Chapter 56

Daisy sat as still as she could beside Luca. Her hand was in his, but his eyes were not. Luca's green gaze swept over all the somber faces gathered by the open grave. Daniel and Gia stood side by side under the large fig tree as the priest delivered the last words and Mario's casket was lowered into the ground.

Holding her breath and pushing down the pain, Daisy watched Daniel step forward and take a handful of soil. Gia did the same and together they dropped it over Mario's casket. Daniel's face twisted in pain as they began to lower his mother's casket. As the emotional scene carried on, Luca's phone vibrated silently in his pocket. Daisy turned her head and looked towards him as he pulled it out and quickly checked the screen.

"Is everything okay?" Daisy whispered.

Luca nodded.

"Any news?"

Luca shook his head.

"Dada!" Theo squealed in the silence. The lady beside Daisy looked over and smiled down at the baby.

"I want you to go home as soon as this ends," Luca whispered, leaning closer to his wife's ear. Daisy agreed right away. "I'm going to wait for Gia. She's going to be a mess after this."

"What do you mean?" Daisy asked, a frown forming on her lips.

"Daniel is giving her divorce papers," Luca said under his breath.

Daisy's heart skidded. Her eyes snapped towards her best friend who stood beside her husband holding his hand.

"How long have you known about this?" Daisy asked Luca.

"For a few days."

"And you didn't tell her?" Daisy asked. "Did you try to talk him out of it?"

"Why would I do that?" Luca asked. "They're both grown up. They can decide what they want to do. And Gia wanted a divorce."

"That was before everything!" Daisy hissed. "Luca, how could you let this happen?"

"You told me not to meddle in their relationship," Luca said.

"Of all the times you could have listened to me," Daisy shook her head.

"Can we not talk about this right now?" Luca asked. "We have bigger things to worry about."

"Do you think....." Daisy felt a shiver crawl up her back. Her eyes began to move over the crowd as her skin prickled. "Do you think they're here?"

"If they are, they're about to be buried," Luca said.

Daisy moved back in her seat and stuck close to Luca. Her arms were tightly wrapped around Theo as the rest of the service slowly proceeded. Luca was restless beside her and she didn't blame him. Daisy rubbed the back of her neck several times as the air began to grow chilly and the sun slowly hid behind the clouds. As soon as the service finished, Daisy and Luca jumped to their feet.

"Don't worry about Gia," Luca said, his hand on Daisy's back as he guided her away from the crowd and towards David and Aaron. "I'll tell her you'll see her at home."

Daisy wished she had worn anything else beside her heels. She buried Theo's face in the crook of her shoulder and hurried along as fast as she could towards the dirt parking lot of the church.

"Go home, stay inside, and don't pick up any calls. Got it?" Luca asked.

Daisy nodded, "Got it."

"I'll see you in a few minutes," Luca pulled her closer and kissed the top of her head.

"Don't be late," Daisy said, holding onto his blazer and inhaling his scent.

"I won't be," Luca smiled. "Now, go."

Handing her off to Aaron and David, Luca turned back towards the front of the church where everyone else was still gathered. Daisy watched him disappear around the corner before Aaron began to usher her towards Luca's car.

"Any more news about Eric?" Daisy asked Aaron.

"No," Aaron shook his head. He pulled the back door open and waited as Daisy began to buckle Theo into his carseat.

"Dada!" The little boy called out again.

"Dada is busy, buba," Daisy said, her hands cold and numb from the anxiety running through her system. She moved as fast as she could but she still fumbled with the belts she had tied and untied a million times before. "Okay.....there we got. We're almost done."

"Hey, man."

Daisy looked up as David's voice spoke from the front of the car. She looked over her shoulder and spotted Marco walking towards them as David hovered restlessly nearby.

"Oh, sorry. Sorry," Marco held up his hands and began to apologize. "What did I do?"

"You can't come any closer," David said.

"Oh," Marco looked lost. His eyes flickered towards Daisy. As he caught her gaze, a small smile appeared on his lips. "Hey...Is this a bad time?"

