Chapter 48

Knowing Luca was staring at her, Daisy kept her eyes shut for the remainder of the car ride back to the house. She stayed as far away from him as she possibly could. When they arrived, Daisy jumped out of the car before anyone could stop her. She marched into the house and Luca ran after her.

"Listen to me," he said, grabbing her arm.

"Don't touch me!" Daisy pulled her arm back.

"Baby, please stop," Luca begged. "Stop."

"Go to hell," Daisy hissed.

"I'm already in hell!" Luca raised his voice. "Do you think I'm not losing my mind right now?"

"What's going on?"

Daisy and Luca turned to find Angelo standing at the entrance of the living room. As always he was dressed in a gray suit and the permanent unimpressed look Luca used to have was painted all over Angelo's face.

"What are you doing here?" Luca asked.

"Last I checked, this was still my house," Angelo said.

"Where have you been?" Luca asked.

"I was completing my treatment at a private rehab clinic," Angelo's eyes moved towards Daisy. "What's the matter with her?"

"None of your concerns," Luca said, stepping back to stand beside Daisy and put his hand on her back. Luckily, she didn't push him away. She stepped closer to him.

"I....I need to check on Theo," Daisy said quietly.

She lifted her eyes and met Luca's gaze. They both shared a look of slight panic for the safety of their son. Luca began to usher her towards the stairs, sticking by her side.

"When you're done, come down to my office," Angelo said. "I need to speak to you about the bullshit you've been pulling in my absence."

Daisy looked over her shoulder and watched Luca's jaw clench. He didn't say anything as he continued to guide her. Her skin crawled with goosebumps. She felt chilly in the warm house as they entered their bedroom and Carla stepped out from the nursery.

"What the hell?" She said, looking at Luca. "Why are you here?"

"Not now," Luca shook his head.

"Luca, you need to be in the hospital-"

"Daniel called," Luca said. "They're coming back this afternoon and he asked me to take Gia as soon as they land."

"What?" Daisy's eyes filled with concern. "Why?"

"I don't know," Luca said. "But they're both not telling us something. And to make matters worse, dad's downstairs."

"I know," Carla said. "I brought Theo up here as soon as he came in this morning."

"Did he come to see him?" Luca asked.

"No," Carla shook her head.

Daisy began to turn towards the nursery when she remembered her condition. She looked down at herself and ran a hand through her hair.

"I'm going to shower before I see him," she muttered.

"Carla," Luca called to his aunt but his eyes were on his wife. "Send someone to the pharmacy. We need a pregnancy test."

"No, we don't," Daisy snapped just as Carla spoke up.

"What?" She asked.

Daisy took in a long deep breath before letting it out slowly, "I'm not pregnant."

"Are you serious right now?" Luca clicked his tongue.

"Just because I threw up, doesn't mean I'm pregnant!" Daisy yelled. "It was the bad fruit or the milk in the coffee! Not to mention the wonderful news I got this morning from you!"

"How can you be pregnant?" Carla asked. "Who's baby is it?"

"Mine!" Luca yelled. "What the fuck kind of question is that?"

"I..." Carla struggled. "I didn't know how serious you guys were."

"No one is pregnant," Daisy said. "It's no one's baby."

"Carla," Luca sighed. "Can you please give us a minute?"

Carla looked at Daisy and then towards Luca, "Okay."

Daisy shifted her weight as Carla stepped out of the room and shut the door. She was about to turn and walk into the bathroom when Luca blocked her path and stopped her.

"We need to talk," he said. "You can't keep flying off the handle."

"I'm flying off the handle?" Daisy's eyes narrowed. "Me?"

"My love, I've never been with anyone beside you," Luca said, taking her hand and placing them on his chest. He placed his hands over her to make sure she didn't pull away. "How could you think Stella's baby was mine? Did you stop to think?"

"No," Daisy shook her head. "I didn't...."

Luca stepped closer.

"It doesn't even matter," Daisy said.

"Don't say that," Luca said.

"She's always going to be a shadow looming over you," Daisy felt her eyes water once more. "I can't take that anymore. I can't....not emotionally, not mentally. I meant what I said."

"You're going to leave?" Luca's jaw tensed.

"Yes," Daisy nodded.

"What if you're pregnant?"

"I'm not."

"But if you are?" Luca asked. "You're going to take my kids away from me?"

"What's the other option?" Daisy asked. "I stay here and we constantly fight over the same thing again and again?"

"We fix it," Luca said. "Just because something isn't perfect doesn't mean you throw it away. The grass is greener where you water it."

