The Marriage Plan

by Ford, Brenda

  “I’m here for Rose Russo.”

  “There is nobody of that name in this residence at this time.”

  “Bullshit.”

  I shoulder past him. He tries to tackle me but I’m a warrior compared to him. I barge through the tall double doors and stand in the foyer.

  “Rose! Rose!”

  It isn’t Rose who appears but Silvio. He enters from the living room to the right and looks irritated to see me.

  “Darren. So you’ve crawled out from wherever you’ve been hiding.”

  “Where is she?”

  He takes a piece of paper from his pocket and throws it across at me. “Learning about consequences.”

  I take the paper and unfold it to read the simple, typed, message:

  Rose will be joining us for a discussion about the future of the Alfonsi and Russo families. We invite you to join us at 8.30pm at Casa di Alfonsi tonight. It would be unwise to decline.

  It was signed by Jacopo Alfonsi himself.

  I raise my eyes from the message and scowl at Silvio. “You’ve seen this?”

  “I just gave it to you, didn’t I?”

  “Then what the hell are you doing here just standing around? She’s behind enemy lines.”

  Silvio scoffs. “This isn’t Yemen, Darren.”

  “She’s in danger!”

  “No, she’s not.” He walks casually back into the living room and takes a seat. I follow him. “If they’d harmed her, they’d make a point of letting us know. Right now she’s a bargaining tool.”

  “Are you going to this meeting?”

  “I’m not going to let her get killed if that’s what they’re asking.”

  His nonchalance is getting under my skin. I pick up the side table next to the armchair his sitting on and sling it across the room. It smashes into a wall and splinters, the explosion loudly echoing through the room.

  “Wake up!” I yell. “Your sister is in trouble. You need to grow a pair and deal with it.”

  Silvio fixes me with a calm, steady glare. He looks at me as if I’m a child having a tantrum. “Got that out your system now?”

  “How can you be so indifferent?”

  “What would you do if you were me?” Silvio scowls. “My father has died and left me at war with the Alfonsis. My sister refused to do her part to secure a truce. Now I’m left to clean up after the both of them. What I do next will decide who lives and dies.”

  “Get your head out your ass, Caesar. What are you going to do about this?”

  “I’m going to go and have this meeting.” There is a glass of wine on the coffee table in front of him. He picks it up and drinks from it deeply, down to the last drop. He places the glass heavily back down on the table. “It’s probably a trap. But I’ve got no cards to play. The head of our family is dead and we’re vulnerable. They know that. They’ve got Rose, and they know I won’t just let them take her.”

  “I wouldn’t have been so sure.” I’ve been pacing the room but now sit down opposite him on the sofa but I can’t keep still. I keep my knee jerking up and down in agitation and my eyes fixed on Silvio’s every move in case he tries any funny business. “You and your father were ready to have her over before.”

  “That was different. That was for her protection.”

  “Nothing either of you did was for her protection. You’re a self-serving bastard and you’d have sold her off to save your own skin.”

  “A truce would have saved us all.”

  “And why is a truce her responsibility?” I glare at him. “None of this was her choice.”

  Silvio lowers his voice, his tone self-pitying and pathetic. “I never chose any of this either.”

  “Come off it. You love every second of playing the big tough guy. Now you get to be bigger and tougher.”

  “I was raised with all this. I was trained for it. It was always my father’s plans that I would step up after he was gone. Now it’s all in my hands and I’ve got no choice but to keep the globe spinning.”

  “Bullshit. You could sell up and walk away tomorrow.”

  “It’s not much of a legacy for my father.”

  “He was a criminal, Silvio.”

  “Yes.” He sighs deeply. “And so am I.”

  “How are you going to help Rose?”

  He pats his revolver pointedly. “A little gentle persuasion.”

  “Are you an idiot?” I scowl. “You think the Alfonsis won’t have an army of gunpower behind them? You think your one little Colt is going to take them all down? Waving that thing around will only get all of us killed.”

