by E. M. Gayle
"She wanted to make something of herself without any help. It was my understanding she didn't want to trade on the Cullotta name."
I heard Ronin's scoff and imagined him trying to hide a laugh. Between what I'd read about him and what I'd witnessed at the party, I doubted he'd make it through this meeting without insulting Cullotta. It also sounded like the older man was full of shit.
There was a lot more behind Nova's apparent exile from her family than he was letting on.
I made a mental note to dig through that a little more. There had to be some witnesses somewhere who'd known the Cullotta's before Nova moved out. He'd put out some feelers in the Vegas informant network to see if he could shake something loose.
"Why do I feel like I'm getting the short end of this deal?" Ronin asked.
"Are you trying to insult me? Catherine is my firstborn and most valuable and intelligent daughter. She may not be a virgin, but that shouldn't be a big deal to someone like you. Your reputation implies that you would be more suited to a sexually experienced woman. Did I misunderstand the information I was given?"
Fuck. I wanted to punch that bastard for talking about his daughter like that. These two assholes didn't even deserve to breathe the same air as her.
I heard the scrape of a chair and what sounded like a scuffle. "We need eyes in that room." I sat up and leaned into the equipment as if that would somehow make the audio equipment tell me more.
"No can do. Judge gave us audio only. You want visuals, we gotta go back into court and try again."
"You ever talk like that about her again, and I will end you." Ronin's voice had lowered into a menacing growl. "She may be your daughter, but now that our deal has been signed, she is mine. You already exiled her once, now you need to forget she exists. I will never allow her to step foot in this house again."
Exiled. That sounded like information I needed to know. For Anthony Cullotta to exile his first-born daughter, something serious must have happened.
"This deal is supposed to bridge our two families, not divide us further. Did your father not explain the terms?"
I didn't have to see Ronin's face to know that Cullotta's words were like a slap in the face. Which left the real question—why was Cullotta still alive? Every scrap of research on Ronin had shown he was neither forgiving or particularly patient. If his intention was to kill Cullotta, the man should already be dead.
"I am familiar with every detail. But if you think a piece of paper and a handshake is going to allow you to disparage my fiancée, you'd be wrong. Stay away from her. Far away from her."
A sharp bang sounded from the room and I guessed that Ronin had slammed his fist down somewhere in the vicinity of Anthony Cullotta to punctuate his point.
"Otherwise, I'm coming for you personally."
"Jesus. This guy has some serious balls," the tech whispered. "Do I need someone to look into this woman? Uhh—" he glanced down on the paper he'd taken notes on. "Catherine, right? I don't remember seeing anything about her in the family history. Not sure how we missed that."
"No!" I hadn't meant to yell, but the idea that anyone else would take on the responsibility of digging into Catherine's past nearly unhinged me. Other than my boss, no one else knew anything about her. Because five years ago, she ceased to exist. And until I understood why and how involved she was in her father's organization, I wasn't going to blow her cover.
The tech eyed him warily, but he said nothing more about Catherine. Since I oversaw this entire op, I knew the team would defer to my judgement. I just needed to be more careful about who and what I let get to me.
My attention had wandered, and I'd missed Cullotta's response to being threatened by Ronin. It also sounded like Ronin had already left Anthony's office. Indicated by the older man calling in his lieutenant. I'd have to go back and listen to the tapes to discover what I'd missed. I could not afford to get distracted on this case. We were getting close to something, I could feel it. I just hoped someone was going to eventually lead me to those fucking diamonds. The fact they'd disappeared was driving me fucking crazy. Without them, I didn't have a chance in hell of an international conspiracy charge, and that was the goal on this case.
"Get Luca in here," Anthony screamed, either into a phone or through his door. I still wanted visuals. Since I heard no response to Cullotta's demand, I assumed he'd been speaking into the phone.
