by Via Mari
He and Nate come out just a few moments later. “A drink?” I ask.
“Coke for me,” Nate says as Antonio walks to the bar and grabs a water. He opens the refrigerator and hands a bottle of soda to Nate.
Antonio knows me well. “You need something, boss?” he says, taking a long pull of his water.
“Yeah. How far behind are Salvatore and my great-uncle?”
Nate touches his phone and scrolls around a bit before replying. “They’re about an hour behind us. They had a slight delay at the airport with takeoff, but we do have an update. The Europeans will be touching down about two hours after you and an hour after your great-uncle and Salvatore. We have a window of time before they land to get you and Serena to the resort and clamp down all internal security.”
“What about the riders?” I ask ,and I don’t like the look on Nate’s face one fucking bit, but he seems to recover his composure after a few moments. “We don’t get paid to tell you lies or sugarcoat the truth. If Jay were here, he’d give it to you straight, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do. We’ve got a mess of gang runners screaming across the desert on their way to Vegas. Over four hundred riders who believe they’re coming into the city to drop a load of product and pick up a package that Dominic needs delivered to his crew on Monday night in Vegas. We know for certain that they haven’t been told what the package is, and you can be pretty certain that it’s code for Serena,” Nate says, and Antonio squashes the empty bottle of water in his hands and then throws it across the cabin.
While internally my rage is full-blown, I also know that the security team we’ve hired is the best in the world, and they have intel that until recently we did not have access to. “What’s the plan?” I say, calmer than I feel.
Nate nods. “We’re working to understand exactly how Vicenti’s drugs came into the country.” I look at him incredulously because I couldn’t give a fuck less about the South American cartel’s drugs.
He raises a hand as if sensing my angst. “I know what you’re thinking, and Serena is our top priority, but once we know how the product is getting imported, we’ll be able to figure out how the dope got cut and who’s responsible. We need to prove it was Alfreita Jr. if we want Vicenti’s help. We could take Dominic out, just like you or your Family could have, but that won’t stop Alfreita Jr. He’s going to keep coming, and he could have a hundred Dominic’s with many more motorcycle crews. We need to get to the source and understand how the drugs come into the country and what happens to Vicenti’s product. He’s an honorable man. He may be dealing in a ton of heavy shit, but it’s pure, not like the poison they’re pushing, and when Vicenti finds out who is responsible, he will make it right.”
I nod, taking it all in. This security team has proven themselves time and time again, but I can’t sit around and wait until all the pieces of this miraculous plan come together. “Thanks Nate. Carry on with the plan,” I say, and he turns and walks into the security room with Antonio.
I send a message to Salvatore, knowing we’re already in position.
Ready the Family in Vegas. All hell is about to break loose.
Serena
I wake from a deep, sated sleep and glance around at our surroundings and out the windows of the Gulfstream. The sky is lit up in a magnificent show of pinks, purples, magentas, and oranges as the sun begins to descend. I glance at my phone and see that I’ve managed to sleep the entire flight away. I scowl at the spot next to me which barely looks touched, leaving me to wonder what Giovanni has been up to. I head into the shower and then go in search of him in the main cabin.
Giovanni’s sitting at the small table by the oblong window, working on his laptop with a cup of coffee in front of him when I emerge from the bedroom. He glances up and smiles. “Good morning. How did you sleep, Tesoro?” he asks, holding his hand out for me.
I cross the short distance, taking it as he turns in his chair, settles me into his lap, and kisses me lightly on the lips.
“I can’t believe I slept the entire flight away. I must have been exhausted.”
“Hmm. Making babies, it is hard work, no?” Giovanni says, running his finger down the length of my neck and settling onto my collarbone, stroking the tender flesh as he continues to gaze at me.
“I guess so,” I say, just as the captain lets us know we are about forty minutes from landing.
I open my mouth in surprise. “I was just joking! I knew what time it was, but I didn’t really think I slept the entire flight away!”