  “All of us?”

  “You think I’m going to leave Rose’s life in your hands?”

  Silvio smiles slyly. “Where was this fire when you were working for me, Darren? If I’d known you’d had balls, I might have utilized you for real business, rather than patrolling that silly arcade.”

  “I wouldn’t have wanted any part of it.”

  He scoffs. “You’d have done anything for her.” He laughs at the look on my face. “You think I didn’t always know? It’s important I know how to keep my men quiet—in case I ever need to.”

  “You’re not taking that gun.”

  “Of course I am. Do I look like I have a deathwish?”

  “They’re looking for a reason to shed blood. Don’t give them one. Go in there with your tail between your legs and maybe you’ll have half a chance of walking out with Rose.”

  17

  Rose

  So this is Raffaele’s father.

  Jacopo Alfonsi is a large man with white hair long enough to brush the nape of his neck, although it’s been oiled back so it’s flat and slick. He’s wearing the kind of black suit you’d expect only to see at a wedding or a funeral. I wonder which one he’s preparing for.

  After two of his goons grabbed me from the street outside of Casa di Russo, I was brought straight here, to this room, seemingly to do nothing but sit and stare at Jacopo smoking a cigar in front of the fire.

  We’re in his bedroom. It seems a strange choice of location for the confrontation he’s preparing for—it’s too intimate and familiar. I feel like it’s some kind of power move but I must be too dumb to figure out the psychology. All I know is that it creeps me out to see Jacopo so quiet and calm when a kidnapped woman is sitting in front of him.

  He’d have had wrinkles if his face hadn’t been so fat. The plumpness of his cheeks has smoothed most of them out although his double chin is a fringe of saggy, loose, white skin. The veins in the back of his hands stand out, ridged and purple. There are age marks on his skin. Little signs here and there that he is also old.

  The smell of the cigar reminds me of the fire at Darren’s condo.

  “It must have disappointed you when you weren’t able to smoke me out,” I say. I sit straight-backed and head held high. I will not die cowering before this man.

  Jacopo emits a short sharp laugh through his nose as if amused by something he’s read in the newspaper. Finally, he looks up at me. His eyes are blue and watery—unusual for an Italian. Striking.

  “You’ve caused me a lot of trouble.”

  “It seems there was a lot going on behind closed doors that was deemed too sensitive for me to know. To me, Raffaele was just a sleazy old man with a despicable ego.”

  Jacopo chuckles. The rumble in his throat turns into a coughs and he thumps his chest as he hacks up half a lung. He wags a finger at me with an amused smile. “Raffaele wouldn’t have known what to do with you even if he’d got you.”

  “I resent being used as a pawn.”

  “Unfortunately, that is the nature of family business. It means making your move with family.” He leans forward and gives me a knowing look. “Do you think it was Raffaele’s idea to marry you?”

  “It wasn’t?”

  “Of course not. That boy of mine is an idiot with more money than sense. I wouldn’t let him near anything of importance in my business. The fool’s a liability.” He takes a long drag from
his cigar. “But I thought I’d found a way to make him useful.”

  I dart my gaze around the room, looking for a way to make a quick exit if need be. I know that two armed and burly guards stand on the other side of the bedroom door. We’re on the second story—a long drop to the ground below, so the window won’t do me much good. Although Jacopo is old and fat, his guards would get me before I’d even opened the drapes.

  I turn my gaze back to Jacopo and fix him with a purposeful stare. “You know I’m already married. I couldn’t marry Raffaele even if I wanted to.”

  “Marriages can be easily dissolved under the right circumstances.” He raises a eyebrow condescendingly. “I think you know enough about my business to realize I’ll go to whatever lengths necessary to get what I want.”

  “And what do you want?”

  “What was promised to me.”

  I draw in a deep breath. My heart is fluttering around like a caged hummingbird looking for escape. It makes me feel lightheaded and slow to react.

