3. Chapter 3
3
Not long after Alessandro went in the bathroom, the sound of running water shut off. Silence drowned the air. Then, echoes of footsteps on the marble floors chased away the quiet. Elyse's mouth parted in surprise when he reappeared in their bedroom. The bastard hadn't run from her, after all. A stoic expression graced Alessandro's face as he stood before her. He held a bottle of water in one hand and a clean towel in the other.
He offered the water to her. "Drink."
Green eyes widened as she accepted it. "Thank you."
Elyse took a sip. The water soothed her parched throat. Alessandro said nothing. He simply watched her as she eyed him over the rim of the bottle. Her husband's mood remained a mystery. His intentions were unknown. She set the water on the nightstand and glanced at the towel in his palm. Elyse was suddenly all too aware of one unavoidable fact. His savage fucking had turned her in a sore, sticky, broken mess.
A blush rose on Elyse's cheeks. "Is that for… me?"
" Sì ."
With an awkward cough, she reached for the towel. "Thanks."
He nudged her hand aside and said, "Allow me."
Alessandro climbed onto the bed and spent the next few minutes cleansing her. The warm, damp towel was heaven on her aching body. Every touch felt like a worshipping caress. He was being so achingly gentle and thorough. Earlier, Alessandro had taken so much from her. Now? He seemed ready to give again. Elyse almost melted under his tender care. Her devil was an angel once more, and these shifts were knocking her off-kilter. It felt as though Alessandro was trying to speak through actions instead of words.
But what was he trying to say ?
When Alessandro finally finished his task, he pulled her into his arms. Their bodies were close. His mind didn't feel as far away as it had been moments ago. She nestled her head on his solid, muscled chest, her very favorite spot, right above the precious, calming beats of his heart.
Tracing the tattoos across his chest with her fingertips, Elyse mumbled again, "Thank you."
Quietly, he replied, "Do not thank your husband for doing what must done. I will always take care of you. No matter what ."
"Even when everything feels like hell?"
" Especially when it feels hell ," muttered Alessandro. "Without you, Elyse, nothing matters."
The void within felt less empty as warmth flooded her heart. She ventured to say, "Seems like you're in a better mood now.”
" Sì ," he muttered, "and no ."
Another non-answer. Elyse reached for him, her fingertips gently grazing his cheek, as she sought to rebuild a connection. "I wish I knew what you were feeling."
Alessandro's hands wandered to her breasts, fondling the ample swells and plucking at her nipples in a mindless, distracted way. He grimaced. "You… are not upset with me?"
A sad smile lifted the corners of her mouth. "Not in the way you think."
Guilt crossed Alessandro's face. His hands fell away from her chest. "You look worn out."
She almost laughed. No shit. Alessandro had fucked her into a stupor. Exhaustion was about to claim her. Elyse resisted the pull by stifling a yawn and leaned over to rain kisses across her husband's chest, trailing up to his jaw. She whispered, "I'm not too tired to listen, though. If there's something you want to tell me."
Hesitation creased his brow, but Alessandro appeared to consider her offer for a moment. The tide was turning. "I—"
Elyse prompted eagerly, "Yes?"
But, then, he wavered, choosing to retreat instead. "Never mind. I have put you through enough for one day. Rest, cuore mio ."
Alessandro released her from his embrace and rolled over to the other side of the mattress. His back was turned toward her. He seemed determined to sever himself from his father's death and the monumental weight that now rested on his shoulders as the new capo .
She hid her disappointment, muttering in wistful tones, "Good night, Alessio."
No longer touching, husband and wife lay side by side in the dark, mere inches separated the two of them, but she found herself yearning for him. He felt distant yet again. This couldn't continue between them. Small fractures would only lead to an irreparable rift. The two of them had enough to contend with outside their bedroom walls. They couldn't afford to become their own worst enemies.
As she gazed at him in the dark, a swell of sadness hit her chest. Elyse wanted to give her husband the benefit of the doubt. He was a strong man, intelligent, too, capable of holding his own against those who wished him dead. Most likely, Alessandro would be able to shoulder the burdens that loomed ahead, but, no matter how strong or intelligent or capable he might be, the man was only human, and everyone had a breaking point.
Was Alessandro edging too close to his point of no return?
With this troublesome thought tunneling through her mind, Elyse fell into a restless slumber.
As sunlight cut through the grayness of dawn, Elyse awoke in a grim mood. She was completely alone in bed. The other side of the mattress felt cool to the touch. Where was Alessio? She was about to go look for him when a chime echoed through their bedroom. Elyse rolled over to the nightstand for her phone. The screen lit up with a text from Benny.
This could only mean one thing. He found something substantial about Tommy Wilkes. Elyse had him on the phone within seconds.
"Doc," Benny greeted her .
" Benny, " acknowledged Elyse.
"I hear you are wearing new ring on finger. Pozdravlyayu . Congratulations."