"I'm here boss." I recognized Luca's voice. Luca Altobelli, Anthony Cullotta's current right-hand man. Current because lately the Cullotta's had been having a loyalty issue and paranoid Anthony had a pattern of blaming his right hand for every transgression on his family. He'd tell them they were fired and they'd turn up dead or go missing. Mostly dead, though. Anthony liked making a bloody public point to his people. He wasn't exactly creative about it, but sometimes that wasn't necessary. Habits and routines could backfire on a man in his position.
"I want a man on Kavanaugh at all times. Who the fuck does he think he is coming in here and threatening me over my own daughter?"
"We could always call off the deal. I could take care of that piece of trash and leave his carcass in the desert for the animals to pick off. That would certainly send a message to his family."
"It would also start a war. With this situation between us and Romeo Rossi going down, I don't think we need to pick a fight with a rival family right now. There's enough tension already. But I do want to know what that fucker is up to. I don't trust him, or his family, and I wouldn't put it past them to double cross us."
There was a lot to unpack in what Cullotta said to Luca. But what I really needed him to do was to talk more about his dealing with Romeo Rossi. The diamonds had originated in Italy, and that had to remain my focus. More than this latest drama with Kavanaugh. Despite my personal feelings about the jackass.
"What about the diamonds?" Luca asked.
I perked up. Jackpot. The tech went on alert as well. The team may not have been briefed on every aspect of this case, but they did all know the endgame was all about those fucking blood diamonds. I was going to find out who had them and make sure they went down for smuggling them into the country. Honestly, I could look the other way on a fair number of illegal happenings with the mob, but there were certain activities, like funding terrorists, that weren't going to happen on my watch.
I only hoped I didn't have to take Vincent down with the rest of them. The champion boxer had enough to deal with. My interactions with the couple had been limited, and some were less than friendly. But they were close with Houston, and he continued to vouch for Vincent. It was enough to give me pause when it came to lumping him in with his father. I fully understood not wanting to be blamed for the sins of my father.
Cullotta had yet to answer Luca, and I could only imagine what I was missing. I glanced over to the tech. "Get the paperwork started for video. I'll get it in front of the judge again."
"On it now," he answered.
"The diamonds should have been on that plane. My money is on Romeo's new son as the person responsible for their disappearance. He can play the innocent boxer all he wants, but I've seen him fight, and I've watched him deal with his opponents. He's not afraid to get his hands dirty, and it was his goddamned plane. It's the only thing that makes sense."
Funny how, so far, neither of them had mentioned the missing manager. Since I believed he was the one who'd orchestrated the use of Vincent's plane, it stood to reason that he would be the most likely candidate for keeping the diamonds for himself. Unless he was dead, which is what I suspected had happened. Neither Cullotta or Rossi had a reputation for patience, and if they thought you were disloyal, then you were dealt with, immediately. They didn't wait to hear evidence. They turned judge, jury, and executioner on the regular.
"We're going to find them, boss. I guarantee it. We've got recordings from the night in question headed our way, as we speak. There's going to be a video that shows every single person who got on and off that plane that night."
; I looked over at my tech who shrugged and started typing at his keyboard. No doubt looking into whatever surveillance tapes Luca was talking about. If those existed they should have been handed over to us for processing.
Fucking criminals. I was sick and tired of them running this town, and law enforcement running around them with our dicks in hand. I wanted these men off the streets. Especially Cullotta. Whatever he'd done five years ago to exile his daughter probably had a heartbreaking story. Was she really kicked out of the family at age eighteen? My blood pressure rose. I wanted nothing more right now than to go to her and demand she tell me what happened to her.
But I couldn't do that. Not without compromising my case. She wasn't even supposed to know who I was. I should already have reported that she did to my superior.
"What about Nova? Do you want me to schedule a meet?"
"No. I am going to talk to my daughter, but it won't be with any advance warning. Bring her to me, but make it discreet. Don't alert Kavanaugh in any way. No one tells me when I can and can't see my daughter. Especially not some Irish trash."
