by Via Mari
We finish making the arrangements that weren’t finalized on the flight, and Great-Uncle finally leaves us to rest in his own penthouse. I am more than impressed with our cousins’ ability to organize and get their teams deployed throughout the city.
We have just pulled our enforcers and bosses into a conference call when Serena comes out of the bedroom. Jay and the security team are sitting around the large dining room table, and maps of the city are spread out everywhere. She glances around at the monitors above the table, and takes in the pauses in conversation while everyone waits to see if they should continue.
“Sorry, I’m just going to grab a couple bottles of water. I’ll take them into the bedroom and read or something until the ladies arrive,” Serena says, making her way to the refrigerator.
She downs almost half a bottle of water in a few swallows. I know the feeling. It’s so fucking dry in this desert. “Give us a few minutes and then continue, gentlemen,” I say, leaving the table and joining her at the refrigerator.
I take a bunch of grapes and cheese from the tray and lay them on a small plate, then hand her another bottle of water just as she finishes her first. “Take this with you. I’ll bring you a snack,” I say, and she gets the message, raises up on tiptoes, and kisses my lips lightly before taking her water back to the bedroom, seemingly fine with the fact that I don’t want her to hear any part of the shit we’re talking about right now.
I watch her until she is no longer in sight, and I glance over, feeling Sal’s eyes on me. Something passes across his features that’s impossible to understand. He looks away first, pulled back into the conversation with our men as I finish making her plate, adding a few chunks of cheese and crackers, and then go to find her in the bedroom.
She’s settled into the big armchair in the corner, curled up with a blanket covering her, and has already started on the second bottle of water. “Is the air conditioning too cold for you, Tesoro?” I ask, placing the snack on the table beside her.
“It’s a little cool, but it’s fine, Giovanni, and the blanket is perfect,” Serena says, smiling at me. The temperature in the desert is so hot that the air conditioning is necessary, unlike in Italy.
“I’ll have the temperature turned up a little bit. I don’t want you getting sick. I need to go out for a while, but it shouldn’t be too long. The security team will remain with you and the girls once they arrive. Text me if you need anything until then,” I tell her, kissing her lips one more time.
When I break our kiss, she looks up at me and grasps the sides of my face with her hands. “Giovanni Larussio, I love you so much. Go, do what you must. I will be here when you return,” she says, kissing my lips lightly.
My heart constricts tighter than it has before as I leave her in the hands of security, walk into the dining room, and tell the men, “Let’s go.”
Serena
My cell phone dings, and I glance down at it and smile broadly. My friends have all arrived in Vegas and are on their way up. They have serious protection and are on strict orders not to be anywhere outside of the resort or away from their bodyguards, but they can come and visit me as long as security stays with us. I almost fly into the bathroom, not realizing how excited I am to see them and all the pictures they captured of the wedding that we want to show Kate.
I freshen up quickly, slide back into my sandals, and head out into the dining room, where Antonio and Nate have taken up residence at the table.
“Hey, Sasha, Jenny, Kate, and Marenah are coming up. Do you mind if we take over the table so we can visit?” I ask, heading to the refrigerator to take out a few bottles of wine coolers and some lemonade that was delivered earlier, placing them in a large bowl that I fill with ice, and then open a bottle of red to breathe before they arrive. I head into the living room to the fully stocked bar and bring back a bottle of vodka. Marenah isn’t much into wine, but she likes vodka in just about anything.
The doorbell rings and I rush across the dining room, into the living room to make my way to the door, but I’m not fast enough for Antonio or Nate.
“Whoa,” Nate says. I know you’re excited, but if we go against protocol here, your husband’s liable to have us fed to the sharks,” he says, his eyes dancing.
“There aren’t any sharks here in the desert, more likely the coyotes,” I say, earning me a wide grin from Antonio. “Are you going to answer the door?” I ask, gesturing to where that big double set of doors stands between me and my friends who I have so much to catch up with.
“Far be it for me to stand in between a lady and her gab session,” Nate says, checking his phone before opening the door to my friends, who literally push past him to get to me. Sasha is the first through the door and she hugs me tight, followed by Marenah, Kate, and Jenny.
They come in followed by an entourage of security who veer off to join Antonio and Nate in the living room as I lead my friends into the dining room. “I can’t believe you all came,” I say, spinning around to see them.
“Those men couldn’t keep us away no matter what their security issues,” Kate says, and Sasha has the good grace to look embarrassed because her boyfriend, Jay, is the head of security and running point on this assignment, and we all know that he is a stickler for protocols, probably as bad as Great-Uncle and Salvatore.
“How did you ever manage to get Chase to let you out for the evening?” I say to Kate as she slowly lowers herself and her large swollen belly into the dining room chair.
“Oh, I have my ways,” she says coyly, batting her eyelashes at us.
We all laugh at our auburn-haired friend with bright blue eyes who is so pregnant that she can barely bend. “Here, use this for your feet,” Jenny says, scooting another chair around so Kate can use it for a footstool.
