by Reilly, Cora
“My God, Lily. What happened? Are you okay?” Aria asked, but I had eyes only for the dead body in the center of the room. Brasci lay on his side, a letter opener sticking out of his stomach. I moved nearer and got down to take a closer look. The letter opener hadn’t killed Brasci. A knife had gone in right below his ribs and pierced his heart. That was Romero’s doing as I’d expected.
I raised my gaze to Liliana, who froze. “What happened here?”
She looked at Romero as if she wasn’t sure which lie to tell. I couldn’t believe them. “I want the fucking truth!”
“Luca,” Aria scolded. “Lily is obviously in shock. Give her a moment.”
“We don’t have a fucking moment. We have a dead Outfit member in a room with us. Things will get ugly very soon.”
Aria turned back to her sister. “Lily, are you okay?”
“I’m fine. He didn’t have time to hurt me.”
I didn’t give a fuck about any of this. We were in huge trouble. By killing Brasci, Romero had brought down the wrath of the Outfit on us at a time when we were already at war with the Bratva, not to mention a few MCs kept giving us trouble in Atlanta, Charleston and even New Jersey.
“Enough,” I growled, losing my fucking patience with all of them. I glared at Romero. “I want answers. Remember your oath.”
Romero’s gaze was steady. He’d always been a good soldier until now, but this wasn’t a small fuckup. For what he did today, there was only one logical consequence, and we both knew it.
“I always do.”
I pointed at Brasci. “That doesn’t look like it. Or are you saying that Liliana did this alone?”
Romero shook his head. “Liliana is innocent. Benito was still alive when I arrived. She’d stabbed him with the letter opener because he attacked her. It was self-defense on her part.”
Right. “Self-defense?” I echoed. I doubted Brasci had done anything that anyone in this house hadn’t expected him to do. These were the rules of our world. I narrowed my eyes at Liliana. “What did he do?”
“He tried to force himself on her,” Romero said.
“I didn’t ask you!” I snarled. Aria tried to appease me with a hand on my arm, but I had no intention of calming down. This wasn’t a minor transgression. That Liliana had stabbed Brasci would have caused major problems for her because she’d denied him something he had a right to as her husband. “And if he tried to consummate the marriage, nobody in this fucking house will see it as self-defense. Benito had a fucking right to her body. He was her husband, for god’s sake!”
Romero took a step forward but stopped himself. I eyed him, daring him to attack like he wanted to. It would take this fucking decision out of my hands.
“You can’t be serious,” Aria said, eyes imploring.
She knew what was expected on a wedding night as well as I did. Nobody would care that Liliana didn’t want to marry Brasci, that she had fought him. I didn’t make the rules nor did Dante, but neither of us had the power to change a tradition without the support of the other soldiers and their families. “You know the rules, Aria. I’m stating the facts.”
Aria shook her head. “I don’t care. A husband doesn’t have the right to rape his wife. Everyone in this house should agree on that!”
Aria was too soft for this world, too caring, but even she knew that most women were claimed on their wedding night. In the beginning I’d sometimes regretted that I’d spared her on our wedding day, but later I’d realized it had been the best decision of my life. If I’d hurt Aria on our wedding night, she would have never forgiven me.
Romero went over to Liliana and wrapped his arm around her.
Love. Father had always told Matteo and me that it was a weakness, and I had to admit he had been right. It weakened me, it weakened Matteo, and now it weakened Romero, and in consequence it weakened the Famiglia. My uncles would attack like vultures once word got out about this. “I told you this would end in disaster. So let me guess, Liliana stabbed her husband, called you and you finished the fucking job to have her for yourself.”
“Yes,” Romero said. “And to protect her. If he’d survived he would have blamed Liliana, and she would have been punished harshly by the Outfit.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “And now she won’t? They will put her on trial and they will not only punish her harshly, they will also accuse us of having set this up, and then there will be a fucking bloodbath. Dante is a cold fish but he needs to show strength. He will proclaim war in no time. All because you can’t control your dick and your heart.”
