Submitting to My Best Friend's Dad by Scarlett Rossi
Chapter 239 -

Giovani.

The wedding was wonderful, but I knew our troubles were not over. As much as I adored the happiness of James, I couldn't let my guard down. These people were relentless, as had been made pretty clear by the poisoned cake. According to my men, there was a gathering outside of the wedding hall. I couldn't have this interrupt James on his special night. Not to mention, kids were involved. I would sooner die by a bullet to my chest than have any of them get hurt. This was my job, mine and my men's. James being the Don of our family was irrelevant. My heart pounded in excitement as I stared toward the woods that surrounded the wedding venue. My intelligence told me that they were going to try and end James once and for all.

Yeah. That was not happening.

I chuckled at the thought that they thought they could win this. They were sloppy, leaking information left and right. Negligence? Rage? Didn't matter. They had a vendetta against James and Becca, and that wouldn't do, especially on their special night.

The movement in the shadows caused my heart to pound with excitement. My hand flew to my holster, where my gun was sitting in its holster. I couldn't wait to use this bad boy on the people that wanted to harm my cousin. It was going to be brilliant.

I tuned into my Bluetooth connection, adjusting it with my finger and raising a brow. "Any word?" I asked my first-in-command. Her answer was not clear, leading me to let out a sigh. Why did they have to always make these things difficult? These bastards were going to die in the end, anyway.

No excuses. I pulled the trigger even when they begged and said they were set up, especially if family was involved. I was going to have a blast putting several bullets in these idiots for trying to disrupt my cousin's wedding, that was for sure. The cricket song raised to a crescendo with nothing else happening. Fireflies darted along, leaving a magical display of lights and colors. The symphony of the forest, and its sights, would normally capture me completely. This situation was far from normal. I stroked my gun in anticipation, nothing happening in the woods that my men indicated would be a problem. Not yet, anyway. The music of the wedding played in the background. I felt beyond elated that my family could be happy tonight.

Even if people who wanted them dead were active, of course. I twitched an eye, letting out a sigh and wanting something, anything, to happen. While I loved the gushy nature of the wedding, things like this were what I lived for too.

I wanted to make these people bleed, and I would, very soon. Speaking of which, I got a message from one of my men that caused my heart rate to go up significantly. 'They're moving in,' he said, causing my grin to widen. This was it. I was going to bring peace just like I had with that poisoned cake. Sylvio-that's right, that's what that damn butler's name was-had been disposed of. My men would be made busy with several more bodies, but I didn't think they'd mind.

I walked deeper into the shadows of the woods, my heart pounding with anticipation. Though this was disruptive, I couldn't wait to deal justice. The people at the wedding would be worried. I'd blame it all on fireworks. Wouldn't be wrong. In fact, as soon as the banging went off, the night lit up with an array of colors. A rainbow of lights flashed across the sky as the sounds of gunshots were melded with explosions. I was elated, aiming my gun at the light flashing of lights off between a few trees.

I definitely hit a few targets, judging by the screams of agony that rang through the night. The art of my violence was pristine, just as beautiful as James dancing with Becca. This was made ever the sweeter with the knowledge that I was protecting my family.

The people inside, enjoying the wedding, wouldn't learn a thing. No doubt, at this point, there would be a small crowd gathered toward the back of the hall. The only thing they'd be met with would be fireworks. A flawless plan, and a pretty display for the guests.

Becca wouldn't worry, and neither would James. Sure, my cousin would learn the truth in a matter of a few hours. But that would only happen after I took care of this 'little' problem, and the bodies were dragged off to be disposed of someplace.

I walked through the woods with a flashlight upon the conclusion of the shootout. I hadn't taken any losses. I hadn't at all, lately, really. My men were becoming more and more skilled. Deadly. Accurate. These bastards had no chance. Money could buy a lot, but competence got experts in this field much further. I bent down by a body I shined a light on, smiling at the hole in his chest. He wasn't even wearing body armor. How incompetent were these goons these idiots hired?

The Cartwrights really knew how to go cheap rather than going home. These assassins were meant to actually kill several people, including my cousin, at his own wedding. Instead, they were downgraded to corpse status in a matter of a few bullets.