"And how do we fix it?" Daisy asked. "What can we possibly do?"

"I don't know," Luca said with all honesty. "But I'm not giving up on us."

"Luca, I can't-"

"I need you," Luca said. "I need you next to me. Gia is coming home and I have a bad feeling something is terribly wrong. I'm not a hundred percent right now so pl-"

"Maybe you shouldn't leave the hospital then."

"Staying there wasn't an option," Luca said. "Please, my love. Stay. Stay and help me. I need you next to me right now."

Daisy's heart contracted inside of her chest. She could see the sincerity in his eyes as he held her to his chest. When she nodded slowly, Luca lifted his hand and placed it over her cheek.

"I need to show," Daisy said.

"Okay," Luca nodded.

Letting her go, Luca stepped back and Daisy walked into the bathroom. She locked the door behind herself as she stripped off her dress and walked into the shower. The water was hot, the steam quickly filled up the room as Daisy looked down at herself. Her hand shook slightly as she placed it over her belly. In her mind, she began to count the day. It didn't make any sense for her to be pregnant. She had bled just a few days after her and Luca had spent the night together. How could there be a baby?

Letting her hand slide off her belly, Daisy lathered up the soap and washed her body. She grabbed her toothbrush and cleaned her mouth before shutting off the water and grabbing two clean towels. Outside, Luca waited for her. He looked up as soon as she stepped out and followed her to the nursery.

"Good morning, my sweet boy," Daisy's face lit up as she found a very sleepy Theo sitting and waiting for her in the crib. "Did you miss mama?"

"Dada," Theo raised his hand towards Luca.

"Mama," Daisy tried to correct him.

Chuckling with tiredness in his eyes, Luca picked Theo out of the crib and wrapped him in his arms. Daisy stood frowning as Luca kissed Theo's head and brushed his hair to the side.

"Mama missed you," he said to the little boy. "You want to give mama a kiss? Tell mama you love her."

Theo looked at Daisy and leaned over. Luca stepped closer to her so the little boy could reach. Daisy moved forward and kissed Theo's cheek. Luca took the opportunity of her approximately to plant a kiss of his own on the top of her head.

"We're going to get through this," he said. "And I'm going to show you that it's only you. My number one, two and three."

Daisy didn't reply. She turned away and walked back into the bathroom to dry her hair. She was beginning to lose touch with herself again. Her heart was calm and her mind was blank. She didn't feel anything as she stared at herself in the mirror and blew out her hair. Her hazel eyes looked foreign. She tried to find any trace of the girl she was a year ago, but she couldn't.

You're going to take my kids away from me?

Luca's question resurfaced. Daisy sat down the hair dryer and took a seat on the ottoman by the vanity. To her numb mind, the idea of never seeing Luca again didn't seem so bad. Maybe someday she'll learn to be okay again. He could visit Theo. Daisy had grown up without a father and she was fine. Theo would be fine...

But what if there was another baby?

Without her thinking about it, Daisy's hand moved to her belly once more. She looked down at herself and felt her heart contract. There was no way...

As she sat deep in her thoughts, Luca walked up to the door and knocked. Daisy got up and opened it to find him standing outside with Theo.

"They just landed," Luca said to Daisy. His eyes searched her face, trying to catch her gaze. "They're on their way to Del Mare right now."

Nodding, Daisy walked to the closet and pulled out a pair of jeans and a simple black shirt. She quickly changed before tossing the wet towel into the bin and reaching for Theo.

"I'll ask Carla to stay with him when Gia gets here," Luca said. "I don't know what mess they're bringing hom-"

"I want to leave," Daisy said.

"What?" Luca asked in confusion.

Daisy looked up, "I want to leave Del Mare."

"Okay," Luca nodded. "As soon as Gia's home and I figure out what Daniel is up to, we'll leave."

"I don't want you to come with me."

"Don't do this," Luca said. "Please, not right now. We'll talk about this, I promise. We'll make it all better."

"I don't w-"

"You're the love of my life," Luca said, capturing her face between his hands and pulling her closer. "You've turned my world upside down and shattered all my walls and barricades. Don't ever think for a second I'll let you leave without putting up the fight of my life for you."

"Even if I don't feel the same way about you?" Daisy asked.

"That's a lie," Luca smiled. "I know how you feel about me and you're nuts if you think I'll give that up."

"It's not enough," Daisy shook her head.

"Give me a chance to make it enough," Luca said. "And if I fail, put a bullet through my head before you leave, okay?"