If I were Luca, I would have had a hard time not pointing out to my boss that bringing the Irish trash to town was his doing. And if he hated them so much, why the hell was he giving his daughter to them?
“Oh, and make it soon, but make sure she is alone so we can have a proper reunion. The sooner I get her in line the better. And for God’s sake, don't trigger any alarm bells at The Sinclair. We don't need them calling the feds into this."
I glanced down at my watch, noting the time. I knew for a fact that Nova was currently at her shop working on final fittings again for her fashion show. I'd looked at her calendar the last time I'd been in her suite. Unlike most of the world, she stayed old school with her to do lists and her schedule, opting for this monstrosity paper notebook she lugged around in her bag that she took everywhere.
I had a few hours to add some extra surveillance at The Sinclair, if we were able to get the proper clearance. Otherwise, I was going to be on my own. No way in hell did I want that bitch Luca anywhere near Nova without me at her back.
Fuck. This was getting complicated.
15
Nova
I stepped off the elevator and hesitated in the hallway. The day had been one of the longest this week, and every one of my muscles ached. And these ridiculous heels were not helping. Bending over, I unfastened the straps and removed the three-inch heels. I normally took a ridiculous amount of pride in how easily I got around in these things. It had taken months to get used to them and lots of time in the gym for my feet and legs to adjust.
I hooked them on my fingers and headed in the direction of my suite. I needed a glass of wine and a hot bath. Maybe even a book. Although I was so tired, I wasn't sure even a great story could keep me awake. I'd decided at the last minute to include some of the sketches I completed the other night in the upcoming show. Which meant a mad dash to make the new designs in time.
My stomach growled as I reached for the card that gave me entry into my temporary home. When was the last time I'd eaten? I remembered the late-night dinner with Rock, but everything after that was a blur. God, I hoped there were leftovers from that in my fridge because otherwise I'd have to wait for room service. I closed the door behind me and slid the extra locks in place.
At my request, Gabe had beefed up my private space security when I'd moved in, and for the most part, that made me feel a little bit safer.
"About time you showed up."
I screamed at the disembodied voice coming from the dark recess of my living room. The blinds were closed and no lights were on so I couldn't see a thing.
"Jesus Christ, Nova. Is that necessary?"
"Is it necessary for you to break into my apartment and scare the hell out of me, Ronin?" I deadpanned.
The light next to one of the plush club chairs clicked on and the light fell perfectly across his face and shoulders. The man was so darkly beautiful it almost hurt to look at him. Even the light seemed to caress him. "I thought you'd be used to finding strange men in your suite late at night by now."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" I asked still clutching my shoes to my chest. The only man who ever came here was Rock, and I didn't see how Ronin could possibly know that. Rock Reed took great pains to make sure he wasn't seen.
"Exactly what you think."
Of course. He was going to make me play games about any information he may or may not have. Too bad I was too tired to bite. He could take his games and go play them somewhere else.
"What do you want?" I finally asked, dropping my bag and shoes on the table before heading to the wine cabinet to retrieve the red wine I'd been dreaming about since I left my studio.
Ronin's grin crossed his face, nice and slow, as if he wanted to savor the moment before he struck with whatever he planned to say next. Sadly, I was too exhausted to brace for it.
"I came to talk about our wedding."
"There's not going to be a wedding." I froze as soon as the words came out of my mouth.
"Excuse me?"
At least his smug grin had disappeared. I didn't like the feeling I got when he used that look of superiority on me. It made me defensive, and apparently, reckless.
"I'm sorry. That came out wrong." I tried to backpedal, even though Ronin was not the kind of man to just let this go. "It has been a really long day, and I'm not thinking straight."
