for his phone and sent a text to Lamont with instructions on how to get in contact with the Triad. Dealing with Shakespeare and his goons would necessitate reinforcements. It looked like Lamont was now going to step into his role early.

Domencio paced the floor. Sebastiano watched him, somewhat amused. He had not left Vegas yet, deciding to dine on a few beauties first before a shopping trip to LA for more exotic pets.

Marcello was on the television in the suite, not the cube. Marcello used a simple Zoom telecast from his jet as he flew back to Paris. He sipped his blood from a goblet, looking worried.

“Would you stop pacing? It’s boring me,” Sebastiano said.

“Fuck you!” Domencio replied.

Sebastiano gave him a sly smile. The meeting was called in haste, but the accusations were severe. Neither Sebastiano nor Marcello could look away from what Domencio had told them.

Domencio pouted, felt jealous, and itched for a fight. Sebastiano glanced at his brother on the television screen. Though they could not communicate telepathically through the screen, they were sharing the same thoughts. Domencio told the brothers that Lucio had captured the gem. The one who father predicted could destroy them all or save him from his dark death. And Lucio sat amongst them and said nothing.

This was a huge development, but Sebastiano and Marcello wanted to hear about Lucio’s reasons before acting. Domencio wanted to go straight to their father. He accused Lucio of betraying the coven and, even worse, the brotherhood. An accusation of such gravity could sentence Lucio to death, turn his Draca on him, and let the creature eat him from the inside out. What brother would sentence another brother to that fate? It alarmed Sebastiano and Marcello that things between the two had gotten that far.

The three consiglieri were in the back of the room. They stood shoulder to shoulder and observed in silence. Domencio continued to pace, while Marcello watched intently, silent but watchful. The moment the door opened, and Lucio walked in, Domencio lunged at Lucio with supernatural speed, so fast the fight was nothing but a blur of colors and snarls that was almost impossible to track. One minute tornado speed violence erupted, another minute one brother pinned the other down as they both tried to shred each other with claws and fanged teeth. The battle climaxed with them both swept up in a force that made the plaster in the walls crack and the floor beneath them tremble.

“That is enough,” said Marcello from his plane.

They would part and charge at each other again. Domencio’s fist connected with Lucio’s jaw, and the impact sounded like a thunderclap. Lucio recovered almost instantly, flew at his brother, and delivered rapid blows to the throat and chest, causing Domencio to hurtle through the air and crash into the wall with enough force to puncture the infrastructure. The room imploded with the intensity of their confrontation. The air seemed rippled with electrified smoke from the darkness their anger evoked.

Sebastiano and the others watched, their faces masks of detached interest, as they had all seen it before. Their shared wrath was a testament to the ancient strength gifted to them by the Draca, which often caused wreckage in its wake. And the Eclipse had just undergone a remodel from another battle waged by the two. Lucio seized Domencio and slammed him onto the floor, then put his foot on his neck. The impact was stupendous; the floorboards splintered under the force.

Domencio, undeterred, grabbed Lucio’s leg and snapped it almost in half, bringing his brother down into a roll as they kicked and rumbled until they crashed into a table, which shattered into a thousand pieces. The fight was brutal, their movements a blast of speed and power, and neither brother held back. Suddenly, a voice echoed in all minds. Enough!

Marcello’s command came from his Draca and reverberated through the distance of his absence. It crashed into their skulls with such force that it blew both men in separate directions. Lucio and Domencio’s bodies trembled with unspent energy as the force of Marcello’s Draca telepathic shout pinned them to the walls and caused their breaths to come out in ragged gasps. The room fell silent, the echoes of their battle lingered in the air.

This is not the time for petty squabbles, Marcello’s Draca continued, his mental hold a mix of authority and deadly threats. We have more pressing matters to deal with. Lucio, you need to explain yourself. Domencio, stand the fuck down. Now! Before we return to Vegas to join the fight.

Lucio and Domencio were released. Both fell to their knees and hands. The brothers looked up at each other but did not charge forward. They stood and huffed out their hard breathing. Lucio's eyes remained locked on Domencio. For now, they had to focus on the greater threat that loomed over them.

“I’ll explain myself. But not to you. Know that brother. I don’t give a fuck about you,” Lucio said, his voice steadying, his finger aimed at Domencio.

Domencio glared at him but nodded. He stepped back reluctantly while healing himself. The room was a wreck.