All Daisy could do was stare at Luca's green eyes. She wondered if her heart would beat again if she kissed him. But the thought just made the pressure in her chest increase. Even after being shattered, the broken pieces of her heart wanted to believe his words. They were scattered all over the floor yet they still yearned for Luca. It made Daisy want to scream. Why couldn't she just walk away from him? Why did she still love him after everything?

"If I kiss you right now," Luca asked slowly. "Will you let me?"

Daisy shook her head before she could hesitate and consider his request. She stepped away and turned her back towards Luca to avoid the look in his eyes. His gaze remained on her for several minutes before he sighed and stepped out of the room.

________________

"Angelo left," Karla said as Luca climbed down to the foyer. "He headed back to town."

Luca nodded, "Daniel and Gia are five minutes away."

"What's going on between you and Daisy?" Carla asked. "She looks miserable."

"I'm working on it," Luca said.

"Work harder," Carla said. "She's not Stella. And you know damn well losing her will be worse than any pain you've ever gone through."

"I know that," Luca said. "I just....I don't know where to start. I want to give her space, but I don't want there to be any distance between us. I want her to take her time to process everything but I'm scared she will convince herself leaving is better."

"Maybe it's something you two need to work through together," Carla said.

"That's what Ford recommended," Luca ran a hand through his hair.

"Try it," Carla said.

"I will," Luca took a deep breath. "If she stays long enough for us to get out of here."

"Everything will be okay," Carla assured him. "But how are you feeling?"

The corner of Luca's mouth curved up ever so slightly as he laughed without any humor. Carla stared at him with concern as Daisy began to come down the stairs.

"They're here," she said.

"I'll go stay with Theo," Carla touched Luca's arm before giving Daisy a small smile and rushing up the stairs.

Luca waited until Daisy stepped up beside him to make his way to the front gates. They didn't say a word to each other as Luca opened the door and Daisy stepped out. Their eyes fell on Gia and Daniel standing by their car in the middle of the road.

"Gia!" Daisy stepped forward.

Gia looked over her shoulder. Her eyes narrowed in confusion as Daniel nudged her towards Daisy.

"Go," he said.

"Why are you sending me away?" Gia asked, her eyes traveling back to him. "What are you going to do?"

"Nothing," Daniel assured her. He stepped closer and cupped her face. From the corner of his eyes, Daniel watched how Luca and Daisy stepped forward as if he could crush her skull. "I'll come get you in a few. I just need to talk to my family."

"Why can't I be there?" Gia asked.

"Because the thought of you being in the same house as Dante makes me see red," Daniel leaned his forehead against Gia. "Please...."

Luca's eyes narrowed at how Daniel touched his sister.

What the hell is going on? He wondered.

"You'll come get me if you need me?" Gia asked, nodding her head.

"Always," Daniel said.

"Okay..."

"Can I kiss you before you go?"

"Not if it's a goodbye kiss," Gia said.

"It's not," Daniel smiled.

"Then what kind is it?"

"It's a I'll love you forever kind," Daniel lowered his mouth to Gia's lips.

Luca made a gagging sound down deep in his throat and stepped forward. He was ready to snatch his sister back when Daisy grabbed his hand and stopped him. Luca looked back at his wife as she stared at her best friend with a deep frown and sad eyes. After a few seconds, Daniel pulled back and removed his hands.

"Go," he said.

Gia hesitated. She stared at Daniel with her eyes filled with uncertainty. Despite him taking several steps away from her, she didn't move an inch. Luca walked up to his sister and took her hand.

"Let's go," he said, tugging Gia towards their house.

"Go," Daniel motioned for Gia to follow.

"Let's go," Luca tugged again as Daisy took Gia's other hand.

Together, they walked Gia through the gates and closed it. Luca immediately turned Gia towards him and pulled her into a hug.

"You're okay, right?" He asked. "Did he hurt you?"

Gia shook her head, "He didn't."

"What's going on?" Daisy asked. "Why are you two back so suddenly?"

Gia looked at her best friend and then towards her brother. Her eyes watered and her bottom lip began to tremble. She let out a quiet sob before throwing her arms around Luca once more.

"What's wrong?" Luca asked, worried by how tightly Gia held him. "What's going on?"

"Let's get inside first," Daisy said. "We can talk inside."

Letting go of Luca, Gia wiped her eyes before facing Daisy, "Dee...."

Daisy stilled. Her eyes softened and began to water. She started to chew on her bottom lip as Gia took a step forward.