His words carried the thin, raspy tinniness of a lifetime smoker, and he spoke with a hard-to-place accent of a native-born Russian who had come to Brooklyn in his early twenties. Articles like the's and a's were dropped at random. Some words reflected the harsh-sounding Russian h's and softer e's while others possessed Brooklyn's heavy aw's . The familiarity of Benny's voice left her with an unexpected burst of nostalgia. Talking to Benny again made Elyse feel connected to her old life. Another world where everyone referred to her as Dr. Romero and not Signora Vitale .
"Thanks," Elyse laughed quietly. "News travels fast."
"Only because I know right people. How is married life?"
"Not bad. But enough about me. I'm much more curious about what you have to tell me."
Benny snorted. "Always business, business, business with you. No time to catch up with old friend?"
"I'll make time for friends," she replied in pointed tones, "when I'm not paying an arm and a leg to talk to him."
“I see marriage has not changed you, doc. Still as abrasive as ever.”
Elyse ignored his jab. "Tell me about Tommy."
" Fine, fine ." Benny sighed in resignation, muttering, "As you know, he was gun for hire. Wilkes was known to be very good at his job. He had been in business for ten years before, you know, your man sent him to sleep with fishes."
Concern creased her brow. Tommy was no amateur, then. Whoever hired him had been very serious about killing Alessandro. Unease fluttered across Elyse's mind as she processed this realization. "Anything else I should know?"
"Well, for his last job, Wilkes was hired to target your husband, but also..."
As his voice trailed off, Elyse urged, " Go on ."
"I believe he was looking for woman."
"A woman?"
" Da ."
"Who was she? What did he want with her?"
"I'm not sure. But they called her— Gianna's lost lamb ."
"What was Gianna's last name?" demanded Elyse.
"They wouldn't tell me, doc. Sorry."
A chill slid down her spine. Questions shot across Elyse's mind like rapid-fire missiles. Had someone sent Tommy Wilkes to find and murder her , too? Was that someone... Valentina? Perhaps, the blonde bitch had been trying to kill two birds with one stone. This mounting suspicion prompted her to address the million-dollar question, "Who was Tommy Wilkes working for, Benny?"
Benny mumbled, "I could only get to middle man. I'll get you name you want next time."
"Then tell me more about the middle man. What was his role in their arrangement?"
"He was assigned to pay Wilkes once both kills were confirmed."
Both? It appeared Tommy hadn't only been looking for Gianna's lost lamb . He'd been hired to kill her, too, along with Alessandro. Elyse scowled as she pressed Benny for more intel, "Did he mention the names of any other associates?"
"Unfortunately, he was no snitch. I couldn't get much out of him."
"At least, give me his name. Please ."
"Javier Santos."
Javier Santos meant nothing to Elyse, but she tucked the name away for safekeeping. Who knew where this rabbit hole might lead? She intended to start asking around about Javier. This man seemed to be the key to finding the fucker who wanted them dead.
Just then, Elyse heard some noisy voices in the background from Benny's end. He said in distracted tones, "Hey, doc? I got to go."
"When will you be free to talk again?"
"Maybe in day or two. Give me time to dig around for more names."
"Okay, thanks."
" Da svidania , doc."
"Bye, Benny."
They hung up. Elyse rolled out of bed right as Alessandro re-entered their bedroom. He drawled, "Good morning, wife."
Their eyes met from across the room. Her heart thumped. Elyse recognized how dangerously close she had come to being caught. If Alessandro returned two minutes earlier, he would've walked in on her phone conversation with Benny. Elyse tried not to look as though she might be hiding something. She greeted her husband as normally as possible, "Morning."
"Did you sleep well last night?"
"Yes," Elyse answered with a wary expression, "and you? "
He smiled cheerlessly. "Like shit."
"I'm sorry to hear it." She tried to approach him, offering, "Would you like me to make you some coffee?"
" No ." His smile faded away as he inquired, "Who were you talking to earlier?"
She froze in mid-step and wondered if her husband had heard any snippets from her discussion with Benny. The door had been closed, but one could never be sure of anything.
"Just trying to find a priest for the funeral," Elyse fibbed.
Alessandro's expression relaxed. "Have you found one yet?"
"Almost." She studied him closely. Her husband seemed to believe her. Guilt bloomed in Elyse. She blurted out, "I didn't get a chance to tell you yesterday, but my meeting with Antonia went better than expected. I think the Svizzis will stay on our side as long as we benefit them more than Domenico can."
"Good." Alessandro nodded in approval. "Then let us do everything we can to pit Domenico and Carlo against each other."
Her husband was looking at her with trust in his eyes. No suspicion whatsoever. Guilt ate at her some more. She didn't want to lie to Alessandro. Not at all. Elyse suspected, though, that she needed to look into Javier Santos a lot more before coming clean to her man. At this point, an honest confession would only antagonize him. She possessed nothing to report. More substantial information would be necessary to convince Alessandro that her efforts were worthwhile. She wanted to show him that knowledge was power, and it'd only help him become a stronger capo . Even stronger than his father.
Most importantly, Elyse wanted to determine whether or not Valentina hired Tommy Wilkes to kill her and Alessandro. If Valentina was innocent, the real enemy was still lurking in the shadows. Or even masquerading as an ally.