“If you want, we can go into the living room and have the guys work in here,” I say, not having thought that Kate may not be as comfortable at the table, but she smiles at me widely and shakes her head.
“No, it’s fine, really. I have done absolutely nothing but keep my feet up since the early labor incident and we’re doing fine. The doctor says I’m well past the stage of concern for multiples, so anytime they want to make their presence known, they won’t be in danger, and we couldn’t be in a better place for it to happen. The doctor on staff here knows my OB-GYN, and I think Chase and my parents actually like the idea of us staying here until the babies are born. I have to admit, it’s been nice to be on site and look out at the developments of the resort around me as the days go by,” Kate says.
The ladies dig in to the snacks, sandwiches, and beverages that I’ve laid out, and then want to watch the wedding video they created from the pictures that were taken. “Hang on, I don’t know how to use this monitor,” I say, gesturing to the ceiling. They look up at the tiled white ceiling and back to me.
I walk into the living room to find the guys laughing over a shared joke. “Hey, can one of you help us lower the monitor in the dining room so we can watch the wedding?” I ask.
Antonio stands and gestures for the rest of them to stay seated. “I’ve got this, boys. Carry on with your fun,” he says, still smiling as he walks with me back into the dining room and takes in all the drinks and laughter of my friends.
Antonio pushes a button on the remote control, and the ceiling panels open and the monitor is lowered over the table so both sides can see the screen. “Whoa, seriously high tech,” Jenny says.
“Giovanni sent me the link to the video to put in the archives. You want me to pull it up for you?” Antonio asks me.
“Yes, please. I have it on my phone, but I have no clue how to get it from there to that,” I say, gesturing to the overhead.
He smiles and runs through a few menu bars, and soon the wedding is about to begin. “There you go, ladies, enjoy,” Antonio says, sauntering back into the living room to leave us to our drinks and wedding fun.
I
watch the video, still absolutely mesmerized by the look of passion in Giovanni’s eyes that the camera has managed to capture as I walk down the stairs, through the great room, and into the wide-open double doors of the chapel on my brother’s arm. When the wedding video is over, all my newfound friends are drying their eyes.
“If you guys keep this up, you are going to make me cry. You know it doesn’t take much these days, pregnancy and all,” I say, and clap my hands over my ears as their squeals of excitement pierce the air.
“Stop already!” I laugh.
“Why didn’t you tell us? When did you find out? Why are the besties always the last to know?”
I am laughing so hard that tears start rolling down my face. “We seriously just figured it out. In fact, we haven’t even had blood work taken to confirm it yet. We left so quickly after the wedding. I believe Giovanni plans on having the physician that you see here run the lab work,” I say, addressing Kate.
“You will absolutely love her. She’s been a gem the entire time we’ve been here, and she was the one that was able to stop the labor in the first place. I thank God for her every day. In fact, she was just contracted to stay on the grounds as The Larussio physician until the final grand opening, but Chase is trying to convince her to stay on even longer than that,” Kate says.
“Maybe Giovanni can help, too! And speaking of grand opening, we should probably help you and Jenny get ready for that event. What do you guys need help with between now and Friday night?” I ask, pouring myself another glass of water.
Sasha, who is a ballerina and seldom drinks anything but water or tea, holds out her glass for more, too, but then lowers it slowly as her eyes begin to roll, and her mouth opens to say something, but nothing comes out.
It’s like things are happening in slow motion, and with a sense of dread I realize that something is terribly, terribly wrong because none of my friends are talking, and each and every one of them looks like I feel, and a floating sensation overtakes me at the same time I realize that Mancini has won and I may never see my husband again or unborn child come into this world.
Gio
Salvatore and I are escorted down the security elevator and into the lower-level parking ramp, one floor lower than the customer parking area and reserved for our Family. When we are secured into the awaiting limo, Matt, Dereck, and Nick are all with us. Two in the front and one in the rear seats with Sal, and me sitting on the middle bench seat of the impressive stretch, and our cousins and security team have surrounded us as we make our way out onto the Strip.
“We’ve just received confirmation that all teams are in place. Our crew members and allies have taken over every establishment on the Strip, and Capone, their president, and his leaders are already at the warehouse where we’ll meet. The Desert Riders are about two hours out, but Ryker, their president, and his leaders are on their way to meet with us, and the Europeans are on ice, awaiting Vicenti’s orders,” Jay says.
“Very good. The rest of the cousins from Italy are just landing. They’ll meet us there in case backup is needed,” Sal says.
Dereck is driving and makes his way to the other side of the Strip, exiting on a ramp that leads out to nothing but desert. The limo eventually pulls off the highway and onto a gravel road that leads to a large old metal warehouse. Dereck navigates us close to the door on the side of the building. We are not the first to arrive, as there are twelve large motorcycles parked outside. “You good with the number of men?” I ask to no one in particular.
Matt turns in his seat and looks at me. “Those bikes belong to the president and leaders of your club and the Desert Riders. These are the men that are going to make things happen today, and we have a plan to make sure they do. You’re in good hands, Mr. Larussio.”
