As Alonzo’s sleek car skidded to a halt inches away from Evelyn’s vehicle, he emerged with a sense of urgency, striding purposefully towards her car.
With a determined tap, he rapped his knuckles against the glass window, each rap echoing through the stillness of the air.
Evelyn, sensing his presence, emerged gracefully from her own car, leaning casually against it with her arms folded protectively across her chest.
The wind, a silent witness to their encounter, swept past them, its gentle force rustling the fallen leaves and sending tiny whirlwinds of dust dancing around their feet, adding a touch of cinematic drama to their meeting.
“What do you want?”. She asked.
“We should let it all go”. He said.
“What do you mean let it all go?. Alonzo, you can’t quit now. It’s almost time”
“He’s happy”
She gaped for a moment and chuckled. Her lips curled up into a smile.
“And since when did you care?”.
“We need to do this for Anthonio. You know how much he’s suffered from this. Let him have his revenge”.
“It doesn’t feel right. Anthonio needs reprimanding! He needs someone to set his brain straight!”.
“You know he’s right! You know this is the right path. Matteo has to feel what he feels. He has to feel what I felt”.
“He’s not to blame cause he didn’t love you!”
“I did everything. Everything!! He just didn’t see me. What was so special about her anyway! And now Aria? Why?? Why can’t I get what they get?”. She shouted almost at the verge of tears.
“You can’t blame him for everything” Evelyn paused and smirked.
“Yes I can”. She took a step forward, and he took a step back.
“I’ll ruin it all”. She said.
“Where is the letter?”. He asked after sighing.
“I didn’t take it”.
“Then who did? Cause I didn’t”. He said.
“Carter”. She said.
“What??! He wouldn’t dare defy Matteo”
“You took two bullets for him, but here you are. You have done worse than anybody has ever done. You’re the problem”
“I only did what I did to gain his trust!”
“And to think you couldn’t speak English properly. You lied to everyone, and you’re lying to yourself when you say you do not care for Matteo”.
“I do not care! And you know me! You know what I am”
“A man who forgot his mission and now wants to join hands with the enemy. Oh, I know who you are”
Alonzo sighed and ran his hand down his face.
“When Anthonio gets here. We tell him we want out of it all. He might just rub off his madness on you!”
“Oh, now you call it madness? Where was this thought of yours when you agreed to bring down Matteo with him? What happened to that thought of yours then?”
“I just wanted to see my brother happy, and it’s obvious this is making him worse. I shouldn’t have agreed to feed his obsession in the first place, but we end it when he gets here!”. Alonzo said in one breath.
With a gaze laden with simmering resentment, Evelyn locked eyes with Alonzo, her stare piercing through him with such intensity that he instinctively took a cautious step backward, recognizing the potent emotions swirling within her.
Just then, the sudden arrival of another car disrupted the stillness, its wheels stirring up the settled dust, creating a swirling haze around them. Emerging from the midst of this cinematic scene, Anthonio strode out with purpose, his silhouette cast against the backdrop of swirling dust.
His coat billowed behind him, caught in the grasp of the wind, while his expression remained etched in steely determination, his features hardened like chiseled marble against the chaotic scene.
“Anthonio…”. Evelyn started, but he cut her off by putting up one finger.
“Alonzo, brother. What brings you here. I didn’t call for you”.
“I know, but I need to talk to you”. Alonzo said, his voice shaking as he spoke.
“Okay, go ahead”
“Let’s end it all. Let’s stop this madness. It won’t give any of us peace. Daya won’t be happy to see you do all of this”
“I think you’re forgetting daya hated him so much, and she loved me. And she knows whatever I’m doing is for her!”. Anthonio said, keeping his voice lower than normal.
“I know, I know but…what about your gir-“.
“Hey!”. Anthonio grabbed his gun and pointed it at Alonzo. “Stop right there. Don’t utter another word”. He said with his finger around the trigger.
Alonzo’s expression shifted to one of surprise as he raised his hands in a gesture of surrender, his eyes fixed on Anthonio.
Meanwhile, Evelyn’s lips curled into a victorious smile, exuding confidence as if she had already won the encounter. Alonzo glanced back and forth between Anthonio and Evelyn, shaking his head in resignation.
“We don’t have to do this”. Alonzo said, watching Anthonio, but all Anthonio did was laugh it off and put his gun away.
Lighting up a cigar, anthonio smiled at them and took a drag from his cigar, and uttered the words Alonzo was afraid to hear.
“It’s time”.
“Time for?”. Alonzo asked after a gulp.
“The next phase of our plan. Aria needs to know what her husband did to his late wife”
“No, we can’t possibly tell her that. She’ll hate him!”.
“He’s the head of the mafia family, and him being distracted by a common woman will give us enough room to strike in and take down all he has left. Then I’ll sit on his throne, smoke a cigar, and piss on my enemies”
“We can’t”. Alonzo begged.
“Yes we will, and you’ll have to do it yourself, Alonzo. Tell her the truth. She deserves to know”.
“And if you don’t…”. Anthonio said with the cigar between his lips. “I’ll hurt her so bad, she’ll wish she was never born”
Alonzo’s eyes widened as he figured out he was referring to.
“I don’t bluff”. Anthonio continued.
“Now, get going”. He said, and Alonzo swiftly retreated into his car and sped away.
Meanwhile, Evelyn made her way over to Anthonio, closing the distance between them. With a determined stride, she reached him and planted a kiss on his lips, sealing their connection amidst the fading echoes of Alonzo’s departure.