Duchess Trilogy: Book 1: Mafia

Chapter Twenty-Six: Save Yourself

Brie's POV

I was getting out of the shower and fixing my hair while waiting for Ryan to get back to the school. I've been working hard on making the best chicken casserole dish, and I was eager for him and the others to try it out as it was a new recipe. I went to get dressed and checked on the food in the kitchen. I opened the oven to look inside and saw that the casserole looked well done and smelled amazing! I closed the oven and added ten more minutes to the timer. I looked at my watch to see that it was almost seven in the evening and looked around the kitchen.

I tapped on the counter to think of what to do next. So, I headed to the laundry room in the basement. I walked down a couple of flights of stairs and then finally reached the room. I walked in and saw that the laundry needed to be switched around. During the time I did so, it sounded like someone was at the door. I tried to get my new cell to show me the front door security camera, but it looked like the camera was busted.

My heart was racing with anxiety, and I feared the worst. I set the phone down and turned off the lights immediately. I then hid inside the wardrobe by the washers. I hoped that if someone was here, they wouldn't suspect me hiding here.

Soon, I heard some window glass break and tried hard to remain calm. It was becoming hard, though, as it felt slightly warmer than usual. I wanted to peak but was afraid of the doors making a noise. So, I remained where I was.

It felt like forever, and it started to become harder to breathe. I just decided to take a risk and peek outside of the doors. When I opened the wardrobe doors, my heart stopped. It seemed like a fire was emerging in the middle of the floor! I knew I was in danger and had to get out. I got out of the wardrobe cautiously and then peeked my head outside of the laundry room door.

A voice I heard just chilled me to the bone. "Where are you, Audrey? I know you are here somewhere!" Carmine shouted from afar.

I wanted to cry out for help but knew it would worsen things. I decided to sneak to another basement room where we hid our weapons so I could grab some for protection. If nobody is here with me, then I'll fight as much as I can away from the bastard.

I left the room, covered my nose and mouth with my shirt, and crawled slowly to the room. The gymnasium was filling up with fire and smoke oddly quickly. I got to the weapons room safely and locked the door behind me. I went ahead and grabbed the archery set and some finger guards to protect myself from any rope burn. Suddenly, I heard the door wiggle and worried that it was him. I went ahead and pulled my bow and arrow back, ready to let go, aiming towards the door.

The door opened, and the lights came on. I was about to let the bow go to hit someone's hand when I realized a familiar voice.

"Brie, are you in here?" Vittorio whispered.

I then slowly put the bow back to normal and saw a familiar, sweaty face peeking around the door, wearing a black bandana covering his mouth and nose.

"Vittorio! Boy, am I glad to see you!" I say, trying not to shout.

"Yeah, John called and told me to get here as soon as possible as I was the only one closest." He stated as he was proceeding to grab extra ammo. "Carmine and his other men are here. We need to get out of here. Come with me and stay behind me." He says in a protective tone.

I nodded and found another T-shirt on the wall. I wrapped it up bandana style and tied it around my head to cover my nose and mouth from the smoke. I nodded to Vittorio and then followed behind him. I followed him back up the stairs slowly and quietly. We were about to go to another room when we heard Carmine shouting again.

"Audrey! When I get my hands on you, you'll be sorry!"

Vittorio and I stood still, leaning against the wall in a dark hallway. We hear light switches coming on and someone throwing stuff into the rooms. I presumed it was more fire to burn down the whole school.