Lustheavens

You throw one last look over your shoulder to reassure yourself that nobody has been following you before jumping into the taxi that will take you to Lost Heaven Airport. As you’ve put your seatbelt on you lean closer to the front seat row to make sure the driver hears your properly. “Lost Heaven Airport, please.” You say, the words coming out a bit more rushed than you had hoped. So many things are currently running through your mind making it ten times harder to focus on one thing at a time. “It’s urgent.” You add. The driver nods his head and before you know it you’re being escorted out of the city. You try to get comfortable in your seat hoping to find some kind of consolation in the scenery passing by outside the window. You let out a deep sigh while unconsciously biting on your nails nervously. This will be it. You promised your brother to leave Lost Heaven for good and never come back - that is if you want to stay alive. A part of you can’t help but worry about your brother. What will they do to him? There’s no chance they’d be as ruthless towards him as they would be to you if you got caught, right?

Before your thoughts can wander off any further you are interrupted by the car coming to a stop. “This is your stop, miss.” The cab driver says before exiting the car and opening your door for you. You give him a slight smile before getting out of the car yourself while trying to keep your head low in case someone would recognise you somehow. The cab driver opens the trunk of the car and gets your bags out for you before putting them down on the ground. He looks at you with a polite smile. “The ride has already been paid for. Have a safe flight.” He says before getting back in the cab and driving off. You furrow your eyebrows in confusion for a quick moment before shaking the thoughts of who could possibly have paid for your fare off. You hastily pick up your belongings from the sidewalk and throw another quick glance over your shoulder before making your way into the airport, picking up speed the closer you get. Once inside it almost feels like a relief - almost. It seems like the whole city has decided to travel today which makes the perfect cover for you as you quickly try to navigate to the help desk without coming off as too suspicious.You hastily make your way over to the lady standing behind the help desk, dropping your bag with a thud on the floor. You grab onto the edge of the desk while trying to catch your breath for a moment. The lady looks at you with slight concern. “Can I help you, miss?” She asks, leaning forward slightly. You nod and pull out your plane ticket from your coat before handing it to her. “I’m flying to England. Do you happen to know where I should go?” The stress of someone connected to your brother’s gang possibly having spotted you starts to catch up to you and it takes every ounce of your strength not to throw glances over your shoulder every ten seconds. The lady behind the help desk nods before trying to guide you through gestures. “If you follow this corridor straight and then take a left you should see the exit doors which leads you to the hangars. Big glass doors, you can’t miss it.” You give her a quick nod and a smile before making your way in the direction she showed you.

“Flight 306, destination London, England, now boarding!” You quickly act upon the announcement and get in line to board the plane. You know it’s too early to let out a breath of relief but you can’t help but feel as if maybe there’s a chance of a new start, a completely new life. Considering everything that has been happening lately, and the bare fact that the Salieri family wants you dead, there is absolutely no chance for you to stay in Lost Heaven. And the painful memory of the disappointment in your beloved brothers eyes when you got caught having a romantic relationship with Sergio Morello...

You’re pulled back into reality when the flight attendant asks you for your plane ticket. You quickly pull it out of your coat once again and hand it to him. He clips the edge off before handing it back to you, motioning for you to enter the plane and take your seat. However, the moment you sit down you feel a light tap on your shoulder. You look up and see the flight attendant standing there, motioning over his shoulder with his thumb. “Miss, someone requests your attention.” You try to catch a glimpse of who wants to speak to you but to no use. “Who?” You ask, an unsettling tingle spreading throughout your body. What if Salieri’s men finally caught up with you? The flight attendant shrugs his shoulder. “They wouldn’t say. They only requested to speak to you urgently, in the main building.” You swallow hard and nod before standing up, your legs slowly turning into jelly. “You have 20 minutes before take-off.” You take a quick look around before making your way to the back of the plane where the exit is. With heavy steps you walk down the ladder and make your way back into the airport waiting area, the place still bustling with people. You scan the room carefully as the panic starts to rise. Your breathing gradually becomes heavier and shorter and within seconds your feet start moving on their own, back in the direction of where the plane is waiting for you. You have to get out of here. You promised your brother that you would disappear. Going back now would not only imply a broken promise to Vinny but also to yourself. The only way to get out of this alive is to leave. Now.

