“Boys.” My father rolls his eyes as he attempts to bring us back to the business at hand. There’s no real irritation in his tone, though. Without the ability to laugh at what would scare the hell out of the average person, we’d have all succumbed to a stress-related heart attack long ago. The tone in this room would be a vastly different one had one of us been killed. If that happened, the men joking here tonight would be lethal. Bloodthirsty. “I’ve spoken to our contact at police headquarters and what remains of the car will be brought here. I doubt there is any evidence left due to the heat, but we’ll go over it anyway.” He turns to Nic, and asks, “I understand you were outside for a good length of time alone. You saw nothing unusual?” It’s more of a statement than a question. We all know that the Gavinos aren’t likely to be planting a bomb in a car on a public street at any hour of the day. That’s shit that only a novice or an idiot would do. Someone like Frankie Jr.
Nic shakes his head. “Not a thing. It could have been in there for a while. That shit is so advanced now, it can be programmed on a timer, for a certain number of ignition fires, or when the fucking heat is turned on. So many options. Unless more of the device is left than I think, it’ll be damn near impossible to know for certain. If I had to guess, I’d say it had only been there for the past twenty-four hours. Whoever planted it was likely hedging their bets that Marco would go to Nina after Franklin’s death. Considering I usually pick him up, the car stays garaged a great deal of the time, but even the best security can be breached, especially when it’s unmanned.”
My father nods before looking at me. “Put the word out that until further notice, all vehicles are to be checked before they’re started.”
“This feels too obvious,” Tony muses thoughtfully. “Sure, the Gavinos have a few loose cannons, but the only one stupid enough to have done something like this is dead.”
“Exactly. But it would have to be a person who’s in the know on both ends. We’ve had an alliance with the Gavinos for a while now.”
“Wouldn’t take a genius to understand the ramifications of Franklin’s death,” Lee points out. “But you’re correct. Enough paranoia would exist for the Morettis to automatically be their number-one suspect.”
“I hate to say this,” Tony says, “but this is exactly why a long-term alliance cannot exist between two such powers.”
“I, too, believe they’ve outstayed their welcome here,” Lee says. “Not only do we have our families to consider, but the people of this city as well. A full-blown battle between the families would put too many innocents in harm’s way. We co-exist with the authorities because we protect our backyard. We cannot allow others to trample on that which we’ve carefully cultivated.”
All eyes turn to my father since he has not only maintained the link with the Gavinos, but is also the man responsible for approving our next steps. He absently pats his jacket pocket and then frowns. “Fuck, I wish I still smoked.”
“So do I.” Tony grins. “I can’t tell you how many times I still reach for a pack only to find it’s not there.”
I get to my feet and pour us all a generous measure of bourbon from the nearby bar. “It’s not the same, but at least it’ll take the edge off,” I say before tossing mine back.
When my father has finished his, he leans forward, staring at Tony intently. “I agree with what both you and Lee are saying. I’ve known this day was coming for a while now. Hence Franklin and his son’s elimination. There are those within the Gavino family who will resist their eviction from our area, and we must be prepared for what they’ll do when they’re pushed out. Now, more than ever, you must take precautions to protect your family first, and then your assets. The more seasoned Gavino soldiers wouldn’t dare come against a Moretti or anyone connected to us, but there’s always some punk eager to fast-track up the ladder. They have no clue they’ll be signing their own death warrant.”
“They have never been as vulnerable as they are right now,” I say as I look at Nic. “Regardless of the hostilities at times, there have been friendships of sorts formed. How will those be handled? Just right off the top of my head, there’s Minka, her father, Raymond, and Nina.”
“Nina isn’t officially tied to the Gavinos,” my father states. “So this doesn’t apply to her. Unless, of course, she develops some misplaced sense of loyalty to them.” He leans forward, his expression grave as he adds, “Ray and Minka are a different matter.” I see Nic freeze and open his mouth, but my father continues speaking before he can utter the first word of protest. “I’m not saying there isn’t room for compromise where they’re concerned. It depends largely on Ray’s willingness to bend. His cooperation will go a long way toward preventing additional loss of life.”