“As if you could do it. You’d take down anyone who’d try to take Aria away from you,” Romero said.
My eyes slanted to Aria. Her concerned blue eyes locked on mine. I’d burn down the world to protect Aria. If anyone tried to take her away, I’d kill them and anyone else who got in my way. “But Aria is my wife. That’s a huge difference.”
“If it was up to me, Lily would have been my wife for months.”
Did he really think about marrying her? Did he really think we were all getting out of this house alive? “Someone is going to pay for this. As Capo of the Famiglia I need to put the blame on Liliana, and hope Dante buys it and doesn’t start a war.”
Aria’s grip on my arm tightened, her eyes full of unshed tears. “You can’t do that.”
Romero got down on his knees in front of me, arms spread wide. “I’m going to take the full blame for this. Tell them I lost my mind and ran after Liliana because I’ve wanted her for months. I killed Benito when he tried to defend Lily and himself, but before I could rape her, you noticed I was missing and went in search of me. Then there won’t be war between the Outfit and New York, and Lily will get the chance at a new life.”
He meant it, but nobody would believe that story. Yet, that he would put down his life for Liliana showed how serious he was about the girl. What was it with the Scuderi women that made us all go insane? “If that’s the story we want them to believe, there’s something missing,” I said.
Romero nodded. “I will put my life down for this. Shoot me.”
“No!” Aria screamed, but I shook her hand off and stared into Romero’s determined eyes. I’d known him almost all my life. We’d partied together, got drunk together, fought and killed together. Next to Matteo he was the man I trusted most. That was why he had been allowed to guard Aria. I knew he would have never lain a hand on her.
Liliana moved between Romero and me. Fear twisted her face. Fear of me and my decision. I was used to that look from people around me.
“Please,” she whispered, eyes begging me, hoping to appeal to a side only Aria could reach. “Please don’t kill him. I’ll do anything, just please don’t. I can’t live without him.”
She started crying but it didn’t affect me like Aria’s tears did.
Romero got up and pulled Liliana away. “Lily, don’t. I’m a soldier of the Famiglia. I broke my oath to always put the Famiglia first, and I have to accept the due punishment.”
“I don’t care about any oaths. I don’t want to lose you,” Liliana said.
I reached for my gun, needing to get this over with, but Aria appeared in front of me and rested her palms against my chest, one palm over my heart, appealing to the part of me that had been dead before her—and in moments like these I wished it would have remained that way.
Her eyes held mine. “Please, Luca, don’t punish Romero for protecting someone he loved. He and Lily belong together. I beg you.” Her hands trembled against me, and her eyes were pleading with me.
I knew I should refuse her request, but I hated the thought of losing Romero. He was one of the few people I trusted at all. I knew he’d take a bullet for me, and more importantly for Aria. But I also knew that he’d never be as unconditionally loyal as he’d been because now his feelings for Lily would always get in the way.
I pried Aria’s hands off my chest, and her expression fell. “I can’t base my decisions on feelings. I’m Capo and have to make dec
isions that benefit my Famiglia.”
Romero stepped up to me, ready to accept my verdict. He wouldn’t beg. His eyes held no judgment for the decision he expected of me: a death sentence.
I held his gaze for a long time, and made my choice.
“You are my best soldier. The Famiglia needs you, and I don’t trust anyone with Aria as I do you,” I said as I rested a hand on his shoulder, surprising myself as much as him. “War has been inevitable for a while. I won’t end your life to postpone it for a few fucking months. We’ll stand together.”
Romero relaxed. He didn’t say anything, but I could see that he’d try to make it up to me for the rest of his life. He was a loyal man, a soldier I didn’t want to lose.
“Of course, we might not get out of this house with our lives. We’re surrounded by the enemy now.”
“Most guests are either drunk or asleep. We could try to sneak out. They won’t notice Benito’s death until morning; by then we’ll be back in New York,” Romero said.
I doubted we’d be that lucky. Picking up my mobile, I tried to call Matteo. We needed to figure out a way to get out of Chicago, but he ignored my call. He was probably busy fucking his wife. “Damn it. Matteo isn’t picking up his fucking phone.”
