Bitter Pills

got out and stomped down the tarmac in frustration.
"Grace," Alessandro called out. He sounded annoyed but also worn down by my attitude. I'd decided while leaving Nix's place that I would put some much needed space between Alessandro and myself. I needed to protect myself. We'd been doing this for far too long. I'd been fucking pining for Nix way too long. It was time to end all of this. I didn't want to go home, but I fucking would. I'd go home and start living my life. I'd fall on a couple dicks. I'd find some friends that actually liked me for me and not some sick sense of obligation. I'd probably move apartments, too. I'd stop making it so easy for Alessandro to get under my skin. Sunshine might have thought that he and I shared something special, but she was wrong. He didn't like me, and I was tired of pressing the subject.
"Grace!" he called again. I kept stomping. My heels dug into the concrete with every step. I walked up to an attendant and waited for the driver to bring up my suitcase. A hand landed on my shoulder. "Stop being such a fucking brat," Alessandro growled.
I slowly inhaled and fixed my face into a stern scowl. The air smelled like fuel, and waves of heat rolled off the ground. "I'm just giving you what you want," I offered. Okay, so maybe I was throwing a tantrum, but I was tired of this push and pull. I was tired of putting up with his rude words. I was tired of all of it.
"What I want?" Alessandro asked. "And what exactly is it that I want?"
"You want to get rid of me. Congrats, I'm gone. I don't want to see you anymore. I don't want to search for Nix anymore. I don't want to watch you fuck randoms from my balcony anymore. I don't want you tucking me into bed, following me around the city or whatever the fuck else it is you do."
Alessandro looked over my shoulder at one of the flight attendants standing outside of Gavriel's plane, then slid his eyes back to me. "I shouldn't have said what I did. In my defense, you squirted me with bodywash. I'm running on three hours of sleep, and I'm about to chase down my ex-boyfriend in Sydney, Australia, which by the way, is a good twenty-two hour flight from here. I'm tired. I'm annoyed that we didn't find him. I'm pissed off that we're up against some sophisticated hacking that I'm not capable of cracking. I'm pissed that I have to do this alone, but also thankful that you are going to be safe." His tone was matter-of-fact, but there was an exhausted softness to his gray eyes I’d never seen before.
My brows shot up. That was probably the most vulnerable Alessandro had ever been. "Really?" I asked in a soft voice, my earlier anger gone.
"Really. You annoy the fuck out of me, but we've been in this together since he left. Just have a little grace for me, okay?"
"Ha. Ha. Ha. You know us Morettis have grace for no one. It's in our blood to be selfish, unforgiving assholes."
Alessandro wrapped me up in a friendly hug. "Try? For me? If I promise to message you constantly, will that make you feel better?"
"Maybe. And if you find him, will you tell him I'm dating a male model with an elephant dick? And that I'm totally thriving. Hot as sin. I'm living my best life. Make him miserable." Alessandro chuckled while clutching me tight. I breathed him in and nearly sobbed at the smell of Nix lingering on his skin. He bopped my nose and pulled away.
"Ma'am? The pilots are ready." A short woman with gray teeth and ink-black hair tapped me on the shoulder. She wore the usual flight attendant outfit, but there was something off about her.
“What is your name?" Alessandro asked. "You aren't on Moretti's usual crew." Alessandro pushed between me and the flight attendant, making every hair on my body stand up.
"I'm a new hire."
"Mind if I check your credentials?" Alessandro reached for his phone and dialed my brother's number, his eyes never leaving the woman, who was now shuffling from one foot to the other.
"Moretti," Alessandro said into the phone. Time passed slowly. Her eyes widened and her fingers twitched. Something was wrong. "Have you hired any new flight crew members?"
I waited for more of the conversation and watched as a bead of sweat traveled down the woman's temple. Something was wrong. Very wrong. I took a step toward the SUV. Her terror-stricken face twisted into a manic smile. "Bound I am to the rules they make. I was created for their purpose. I live for their whims. I die by their sword."
Alessandro hung up his phone and pushed me back. What the fuck was this lady saying? "The Ringleaders send their highest regards," she said in a monotone voice before reaching into her pocket and pulling out a device I didn't recognize. Alessandro pushed me farther back. It all happened so fast. His arms wrapped around my body just as a boom echoed around us. Heat and flames licked at my exposed skin as we were tossed across the gritty concrete with the blast. Alessandro cried out. My legs stung, and there was a never-ending ringing in my ears. We were knocked over, and the hard impact of the ground made me cry out.
Alessandro picked me up and dragged me away from Gavriel's plane, which was now engulfed in flames. Farther we went. I screamed in pain. My head was swimming in confusion. A second blast made the ground shake. Flying debris zoomed past us. A small shard of metal grazed my cheek. Another was embedded in my arm. That ringing sound was constant. Never-ending. Deafening. Burning burning burning.
My brain and mouth were on delay. I wanted to scream. Ringing. My ears played a constant loop, the high-pitched whine making me