“You’re not gonna do that ’cause I don’t think you want Don Cordano to be any more pissed at you than he is now. He’s got Kat and Dante in his office, and he’s been raging at them for the last hour.” He yanked her out of his seat. “He’s using Kat as a substitute for you.”
Mia stared at him aghast. “He hurt Kat?”
Rev’s face turned hard. “Yeah. Wasn’t nice to see. Or hear. But it wasn’t my call.”
“I’m coming.” She grabbed her purse, but froze when she heard a knock at the door.
“Everything all right in here, ma’am?” Big Joe walked into the room.
Mia bit back a smile. Nico had meant what he said when he promised to keep her safe.
“Yes, thanks. I just … have to go home. There’s a … family emergency.”
Big Joe’s gaze flicked to Rev. His eyes widened for the briefest of seconds, and then his face smoothed to an expressionless mask.
“So what’s this?” Rev chuckled uneasily. “We got cops taking computer classes for little girls now?”
“Cops?” Mia looked from Big Joe to Rev and back to Big Joe. “He isn’t a cop. He’s…” She trailed off considering just how much worse the imminent beating would be if Rev told her father Nico had someone from his crew watching over her.
“A…” She frowned at Big Joe, willing him to fill in the blank.
“Dad looking to sign his girl up for the class,” Big Joe said quickly.
Okay. She could work with that, although the tension in the room was so thick she could cut it with a knife. Obviously they knew each other, but why did Rev think he was a cop?
“How old is your daughter?”
“Six.” Big Joe’s eyes didn’t leave Rev as he spoke, and she couldn’t decide if it was fear she saw in their blue depths or anger.
“This class is for girls nine to thirteen, but if you put your name down in reception, I’ll ask them to give you a call if I get enough interest in teaching something for younger kids.”
“Sure thing.” Big Joe jerked his chin at Rev. “So you know this guy?”
“He works for my father. He’s here to escort me home so I have to cancel today’s class, otherwise I would have signed you up myself.”
Big Joe frowned and she figured he was struggling to reconcile his instructions to keep her safe with the fact she’d pretty much told him she was being forced to leave.
“It’s okay,” she assured him, worried that Rev might start asking questions about their awkward conversation. “You can go … sign up your little girl.”
“Our little girl.” Rev smirked. “She’s got two daddies now.”
Mia could almost feel the waves of anger rolling off Big Joe. What the hell was going on? Rev clearly didn’t know Big Joe was on Nico’s crew because usually if two soldiers from feuding families bumped into each other, there would be some kind of fight. But they obviously had some kind of connection, and Rev’s cop comment niggled at her brain. Was Nico in danger?
“She’s got one daddy,” Big Joe spat out. “And he’s got a fucking bead on you.”
Rev laughed, tipped his head from side to side and cracked his neck, a habit that was really starting to annoy Mia. “You got nothing on me. And what the fuck would you do if you did? Write me a parking ticket?”
“Why do you think he’s a cop?” Although Mia hated Rev, and had no desire to enter into any form of conversation with him, she had to ask the question. If Big Joe wasn’t who Nico thought he was, or if he was some kind of undercover cop, she needed to know, not just for Nico’s sake, but also for her own. Knowledge was power, and that kind of information could buy her some very important favors.
Rev shrugged. “Because he is.”
Big Joe drew in a ragged breath and his eyes hardened, his entire body so tense Mia thought he might explode. She’d never seen this side of the usual affable and easy-going Big Joe. But then she was beginning to wonder if she knew him at all.
“Ma’am.” Gritting his teeth, he turned and walked down the hall.
Mia glanced over at Rev, his eyes distant in contemplation. “I just need to tell him something about the course. I’ll be right back.” She pushed past him, but before she reached the door, he snatched her purse from her hand.
“A little insurance policy.” He held the purse out of reach. “Not that I need it. I’ve got guys stationed at every exit. No way am I going back to Don Cordano empty-handed.”
With a huff of annoyance, Mia ran down the hall after Big Joe.
