Sam grimaced. “If he’s spending all your money, what he needs is rehab.”
“Don’t you think I know that?” Luisa shrieked.
Shit. She’d pissed her off. Sam had been slowing down in the hopes that Luisa hadn’t noticed. They weren’t too far from the house, but the area was still somewhat deserted. Riel and Sam’s houses had been located in a section where there was a lot of space between neighbors. She tried to keep Luisa talking. “What’s wrong with your other son?”
“He’s a bit of a compulsive gambler.” When Sam made a face to match her distaste, her aunt rushed on, “but he’s going to get help. He’s just always waiting for the big win, and I don’t have the money to wait on him anymore.”
Wow. The entire family had treated Sam like a piece of trash because one of her parents had been a shifter, and all along they should’ve focused on their own issues. She continued driving straight instead of taking a curved road that would lead her into the highway. By going straight, they were forced to stop when they reached a dead end.
“Why are you stopping?” Luisa demanded, not taking her eyes off Sam’s face.
Sam turned to Luisa. “We’re at a dead end.”
Luisa peered around and lowered the gun to shove it into Sam’s side. “I guess this spot can work just as well. Get out of the car.”
Sam had to do something before things went downhill for her. She half turned toward the door handle, felt Luisa move closer to her, and slammed her elbow back into Luisa’s face.
“You bitch!” Luisa screamed.
Sam reached for the hand holding the gun.
Blood covered the older woman’s face, but Sam was focused on fighting her for the weapon. She’d never have guessed Luisa had such a strong grip. Sam struggled to get the gun from Luisa and keep it from pointing in her own direction at the same time. A shot rang out inside the car, and she heard glass breaking. There was no time to talk or try to convince her aunt to stop. This was a fight for survival. She managed to turn the muzzle enough so that the gun now pointed in Luisa’s direction.
Luisa screeched and fought her for the gun. “Let go. I’m going to kill you for this.”
Sam tried really hard not to lose her grip on the gun that was facing away from her. “Luisa, don’t do anything stupid. This can be worked out.” She continued to try to pull the weapon from the other woman.
“Are you kidding me? Juan Junior said he’d take care of you, but what good was he? He sent you a bomb, and nothing. We sat there in the car, watched you reach for the package, and set it off. We left before we could figure out if it had killed you, only to find out later that you were alive!” She screamed through the tugging. “You were supposed to die when we lit your house on fire, and yet you’re still here! Now I have to do this myself. You are just like your mother, consorting with animals,” Luisa spat in disgust.
That did it. Her emotions raged, and she turned the gun fully on Luisa. Luisa screamed as the bones in her hands popped, and she squeezed the trigger involuntarily. Sam knew that shot had hit the mark. Luisa stopped struggling and glanced down at her chest. A small, red dot spread over the pristine silk blouse until the white material was covered in red. The raven-haired woman fell back into her seat, eyes open and mouth agape.
The driver-side door was torn from the hinges, making Sam scream in fear. Riel’s angry, panting face scanned down her body.
She shook her head. “I’m fine.” The finality of the situation got to her, and she threw her arms around his neck and started sobbing.
Riel’s hold on her tightened. “I’ve got you.”
She nodded into his shoulder through her tears. “I know.”
* * *
Sophia walked back into the living room from her office.
“OK, Sam. I’ve got your test results. But before we get to it, explain to me how you guys know it was only Luisa and Juan Junior and not Danitelli or one of the others.”
Riel spoke up. “Luisa told Sam all the attempts on her life had come from her and Juan Junior.”
“But what about Danitelli?” Sophia asked.
“We found out that while he does have some weird ties to the mob, he wasn’t involved in any of Sam’s death threats. He’s been taking over his sick uncle’s business, and it’s why he’s been so hard to trace. But he didn’t really have anything to show him as a culprit.”
“What about the aunts?” Natalia asked.
“Oh. Well you all know Cecilia is paying off the younger man to be with her, but she recently found out he was cheating with some other women and dumped him. As for Maggie, she’s busy being the new matriarch in Danitelli’s family. Juan Sr. is still in the Philippines, and Luisa’s two sons are overseas hiding from drug and gambling debts.”