"I'm sorry," Daisy whispered. Gia began to shake her head. "No, I.....I said a whole bunch of stuff that day at the hospital. I'm so sorry. I was a terrible friend to you when you needed me the most-"

"You weren't a terrible friend," Gia shook her head. "I was never mad at you. I just....it was all too crazy and you were worried about Luca and I....."

"I feel terrible about what happened between us," Daisy said.

"I love you," Gia moved forward and pulled Daisy into her arms. "So much..."

"I love you too," Daisy cried.

Luca waited around as the girls cried and apologized to one another. He ushered them into the house with his mind still ticking about what Daniel had said about Dante. When he began to question Gia about it, she hesitated and turned as red as a tomato.

"I think you should hear it from Daniel...." she said quietly. "I....I don't know how much he wants to tell people."

"What does that mean?" Luca asked. "What happened in Florence?"

"I can't.....I shouldn't be the one to tell you," Gia shook her head. "Daniel wants to be the one to tell you what happened. I think you should hear it from him."

Luca frowned. He stood with his hands on his hips as his eyes narrowed inquisitively at his sister.

"Why..." Gia looked to Daisy and then to her brother. "Why are you not in the hospital?"

"Because your brother thinks he's superman," Daisy rolled her eyes.

"No, because you two do dumb shit and then don't tell me about it," Luca snapped. "What the hell is going on? Tell me right now or I'll go find out from Daniel myself."

"Give him a second!" Gia said, jumping to her feet. "There's a lot going on right now and I don't want to add to that stress. Just give him a few minutes."

"What the hell does that mean?" Luca asked. "Why do you even care what happens to him?"

"Because I love him," Gia said. "And he's my husband now."

"Do you hear yourself?" Luca's eyes narrowed. "Husband? He's not your husband!"

"Right, exactly," Daisy said, looking at Luca and catching his eyes. "It's not a real marriage. Just on paper."

Gia began to face the floor as Daisy and Luca glared at one another.

"Daniel is not your husband, G," Daisy said. "Just like Luca isn't really my husband."

"That's not what the paperwork says," Luca said.

"Our paperwork is the same," Gia said. "Daniel is my husband. I love him."

"Did you forget what he did?" Daisy snapped. "He hurt you!"

"But you're willing to forgive him now, right?" Luca walked around the sofa and came to stand beside Daisy. "Because he fixed his mistakes?"

"What?" Gia asked in confusion.

"He didn't fix anything!" Daisy said. "You can't fix broken hearts!"

"She loves him!" Luca said. "They're going to work it out! That's how it works!"

"I'm so confused right now," Gia said, looking at her brother. "You want me to work it out with Daniel? But you just said he wasn't my husband."

"Don't listen to him," Daisy stood up. "He's losing his mind. You're not going to work it out with Daniel. He will never change and he will always go back to his old ways."

"You don't know that!" Luca said. "How can you know that if you won't give me a chance?"

"What?" Gia asked.

Daisy's eyes darted towards Gia and then back to Luca, "She's not going back to Daniel. Get your head on straight, Silvano. Think about your sister."

"What the hell is going on here?" Gia asked.

"Tell her," Luca said, looking at Daisy.

"You tell her!" Daisy snapped back.

"Somebody tell me!" Gia raised her voice.

Daisy took in a slow deep breath and shook her head. She pinched the bridge of her nose before shaking out her head once more and turning towards Gia.

"We need to focus on you and Daniel right now," she said. "Nothing else."

Gia didn't look too pleased. She began to pace the floor once more, her eyes filling with anxiety. Daisy and Luca sat watching her as she fluttered through the room like a trapped bird. Any time they asked her a question. Gia avoided answering and kept insisting they speak to Daniel together. Daisy could tell Luca's patience was running thin as the hours passed by. After several failed attempts, even Daisy was beginning to lose it.

"You want to tell us what's going on?" She asked, growing tired and concerned.

"You want to start?" Gia pointed to her best friend's hair.

"I needed a change," Daisy said to which Luca snorted under his breath.

"G," Luca turned to his sister. "Have a seat. Talk to us. What happened in Florence?"

"I..." Gia looked at her brother's kind green eyes.

"Are you okay?" Daisy asked, noticing the cold sweat Gia was breaking into. "Are you overheating?'

"I'm fine," Gia shook her head. "I just....I need to talk to Daniel."

"That's all you keep saying since you returned," Daisy said. "What's going on between you two?"

"Nothing!" Gia ran a hand through her hair once more. It wasn't until she sat down on the edge of the armchair that she realized Luca was staring at her ring. Gia looked down at the oval diamond around her finger and once again felt her heart shrivel up inside.