  “What were you promised?”

  “Everything that was your father’s. He knew he was dying. We all did. You were going to marry Raffaele, and when he died, what was yours would become mine.”

  “I don’t see how that would work. Everything will go to Silvio.”

  “And I was under the understanding that you and your father were close.” He heaves himself up from his chair with a loud groan and ambles over to the window to look outside. “They’ll be here soon.”

  I draw the subject back to what we were talking about before. I want to know what he means.

  “Are you saying everything won’t go to Silvio?”

  “If your father has done as he promised, everything will have been left to you in his will.”

  “To me?”

  “Yes. That way it would be shared between you and Raffaele when he died.”

  I draw my eyebrows together in confusion. “Why not just leave everything to Raffaele? Why not bypass me altogether?”

  Jacopo smiles. “You’re not at all like your brother.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “You don’t have a taste for any of this.” He sits back down in his armchair by the fireplace.

  It’s uncomfortably hot and I’m getting flushed in my skinny jeans and black blouse. “You think Silvio does?”

  “He and Raffaele are alike in that manner. Both ambitious fools.”

  “You’re right about me. I don’t want any of it.”

  “But your father wanted it for you.” He gives me a knowing look. “It was the agreement that you would marry Raffaele to protect your interests in the long-term. You would have your fortune and you would be protected from our hand.”

  My heart feels like it’s being squeezed. His words scare me. “Do I need to be protected?”

  “It really depends how the conversation goes when your brother arrives.”

  “You can have the casinos. I have a life elsewhere.”

  “You’d steal your brother’s inheritance so easily?”

  “It was easy for him to offer me up to Raffaele on a plate.”

  Jacopo chuckles. “A vengeful woman is a dangerous thing.”

  “I’m not vengeful. I’m just sick of this chaos. It all happened above my head and behind my back and I want no part of it. I have a life of my own. A good life.”

  “With Darren Miller?”

  I feel sick. “You know his name.”

  “Sweetheart, it’s my job to know.” He coughs again, finishing his cigar and throwing the stub into the flames of the fire. “People are so easily controlled by their emotions.”

  I think of how I’ve left Darren in the dark and on his own. What if Jacopo has sent his men after him?

  “Please don’t hurt him. I’ll do anything.”

  “I’m surprised.”

  “Why?” The strange conversation is starting to drain me. I feel like I’m playing chess with the devil himself.

  “It was obvious to us all that you’d only married him to make yourself unavailable to Raffaele. I was very disappointed when I heard.”

  “It was my life to live.”

  “It was not what your father and I agreed. If you had refused, he was to let me take matters into my own hands. Instead, he let you leave.”

  My father saved me. “I heard you retaliated.”

  Jacopo shrugs carelessly. “Who would take me seriously as a businessman if I did not show that I meant my word?”

  “You killed a man.”

  “And your brother killed two of mine.”

  “What are you going to do when he gets here?” Jacopo holds up his hands. “I’m not armed, Rose. I only want to talk to him.”

  “And Darren? What are you going to do to him?”

  “I haven’t yet decided.”

  “This can end here today. You can have it all.”

  “I doubt Silvio would be as accommodating.”

  “He’ll do as I say.”

  Jacopo laughs. “I like your spirit, but I get the feeling you are not the woman behind the wheel in this scenario. Didn’t you just tell me that all these things went on above your head and behind your back?”

  “My eyes are open now.”

  “We’re all going to have a little chat. You’d better hope for your sake that your brother is as amicable as you are.” He shakes his head slowly. “It is a shame you decided to run off like some rom-com movie bride. I would have liked you as a daughter-in-law. You’ve got a backbone and more common sense than Raffaele and Silvio together.”

  “Common sense enough to know I want as far away from all of this as possible.”

  “Ah, yes. Unfortunately, that’s a lesson I ever learned.”