"Kind of," Daisy said, putting on the last buckle in the car seat.

"Are you okay?" Marco asked. "What's with the muscle gang?"

Aaron and David's eyes narrowed. Daisy arched her brow and stared at Marco.

"I'm sorry, that was rude," Marco looked at Aaron and then at David. "I'm sorry guys. I just get awkward in situations like this."

"Situations like what?" Daisy wondered.

Before anyone could blink, Marco pulled out his gun with the long black silencer attached to the barrel and swiftly shot Aaron and David in the head.

Aaron's warm blood splattered all over Daisy's black dress and her face as the two men dropped to the floor. She opened her mouth to scream as Marco jumped forward and placed his hand over her mouth.

"Scream and Theo will be next," he said.

Daisy felt her heart drop like a ton of weight from the sky. Her eyes began to water as her knees buckled and she started to struggle against Marco.

"I don't want to hurt you," Marco said, gripping her jaw to make sure no one heard her scream. "Please, my love."

Daisy's stomach churned. She felt her blood turn cold as Marco pulled her closer and lowered his mouth to her ear.

"Quiet down," he said, his breath hot against her skin.

Daisy began to tremble. She tried to shove him away from her but Marco wouldn't budge.

"What did I say?" He snapped, jerking her forward. His hand holding the gun moved towards Theo in the car seat.

Daisy's eyes widened. She screamed but all the sound was muffled by Marco's hand. She shook her head and tried to pull the man away from her son.

"Stop fighting," Marco commanded. "If you want him to be unharmed, stop fighting me."

Daisy stilled. She froze like a deer in headlights as her eyes stayed glued on her baby boy in the car seat. Theo's face began to twist with worry as his bottom lip pouted and he began to cry.

"I'm going to remove my hand," Marco said. "If you scream, I'll shoot him."

Daisy's legs were too weak to hold her up. She felt her weight shift towards Marco. His hand slowly moved away from her mouth but he didn't move away.

"What do you want?" Daisy asked as Marco began to pull something out of his pocket. "Why are you doing this?"

"For us," Marco said.

"What?" Daisy cried.

"What did I say about making noise?" Marco raised his gun towards Theo.

"Stop, stop, please," Daisy begged. Her eyes were full of tears and her face was smeared with blood. All she wanted to do was hold Theo in her arms and call for Luca. But before Daisy could think to do anything to get away from the man beside her, she felt a sharp prick on her shoulder. It almost felt as if she was struck with an icy cold needle. Flinching, she whirled around but instantly lost her footing. Marco stepped forward and caught her in his arms as Theo's cries began to ring in Daisy's ear.

"You'll be okay," Marco said, brushing aside Daisy's hair.

All Daisy could do was stare at the man. She couldn't feel her arms or her legs as Marco tucked her hair back and then picked her up into his arms. On her tongue, Daisy tasted something bitter and metallic. She wanted to ask him what the taste was when her eyelids began to grow too heavy for her to operate.

Daisy was tired. She was so tired.

Marco carried her to his car and sat her down in the passenger seat. Daisy could barely see the church building in front of her as the distant sound of a baby crying kept ringing in her ear. Her eyes turned towards Marco but her lips couldn't form words. She stared at him as the man touched the edge of her face and kissed her.

"We'll be home soon, my love," Marco promised. "Close your eyes."

Daisy didn't want to close her eyes. But she had no control over her body. When Marco placed his hand over her eyes and closed her lids, everything fell into darkness.

___________________

"Did you know about this?" Gia asked, holding up the divorce papers Daniel had given her.

Luca nodded, "Yeah."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Gia's brows furrowed.

"His mind was made up," Luca said.

"I don't buy that," Gia shook her head. "He's not going to do this to m-"

Luca looked down at his phone as it began to vibrate in his hand. When he saw Mateo's number on the screen, he picked it up immediately and got off the chair he had been sitting on beside his sister.

"What's up?" Luca asked, walking away so Gia wouldn't hear anything.

