Pretty Little Weapon

Banished From The Gang

The words don’t make sense. They echo in my head, over and over again.

Juliette Rossi? Alessandro’s woman?

Juliette Rossi steps forward from the front row. She ascends the stage and Alessandro takes her hand. He doesn’t hesitate even slightly.

I watch his fingers close around hers, and something in me snaps.

I’m moving through the crowd before I can think sensibly. People grumble when I brush past, but I barely hear them. The only thing I can hear is the blood rushing in my ears.

“Alessandro.”

The applause dies down people notice me. They all throw questioning looks between their new leader and me.

“What are you doing?” I ask him. My voice quivers, but I don’t stop. “What is this?”

The hall has gone very quiet.

Juliette stands by his side, watching me with amusement. She doesn’t seem surprised or insulted by my presence.

But Alessandro looks ready to punch someone, but I press on.

“You told me that tonight you’d tell everyone we’ve been dating! That you loved me and—”

“I don’t know who you are or what you’re talking about.” He cuts in coldly.

The fondness in his eyes have disappeared. Replaced with the look you give someone who shows up to your house uninvited.

“You don’t know me?” The words come tumbling out. I’d never fathomed that the man I’d given myself could deny me so wholeheartedly.

“Alessandro, it’s me. It’s Hazel. Four years. I’ve been with you for four years, I helped you kill your brothers! I brought information that brought you to this position!”

“Someone remove her. She must be insane.” He doesn’t even bother to look at me. He addresses crowd who are watching the scene with interest.

“Get this mad woman out of my sight!” He commands louder.

The guards spring into action, and tackle me.

I’ve never been a fighter. Here in the Crimson Gang, I occupied a low position because I couldn’t climb the ranks. Alessandro told me I was only capable of cleaning and picking up gossip.

But when the first guard grabs my arm, something feral and desperate rises up in me. I pull against him hard enough that he actually has to tighten his grip.

“Get off me!” I twist, trying to get to the stage. “Alessandro, look at me. Just look at me!”

He doesn’t. He bends and whispers something into one of the elders ears. The man nods, then steps forward with his hands clasped, addressing the room.

“This young woman has disrupted a sacred ceremony. She is clearly disturbed and has developed an unhealthy attachment to the Don. She will be removed and her position within this organisation terminated. This is the order of the new Don Alessandro.”

I stop struggling, his words hitting me. I was getting banished from the Crimson Gang?

The guards immediately begin to drag me out. I thrash helplessly in their hands, screaming. “Alessandro! You can’t do this! You said you loved me! And I loved you!”

I’m dragged through the crowd and the last look I see on Alessandro’s face is satisfaction. Like my banishment lifted a weight off his shoulders.

“Hahaha!”

From somewhere in the crowd, I hear laughter. I know that laugh and my eyes find her easily.

Vanessa, my roommate, laughs as I’m dragged out.

When we lock eyes, she doesn’t even bother to hide it. She just smiles with delight, like she’s been waiting a long time for this to finally happen.

I want to say something to her.

I want to say something to all of them. To every single person in this room who are laughing at my demise.

My eyes land on Jasper. He’s leaned against the wall, and closing his eyes as if he’s trying to block out my screams for help.

When he opens his eyes, I’m staring at him and he looks at me sympathetically, before turning away.

No one comes to my aid. No one tries to intervene.

I’m hauled all the way to the estate’s grand gates. One of the guards shove me forward, and I fall hard in the dirt. Pain shoots through my back.

“Please…” I try to push myself up. “I didn’t do anything wrong—”

The guard delivers a slap across my face, making my head snap to the side. “Shut up!’

The other roughly grabs at me, yanking off the small bag I had brought with me.

“No! Wait, that’s mine!” I try to reach for it, but I’m pushed back again.

They go through the contents and come up with my ID card, which gives me access to the estate grounds.

The man takes it, and snaps it into half. “You’re done here.” He says coldly, then flings the pieces at my face.

The other confiscated my bag, unwilling to give it back. I shake my head, panic rising. “You can’t just take everything! Where am I supposed to go?”

They don’t answer because they probably don’t care.

“Leave this area. If we come out and see you in front of these gates we’ll shoot you in the head!” He sneers.

The other nods, looking at me with pure disgust. “You’re lucky the Don let you live after the slander.”

With that, they shut the gates in my face.

I stand motionless for a few minutes before I turn and look down the road.

The trees and path are illuminated by the moon, but that doesn’t elevate the ominous premonition crawling in my mind.

Everyone who has ever walked down this outer road by this time, had the same fate.

They always end up dead.