Game of Love Ch. 16

"What the hell do you think..."

But Giada didn't even finish her sentence as Trevor pointed his gun at her, making her freeze where she stood. Her mouth suddenly dropped open and her eyes got wider. She felt like her heart stopped beating, a cold wind going right through her. Never had she in her wildest nightmare ever imagined her son would do that to her.

"Wh- what?" She stuttered, feeling anger building inside her like pressure in a volcano. "You dare point a gun at your mother?"

"I will not allow you to separate Sergio and me, mom." He said with tears in his eyes. "Sergio is my life, and I love him so much. I cannot live without him."

"Stop this nonsense!" She barked, stamping her foot on the floor. "We need to get out of here. I will only tell you this once, leave that man and let's go."

"No!" A tear rushed down his cheek and he didn't even bother rubbing it. "Sergio is my love, my life. The both of us will be together till the end of time. We'll get out of here and we'll be happy together."

Giada laughed manically. "And you think that man will ever love you. He won't because..."

"Shut up!" Trevor gasped, shaking his head. "You don't know anything about love, seeing that you've killed the only man you used to love. I will not let you make me unhappy like you, mom. I don't need you as long as I have Sergio with me. I will be content and I won't even need to see you."

Giada's mouth opened but she couldn't speak. The pain inflicted on her by her son's words was way beyond any pain she had ever felt. She had sacrificed everything for him and made sure he got everything. But now, he just showed her that she was nothing to him.

"I am sorry, but I choose Sergio."

He dragged Sergio's unconscious body to his car, carefully put him there, and then closed the door. He looked at his mother once more, got in the car, and drove like an insane man. Giada watched, still failing to refuse to believe that her son had done that to her.

She just stared wide-eyed, like the whole world was breaking apart around her... she didn't even shake... Just there, she was in total paralysis without realizing what was gonna happen after that. She always thought it was gonna be just her, and her son till the end of time. She fought the tears but they came flowing and that was when her pain awakened.

"Wow! Who could have guessed?"

The moment Giada heard Eric's voice, she furiously turned with her hand raised and pressed on the trigger without a second thought. Her gun went off, making a horrible noise throughout the car park.

Eric quickly turned and hid behind a pillar, chuckling loudly. "If you wanna kill me, you're gonna have to be faster than that, Giada."

Giada rushed behind a pillar, breathing like the hounds of hell were after her. She began scanning the whole area and saw the stairs that led to the building top where her plane was gonna land. She knew she had to create a distraction and escape.

"Why don't you come out?" She laughed, quickly dialing a message. "I promise I'll make the death quicker, and less painful. You should have stayed dead."

"And miss that look on your face?" He scoffed, chirping. "Not a chance, Giada. I never thought in my wildest dreams that you would be abandoned like this. I mean, your son has left and doesn't give a hoot about you. I always thought it was gonna be the two of you till the end, but guess not all blood is thicker than water. Perhaps, he's not even your son, maybe something you used only to ground your husband."

There was a scream from deep within that forced its way from Giada's mouth. It was as if her terrified soul had unleashed a demon. All she felt was anger, pain, and betrayal. But whatever Eric was telling her, she couldn't afford to lose her focus. She needed to live.

She glanced at the pillar he was hiding and saw that she couldn't see him anymore. Then she took a deep breath and started firing like a madwoman on the streets while she made her way to the staircase. Once there, she began running up as fast as she could.

Eric on the other hand glanced and saw her running upstairs. He picked up his pace and began running after her. No matter what, he couldn't let her escape. He was gonna make her pay. He pulled the trigger and missed as he couldn't get her view.

Senses sharpened with adrenaline, Giada held her breath, straining to hear with every ounce of her concentration. Her heart hammered in her chest so hard that she felt her strength leave her. And she could have sworn the bullet went right past her.

She took a glance behind and saw him making his way up, but not on the staircase she was. She ran as fast as she could and in no time, she reached the door upstairs and quickly went in there.

Eric on the other hand managed to reach the last staircase and he slowed down. He knew he had to be careful as Giada was harmed as well. He slowly approached the door and took a deep breath before he kicked it open, getting ready to fire.