"It's not nothing," Daisy said. "What was that kiss outside? And why do you keep checking your phone?"

"He's been gone for two hours!" Gia said in a panic.

"So what?" Daisy asked.

"You don't understand!" Gia jumped to her feet. "There's a lot happening right now and I need to speak to hi-"

"Sir!"

Everyone around the living room looked up as Aaron came running into the house. Luca was the first to stand up before Gia rushed forward.

"What is it?" Luca asked.

"The DiMaggio's," Aaron pointed outside. "Their house is on fire."

Luca's mind blanked for a second before rushing to catch up. He barely had time to process as Gia pushed past him and ran out of the house like a wild horse.

"Daniel!" She screamed, running across the street towards the burning house.

"Gia!" Luca hurried after. Each breath he took caused his lungs to burn and his back to stiffen with pain. He moved as fast as he could while Daisy took off after her best friend.

"Gia!" Daisy yelled. "What the fuck are you doing?"

"What's going on?" Gia grabbed the first person she could find outside Daniel's house. "Where's Daniel? Where's Nonna?"

"You!"

Daisy was almost to Gia when Teresa whirled around and slapped Gia across the face.

"What the fuck, lady?" Daisy yelled, pulling gia back and stepping in between them. "You gotta a problem? Talk to me, bitch!"

"You ruined him!" Teresa yelled, looking at Gia with her eyes filled with hatred. When she tried to lung forward, Daisy stopped her just as Luca joined them.

"Get off of me!" Teresa yelled. "All of you! You destroyed my family and now my home!"

"Teresa," Mario's voice cracked like thunder. "That's enough!"

Luca turned to find the old man stepping away from a group of guys who dragged Dante's limp body out to the yard.

"Where's Daniel?" Gia asked, her voice filled with panic. "Where is he?"

"We can't find him," Mario said, his hand shaking. "I don't know where he went after he sat the pictures on fire."

"He..." Gia looked at the fire. "He did this?"

Mario's eyes looked at the house, "I told him to."

"Where is he?" Teresa cried as a few guys ran out of the burning building. "Where's Daniel?"

"Mario," Luca stepped forward. "What's going on?"

"Luca..." Mario turned towards the boy. "Stella...."

Daisy felt her heart seize up. Her hands grew numb as she stared at the old man. His eyes were full of tears and his face twisted in pain. Daisy could not move as Gia pulled away and raced across the yard.

"Gia!" Daisy yelled

"Gia!" Both Mario and Luca called out her name in panic as they watched her run into the burning building.

"Tony!" Mario called to someone just as Luca stepped forward to run in after his sister.

"No, stop!" Daisy pulled him back. "You're hurt!

"Daisy, Gia's in there!"

"Tony, go get her out," Mario ordered his man. "Take the rest with you! Get them both out."

Daisy and Luca looked to the three men who held Dante to the floor. They hesitated for a few seconds before Mario pulled out his gun and walked over the man kneeling on the floor.

"Go," Mario said. "I got him."

Daisy held Luca's arm tightly as the three men ran into the building in search of Gia and Daniel. She was about to call for Aaron and Mateo whens he heard Mario's voice cracking like a whip.

"She was my daughter!" He yelled. "How could you do that, you sick bastard?"

Daisy and Luca stared in confusion as Teresa cried, leaning against one of the parked cars for support.

"She was a child!" Mario yelled, swinging the handle of his gun across Dante's face.

Daisy flinched as the man fell to the floor and began to spit up blood. She couldn't look away as he got back up and faced Mario.

"I love her!" He yelled.

Daisy felt Luca tense.

She moved her eyes towards him and watched his face darkened. Her heart began to cry as he pulled away from her and went to stand by Mario.

"What happened?" He asked through clenched teeth.

"He..." Mario pointed his gun towards Dante. "He groomed her! He groomed my baby! She was a fuckin' child, Dante! She was your niece!"

Daisy's head began to spin. She couldn't breathe. All she could do was stare at Luca. The way his face paled as if he was seeing his whole world crumble around him caused the ground beneath Daisy's feet to vanish. She had nothing left to grab onto as Luca shook his head.

"No..." Luca said. "No, that can't be..."

"The baby was his!" Mario said, looking at Luca and pointing his gun towards Dante. "He took her to Florence to get an abortion!"

All the air in Daisy's lungs disappeared. She heard her breath hitch in her chest as Luca lunged forward and knocked Dante to the ground. She was too studded to speak or move as Luca began to swing his fists against the man pinned beneath him.