  18

  Darren

  We sit in Silvio’s Porsche at the front of Casa di Alfonsi.

  I turn and give him a serious look. “How you act in there is going to decide whether Rose lives or dies.”

  Silvio rolls his eyes. “When did you become Rambo?”

  I grab his shirt and pull him towards me violently, bringing his face close to mine. “This isn’t a joke. We’re going to go in there and if you have to get on your knees and beg for her life, that’s what you’re going to do.”

  He jerks himself away from me and straightens out his shirt. “Don’t forget who’s in charge here, Darren. You’re the only one in this whole charade without a hand to play.”

  “I will burn that motherfucker to the ground if he lays so much as a finger on her.”

  “You’d get a bullet between your eyes before you took a step.”

  “Don’t fuck this up.”

  I step out the car and look up at Jacopo’s mansion. It’s even bigger than Giacomo’s and more intimidating. It’s flanked by rows of columns and carved gargoyles. It’s like I’m staring up at a hitman’s Notre Dame.

  “What is it with you people and this shit?” I ask Silvio, gesturing towards the building. “Maybe if you could all learn to get your egos in check, everything wouldn’t come down to a gunfight.”

  “You wouldn’t understand. It’s about honor.”

  “Honor?” I shake my head slowly. “I was in the navy. I think I know a thing or two about honor.”

  I’m striding quickly towards the mansion. Silvio jogs to catch up with me and keeps pace at my side as we stride across the gravel. “There’s no honor in war. You think those kids and civilians you blew up deserved to die? At least everyone staring down the barrel of my gun has it coming.”

  “Forgive me. I didn’t know I was sitting next to Mother Theresa all the way here.”

  “I see why Rose likes you.” We’re almost at the steps to the door now. The three armed guards at the entrance are lowering their guns to take aim in preparation for any funny business. “You’re as much of a hippy as she is.”

  “A hippy?”

  “All love and peace. All that shit. You’re not willing to get your hands dirty to get to the top.”

  “You call this t
he top?”

  We reach the steps to Casa di Alfonsi and I raise my hands in the air to show I mean no harm. “We received word to come here tonight at 8.30pm. We’re to meet with Jacopo.”

  The head guard narrows his eyes. “We were only expecting one.”

  Silvio breezes past me with his trademark arrogance and scowls at the head guard. “Jacopo will want to see him too, Marshall. He has business for us both. Pat us down. Go ahead. We’re not carrying.”

  Marshall jerks his head towards us to instruct his goons to do their body searches. I’m relieved when Silvio is clean. I half-expected him to have tried to sneak in a revolver in his sock or a knife up his sleeve. Maybe he’s got a single brain cell, after all.

  “Fine.” Marshall nods. “I’ll take you to him. He’s expecting you.”

  We are led upstairs to the master bedroom.

  “What a show,” I mutter.

  “It’s to try and throw us off guard,” Silvio says. “Just keep your wits about you.”

  There are two more guards outside the bedroom. They step back to let us through and the door is opened.

  When I see Rose, a weight lifts from my shoulders and I want to run to her, but I’m worried the effect any sudden movement might have on the five guards now gathered behind us.

  Her eyes light up when she sees me and then fill with tears. “Darren…You weren’t supposed to come.”

  “I’m so glad you’re okay.” I turn to Jacopo. “Let her go. She’s got nothing to do with any of this.”

  Jacopo holds up a hand to silence me. “Young people are so dramatic. This is business. Act like a businessman.” He gestures to the circle of armchairs in front of him. “Take a seat.”

  Reluctantly, I lower myself into one of the chairs. I’m inches from Rose. I turn and examine her face. There are no signs of blood or bruises. She looks shaken up but otherwise fine.

  “What were you thinking?” I ask her in a soft voice. “You should have known this was a trap.”

  “I had to say goodbye to my father.” She blinks and tears roll down her cheeks. “He’s gone.”