Giovanni laughs, pushing my hair back from my face. “You needed the sleep, and now you need to eat before we land,” he says, texting something on his phone.
In a matter of moments, one of the service attendants pushes a silver cart laden with silver domed dishes into the main cabin. I don’t know her, but she’s wearing the same uniform that just months ago I was wearing, providing the same service that I provided for the most influential people in the world until I met Giovanni.
She places our food on the table, removes the lids, and then pours our coffee. “Orzo for you, I’m told,” she says.
I crinkle my nose at the decaffeinated beverage, but it smells nutty and oh so wonderful, so I nod to the nice attendant. “Baby on board,” I say by way of explanation, and she smiles widely.
“Congratulations! Would you like anything else?” she asks kindly.
I shake my head, laughing as I take in all that Giovanni has ordered. “I think this little breakfast-for-dinner feast will be enough,” I say, glancing up to find him watching me with a broad smile.
We usually have a latte and quick sweet for breakfast, but this meal is nothing like that. He picks up one of the plates filled with baked eggs and prosciutto and places a generous serving on my plate, then adds a cream-filled pastry and a large helping of assorted mixed fruit.
“You seriously expect me to eat all of this?”
“You need nourishment, and so does our child,” Giovanni says, forking a bite of the egg dish and lifting it to my lips.
I take a bite and almost moan with contentment. If only we didn’t have someone trying to hunt me down and ruin Giovanni, our lives would be perfect. I never eat this much at one time, but I am ravenous and manage to consume every morsel that he puts on my plate and lifts to my lips.
When the captain announces our landing in approximately ten minutes, the service attendants come into the room and clear our plates, hauling everything out of the cabin. Giovanni takes my hand and guides me to the reclining seats by another set of windows before buckling me in.
I yawn, and his forehead crinkles with concern. “I have no idea how I can be tired again after just sleeping for so long. Maybe it’s all the food you gave me,” I say.
He nods. “Rest and nourishment are probably good for you both. There will be plenty of time for rest when we reach the resort,” he says as the plane begins its final descent and the vast desert below comes into view.
In just a short time, the wheels hit the runway and we are careening down the concrete path, watching the reddish landscape pass us by until the pilot dramatically slows his course of speed and we taxi onto the private tarmac.
The security guards come out of their room and open the landing door for us and quickly surround us as we make our way to the awaiting helicopter, which proudly displays The Larussio emblem.
Once on board, the pilot lifts up and we are soon making our way down over the city. I watch as some of the peripheral casinos come into view and recognize some of the more famous names, and then I see it, The Larussio, and from the air the sprawling resort and casino dwarfs the entire block with its footprint, with towers reaching high into the sky.
I am so excited that I point, and Giovanni smiles broadly. “It’s definitely a vision,” he says proudly.
The flight is brief from the airport, and the pilot lands with expert precision on one of the flat tower
s of The Larussio. The security guards jump out with Giovanni right behind them, and he turns to grab my waist and hoist me out of the helicopter before we are guided to the rooftop door and down a private elevator to our penthouse suite.
Giovanni makes his way to the granite kitchen bar and greets all of the security men who are sitting around the dining room table. They’re all focused on the double-sided monitor that’s slowly lowering into the middle of the table from an opened ceiling panel above. He pours himself an espresso, and grabs a bottle of water and a banana from the massive fruit bowl lying on the counter and hands them to me.
“Water instead of espresso? Giovanni, this is so not fair. Maybe caffeine deprivation is making me so tired,” I say, pretending to pout.
He leans down and kisses my lips and whispers in my ear. “I ordered decaf from room service and a light snack for everyone. It should arrive shortly. Relax a bit and let me deal with what needs to be done, Tesoro,” he says as his phone begins to vibrate.
I sit with him at the kitchen bar until room service arrives with my drink, and cheese, sausage, and fruit trays for the entire group. When he finally gets off the phone, he starts to talk with the men.
Antonio glances at me, and then back to Giovanni. “Are you sure you want Serena to be part of this?”