“Wait.” She caught up to him at the reception desk. “Why does he think you’re cop?’
Big Joe turned, quickly blanking his face. “I didn’t want my ex to know what I really did for a living.” He shrugged. “She’s not a discrete person, if you know what I mean. And I didn’t want this life to touch my little girl. So yeah, I made up a story about being a traffic cop. It was a good way to explain the odd hours and why I couldn’t always be around. Then my ex took up with that loser, and I didn’t see any point in changing the story. I figured, the less they knew about me, the better. Looks like that was a good choice ’cause I didn’t know he was a made guy or part of your father’s crew.”
Mia’s tension eased. “I was worried for a second there. I thought maybe you were an undercover cop and you were going to take Nico and his crew down.”
“No, ma’am. Nico and the crew don’t have anything to fear from me.”
Maybe not. But she hadn’t suffered through years of abuse without developing the ability to read the smallest nuances of expression as a matter of survival. Big Joe said all the right words, but the throb of the pulse in his neck, and the cold stare from a man she knew as a nice guy mobster told another story, one that she would unravel as soon as she got a chance.
*
“Nico, can you and your boys eat?” Nonna Maria greeted Nico, Luca, and Frankie at the door of her modest home. As always, her gray hair was tied back in a bun, and she wore her worn, red apron tightly wrapped around her doughy middle.
“Always. But I didn’t ask to use your house for the meeting so you could feed us.” Nico kissed his grandmother on both cheeks and followed her into the kitchen, every surface covered with pots, food, dishes, and utensils, the air thickly scented with tomato sauce and parmesan.
“It’s just a little something.” His nonna shook her head. “You’re too thin. Look at your uncle Santo before he passed. He ate well.”
Santo ate too well, and had to rely on Tony to handle discipline and enforcement. By contrast, Nico stayed in shape and could hold his own in any fight. His father had taught him that a leader who could physically dominate was more effective than a leader who had to rely on others to enforce his will.
After the obligatory testing of the dishes his nonna had prepared, he headed into the oak-paneled dining room where the men of the family were waiting. Decorated with faded seventies wallpaper, and stuffed with ornate wooden furniture shipped from Italy by his now-deceased grandfather over fifty years ago, the dining room was the heart of his nonna’s home and the place where all family business was conducted.
Nico had waited two weeks before requesting a meeting with Tony to discuss the family succession out of respect for Santo’s death and Tony’s injuries. His developing relationship with Mia was making him rethink his commitment to the Scozzari marriage, and he needed certainty in at least one area of his life.
Tony had not yet made a formal declaration of either support or challenge, and although Nico suspected Tony would not step down, he needed to hear it from his mouth so he could plan his political strategy going forward. If Tony decided to challenge him, Nico would need the Scozzari family support to push him aside. If he didn’t, Nico would be in a position to avenge his father without needing the support of the New York bosses, although his developing relationship with Mia added an unforeseen complication he hadn’t fully resolved.
After the usual five minutes of kisses and greetings, the men sat down to eat. Tony, Charlie Nails,
and Paulie Onions, a powerful capo in what was once Santo’s crew, sat on the left. Luca and Frankie sat on the right. As Nonna Maria’s adopted son and head of her house, Nico sat at the head of the table, and enjoyed a small moment of pleasure when Tony scowled.
Nico worked his way through dish after dish including crostini, lasagna, stuffed peppers, veal piccata, risotto, and ricotta pie while Nonna Maria hovered over his shoulder telling him to take more. Talk was of neutral matters—politics, family, city infrastructure and stray bits of gossip—but tension was thick in the air. Business was never discussed until the food was eaten and with the amount of food on the table, the idle chatter lasted a long time.
“I’m glad to see you’re recovering,” Nico said to Tony as he finished his last bite of cannoli. Nico had a sweet tooth but only when it came to his nonna’s desserts.