“He can be reasonable,” Lee muses. “Especially when it involves the well-being of his family.”
“That’s true.” Tony nods. “But we must also be prepared for him to be pissed and out for revenge. He’s not a stupid man. He’ll figure out quickly that his brother’s death is likely no coincidence when we begin pushing them out. How do you plan to play this? Set up a meeting with him or put the wheels in motion and see where everyone falls?”
“That’s the million-dollar question,” I reply. “Issuing a warning ahead of time is a courtesy among friends, but you have to damn well hope they don’t use it against you. Do we trust him not to sound the alarm within his organization? Up until this moment, I’d call him an ally if asked. But that doesn’t change the fact that he’s not one of us.”
My father grimaces, and I know what’s coming. “No, he’s not. But… we have his daughter. He’s devoted to her, and she’s loyal to Nina. Trust me when I say that it’s not a card I want to play and I hope it’s not necessary. I’ve never agreed with dragging families into our wars. There should always be rules that gentlemen follow. Otherwise, chaos will soon reign.”
“Sometimes it’s unavoidable when there are no other avenues available,” Lee says grimly. “The difference is they will not be physically harmed by us.”
“No, they will not,” my father responds without hesitation. “But Ray cannot be certain of that, and it may be the leverage we need to sway him. I believe he wants a way out of the family, and if possible, I’ll help him achieve that. For a price.”
“You have no clue who you’re dealing with,” Nic groans. “There is no way Minka won’t tear the place apart when she gets wind of this. We better be ready with a stun gun or a sedative. One strong enough to put a fucking horse down.” Then he looks at me and lifts a brow sarcastically. “And if you believe Nina won’t be right there beside her, you’re deluded, my friend. They might not be blood sisters, but you can bet your ass they’ll band together against us.”
“I am married, Nicoli,” my father murmurs in amusement. “My wife has given me many lessons in how women think, so I have anticipated this. That’s why they’ll be kept apart until this is settled. We cannot afford to have them going rogue and fucking things up at a crucial time. I had thought to have Marco and Nina stay at the compound, but for now, I’d rather keep Minka there. Nicoli, you’ll stay there at night when you’re not needed. We’ll direct a few of our men to provide reinforcements for those already in place. Tony, I realize this is your home, but I hope you will allow us to use it for a while. Naturally, we’ll compensate your staff.”
“That’s not necessary.” Tony shrugs. “We aren’t there often, so it’s no imposition. If there’s a problem Lester can’t handle, let me know, and I’ll see to it.”
As they discuss security with Lee, Nic elbows me in the side. “Why am I getting stuck with the defiant one? I’m man enough to admit that hellcat scares me. How do we know she didn’t kill her guard? Kind of ironic that she admits to knocking him out, then bam, he’s dead. Can you imagine what a case of PMS will do to her? She will murder us all in our sleep.”
“You’re such a whiny little bitch.” I smirk. “Afraid of a girl. Just guard the family jewels and wear a bulletproof vest. What’s t
he odds she’ll land a kill-shot?”
“Laugh it up, cupcake,” he says. “But don’t say I didn’t warn you about Nina. Have you forgotten our first meeting? Because I certainly haven’t. She had a gun inches away from my dick, and her hand was as steady as yours.”
“If she wanted me dead, she had plenty of opportunities to make it happen, considering I was practically unconscious in her apartment for hours. I like my odds here. You, on the other hand, might be in trouble. I’d advise you to catch naps while you’re away from the compound because I don’t think I’d let my guard down if Minka is anywhere near.”
He gives me a slightly demented look that is equal parts sarcasm and irritation. “Gee, thanks so much for that comforting speech. Any more of your reassurances and I’ll be sitting in my car like a pussy instead of going inside.” He smacks a hand to his forehead before adding, “Oh wait, that was you. You know, you kind of owe me. If I hadn’t been there to kick your ass into gear, whoever blew the bimmer might have simply decided to put you out of your misery.”
It registers a split second later than the room is entirely too silent. When I glance around, I see the other men following our conversation with obvious enjoyment. Fuck my life. Nic’s choked laughter tells me he’s been aware of it all along. The bastard will so pay for that.