Giovanni’s eyes narrow at Antonio, but then turn to me and soften. “I would prefer you sheltered from what transpires shortly, but if you need to be a part of it, I will not deny you.”
He glances down as his phone vibrates with a message. “Salvatore and Great-Uncle are on their way up.”
They walk in together moments later with an entourage of security. Do I really want to know what the father of my child is about to do in order to keep us safe? Will it change the way I feel about him? I’ve listened to Katarina telling me how her mother overheard her father putting a hit out on someone, not realizing that if he didn’t, the men would have killed her mom. I have seen the protection and love that Giovanni and his family bring to me and my family, even after years of believing they were the enemy, and like Katarina, realize how fortunate we are to have men in our lives that will do whatever it takes to protect the women they love.
“I’m going to rest for a short while, and then Kate, Jenny, Marenah, and Sasha are coming over. They should be landing a little later in the evening. They plan to get a bite to eat and get settled in their rooms. Kate and Chase are already here, and the ladies will pick Kate up on the way over. And Giovanni, there’s no need for me to hear this conversation. I trust you with all of my heart.”
His eyes fill with emotion. “Gentlemen, start the meeting. I’ll be with you shortly,” he says, scooping me from the stool and into his arms, then carrying me pressed against his chest into the bedroom.
Giovanni kicks the door closed and lays me on the bed before sliding in next to me and pulling me close. “Tell me you meant that, tell me that you trust me and my Family to keep you and our child safe,” he says, kissing my forehead and pushing my hair off my face.
“I meant it, Giovanni. I’m sorry it took me this long. Perhaps I just needed to understand how Katarina’s mom, Karissa, felt when she left the Family. She loved her husband when she married him, but she just didn’t know that he was part of the Family. She heard him put a hit out and fled. Katarina spent her life without her father, and Karissa spent her life pining away for her love. That is not what I want for us. I’ve told you, ensure that our family is safe. I promise, come tomorrow, I will still be by your side.”
Gio
I will safeguard Serena and our child with everything and everyone at my disposal, but if for some reason things don’t go as planned, she needs to be prepared. Salvatore has spent weeks teaching her self-defense moves, and she may choose to use them, regardless of how much I may wish it weren’t so.
“Tesoro, you will rest. I will take care of what needs to be done. I know that you have trained with Salvatore, but if there comes a time that you are taken, what do you do, now that you are with child?” I ask.
She looks at me like that option hasn’t even crossed her mind. “I can’t risk a fight being pregnant, can I?”
I pull her close and kiss her lips. “No, Tesoro, I’m sure there are methods, but you have not been trained in those. If it ever comes to them taking you, then you do not fight like Salvatore taught you. You wait, you do not give them any reason to anger, you wait until we rescue you, understand?”
She nods, but the frightened look on her face is not the one I want to see. “Giovanni, until just this moment, if they would have come for me, I would have given my life quickly so they couldn’t hurt you, but now, our baby, I would have to fight until the end.”
“You will not fight, you will not, Serena, do you understand? I will be the one that will fight and ensure you and our family’s security,” Giovanni says.
Serena nods and I pull her close. She reaches up to kiss me on the lips. “Giovanni, do you think you will find them, get rid of them, and we’ll be able to be a family?”
“Ssh. Tesoro, we will find them, and when we do, they will never threaten you and our child again, understand?” I say, but it kills me inside to think of the fear she must be in, not only for herself but now for the life she carries. I breathe deeply, drawing the strength I will need from the fear that is so visible on her face.
Serena nods. “I understand, do not worry, Giovanni,” she says, looking up at me with those expressive brown eyes that are full of love and trust.
I remain where I am, stroking her cheek for just a few more moments, soaking in her beauty and her fear and her strength, drawing upon it for what must be done.
When I return to the dining room, Salvatore and Great-Uncle look grim.
“Something is wrong, tell me,” I demand, glancing from one to the other of them, but for what seems like hours to me neither of them says a goddamn word.