"I looked into Brianna and Michael Dimaggio like you asked me to, boss," Mateo said.

"And?" Luca looked at the dark clouds in the sky. It was about to pour.

"They haven't been to Del Mare since they sold the island," Mateo said. "They have a few more properties here that are still up for sale and waiting for deals to close but they're not really involved with that stuff."

"Who's their realtor?" Luca asked. "Do they have anyone overseeing the sales for them?"

"Ah yeah," Mateo said as the sound of papers joined his voice. "Michael's stepson. Brianna's son from her previous marriage. Marco? Marco Dimaggio. He's been handling their properties here."

Luca's eyes snapped up. He felt his heart lodge into his throat as he remembered the day in the hospital when he had caught Marco grabbing Daisy's arm. Fire began to roll through his veins instead of blood. His hand tightened around his phone.

"I want more information on him," Luca said. "Check his bank accounts. See if amounts withdrawn match the amount Franco put into his account. I want to know what properties Marco has access to and if he was involved during the deal for Juliet Cay."

"On it," Mateo said.

"Call Aaron and David," Luca said. "Give them a heads up. Tell them to keep their eyes open for him. I know he was here at the funeral."

"I'll let them kn-"

Before Mateo could finish, Luca's eyes caught a tall man rushing towards him from the side of the church. He looked up and froze when he realized the man was carrying Theo in his arms. Luca felt all the blood drain from his face. Everything disappeared. All he could hear was Theo's ear shattering cries as the little boy looked around with his finger in his mouth and sad eyes.

"Mama," Theo cried, trying to climb down from Archer Dempsey's arms.

Archer Dempsey, Giovanni's prodigy, was around Gia's age. His family were not natives to Del Mare but through business links, they had made themselves a well known family in the community. Giovanni had taken Archer under his wings since he didn't have any children of his own. Everyone knew what Giovanni's master plan was. He was preparing Archer to take his place when he stepped down. With no family heir to represent his family, Giovanni wanted to make sure he left everything in good hands. Archer was an extremely talented young man. If Daniel hadn't been older than him, Archer would have surely taken the mantle of Del Mare's golden boy after Luca. Luca was very fond of him and had even considered setting him up with Gia a few years back.

"Luca," Archer stopped Theo from jumping out of his hold and carefully placed the little boy into his father's arms.

"What happened?" Luca asked, holding Theo to his chest. His heart was a dried wasteland. He couldn't think past the ringing in his ears as he spotted the specks of blood on Theo's shirt. "Is he hurt? Where's Daisy?"

"I don't know," Archer said, his breathing uneven. "I heard him crying in the parking lot. He was in his carseat....alone."

"What the fuck do you mean alone?" Luca's eyes widened.

"You men?" Archer said. "They were both shot in the head."

"Where's Daisy?" Luca's whole body grew cold. He felt the wind be knocked out of his system as he stood staring at Archer.

"She wasn't there," Archer shook his head.

Luca didn't say anything. He held Theo's head to his chest and kissed the boy's head before rushing towards the parking lot. Gia spotted him from where she stood under the fig tree and began to head in his direction.

"Stay back," Luca warned, not wanting his sister to see the bloodbath in the parking lot. "Here, take Theo."

"What's going on?" Gia asked. "Is that blood on him?"

Luca handed Theo to Gia and pulled out his phone. He quickly dialed Mateo and the rest of his men. Everyone was instructed to block all the roads in Del Mare and make sure no one got in or out. He wasn't going to risk letting Daisy get away too far.

"Luca, what's going on?" Gia asked as she ran around the corner of the church and froze at the sight of the two bodies by her brother's car. Her face paled and she clutched Theo closer. "Where's Dee?"

"Archer, take Gia home," Luca said.

"No," Gia shook her head. "Where's Dee?"

"Go with him!" Luca snapped. "Find Carla. Keep Theo safe."

_____________________________

Daisy could feel the sun on her skin and hear the water splashing. She wanted to sit up and grab on to something to keep the sickness in her belly away, but she couldn't move. She couldn't open her eyes. It was like being trapped inside a dream. She could feel her skin prickle with a sunburn as the sound of the water began to disappear after a while and she was lifted up into the air.