“A bullet in my shoulder and one near my heart and I’m still standing.” Tony puffed out his chest. “That bastard is looking at a long, painful death when we catch him. Three bosses. Can you fucking imagine who would have the balls to do something like that?”
“The Albanians.” Nico leaned back in his chair. “They’re moving into our territory. I’m sending men out every day to deal with them, but as soon as we put out one fire, they’ve started another.”
“My crew is having problems with them, too,” Tony admitted. “But once we have the alliance with the Cordanos, we’ll have the power to put them in their place.”
Nico stilled. “What alliance?”
“I’ve been in talks with Don Cordano since he returned home from the hospital.” Tony smirked. “We share a bond from our bullet wounds. He says his family will uphold the agreement made with my father to join the two families through marriage. I plan to marry Mia Cordano after an appropriate mourning period for my father.” His dark eyes glittered in challenge. “I figure she must be wild in bed under those crazy clothes. But that will just make taming her more fun. She needs a firm hand, and I’m the one to give it to her.”
Every muscle in Nico’s body stiffened, and he fisted his hands so tight under the table his fingernails dug into his skin.
“Something wrong?” Tony leaned forward, toyed with the knife beside his plate. “Are you upset that you’ll need a new cybersecurity consultant or that I’m taking your fuck toy away?” He jammed the knife into the table point first and it quivered upright. “Or maybe you’re disappointed that I’ll be the new Toscani family boss? You wouldn’t dare challenge me when I have the Cordano family support.”
Charlie Nails and Paulie laughed. Nico’s heart thudded in his chest as a potent cocktail of possessive and protective anger surged through his veins. He wasn’t surprised that Tony knew about him and Mia. Everyone in the Mafia spied on everyone else. But had Mia consented to this? Had she come looking for him in the casino on Friday night for a last fuck knowing that she was about to marry his cousin? Nico had no love for Tony, but he did believe in the sanctity of marriage—at least when it came to women. Although men were expected to have mistresses, women were required to be faithful to their husbands from the time of their engagement until death. Had she sought him out at the casino out of genuine interest, or was he supposed to be a last hurrah?
“What does Don Cordano get in return?” Nico struggled to keep his voice calm and even. “Is this all so he can sleep well at night?” The alliance would mean the end of Nico’s vendetta against Don Cordano. He would be denied his revenge in the interests of peace between the families. Tony had to know that he was taking away the one thing Nico had lived for since his father died.
“That’s between Don Cordano and me.” Tony grinned. “But I will tell you it has enough value to him that he has agreed to put us in touch with his key drug suppliers. I’ve been trying to corner the market in heroin for the last few years, but Don Cordano has the missing piece—connections with the biggest Mexican cartel, and once I’m in good with them, we won’t need the Cordanos anymore.”
“You plan to take over the Cordano territory? You don’t mean to end the war, do you?” Nico’s stomach twisted in a knot. “You want more bloodshed. More lives lost. More wiseguys in jail. That’s what will happen when you get involved with drugs. My father believed that. His father believed that. Look what happened in New York. Every family that got involved with drugs imploded. Drugs attract the feds. They attract the street gangs and cartels that don’t live by a code of honor, and have no issue taking civilian lives. I have tried to bring respectability to the family. Your ambition will destroy it.”
“My ambition will make this family great again.” Tony pounded his fist on the table. “And the alliance with the Cordanos will ensure I have the power to make it happen.”
Tony didn’t know about the marriage Nico’s father had arranged with the Scozzari family in Sicily. If Tony married Mia, Nico’s Sicilian bride would be the only way he could save the family from certain destruction. With the Scozzari alliance, Nico would be able to avenge his father’s death and the deaths of all Toscanis who had fallen to Cordano soldiers in the war.
Nico pulled his pen from his pocket and spun it over his thumb. He had to put personal feelings aside, just as his father had done. Although Papà loved Nico’s mother, Papà loved his family more. He had married his wife for the powerful alliance that came with the union, and he wouldn’t have risked the security of the family, even for the woman of his heart.