Great-Uncle is the first to speak. “The security teams have picked up another gang coming in from the mountains. All in total 700 bikers, Giovanni.”
My jaw tightens, but I know we are ready. “We have all our crews in place?” I ask Salvatore.
He nods. “And then some. Uncle Carlos called in his crews, too. Mancini is sending a message not only to us but to Uncle Carlos to get out of his town. He thinks of Vegas as his, but Uncle Carlos has far-reaching arms and had his teams drive in from New York, Jersey, and Chicago and the entire Midwest. We are prepared in all respects, Giovanni.”
Salvatore’s phone buzzes. “See for yourself,” he says, smiling widely as he gestures for us to join him at the window.
Great-Uncle and I walk over and look down at the Strip below, and for as far as the eye can see is a parade of motorcycles.
“Ours?” I ask, unable to see colors from this distance.
“Indeed. They’re sending a message. If Dominic’s crews head into this city, they’re going to hit a rumbling wall of resistance,” Salvatore says.
The light changes and the brigade moves forward, slowly making their way into the city. We watch for more than ten minutes and the parade hasn’t ended yet. The reign of the Larussios is staggering. I gaze out over the vast city filled with a wall of riders. If I didn’t fully understand its magnitude before, I certainly do now.
My phone buzzes and I take the call from Jay. “The crews just hit town; in case you didn’t feel the ground rumbling beneath you.”
“We’re watching now, Jay. Let me include Sal and Great-Uncle in the call.
“Sounds good.”
“We’ve got everyone on the line now,” I say, a second after engaging the speaker.
“Good evening. Quick update for everyone. We’ve detained the Europeans at the airport. The team needs the Family’s direction on what you want done with them,” Jay says.
Great-Uncle gestures to the two of us that he’ll handle the conversation. Salvatore raises his
eyebrows in question at me, but I don’t know what he’s about to say either. “I was in touch with Vicenti. He is grateful for the knowledge we were able to provide, feels responsible and believes this is his wrong to right. They will be held, no harm. He and his team will be here in the next few hours. They will deal with the Europeans and Alfreita over the product situation. In turn, we will deal with the riders Dominic has sent, first and foremost to ensure Serena’s safety, and second to ensure that poison those men are trafficking does not reach our city for distribution,” Great-Uncle says, and I do not miss the underlying message. If it wasn’t before, Vegas is the Larussios’ city now.
“You’ve spoken with Uncle Carlos?” Salvatore asks.
“He and I have conferred, and he placed the order. This is his city now, and he wants to keep it safe. His soldiers have strict orders. Jay, we’ve got a ton of manpower out there, willing and able to do your bidding. Security for Serena is priority, you tell us what we need to know or to have done,” Great-Uncle says, and it’s my turn to raise my eyebrows. Great-Uncle giving over control to the security team, he must really feel very confident in their abilities and allegiance to the Family.
Jay starts to speak, but Great-Uncle isn’t finished, and both Sal and I smile widely. He may have given the indication of giving up control, but he is far from ready for that. “We need to set up a meet, neutral territory, security ensured for travel to and from. You both need to attend, and Serena will stay here with Antonio and Nate,” Great-Uncle says, and although I know that this is the safest place for her to be, the thought of her without me if something happens sends a panic straight to my chest.
Salvatore must see the alarm in my eyes and touches my shoulder. “We’ll have a whole army of security men surrounding The Larussio, and guards with her and the ladies tonight. They won’t get to within two blocks of this resort,” he says, and Great-Uncle nods.
“Salvatore is right. If one of you could remain behind, we would allow it, but you must meet as a formidable front to those that oppose us. Vicenti knows that he will be dealing with the two of you when I pass, and this may not be over for some time. It is time, especially for as something as important as this, that I step back and allow you to take the reins. You must both attend the meeting,” Great-Uncle says. I know the protocols, the rules that our families have lived by for so many generations, and this one, especially when it means relationships with our Colombian friends, is critical and cannot be ignored.