Potere | Book II ✓

ix | die for the mission

ix | die for the mission

a/n: i really tried so hard to get this update out for you all as soon as possible and it's still been over a month since the last update. i suck, holy shit.

don't forget to vote.

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The car ride from our home to the family home is the longest one I've ever endured. Liam drives, with Dominic in the passenger seat. I'm trapped between Carmen and Veleno. She's been whispering up prayers from the moment we pulled out the driveway, while the man to my right can't stop bouncing his leg in anticipation, nor will his hands stop shaking.

I grab his hand and offer a reassuring squeeze.

I don't have to break the tense silence in the car to get my message across.

Everything's going to be alright.

My lips pull into a soft smile as his long fingers curl around mine, faintly returning my non-verbal message. Veleno returns his hands to his lap, their shaking now a little less intense.

"—Liam, please."

"Dominic, for the fourth fucking time, I am not giving you any medication." I can tell Liam means it just by the way he sets his jaw and clutches the steering wheel with that white-knuckled grip of his.

Dom doesn't appreciate the answer. His sigh is full of irritation and annoyance at the man sitting beside him. He looks out the window, watching the California landscape flash by in a blur as our car picks up in speed. A bead of sweat rolls down his brow as his left leg rises and falls, incapable of remaining still. I watch Dom fidget for a few quiet moments as concern forces my brows together.

"Liam, please, I need—"

"No!" Liam snaps, startling all the inhabitants of the car, including Zara and Vince, who were so quiet that I forgot they were taking up the last row of the SUV. Their hushed conversation stalls as all eyes fall on Luciano. "No," He repeats in a softer, gentler tone after catching all of our stunned expressions in the rearview mirror.

"But—"

Liam slaps the steering wheel as he raises his voice. "I don't have your fucking pills, Dominic! They're back at the house!"

The anger that transforms Dominic's features comes out of – literally – nowhere. The tips of his ears go red as he reaches out to Liam, prepared to inflict some sort of pain. I don't have time to warn Liam, and I'm glad I don't have to as Veleno reaches out, capturing Dom's wrist in his hand before it can reach our driver. He leans forward and lowers his voice.

"Look at me." Dom does as Veleno orders. "You're stressed, anxious, and worried. You don't need pills, you just think you do. Can you do something for me?" I don't think I'd ever heard Veleno's voice as soothing as it is now. Dominic nods, lips pursed. "Sit back, close your eyes, and take deep breaths until we get to the house."

The tension in the car eases as Liam focuses on driving and Dom allows his mind to take a break. Veleno leans back and shifts in his seat, quietly apologizing whenever his knees brushed against my own. I didn't take it too personally; the car got even tighter the longer the duration of the ride extended and Veleno was a fairly large dude, with long legs and wide thighs.

At Dom's silence, I hear Vincenzo speak up from behind me. "I can't believe for all these years I've used you as an assassin when your true calling was as a psychologist."