“No shame in being terrified of an angry woman,” Tony drawls in amusement. “We’ve all stood on the other side of the door for longer than necessary to avoid that very thing.”
Lee shakes his head in Nic’s direction. “It’s a truly stupid man who doesn’t have second and third thoughts in that situation. There have been times when I’d rather take my chances in an exploding car than face Jade’s ire.”
“Now we’ve established Nicoli’s lack of intelligence in matters of the opposite sex, let’s wrap this up,” my father adds dryly. He studies each of us for a long moment, all traces of humor gone. “Protect what’s yours,” he says. “We will regroup as necessary. Tony and Lee, let’s touch base daily for now. You might be officially retired from the daily operations here, but knowledge is power—and protection.” Both agree without hesitation, knowing that my father wouldn’t make the request unless it was in their best interest. “Nicoli, escort Minka back to the compound. I’d send her with some of our men, but she might cause fewer problems since she knows you.” I hear Nic’s faint groan but resist the urge to heckle him since I’m bound to be next up on my father’s agenda. “And son, take Nina to your place. I’ve already placed extra people there for the foreseeable future.”
I get to my feet as the meeting ends. Nic mutters something about using the bathroom, but we both know he’s putting off the inevitable. “Chicken shit.” I smirk as he walks out the door. Hell, I force myself not to take the fucking stall right next to him. Only the image of someone discovering us cowering in fear from two women keeps me from doing just that. My father holds up a hand, motioning for me to remain behind after Tony and Lee leave. I drop back into my chair as he shuts the door and takes the seat that Nic vacated.
“This is going to be like a fucking land mine going forward,” he says. “I already feel as if I have one foot in concrete and the other in dog shit.”
We laugh even though neither of us finds anything that’s happened the least bit amusing. “I’m right there with you,” I acknowledge as a wave of pure mental fatigue washes over me. I’m the kind of exhausted that no amount of sleep will cure. The only thing that could possibly ease it would be a resolution without further bloodshed. And that’s about as likely as Santa dropping down my chimney on Christmas Eve.
“I know I don’t have to keep reminding you of this, son, but we have to exercise the utmost care going forward. If word gets out, it’ll be bad for everyone, but where we’re concerned, it’ll be catastrophic. Not only would our enemies be at our door, but our friends and family as well.”
“You’re not telling me anything I haven’t already thought of a million times,” I mutter uneasily. “We may have had few options, but the potential fallout keeps me awake every fucking night. We’ve betrayed the trust of so many people—fuck, I grew up with a big majority of them. In even the best-case scenario, how could there possibly be a good outcome to this mess?” Turning to face him, I ask bleakly, “Tell me in what world we’ll ever feel good about what we’ve done and continue to do?”
If I expect him to roll out one of his inspirational pep talks, I’m sadly mistaken. Hell, I’d want to punch him if he did. We both know you can’t take a frog and turn it into a prince—no fucking way. “We won’t,” he says flatly. “In every game, there must be a loser, no matter how much you wish differently. There will be regrets and doubts. As much as we hate it, there is no turning back now. We passed that point long ago. There is only one direction for us—forward.”
I pick up a pen from in front of me and toss it across the table in frustration. “The worst part of this whole fucked-up mess is deceiving Tony, Lee, and Nic. They’ve had our backs through thick and thin, and we’re planting a knife in theirs as a fucking thank you.” We’re both silent for a moment, each lost in our thoughts. The air around us is full of tension, but it’s not directed at each other. We went into this with our eyes wide open. I doubt either of us was aware of how bad it would feel to fuck over the people we cared about—but my father is right, there is no turning back now.
“This is about the worst possible time to be on babysitting duty,” he says wryly. “I don’t know Nina well, but I observed enough of the interaction between her and Minka to realize they could be trouble.” I don’t bother to defend her as he’s merely stating the obvious.
“Undoubtedly.” I nod in agreement. “When they’re together, Minka’s personality diverts attention from Nina’s. But make no mistake, Nina is a hellion when she wants to be. She has her sweet moments, but they’re usually only when you’re knocking on death’s door… after being poisoned.”
