Page 20 of Niccolaio Andretti (The Five Syndicates)
The first thing that strikes me as odd is that there are only four men in front of me. Uncle Luca has upwards of thirty defending the compound. Either there are more of these men roaming around the estate, or these men are highly trained, at least better trained than ours.
Either way, the odds are grim for Ranie and me.
The youngest one steps forward, calm despite the weapon pointed at his face. Tall, with eerily blue eyes and dark hair the same shade as mine, he’s maybe a few years my junior. But he looks older, like he’s seen his fair share of life, and it’s aged him greatly.
It’s the maturity I see in his eyes that has me more wary of him than his three companions, who are at least twice his age and equally formidable in build. I watch carefully as he takes the lead, taking another step closer to me.
I shake my head, indicating for him to stop. Another step closer, and he would have been close enough to disarm me. I have no doubt he would have tried, too. It’s what I would do if I was in his position.
He pauses, and I see a fleeting look of understanding cross his eyes. That was a test, and now he knows that I won’t be fooled. That the threat I pose isn’t just physical but also intellectual. There’s a moment of silence, where I wait for him to bargain. That’s also what I would do if I had a gun pointed at my head.
And unfortunately, there’s a lot for him to bargain with.
After all, my little brother is sleeping in the room behind him. If that wasn’t the case, I would have waited. I would have called in back up and waited for more Andretti soldiers to arrive. But I didn’t have the time for that.
If I killed these men earlier, hidden safely behind the corner, there still could have been a threat. There might still be more of them. Maybe even already in Ranie’s room. How would I know?
I’m in a bind, and I made a choice.
These men? They were about to breach Ranie’s room, and I stopped them.
Perhaps at the expense of my life.
But for my little brother, I would risk everything.
At least this way, I have the option to bargain for Ranie’s life. To have them call off whoever else may be here with them and stop this before Ranie gets hurt.
“You can’t shoot all of us before one of us greets you with a bullet,” the leader says.
“I know.”
But I can get off a warning shot, loud enough to wake Ranie and give him the slightest chance of escaping. Perhaps even loud enough to alert any remaining Andretti guards. It’s not my preferred method of dealing with this, but it’s one of the better options.
That’s why I took the silencer off of the barrel of my gun.
I wait for this guy to realize this—if he hasn’t already.
He nods his head. “This is a suicide mission.”
“It is.”
“You’re Niccolaio Andretti.”
“I am.”
“And your brother is sleeping in the room behind me.”
I nod, because there’s no point in lying. “He is.”
“He’s only fourteen.”
It’s a test. To see if I’m trustworthy.
Unfortunately, I have to be.
“Eighteen,” I reply, forcing my jaw not to clench.
Fourteen would make Ranie untouchable, too young to kill according to the unspoken mafia code of honor. But eighteen makes Ranie a man. It makes Ranie fair game. But I gather this guy already knows this. He knows Ranie’s age, and he tested me.
