Dario - Laugh
13 years earlier
My body twitches. The laughter in my head becomes louder as I skip through the door. I hear his cry, followed by his feet hurrying across the floor.
“Ring-a-ring o’roses.” I step closer, hearing him whine.
“A pocketful of posies.” I step to the side and hear him shuffle.
“Atishoo, atishoo.” Taking a step closer, I see him. I lunge for him, the dagger slicing across his neck.
“We all fall down.” I release his body from my hold. Kicking it, I watch it roll down the stairs. I hear movement and turn.
“It wasn’t me!” His scream has me laughing.
“Ring-a-ring o’roses.” I step through the door.
“Please, I swear!”
“A pocketful of posies.” I round unit.
“Shit, Dario, please!”
“Atishoo, atishoo,” I smile while facing him.
“I swear, I won’t go near Iz again!” I lunge for him, my hands throwing him through the window.
“We all fall down.”
I peer down at his broken body and hear him groan. “You’re still alive? God, you want to hurt.” I skip out of the room and down the stairs. Getting outside, he’s trying to drag his body away.
My foot stamps down on his back, and he screams. “Didn’t you once hold her down like this?” I lean forward and stare into his face. My foot presses down harder, and I don’t release it. I watch as he struggles to breath.
“Goodnight, say hello to the devil.” I watch him still, his eyes wide. He should have died when he fell out of the window. It’s what most people would do.
Sighing, I release my foot from his back.
“Dario.”
Turning, I smile at Marco.
“Clean up is coming. Finish up and get home.” I wave him off and pick the guy up off the floor. Throwing him over my shoulder, I walk back into the building.
I sit him on the chair, placing the remote in his hand. He’s having a day off. Sighing, I walk around and check the bodies, ensuring each and every one of them is dead.
After confirming it, I walked back out and threw the match through the door. I watch the fire quickly engulf the house. I love the smell of burning flesh.
Laughing at the thoughts, I walk to my bike and jump on it. Rushing home, I go in and get cleaned up before leaving again, this time in the car.
I’m late, and Evaline hates it when I’m late. I can’t help but smile when I remember her little angry face. It’s cute, really. As I get closer, I hear the laughter. My eyes scan around, and I spot her, the smile quickly dropping.
I stare at his hand on her thigh. Pushing my foot down harder, I speed towards him and see her walk away. I drown in the sound of laughter. It stops the moment the car hits him, it stops, and there’s just silence.
Evaline rushes over, and I see her stop and stare at me.
“Dario?” I didn’t mean to. The laughing was loud. I didn’t mean to. I get out and walk to her, pulling her towards the car. “Dario, what did you do!”
Stopped the laughing little rabbit. “He touched you.”
“Are you joking? Dario, what did you do!” She screams and pushes me. I didn’t mean to. She won’t understand.
“Go, get out of here, and I will sort it. Now Dario!” I look up and see Rocco. I need to explain.
“Thanks, Rocco.” Grabbing her, I pull her to the car and throw her into it. He was laughing, and it was loud. It was so loud.
“Dario, you killed him!” Ignoring her, I drive to her house, I follow her in, and she turns. I almost smile at her angry little face.
“Why did you do that!”
“He touched you.” I can still see it, his hand on her thigh.
“That’s no reason to run him over. Dario, you killed him.”
“He touched you.” Where did he touch before her thigh?
She grips my face, forcing me to look at her. “What is going on? Something is, so tell me.”
I should tell her. She should know. Maybe she will understand?
“The laughing got louder.” She looks at me, confused. She doesn’t know what I mean. I tap my head and smile. “It got louder and louder until I hit him with the car, then silence.”
Perfect silence. It’s still there now.
“Dario, what do you mean the laughing got louder?”
I thought she was the one to stop it. It had never happened with her before, not until today. Today, it happened with her there.
“Sometimes, when I’m angry or upset, I hear things. Laughing, taunting. He was laughing at me, Evaline.” The laughing wasn’t me. It was him, laughing because he touched her.
My phone vibrates, and I look at the message.
“I need to leave.” Rocco wants me. I should go, as he is ensuring this stays hidden. I didn’t mean to kill him.
Her arms wrap around my neck. “Don’t you run from me, Dario.”
I wish I could stay, but right now, I can’t. “I have to, little rabbit. I will come back, I promise.” Once I sort things out with Rocco, I will. I walk out and leave her there.
She’s safe there, away from me. It never happened with her before. Not until now. She was the one thing that stopped it all. I stop outside the club and walk in.
Walking to the table, I sit and face Rocco.
“There was footage, Dario.” I nod.
“It’s fine.” It was a foolish thing to do. Nothing can stop it.
“I’ve sorted it. It will stay out of the murder investigation. No one will know it was your Dario. Your brother needs you as his enforcer and main man. He can’t afford for you to have a distraction.”
“I have no distractions.”
“This would be, so the video is gone, no links back to you. Go back to Marco, as I am sure he had the main guy at your place, right, trying to find links and something?”
“Yes, you’re right.” I want to see Evaline, but I shouldn’t. I should wait for her to message me. I think I might have scared her. I can’t blame her for being scared of me.