“Do you think something happened to them?” Aria asked.
“The only thing happening is that he’s probably fucking your sister’s brains out right now and ignoring his fucking phone,” I said. Romero and I carried Brasci’s body into the bathroom before Liliana went in there to change out of her ripped wedding dress.
The moment Romero went in to help her, and Aria and I were alone, she came up to me and wrapped her arms around my waist, her cheek pressed against my chest. “Thank you, Luca. Thank you so much. I won’t forget this. I didn’t think it was possible but for what you did today, I love you even more.” She shook against me as she lifted her head, tears running down her cheeks. I brushed them away. Fuck me. This woman held more power over me than anyone ever had, than anyone ever would.
Romero returned and Aria stepped back. Public displays of affection were something I had to limit, even around Romero.
“Done,” Romero said.
“Good. Now let’s get going. I don’t want to risk staying here a moment longer than absolutely necessary.” I held out my hand for Aria. She took it with a tense smile and I pulled my gun. I needed to get her out of this house alive no matter the cost. I opened the door and peered out into the corridor. It was deserted but the party was still going strong.
I signaled Romero that the coast was clear before I pushed the door open wider and stepped out, pulling Aria along.
We didn’t cross anyone’s path as we made our way to Matteo’s room. I knocked but, of course, the asshole didn’t open his door. He probably had his dick buried in Gianna’s pussy. I knocked a bit harder. Again nobody reacted. Aria threw me a worried glance, and I rammed my fist against the wood as loud as I could risk. And finally Matteo opened his fucking door, only dressed in his boxers and sporting a fucking boner.
“Didn’t you get the hint that I didn’t want to be interrupted when I didn’t answer your fucking call?” Matteo’s gaze moved behind me, and his lips pulled into a grimace. “I have a fucking bad feeling.”
I shoved him hard. “For fuck’s sake, Matteo, pick up when I call you. You need to get dressed. We have to leave now.”
“What’s wrong?” Gianna asked, coming up behind Matteo in a satin bathrobe. Her lips were swollen as if she’d been busy giving Matteo head. “Shit, something bad happened, right? Did the asshole hurt you?” She hugged Lily. Aria’s hand tensed in mine.
“He’s dead,” Liliana said.
“Good,” Gianna said. She patted Romero’s shoulder. “You did it, didn’t you?”
Romero smiled tightly. “Yeah, which brings us to the reason why we need to hurry.”
“Romero is right. We need to get out of this house before someone realizes that the groom is dead,” I said, losing my fucking patience.
“I always thought that I’d be the one to start a war between the Outfit and the Famiglia. Kudos to you, Romero, for proving me wrong for once,” Matteo said, grinning.
“I thought that too,” Romero said.
Everyone had thought that. Matteo was the crazy one. Romero had always been reliable, but Liliana had obviously changed that. I sighed. “I hate to interrupt your chitchat but we need to get the fuck going.”
Matteo and Gianna got dressed, and we left the room and continued our journey through the house. Every muscle in my body was tight with tension as I listened for the slightest sound of people crossing our path.
We took the second staircase in the back of the house down to the first floor and headed for the door that led to the underground garage. Most houses in this area had them because outside space was limited. There was the sound of steps from the corridor to the left of the door, and my body went into fight mode as I shielded Aria and raised my gun. Matteo and Romero did the same. Things had gone too smoothly until now, but that was over. Even with our silencers in place a shooting would create a certain amount of noise, especially if our attackers managed to cry out a warning. A bullet through the head was the only solution.
My finger on the trigger tightened when a blond boy turned the corner. Fuck. In the last moment, I stopped myself from shooting. His hair had saved him. It was Fabiano.
Aria gasped, her hand jerking in mine. She would have run to him, if I hadn’t held her in place. Fabiano’s eyes widened as he stumbled to a stop and pointed his own gun at us. He hadn’t been fully inducted yet, definitely hadn’t killed anyone yet, and he wasn’t good at hiding his emotions. Fear flashed across his face before suspicion took its place.