Rich pricks failed to learn the best way to handle these matters, which made things easy for me. I was almost disappointed. I reached over and dipped my index finger into a fatal wound, then brought it to my nose. The metallic smell of blood was elating, and I chuckled.

"Very dead," I praised to no one in particular, my bloodlust making itself obvious. More bangs went out, something I could identify as gunshots as opposed to fireworks. Letting out a sigh, I had to abandon the corpse I was inspecting to draw my gun.

Bang! Bang, bang! Several more of the Cartwrights' hired goons fell by my bullets. I moved deeper into the forest, coming upon one of them still alive. I shined a flashlight in his face, causing him to cringe and gasp.

"Please! Spare me, I have a family, children! They can't survive without me!" he pleaded, all things I'd heard before and didn't care about. I planted a fancy shoe on his chest, tilting my head as I leaned down and grinned. My face would be the last thing he'd ever see.

I pointed the gun at his head, then said simply, "You knew the job risks. Did you really think disrupting another family would come without consequence? James and Becca also have a family and children. In the end, you were the one silenced by a bullet."

I pulled the trigger without any remorse, my grin widening further at the man's scream right before I ended him. I knew what they planned on doing with this wedding, my cousin, his family, and the guests. They were going to bleed the place dry.

That wouldn't do. Thanks to my men and me, their attempt to either poison the cake or massacre people here wasn't going to work. They were throwing themselves at me like mind-controlled sheep. If only I had some semblance of mercy. Though, if I did, my cousin would be in a bit more danger. I didn't plan on his big night being ruined, and I wouldn't slip up on that. I put my gun away, letting out a happy sigh. By the time we finished up, about a dozen corpses littered the forest floor.

All the goons hired by the Cartwrights were butchered, as they should be. I called my men over to drag the bodies off and dispose of them properly. At this point, they were used to it. Delighted, even, to be given this task.

These pieces of shit didn't deserve the courtesy of pause, after all. They really did expect to barge in and shoot up an entire wedding with kids involved. Hired or not, they were evil. Maybe I wasn't much better for killing them, but here's the thing... I didn't care.

Returning to the back porch of the hall and leaning on the railing, I gazed up at the fireworks still going off. A soft smile rested on my face as I realized the most difficult part was over. Becca and James were safe. There would be no problems following this.

The Cartwrights were so sloppy, I could have a laughing fit right here and now. Any number of things could have gone wrong on my end, yet they hired the most incompetent goons for the task. They were slipping, that was for sure. Their allies, no doubt, were getting impatient. I would make sure my connections took care of them, or made sure they took care of themselves. No doubt, after this massive failure on their part, the tensions would be much higher. Closing my eyes, I smiled, allowing myself to be taken by the music. Perhaps I should dance with someone tonight, now that the major reported conflict was over. The firework show had ended, as well, so the atmosphere out here was in complete, happy silence.

A few minutes later, I felt my phone vibrate with a text. Good, I didn't want to take a call right now. I took it out of my pocket and brought it up to my face, reading the messages carefully. 'Bodies have started the process, boss. No one suspects a thing.'

'Good,' I texted back, my smile somehow widening. I may as well be the Cheshire cat at this point. I couldn't help but feel elated at how everything fell into place. I had half-expected something to go wrong, like them getting closer to the hall than I would have wanted.

Thankfully, there was no serving of tragedy. Just victory and cake. Oh, that was right. I pivoted and entered the hall, giving a cheerful nod and wave to some folks I passed by as if I didn't just order the death of a dozen men, having pulled the trigger at several points myself.

I approached the table where the cake was, helping myself to another slice. There was plenty there, after all, and shootouts could sometimes make me hungry. I grabbed a fork and returned to lounging about outside, humming in time to the music.

The groom himself soon emerged from the hall, however, and began to approach me. If anyone could distinguish gunshots from fireworks, or at least that something was amiss, it was him. I didn't feel worried at all. In fact, my general mood was quite cheerful.

"James!" I exclaimed, my smile turning soft. My cousin looked a combination of stressed and relaxed, but I couldn't blame him. "How are you enjoying the festivities?"

"They are going well," my cousin said. "Something is going on out here, though. Care to explain, Giovani?"