"You're okay, my love," Marco's soft voice soothed her. "I won't let anything happen to you."

Daisy felt a warm tear slide down the side of her cheeks. Her heart fluttered like the broken wings of a butterfly as she was laid down against something soft and cool. She could feel Marco's hands on her body as he adjusted her position and then began to unzip the back of her dress.

"I'm just going to change you out of this, okay?" He spoke to her as if they had been lifelong friends. "You didn't look comfortable in this at all today."

Daisy wanted to scream. She wanted to claw at his face, dig her nail into his skin and rip off his hair. She was stuck inside her body as he struggled to hold her upright and undress her at the same time. More tears began to roll down her face as Marco stopped for a second to catch his breath.

"No, no," he said, wiping her face. "Don't cry. I'm not going to hurt you."

Daisy fought the darkness to open her eyes. She could almost picture him standing before her in his dark suit. He was tall. He was so tall. Why was he so tall?

"Daisy?" Marco touched the edge of her face.

Daisy felt her head away once more and her body grow cold.

"Daisy!" Marco jumped forward and grabbed her as she fell onto the side of the bed and began to have a seizure.

______________________

"What do you know about Marco Dimaggio?" Luca asked as he drove past the speed limit. He knew he should be careful with Theo in the car but time was against them. He needed to get to Daisy before Marco hurt her.

"Not much," Archer shook his head. "He left Del Mare in high school. I think he went to Med school and then came back a few years ago."

"Marco?" Gia spoke up from the backseat where she sat beside Theo. "You think Marco is behind all this?"

"I do," Luca nodded. "It's him. I can't believe I didn't think of him before."

"Where did he take her?" Gia asked.

"I don't know," Luca said just as his phone began to ring. His father's number flashes over the screen, making Luca's head spin a little faster. He didn't know what he should do as he let the phone ring. He couldn't handle Angelo at the moment but Luca couldn't bring himself to not pick up the phone. What if Angelo knew something about Daisy or Marco?

"Hello?" Luca answered, putting the phone on speaker.

"You motherfucker," Angelo growled as soon as the phone connected.

Gia caught her mother's eyes in the rearview mirror. Both of their hearts sank as Angelo began to laugh without a trace of humor. "You lied to me!"

"What are you talking about?" Luca asked.

"I'm talking about that bastard kid you gave our family name to," Angelo spit.

Luca felt his soul leave his body as Angelo's voice bounced around in his head. Behind him, Gia wore the same expression. Her hands moved towards Theo as she began to shield him in her embrace.

"I got a very interesting letter just a while ago," Angelo continued. "DNA results that show he's not our blood."

Archer tried to pretend he wasn't in the car caught up in the Silvano drama. But his eyes were still on Luca, watching his every reaction.

"Did you know about this?" Angelo asked. "Or did that bitch fool you?"

"That's my wife you're talking about," Luca said, his hands tightening around the steering wheel. "Watch your mouth."

"Doesn't matter now," Angelo said. Luca could almost picture the darkness in his eyes. "I'm going to do something I should have done as soon as I started to notice you and your sister were starting to fly a little too high. Do you children know what happens when you don't listen to your father and fly too close to the sun?"

Gia shivered. She looked at her brother and then at Archer.

"You're about to find out," Angelo said. "Let's see how fast you can drive, my boy."

As the call disconnected, three men on motorcycles jumped onto the road. Luca swerved to the side to keep from crashing as two of them fell behind and began to shoot at the car.

"Get down!" He yelled as Gia unbuckled Theo from his carseat and fell to the floor of the car with him. The little boy cried out as Archer and Luca pulled out their guns and began to shoot at the men on the motorcycles.

"Shit, shit," Luca said as he realized he couldn't go into town or go home. Angelo would be waiting for them.

He had no idea where Marco had taken Daisy. And now he had nowhere to keep Theo safe. 

Oh no :/