You quickly pick up the pace as you hurry along the waiting hall not caring anymore to look if anyone’s following you. Suddenly you feel someone gripping onto your upper arm tightly, pulling you into a secluded room and away from the loud noises and curious eyes. Your breath gets caught in the back of your throat and instantly you start flailing your arms around in a fight-or-flight response. A hand is brought up to cover your mouth as you scream in panic. You can’t figure out who it is since the whole room is pitch black, but you’re certain it’s a man. Despite your protests he starts dragging you along the floor until your back is pushed up against a wall. “Shh, shh, shh...” the man softly hushes you, the slight shakiness in his voice quite prominent. “It’s going to be okay.” You don’t say anything but in a strange way you feel a little bit comforted by the man’s words. Suddenly you hear clicks and clanks when suddenly an ice cold surface presses against your temple sending shivers down your spine. “It’ll all be okay.” The man’s voice cracks and you instantly realise who it is - Vincenzo. Your eyes widen and the panic once again strikes you. “Vinny?!” He hushes you again, this time with a much sharper tone. “Please,” he begs, his voice softening up a little. “Don’t make this more difficult than it already is.” His voice is low och faint, his words coming out as more of a whisper than anything else. He lets go of you before standing up, leaving you a hopeless mess on the ground. Your legs are weak but even so you try to stand up as well, leaning against the wall. You watch as your brother walks across the room in silence, a tear starting to roll down your cheek. “Vinny...” you say more gently this time, his name rolling off your tongue slowly. “What is going on?” you ask, the silence killing you inside. His head hangs low as he squats down, his back still facing you, with his hands covering his face. You hear him take a deep breath before he stands up once again. “I’m so sorry...”

Click, click, bang.

You suddenly feel yourself slide down the brick wall, your breath completely caught at the back of your throat. An incredibly warm sensation spreads throughout your chest but before you can look down to see what’s causing that feeling the world around you becomes blurry, very blurry. You hear rushed footsteps getting closer but even the noises around you starts drowning out slowly but surely. The bullet hit you right in the center of your chest but the adrenaline already running rampage in your system causes the injury to feel less serious than it is. You’re shaken out of your blurry thoughts once you feel Vincenzo grab onto you, his strong embrace holding you as close to him as physically possible. Your eyes meet his gaze which is full of regret. “It’s all my fault.” You mumble in between moments of your consciousness fading in and out. He shakes his head as you catch a tear stream down his cheek. “This would have never happened if I took my responsibility as your big brother.” He says, his voice strained as he fights back the tears that are threatening to fall. “My choices and decisions caused all of this.” You reach one hand up to stroke his cheek with your thumb. You manage to let a slight smile appear on your lips. “And it’s been one hell of a ride.” He looks at you in disbelief, probably thinking you’re crazy for finding humour in anything right now. “You could say that.” His grip tightens around you as he noticed your presence slowly decreasing with each passing second.

“Vinny?” He instantly looks at you, brushing a couple of hair strands off your face. “Do you think I’m a bad person for…you know?” His eyes widen slightly and you can literally sense a piece of him breaking at your question. He keeps brushing his fingers through your hair, faint sniffles escaping every now and then. “I could never. You’re my baby sister and if anyone’s a bad person it’s me for letting all of this happen to you.” More tears roll down his face as he moves one hand over to stroke your cheek instead. You use the last strength in your body to reach up to grab his wrist. “I forgive you.” The words come out as a whisper as the world around you gradually turns white, your eyes closing in the process. “I’m so tired.” You whisper faintly. Vincenzo lets go of the tear stream he’s been trying to hold back all this time once he realises that he’s losing you. He plants a long kiss on your forehead, squeezing his eyes shut as he hears you take your last breath.