“And that is precisely why I’ve extended our protection to her. She could have handled things very differently when she found you that day, but she put herself at risk to help you. I always repay a marker when it’s called in—especially if I create the storm they need to be sheltered from. I don’t worry that much about Nic with Minka. She may damn well attempt to chop his dick off and feed it to him, but he isn’t privy to or involved in what you and I are. You can’t tell what you don’t know.”
“I’ll watch myself,” I say easily, but I’m smart enough to know it won’t be that simple. If Nina were to find out everything I’ve done, she wouldn’t stop at blowing my dick off. She’d probably kill me and revive me, only to repeat the process all over again. She may look like an angel, but there are horns on that halo.
My father chuckles as he shoots me a pitying glance. “I said something similar to a friend of mine when I met your mother. There have been many times through the years that I wish I’d run in the other direction. I love that woman, but she’d have the pope drinking and cursing in less than a week. If nothing else, she certainly taught me to never take anyone at face value. Everyone is made up of many layers, and you never truly know who they are until you’ve peeled most of them away.” He grins wryly before adding, “When that happens, it may well scare the hell out of you.”
“Hey, that’s my sweet little mother you’re talking about,” I say, attempting to keep a straight face.
“Hell, I love that she can bake cookies while describing in vivid detail how she’d kill you if you fuck up. That right there is a rare quality. She’s had my balls sweating on more than one occasion, and I’m man enough to admit it.”
“I’d call you a pussy, but you’d probably kick my ass,” I joke. “And she’s had the same effect on me too many times to count.” He gets that soft grin that only ever appears when he’s thinking of my mother. I might give him a hard time about it, but if I ever marry, I hope to find what they have. Some might consider their relationship volatile, but I recognize it for what it is: passionate. There is the typical
kind of devotion, and then there is the type that a fortunate few have. No-holds-barred, crazy, hard love. I want that. Wait—what? Before I can finish processing that insane thought, I’m discounting it as absurd. Becoming seriously involved with a woman would have been dangerous before, but now, it’s likely a death sentence for both of us. The distraction could get me killed, and the unlucky object of my affection would have a target on her back within hours.
Then why is Nina here?
What else could I do?
My motives are mostly innocent where she’s concerned, but with bringing her under my wing, am I putting her in even more danger? You started this whole fucked-up mess. You put her at risk for your own selfish purposes. “I had no choice, dammit.” When my father looks at me in confusion, I realize I said that out loud. Fuck.
In that eerie way that both he and my mother have, he appears to read my thoughts perfectly. “There are always options, son, even if you don’t like them. But there are also consequences to every decision you make. At times, good outcomes simply aren’t possible. In those instances, you protect your inner circle as best you can and recognize that there will be collateral damage.”
“You make that sound easy,” I say incredulously. “We’re not talking about getting a damn stain on your favorite shirt. Our bad day means loss of lives—potentially many of them. Who appointed us as the judge, jury, and executioner? How do we decide who lives or dies in this scenario? Draw straws? Best two out of three?” I snap my fingers in mock excitement before saying, “I’ve got it. Rock, paper, scissors. Or in our case, bullet, knife, or ax. It’s high time we invent our own type of game, right? Hell, imagine the fun with Mafia Monopoly. Beats bingo any day.”
I see his eye twitch, another sign of stress. We’re on the same team here, so I’m not sure why I’m taking my guilt and frustration out on him. There’d been no gun held to my head. I was in this predicament of my own free will. So why does a part of me blame him for it? I’ll make some lucky shrink very rich one day. “If you need me to be the bad guy, then I will. It’s certainly a role I’m used to playing.” His voice is heavy when he adds, “If there were a way to let you out of this, I’d do it. But if you walk now, you’ll lose what few options you currently have available. They’re not much, I know, but your name may well be the only thing that keeps Nina alive. You’d still be a Moretti. But without the family behind you, that’s like a king without a castle. As an outsider, you’d be too busy trying to cover your own ass to take care of anyone else. And if you think it’s hard to distinguish between friend and foe now, then imagine what it would be then.” Fuck, I hate that he’s right.
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