But when he entered, he got the shock of his life. His hand was kicked hard, making him let go of the gun. It fell to the floor, a distance from him. Before he realized what was happening, Eric was kicked so hard in the face that he went flying to the floor with a thud. He groaned in pain, trying to breathe properly but it hurt.

He raised his face and saw about four muscular-looking men folding their sleeves with evil grins on their faces. About two of them had bats with them, and they were surrounding him. Eric struggled to his feet, rubbing the blood off the side of his mouth. He took a glance at his gun and heard one of the men laughing.

"You won't have time to reach that, small boy." He teased, clenching his fist. "I hope you've bid your family goodbye because I am sending you to your grave and this time it will be for good."

With those words, he charged like an ancient warrior. He threw up his forearms like an offensive lineman blocking a defensive back, but Eric slipped to the side and grabbed the man's wrist with so much power. He rolled his hand under the man's wrist, drove the man's arm over and back, and pulled him backward and down. The man slammed into the floor like a huge rock on concrete, giving a deafening cry.

Before a second even passed, Eric saw the other three men charging towards him. He jumped to his feet and quickly slapped his right palm down on the man that was closer to him, shattering his nose. As the man clutched his bleeding nose, Eric gave him a terrible kick that sent him flying to the wall. He hit his head and before he even reached the floor, he had already passed out.

He was about to turn when a sudden gush of pain jolted throughout his body. His stomach ached, his arms lost tension and his legs began to weaken and he dropped to the floor. Someone had kicked him in the stomach. Raising his head, he realized that the first man he had beaten was up and he was bloody on the head. He groaned angrily, rising when he saw the three men charging at him again.

One of the men with a bat charged with a mighty cry. Eric dodged to the side in one fluid motion. His enemy thrust his bat forward, but Eric blocked him. He slipped to the left, which threw him off enough and Eric got a handful of his hair. He pulled his head forward and broke his nose with his head, ignoring the painful cries.

Still holding the thug's hair, Eric managed to mercilessly kick one of the two remaining men on the face, sending him flying to the floor. He got his other hand into the crotch of the man he was pulling the hair and put his shoulder into him, lifting him off the ground and slamming him onto the concrete floor. The man grunted, and went limp, lying on the floor with his mouth open.

As the other man was trying to get up, Eric smashed an elbow into the side of his skull, the soft spot high on the temple. He just gave a low groan before he passed out. Ouch!

Eric furiously turned, facing the man that looked at him in horror. He was only seconds away from peeing his pants.

He gave an evil grin and got closer. The man tried to kick him but before he did, Eric slapped him with his open left hand full across the face. It rocked him and he took a step back and then steadied himself, blinking his eyes and staring at Eric. His headache must have been a starburst. In just a second, Eric gave him a huge blow to his temple, literally smashing his head into the concrete. As the man tried to get up, Eric took a bat and hit him on the forehead two hard times. That was it.

He looked at all the four men who were lying lifeless on the floor and started heading for his gun. He took a deep breath and felt a sharp pain in his abdomen. But he couldn't allow that to limit him. He needed to find Giada before she escaped.

As he was about to reach for his gun, he heard a gunshot echo deafeningly in the confines of the room. Eric covered his ears, trying to see where the shot had come from. It was Giada and she was holding a gun at him, walking towards him with a grin on her face. Eric took a deep breath, trying to be confident.

"Wow, impressive, Eric..." She said harshly. "...I might have underestimated you after all. Guess you can never send a man to do a woman's job. But you know what, it's all over because I have got the upper hand."

"I am not afraid of you." He hollered, chuckling loudly.

"Really? You think I am bluffing?" She fired her gun at him but she didn't shoot him. "That was only a warning shot. I hate you so much and I am willing to kill you right here. I'll kill you and then I'll escape from here. Nobody will be pestering my life again."

Eric glanced at Giada's gun as she got closer. His heart was racing and he knew the woman wasn't bluffing. He knew he had to act fast because she was gonna shoot him. He couldn't show that he was scared.

"And finally, we get to end it." She laughed manically, chirping at him. "Finally, I get to kill my greatest enemy, my final victory. I might have lost everything, but killing you will make me feel all better."

