“But she’s seven blocks away!” Letty said.
“Trust me, Letty. Please. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
“It’s not me that I’m worried about!” Letty gasped.
Letty’s eyes went wild with panic as she rose to her feet. As the other patrons screamed and rushed out the front door, Letty and Miles rushed for the kitchen door. Giving a glance behind him, Miles’s eyes met with Knox’s, and he rushed through the door of the restaurant’s kitchen with a knot in the pit of his stomach.
“Miles!” Knox called as he raced after his brother.
“Shit…” Miles said as he saw his brother chase after him. “C’mon! Here he comes!”
“Why are we runnin’ from Knox?”
“Because he’s with the guy who just tried to shoot me in the fuckin’ head! C’mon!”
Tears began to stream down Letty’s face as she gave a look back at Knox. Horror took over Letty’s eyes as her gaze met Knox’s. Shaking his head from side to side, Knox looked at Letty with a look of warning.
“It’s not what you think!” Knox screamed in a desperate voice.
But Miles continued to run, pulling Letty along behind him.
“Keep up, Letty. Come on!” Miles urged.
Letty’s heart beat frantically as she fought to keep up. Giving Knox one last glance behind her, she tried to wrap her head around what was happening, but logic failed her. Knox had always been Miles’s right-hand man. He was his best friend, his brother, and often, his closest confidant. But in that moment, the lines blurred as Knox ran after Miles along with Vic, the triggerman, and Miles’s own father, Michael Capadonno, the Butcher of Carrion.
“Miles, wait!” Knox screamed as his pace quickened. He was catching up and fast. Miles pulled Letty at a faster rate, yanking her arm hard to keep her out of danger. Knox, catching up to his brother, cut into Letty’s stride, knocking her to the floor of the restaurant kitchen. A sauce pan clattered as it hit the floor next to where Letty landed. Looking at Knox with a scathing look upon his face, Miles cut the gap between himself and his brother. He might not have meant to knock Letty to the ground, but it didn’t matter. Reeling his arm back, Miles drilled his fist straight at Knox’s face.
Snap!
Miles’s fist collided with Knox’s nose as he sent his brother falling to the kitchen floor.
“Fucking put your hands on a woman! Especially mine!” Miles yelled as he glowered at Knox with a hostile glare.
Blood covered Knox’s face and shirt as he glared up at him. Before his brother could say a word, Miles grabbed Letty’s hand, pulled her up from the floor and started running again.
The echoes of footsteps falling upon the concrete sidewalk were drowned out by the approaching sound of the subway as Miles Capadonno and Letty Alves raced hand in hand, fleeing from an unseen danger.
“C’mon, Letty! Run! We gotta get back to the car!” Miles screamed.
Letty fought to keep up with Miles’s swift stride as he pulled her forward, desperate to get her out of South Philly alive.
Miles’s voice was drowned out by the approaching train as the 7:17 Broad Street Line rushed under the street below. Miles’s and Letty’s feet slapped the pavement as they charged south on Broad Street. This was supposed to be a fun night out. A break from all the chaos that had broken out in Carrion. The last thing Miles and Letty thought would come from a visit to a restaurant in celebration of Miles’s birthday was an execution attempt on Miles’s life.
“Miles, wait!” a deep voice shouted from behind them.
“Ignore him, Miles. We need to just go!” Letty screamed.
“Fuck off!” Miles spat back at the man he once considered his best friend.
“Miles!” the voice called again.
“Knox, back off!” Miles shouted over his shoulder.
“Miles!” Letty screeched.
It took a moment for Miles to understand what was happening. His chest heaved as he continued to run, but something stopped him dead in his tracks. A vintage black Cadillac curled the corner of Broad and Mifflin Streets, Miles attempted to identify the driver, but the windows were tinted and it was impossible to see. The passenger side window rolled down slowly as the tip of a gun pointed out at Miles. Immediately, Miles recognized the man’s face.
“MILES!” Letty screamed.
Grabbing his girl by her waist, he ran faster ducking into an alley. Three shots were fired, each hitting the pavement just feet away.
“Miles!” Knox’s voice cried out again.