“Thanks, and the name is Gio,” I tell him, taking in our isolated environment as they jump out of the car, opening the doors before surrounding me and Sal as we approach the building and walk in. Sal and the cousins usually deal with things such as this alone, but we are talking about Serena’s life. If things go wrong, they will answer to me, and if things don’t go according to plan, Vicenti’s going to want to deal with the members of the Family he is familiar with and the one who will take the don’s place.
Salvatore is confident and comfortable with the lifestyle and is the first to walk up to the president of the Larussio club, The Rivalry, extending his hand in greeting before introducing us, one by one, to Capone. He is a tall intense-looking bald-headed man with piercing grey eyes and has a bandanna tied around his forehead and nods tersely to each of us as we are introduced. He is wearing black leather pants and boots and is bare chested other than a jean vest. His muscled body is covered with tattoos that trail down his neck and cover both arms, and he is flanked by five of his leaders who are all dressed similarly and stand tense across from their rivals.
Sal then turns, extends his hand in greeting ,and introduces the two of us to the tall fully tatted man wearing a black leather vest and pants.
“I’m Ryker, president of the Desert Riders,” the man says, extending his hand to us, one at a time, while his own leaders stand at the ready beside him.
“Gentlemen, I appreciate you meeting with us on such short notice. I won’t waste your time and will get right to the point.” Sal turns his attention to Ryker. “We understand your crew is staunchly opposed to running anything but pure product in your own cities. Unfortunately, we’ve become aware that your crew is now running tainted product for Mancini,” Sal says.
Ryker runs his hands over the five o’clock scruff he’s wearing, and his bright blue eyes narrow. “We only run with the pure stuff and do our best to keep the streets safe,” he says, his men all seemingly tense and ready to move at a movement’s notice.
“Until now,” Sal says.
“Are you telling me we picked up bad product?”
“That’s what we understand, why we wanted to talk to you ourselves. We believe your intentions are good, but the product you’re carrying is cut with poison. We won’t allow it on our streets,” Sal says.
Ryker’s jaw tightens and the bright blue eyes narrows at the two of us suspiciously. “My crew doesn’t run anything that’s not pure. We take this accusation very seriously, and clearly you do or you obviously wouldn’t be here to relay the message yourself.”
Sal nods. “Innocent people will die if the product you and your men are carrying hits our streets,” Sal says, and I don’t think Capone misses the possessive term of our streets.
Ryker nods, contemplating before he speaks. “If the product my men are packing is cut, the delivery will not proceed. I’m going to need proof; we can test it together and I’m open to having one of your own test kits used. If we were given tainted shit, Dominic Mancini won’t live to see another day,” he says.
If that product tests positive for the poison that it’s rumored to be cut with, we all know we have much larger problems than Mancini, but the president can deal with him when we’re ready, and Vicenti can help us deal with Alfreita.
“Fair enough, let’s get this shit tested,” Sal says, and one of Capone’s men breaks formation to go and retrieve a plastic-wrapped brick of white product and a testing kit, which he lays on the table.
“Break the seal,” Ryker says to one of his leaders who’s already wielding his pocketknife, ready to cut into the thin overlay. He pricks the edge and slides his blade along the seam, inserts the tip into the drug, and brings out a thin film of the white product with his knife.
His partner holds out the clear glass vial from the kit filled a third of the way with a pink-colored solution. Ryker tells him to add the product and Capone nods in agreement. The minute the product hits the solution, it turns blue, and one of the men standing in the rear raises his eyebrows. “Seems like pure cocaine to me,” he says.
Ryker turns and glares at his insolent and ill-informed leader. “That used to b
e enough, but we’re not done. Watch and learn,” Ryker says as the man who just put the cocaine in the vial adds another liquid that turns the solution back to pink. “Cobalt thiocyanate will tell us if there’s cocaine, the blue reaction was positive. Hydrochloric acid will neutralize it and allow us to see how much is pure, and how much is not,” he says as the man breaks another plastic vial and adds it. The solution immediately breaks into two layers, one blue layer at the bottom and another pink, larger layer at the top.
Ryker’s eyes narrow and darken as he watches the solution. “I’ll contact my crews and have them stop all anticipated distribution.”
“Excellent. We have our reasons, but we don’t want Mancini taken out until we give the word, and as for the product, I have it on good authority that you will be compensated for your losses,” Sal says.
“That’s more than generous, Mr. Larussio,” Ryker says, reaching out to shake hands with Sal, who shakes hands back with him.
“Our intel has your cell; we’ll contact you when we know more. In the meantime, I’d like to avoid an all-out gang war in our city,” Sal says.
“Our men are in place all over the city, no doubt you saw them when you and your leaders arrived. They knew you and a few of your men were coming to meet with us, but if any more come riding into town, they’re not going to stop and ask questions,” Sal says, leaving out the fact that we also know about the order to take Serena to Dominic’s men.
Ryker nods and his face turns grim. “I understand how this looks, but I would never have my crews peddling that poison,” he says, gesturing to the vial still sitting on the wooden table in front of us.