Salvation

Chapter 19

"Sylvia! Sylvia! " Lucio was yelling from the entrance of the mansion. He didn't wait for anyone else to come with him.

He run to the living room, a man was laying dead on the floor, shot to the chest. Next to him two other corpses, the two bodyguards he had assigned.

"Sylvia, where are you?" He yelled again running to the kitchen. He kept running around the whole house, looking for her, looking for the one he loved.

"Sylvia I'm here, please answer me, where you? It's me Syl come out." There was no answer. There was utter and absolute silence.

His feet led him down the stairs, this time he wasn't running. Defeat, fear and sadness were swirling around him.

"She's not here." He quietly said, his eyes starting to sting.

"We'll find her Luc, she can't be that far." Giovanni said, trying to be hopeful. He opened his phone, his mind racing.

He'd put a tracker inside the ring he'd given her, he clicked open the app on his phone, but the location of Sylvia's ring was on the move, moving towards the mansion.

Lucio started running outside again, following the direction, he kept running, running in the middle of the road not caring about the cars honking at him. A black SUV came in sight, a man dropped a box on the floor. Lucio pointed his gun shooting the vehicle, but they were faster. They managed to get away as Lucio kept shooting the car.

He grabbed the big box in his hands, not bothering to get out of the street. He opened it a neatly folded piece of paper on top.

She was too good for this world. I set her free.
-T

Lucio's throat tightened, he threw away the piece of paper staring at the box. There was the ring, the ring he'd given his promise to be by her side. The box slipped from his hands when he saw the two remaining contents. A strand of silver hair and a heart, a human heart.

He fell to his knees, screaming, a bloodcurdling scream, tears were falling from his eyes. He was pulling his hair, crying and screaming. He looked up the sky, his screams never quieting down,

"Why? What did I ever do to you?" He yelled, looking at the sky.

Liliana had returned home and was standing across the street, watching Lucio break down. Her hand was over her mouth, silent tears escaping her eyes. She felt someone's fingers touching her own. Giovanni was next to her, tears spilling out of his eyes as well. On her other side Antonio appeared, taking her other hand; a devastated look upon his face.

Lucio stood up, the small box still in his hand, he walked across the street. He took the ring out, holding it in his palm. He gave the box to Antonio.

"Keep it till we have a ceremony." His voice was breaking as he spoke the words. He left the three walking to the house, his head down.

A man defeated. A man defeated by life, he played the game and he had lost. In this life we somehow all lose. It doesn't matter whether you believe in superstitions or not.

Life always manages to break you apart. It gives you battles that will never crown you a winner, battles you shouldn't have faced. A star is created when a soul is lost. Lost in the abyss of the mind or at the cruel, monstrous, idiotic and above all distractive thing we call society. Everyone is a victim of this creation. From Alexander the Great to your next door neighbor, we are all pawns and players at an undefeatable game.

"We were supposed to conquer the world, Syl." He whispered, looking at the sky, from his office's window.

The ring he'd given her, lay in his palm. He undid the cross around his neck, taking the necklace off. He pulled the small crucifix out placing it on the table, slipping the ring on. He placed it out his neck.

"I'll come find you Syl. Wait for me, I'll come, I'll come to you." He said again looking at the sky.

"But first I'll slaughter all of them. I'll kill  everyone they care about and then I'll grand them the mercy of death." His tears were dried, as he sat just looking at the stars.

Liliana and Giovanni were outside his study, trying to decide whether they should go in. Antonio had gone to take care of the box.

"We'll get through it Lils, he'll get through it." Giovanni whispered, giving her hand a squeeze.

"I'm not so sure this time." She managed to reply.

The mansion's quietness was suffocating all of them. The darkness was engulfing their souls, wrapping around them like a millstone. The atmosphere was heavy; grief, anger and pain were the only emotions detected.