All his life, Nico had wanted to be like his father—a man of honor and respect, selfless and loyal, devoted to the family—a man whose blood had run through Nico’s fingers when the damn Cordanos shot him through the back.
Duty or desire?
Ruin or revenge?
*
“Mia.” Mama pulled open the door, dressed in mourning black out of respect for the fallen bosses. Many Mafia wives wore black all the time to honor the brothers, cousins, husbands, or fathers who had died in the endless wars for power. “So nice to see you again so soon.”
“Seriously, Mama?” Mia pushed past her mother and into the hall as Rev headed down to her father’s office. “Do you really think I’m here for a social visit? Rev was sent to drag me here against my will. He told me Papà hurt Kat. Where is she?”
“They’re waiting for you in your father’s office.” Mia’s mother swallowed hard and twisted her gold bracelet around her wrist. Mia remembered the night her father had given the bracelet to Mama, praising her as a good wife. Only later had she discovered that Mama had seen him with his mistress but had done her duty and kept her mouth shut.
Mia stared at the bracelet. “How bad is it?” Her mother never fidgeted or sweated or appeared anything less than fully interested in whatever a person had to say. She had perfected the look of a porcelain doll even though she was shattered inside.
“Your father is very stressed.” Mama gave her a wan smile. “He’s still recovering from his injuries, and poor Dante mishandled something to do with the business—you know he’s not good with numbers—and we have lost our consigliere.”
“The Wolf is dead?”
“I’m afraid so. They found his body this morning.”
Mia felt a chill through her veins. Had Nico really killed him? She’d never seen him as angry as when the Wolf threatened her, even the night he’d held his gun to her father’s head in the restaurant. But was she really surprised? Even she knew of Nico’s brutal reputation in an almost barbaric conflict. Her father had lived in fear of Nico for years, never leaving the house without a slew of bodyguards, and keeping the family locked behind a high wire fence.
“And, of course, you were seen in public with Nico Toscani, which is just one more thing to add to his stress.”
Mia stared at her mother and looked down the hall. Mama had just given her fair warning that the next half hour was going to be bad. Very bad. Maybe worse than anything she had experienced before. She had a sudden, overwhelming urge to ask for help. But only person who could help her was the last person who would walk through th
at door.
Nico.
She had opened herself up to him, and he liked her for who she was—with her dyed black hair and her ink, her feminist anthems, her punk clothes, and the attitude that brought out the worst of her father’s anger. He was interested in her work, respected her business, and made her feel both feminine and strong. She felt good when she was with him. Like two halves made whole. Like the woman she was meant to be. A woman powerful enough to take on her father and win. Alone.
“Okay.” She took a deep breath and walked down the hall, with her mother following behind. “I can do this.”
“Be strong, darling.”
Mia looked back over her shoulder when she reached the door to her father’s office. “I’ve always been strong, Mama. I just don’t know if it will be enough.”
A guard Mia didn’t recognize let her into the office, and she staggered back from the blast of heat. Her father had closed the thick, velvet curtains, and lit a fire in the fireplace. Four guards stood at attention near the windows, and another two stood behind his chair. He wore his usual dark suit and blue tie, his broad, angry face was twisted in a scowl. There was nothing to suggest he’d suffered a life-threatening bullet wound just over two weeks ago, and she wondered just how badly Kat, seated in a chair in front of his desk, had been hurt.
“Papà. I’m glad to see you are home. Kat, are you—?”
“Don’t lie to me, Mia.” Her father cut her off with a bark of anger. “You’ve taken advantage of my absence to whore yourself out to the Toscanis yet again. And by the time I’m done with you, I’m certain you won’t be glad of anything.”
Well, at least he didn’t drag things out. She stiffened her spine and met his glare with one of her own. “I’m doing work for his company.”
“Enough.” He thudded his fist on his desk. “The guard who went with the Wolf to your office after you refused Dante’s requests for help told me what happened. Nico Toscani was with you. He attacked the Wolf, and now the Wolf is dead.”
Nico Page 18