"Is that how you killed my father?" He asked, studying her every move. "Did you make him feel all the pain before you finally killed him? Nothing you say will pain me so why don't you go ahead and kill me? I don't see any reason for you chit-chat!"

Steadying himself, he assessed her.

Everything about her posture, her demeanor, her very air, spoke volumes to him. She was going to pull the trigger. His time for playing the mouse was up. As he stood, frozen in place, his eyes moved slowly from the barrel of the gun to Giada's eyes. His heartbeat again. He tilted his head slightly, shifting his focus to Giada's mouth, just behind the barrel.

"He was the love of my life, and you're the reason why I killed him." She yelled, her finger trembling on the trigger. "I never meant to but he wanted to betray me. But I'll avenge his death by sending you to hell." She furiously rubbed her tears, staring at him with a smirk. "It was fun while it lasted. But now, it's time to die!"

As Giada was about to pull the trigger, Eric's thighs quickly flexed. He popped up. Hands moving quick. While quickly grabbing the gun with his left hand, he simultaneously struck Giada's wrist with his right hand. Having loosened her grip, he twisted the gun and forced her to release it. By the time she realized what had happened, he was standing two feet away from her, and she staring down the barrel of the gun she was holding two seconds earlier.

She was in a complete shock of panic and fresh terror reared up within her. Adrenaline pumped in her body like fluid from an intravenous drip. She moved backward, trying to hide her trembling hands. Eric was staring at her with a stern look on his face, ready to put a bullet in her head.

She swung her fist to hit him but he grabbed her wrist, pinning her to the wall painfully. She was breathing like she was in labor, groaning in pain. His grip felt like someone was burning her hand with an eternal flame.

"Now the tables have turned." His voice sounded different, full of hate and evil. "Your days of causing me and my family pain are over. You are gonna pay."

Giada began laughing, trying to mask her pain and fear. "Is that what you think? I don't think you've got the guts to kill me, little boy."

"You don't know shit about me anymore!" He put the gun at the back of her neck. "I don't care about what's right or wrong when it comes to you. It's hopeless. I'll only be doing the world a favor. Now, how do you want this to end? Should I hand you over to the police or..."

"What? You don't have the guts to finish me yourself?" She laughed maniacally.

Then she did something he hadn't expected, she twisted the hand he was holding and the arm got dislocated. The pain shot up her arm like fire. It exploded in her head with blinding whiteness. It made her dizzy. It made her reel. The pain was like needles that had been dipped in alcohol had been jammed through her skin, like her arm had been replaced with ice and electricity wired straight into her spine.

Eric was shocked and hadn't expected that. Giada then landed an elbow to his gut, then another, and another. He gasped, heaving, and let go of the gun. She furiously turned, hitting him in the face with her fist.

As he dropped to the floor breathing like a fish out of water, Giada clutched her dislocated arm and started running out the door. She felt her life return to her when she saw her helicopter just outside and she ran like the hounds of hell were after her. Luckily, she safely entered and ordered her two men.

"Go! Go!" She yelled.

The helicopter started rising but when Giada took a glance outside, it was to find Eric running after her.

"Faster!" She screamed at the top of her lungs.

Before the helicopter could rise higher, Eric jumped in without second thought, landing a fist on Giada's face. She tasted blood and gave a deafening cry for help. As she tried to get up, he threw his right fist out in a curved punch at her temple.

The pain was so intense, so all-consuming, that she no longer knew where he was... it was like white-hot knives were piercing every inch of her skin, her head was surely going to burst with pain; she was screaming more loudly than she'd ever screamed in her life.

Eric was insanely mad that he just wanted to finish her. He was about to grip her shirt when out of the blue, he felt powerful hands slid down to his throat that at once began to tighten. His eyes widened in surprise. He tried to pull away but the man behind pulled him closer, strangling his neck like a python on its prey.

No matter what he tried, the muscular man's grip only tightened. There was no escape, there was no way out. He had to get away, he had to. As each second passed, slowly the panic grew as he tried to force his hands away. He had to breathe. The ache in his chest grew worse by the moment as he writhed under his grasp. He could feel his pulse drumming as if he were a frightened rabbit.