Aria pressed her palm against my arm, trying to force it down, but I kept my gun pointed at Fabiano. He was only a kid but a bullet from him was as deadly as from anyone else.
“What’s going on here?” Fabiano asked firmly, standing even taller than usual and trying to look like a man. With the gun and that serious expression, he almost managed to look like more than nearly a teenage boy.
“Put that gun down,” I ordered.
Fabiano laughed, but it sounded nervous and his eyes held fear. He would have to learn to hide it better if he wanted to survive in the Outfit—if he survived tonight. “No way. I want to know what’s going on.” His eyes moved from Aria to Gianna, then to Liliana.
“Why are you even running around with a gun? Shouldn’t you be in bed?” Aria asked and was about to take a step forward, but I pulled her back.
“I have guard duties,” Fabiano said with a hint of pride.
“But you aren’t inducted yet,” Lily said, confused.
“I started the induction process a few weeks ago. This is my first task,” Fabi said. The hand with his gun began shaking slightly. He would stand no chance against us, even if we didn’t have guns pointed at him. I would be at his side to knock him out in a heartbeat, and I preferred that scenario to killing him because of the woman at my side.
“Father gave it to you because he thought it would be an easy first job, right? Nothing bad ever happens at weddings,” Liliana said with a broken laugh.
“He gave me the job because he knew I was responsible and capable,” Fabiano said, squaring his shoulder. His eyes darted to me again, then to Matteo and Romero.
“You don’t really think you can kill all three of us, do you?” Matteo asked with a twisted grin.
Gianna shot him a glower. “Shut up, Matteo.”
“I can try,” Fabiano said. Aria’s fingers around my arm tightened, and her gaze was practically burning into me.
“Fabiano,” I said, trying to sound reasonable even though time was against us and I just wanted to get the fuck away. “They are your sisters. Do you really want to risk them getting hurt?”
“Why is Lily here? Why isn’t she with her husband? I want to know what’s going on. Why are you trying to take her with you? She’s part of the Outfit, not
of New York.”
“I can’t stay here, Fabi. Do you remember how you told me I shouldn’t marry Benito? That it wasn’t right?” Liliana said.
“That was a long time ago, and you said yes to him today. Where is he anyway?”
Liliana looked at Romero with an expression even a twelve-year-old boy could understand.
“You killed him, didn’t you?” Fabiano hissed, and he raised his gun again. “Was this some kind of trick to weaken the Outfit? Father always said you’d stab us in the back one day.”
Aria tried to move toward him again, but I pushed her back with a glare.
She narrowed her eyes. “He’s my brother!”
“He’s a soldier of the Outfit.” Maybe she thought because I put her first, other Made Men would also forget that their first choice should always be the mafia.
“Fabi, the Famiglia didn’t try to weaken the Outfit. This isn’t about power. It’s all my fault. Benito tried to hurt me and I stabbed him. That’s why I need to leave. Father would punish me, maybe even kill me,” Liliana said in a soothing voice.
Fabiano took a step back. “You killed your husband?” Matteo gave me a look over Gianna’s head. He was waiting for me to give him the go to shoot, and if it weren’t for Aria’s shaking body at my side, I wouldn’t have hesitated.
“I didn’t know what else to do.”
Fabiano pointed at Romero. “What about you and him? I’m not stupid. There’s something going on between you.”
“We’ve been together for a while. You know I never wanted to marry Benito, but Father didn’t give me a choice.”
“So you want to leave Chicago and the Outfit for New York like Gianna and Aria,” Fabiano said.
Liliana nodded. “I have to.”
“You could come with us,” Aria suggested. Her eyes found mine, begging.
I looked at Fabiano. “You could become part of the Famiglia.” My family wouldn’t like it, and I probably would have to kill a few to show strength.
Fabiano shook his head. “Father needs me. I’m part of the Outfit. I made an oath.”
“If you’re not fully inducted yet, it’s not as binding,” Matteo said. A fucking lie. Matteo and I would kill any initiate who decided to break off the induction, not to mention join the Outfit.