"What did you do to her?" He yelled, picking up Dante by his collars and slamming him against the floor.

Each punch Luca threw made Daisy's eyes start to water and her heart bleed. If she hadn't seen the blood starting to soak into his shirt from his ruptured stitches, Daisy feared she could have frozen in place forever.

"Luca!" She ran forward and caught his arm. "Stop! Stop!"

"Luca!" Carla came running out of the house and across the road.

"Make him stop!" Daisy begged as Luca continued to swing his fists across Dante's face.

"Luca, stop!" Carla grabbed her nephew's arm but it was no use.

Everything descended into chaos. Teresa stepped up and pushed Daisy, causing her to stumble back and hit the car behind her. Carla let go of Luca and hurried over to Daisy's side.

"Get the fuck away from her," she said, getting in between Daisy and Teresa. "Or I will kill you, Teresa."

Daisy stepped away and ran back towards Luca. Dante had managed to get back on his feet and coughed up a mouth full of blood.

"You didn't deserve her," he said to Luca. "She fuckin' hated you. She only ever loved me!"

Before Luca could move Daisy aside to wrap his hands around Dante's neck, Mario turned around and swung his ringed fists across Dante's bloody jaw.

"She was my daughter!" The old man yelled at the top of his lungs. The pain behind his words made Daisy's chest quiver. She couldn't stop herself from crying as Mario grabbed Dante by the collar and shook him. "How could you do that to her? She was my fuckin' daughter!"

"Mario," Teresa stepped forward, her hands held together in front of her as if begging for forgiveness. "Please....this isn't good for your heart. Doctors said not to st-"

"Shut up!" Mario yelled, whirling around to look at his wife. "I'll deal with you later."

"I did this for our family!" Teresa cried. "If people found out, our name would be soiled forev-"

"So you let Luca take all the blame?" Mario questioned. "What did he ever do to you? Or were you taking out your revenge against Gianna? Really, Tessa? Even after she's dead you can't let her go?"

"No," Teresa screamed. "I can't let her go because you can't stop loving her!"

Daisy flinched and shut her eyes tightly. Teresa's words knocked the wind out of her lungs. Her ears began to ring as a heartbreaking sob rose to her lips that she pushed down.

Fighting to be number one, but forever coming in second.

Daisy swayed ever so slightly, losing her balance and her mind. Luca grabbed her arm and steadied her, his eyes looking down at her in concern.

"I couldn't love you because all you ever cared about was outdoing Gianna," Mario spat. "We could have had a family together, Tessa. But you just wanted to create a show for everyone else. You let my daughter around this devil!"

Daisy felt Gia come stand beside her as Daniel went to his father.

"What do I do with him?" Mario asked, turning to look at Dante. "How do I make him suffer for what he did to my baby girl?"

"I loved her," Dante said defensively.

"Oh shut the fuck up!" Luca let go of Daisy's arm and lunged forward. "You groomed her! You're a fuckin pedophile!"

"We loved each other!" Dante spat out a mouth full of blood as he glared at Luca. "The kind of love you wish she had shown you."

As Daisy watched Luca lunge forward, she snapped out of her head and yelled. Mario joined her in an attempt to keep the two separated as Daniel yanked his mother's hand off of his father. In the mess, Dante somehow pulled the gun out from Mario's belt and pulled the trigger.

The gun shot ran out like church bells after a funeral.

Everyone froze, startled and shocked as their eyes widened and their breath caught in their chest.

Seconds passed. No one moved.

Luca's eyes found Daisy in the crowd as his heart leaped into his throat. The tears in her eyes gripped his insides as the echoes of the gun shot was drowned out by Teresa's scream.

Daisy could hear nothing but her own shallow breaths as she followed the woman's eyes to Mario. Her head began to spin faster as she spotted the blood seeping into Mario's shirt on his chest. Luca caught the old man as he stumbled back and looked down at himself. Daniel rushed forward, snatching the gun out of Dante's hand and punching him in the nose with the handle. Daisy flinched as she heard the bones on Dante's face shatter.

"No, no, no," Teresa sank to the ground beside her husband as Luca looked at Daniel and then at Dante.

"Do it," Luca said. "Now."

As Daisy watched, Daniel didn't hesitate or let a single second pass. He raised his gun and fired all the remaining bullets into Dante's head. No one blinked an eye as the man fell backward onto the lush green lawn. 

-SIGH- 

What will Daisy do now?