"Hahaha..." Giada chirped as she came in front of him, staring at his pitiful face. "Poor, poor little boy. I told you that you wouldn't defeat me. And yet again, looks like I am gonna kill you."

She laughed maniacally aloud as he choked and sputtered. As Eric's lungs began to burn from lack of air he reached for the thug's face and felt his nails connect with his flesh. But nothing was gonna happen.

He started searching for something, anything to rid himself of the terrible fate. But he saw Giada holding a penknife, staring at him like an evil queen from a fairytale. She raised the knife high in the air, gripping it as hard as she could.

"I am gonna enjoy this!"

With a scream, she charged at him. Eric's eyes widened in fear but he quickly moved his right foot in a fast jab, sending it into Giada's ribs with a satisfying crunch. She grunted and tried to hold on to something but unfortunately, the sudden movement from Eric upset her balance, and she went flying out the window with a loud cry.

Eric would have been happy he was saved from her, but he had bigger problems. He could feel himself losing his strength. His hands searched everywhere and when he got ahold of Giada's penknife, he gripped it harder and struck the man in the neck.

He furiously let go of Eric and clutched his neck, his eyes widening. The attack was swift and sudden. The blade sliced into his left side and up into his neck. The hurt in his neck escalated from a dull throb to burning, glaring pain -- faster than a lightning bolt. He gripped the knife, pulled out with violence. He gasped, his eyes bulging in disbelief. From his open mouth came gurgling, sputtering sounds. He wanted to cry out for help but he could get no volume.

Eric slowly raised his head as he struggled to breathe, staring at the man who was bloody from the neck down. The blood pounded in his ears. His heart thudded in his chest. Lack of breath was felt throughout his body, that feeling of tiredness and lethargy. As his lungs worked to bring in the much-needed oxygen, even then he felt as if he was drowning in the air. He felt like the man was still strangling him. He crawled backward, trying to get away from the man.

The man looked at him in agony, eyes red from the pain. With a spluttering gasp, he collapsed face down and lay still, as his life ebbed from him, and his senses faded. Before five seconds even passed, the man was gone.

Eric lay there, trying to catch his breath but each breath he took felt like it drew him closer to death. He didn't know what to do, but it was over. But then suddenly, he heard a voice calling for help. He quickly raised his head, trying to see who was calling for help but it was only him and the pilot who he couldn't even see.

He shook his head, trying to ignore it but heard it again. He slowly crawled to the window and got the greatest surprise of his life. Giada was holding on to the landing skid of the helicopter with her dear life. She looked really scared, and tears had already decorated her face.

"Help me!" She cried, pleading with him. "Please, I don't know how much longer I can hold on. Help, help me, Eric, I am begging you."

Eric felt pain like an icy wind choking the breath from his lungs and making a noose around his neck. Tears welled in his eyes as he slowly got up, staring at her with such hatred.

"Why should I help you?" He yelled. He couldn't mask his hatred. "Why the hell should I help you after all that you've done? You had a chance to repent but you didn't take it. So why shouldn't I let you fall to your death?"

She took a glance down and she felt a shiver go down her spine. "Because I know you're not a killer, Eric? You're a very good boy and... and I promise that I'll change. I cannot die like this, Eric." She sobbed uncontrollably. "I will pay for my crimes, I'll confess everything and I won't bother you again."

"After all the people you've killed?"

"I am ready to pay for it." She said abruptly. "Please, I am slipping. I cannot hold on much longer."

Eric frowned, clenching his fist. He slowly extended his hand to her, trying to reach her. Giada tried to hold his hand but before she did, she held on tighter to the landing skid, shaking her head. She was scared of falling.

"I can't reach your hand." She hollered. "You need to figure something fast, otherwise, I can't hold on much longer."

Eric had no idea why he was helping her or what was gonna happen. But he couldn't allow her to die, as he was gonna be just as guilty for her death. He looked around the helicopter for something that he could use to help her.

"Alright, just hold on." He reassured. He was weak but he needed to do something. "I will get closer."

He quickly took a rope that was in there and held on tightly to it. Then he slowly extended his right leg onto the landing skid while his handheld on tightly to the rope in the helicopter.