Ronin rose from the chair like a fallen dark angel. His perfectly fitted black suit, black tie, black shoes drew my eye from the floor to the top of his head. If I didn't already have someone in my life, I might have considered this marriage arrangement. Well, maybe. I wasn't sure I was cut out to play mafia wife. Being away from my family for five years had given me perspective. And I had a feeling Ronin was more like the scary devil hiding in plain sight than an angel. To be married to him would not be an easy thing.
"Somehow I doubt that was a Freudian slip." He paced in my direction and I forced myself not to back away from him. If nothing else, I had to stand my ground or there would be no hope of negotiation. Cowards never got anywhere with men like him.
"Maybe not. But I am exhausted. Tonight is probably not the best for this discussion."
"I beg to differ. Maybe you are ready to be honest. You can play the game, and you actually do it well, but something tells me there is more going on with you than you let on. I have a signed, lucrative contract from your father that doesn't activate until we are married. Are you telling me that contract is worth less than the paper it is written on?"
I shook my head. How had I gotten myself into this quicksand, so quickly? This shouldn't have happened. But it did, so I was going to have to follow through. "I'm sure it's quite valuable. But is this really what you want? To marry me?"
"Why wouldn't I?"
Clearly, he was going to make me spell it out. "You don't strike me as the kind of man who is ready to settle down."
"You don't know me, Nova. Don't presume to know my mind."
"You're right, I don't. And you don't know me. That's exactly my point. This arbitrary and outdated method of marrying the families together is absurd. It may create a truce or even a temporary alliance, but more often than not it's simply smoke and mirrors. It's all bullshit."
His eyes narrowed and his face darkened. I didn't know if he was pissed or bored. Either way, I got the impression he was about to explode.
"You make a lot of baseless assumptions about family business for someone who knows nothing about the actual business."
"Why is that? Because I'm a girl? You cannot be so naive as to think that because you exclude us, we actually allow you to keep all the secrets. I guarantee you, there isn't a female in the family who doesn't know what the hell is going on." By the time I finished, I was practically yelling. I was so tired and out of sorts, I'd completely lost control.
"Well, thanks for the tirade," he smirked. "But my comment didn't mean shit about your gender. I was referring
to your five-year exile. If you haven't been part of the family, then you don't know shit about the business, which is fine, because you shouldn't."
"My father told you that?"
"No, he did not. But I did my research before coming here. While information about Catherine may be scarce, Nova is an open book. However, when I put the two of you together, I get a complete picture. You left on your eighteenth birthday and haven't been back since. Which, in our world, is unusual. I don't even see any evidence you've been living under family protection, which pisses me off, by the way. So, tell me. Why were you exiled on what should have been your most important birthday? I mean, I would have expected him to have a husband contract already in place. Someone high-level even. To ban you makes no sense. Unless you did something really wrong."
I took a moment to catch my breath and let his words sink in. I don't know why I didn't expect him to know more about me than I wanted. If nothing else, my father would have told him I wasn't a virgin. Virgins were used for the high-level negotiations.
"You just assume I did something terrible, instead of the other way around."
He shrugged. "All I know is, it's information your father left out of the negotiations, and I want to know why. Hiding information is not usually a sign of good faith."
I sighed. "This wasn't how I imagined spending my evening. Talking about my father was the farthest thing from my mind."
"Why? What happened between you two?"
I put my shoes on the table and dropped into one of the nearby chairs. I truly couldn't stand for a minute longer. I hated thinking about that night. All I could see and feel when I did was the cold as ice rage I'd seen on his face when I lied to him about my virginity. That he hadn't exploded still surprised me. I believed my mother's presence saved me.
"My father did arrange for me to marry as soon as I turned eighteen. He was going to send me to Italy to marry one of the Rossis." I doubted I needed to explain to Ronin who they were. Romeo Rossi and his family were considered the most powerful family in Italy and most of the United States. They had a strong presence here in Vegas, as well. "When he explained my obligation, moments before my birthday party was to begin, I panicked. Honestly, I was terrified. So, I told him I wasn't a virgin."