Beside her, Alessandro cleared his throat. The sound drew her attention back to him. She glanced over. "Yes?"
"What are your plans today?" Alessandro's expression appeared unbothered. In truth, her husband seemed disturbingly composed. He looked nothing like the crazed beast who had fucked her until she nearly passed out last night.
Elyse pursed her lips. If her husband wanted to pretend as though everything was fine, then, Elyse decided, she was willing to play along. She decided to switch to business matters, informing him, "I'm finalizing the details for the funeral today."
Alessandro's eyebrows perked up. "So soon?"
Elyse gave a hesitant nod and continued, "I narrowed down some options yesterday. In terms of venues and such. But I'm still undecided on the guest list. One hundred feels like a good number, though."
Form the get-go, Alessandro hadn't wanted anything to do with his father's funeral, so it'd been impossible to get any input. She'd selected this number intentionally. One hundred or more would mean that her husband preferred a larger, grander venue. One hundred or less suggested that a smaller venue would suffice. After what Alessandro shared with her about Renata's death and the despicable way Vincenzo handled it, Elyse doubted that her husband wished to give his father any semblance of a dignified service.
She hoped, in this instance, the number might elicit some sort of emotional response. Enough of an opinion to gauge how much pomp and circumstance her husband was willing to tolerate. Elyse wanted to make sure that Alessandro was comfortable with her decisions even if he wanted nothing to do with them.
Disgruntlement emerged on Alessandro's handsome face. "One hundred seems excessive. The smaller? The better ."
It seemed her instincts had been on point. Elyse took care to maintain an inscrutable expression as she pressed on, "I've also been looking at some gravesites in Palermo. And Giarratana."
Vincenzo lived out most of his adult life in Palermo, but Giarratana was the town where he had been born. It was located about four hours away in the southern Sicilian province of Ragusa.
Her husband muttered, "I thought we agreed to let him sink to the bottom of the Tyrrhenian?"
With a cough, she stayed the course and tried to get a straight answer out of him. "I'm leaning toward Giarratana. What do you think?"
His mouth flattened. "Get him a plot in Palermo."
Alessandro didn't explain his reasoning, he never did these days, and it left Elyse feeling frustrated. If keeping everything low-key was his priority, then hosting a funeral service in Giarratana would certainly be less conspicuous than Palermo. The town was quite rural, and it was sparsely populated compared to the city. But Elyse didn't want to argue with him. Vincenzo was his father, after all, and she respected Alessandro's wishes. "I'll do that."
" Grazie ."
"You're welcome," she replied. "Anyway, I guess I should trim the guest list if one hundred is too much. "
At this, Alessandro finally showed some interest in their discussion. He inquired, "Who is on the list so far?"
"Family from your father's side, a few from your mother's side, key members from our clan, and some representatives from allied clans."
With so many important mafiosi in attendance, security concerns stood at the forefront of her mind. Elyse didn't know whether it'd be smarter to invite the Berlusconis, so she could keep a watchful eye on their every move, or bar Domenico and Cara from attendance altogether. After the shit they pulled in the past, who knew how much blood they intended to spill this time?
She turned to Alessandro for guidance, "Should I invite... Cara?"
He seemed to catch her drift. "Worried about Domenico?"
"Of course."
"My men have him under close surveillance. So far, it seems he does not have plans to fuck with us."
"The funeral would be a prime opportunity to take everyone out at once, though."
"Then, maybe, he needs to die before the funeral." Brown and blue-gray eyes darted away for a moment, glancing at a lighter that sat on top of a dresser. Alessandro then turned back to Elyse, adding, "I can make it look like an accident."
She laughed nervously. Her husband was probably plotting to set Domenico on fire at the moment. Elyse couldn't tell if he was being serious or not. Murdering Domenico in cold blood would throw a wrench into all of their carefully laid plans. "Does this mean the Berlusconis aren't invited?"
"No, we should invite them."
Elyse clenched her jaw to keep it from dropping. Was this the best course of action? Her apprehension thickened into full-blown anxiety. "You sure?"
" Sì ," Alessandro confirmed. "If Domenico chooses to be disrespectful at my father's funeral, no one will flinch if I blow his brains out."
"Don't get too trigger-happy," Elyse warned. "You might start a war that we're not ready to win."
"I will let him live," promised Alessandro, "as long as he does not piss me off."
Sighing, she pretended not to hear him since he was clearly not listening at all. "Would you like to review the revised guest list before I send out the invites?"
"No need," he replied, "I can trust you, no?"
For some reason, Elyse got the sense that her husband wasn't merely asking about the funeral arrangements. She looked at him with absolute sincerity. "Of course, you know I have your best interests at heart, Alessio. If anything, I wish that you'd trust me more."
"What do you mean?"
"You don't share much with me, and I want to know what's bothering you."
A pained expression struck his handsome face. "Elyse, I—"
A knock sounded at the door, interrupting the flow of Alessandro's words. Elyse heard Monte's voice from the other side of the door. In Italian, he was calling Alessandro away for urgent business. Her husband cast her an apologetic look. "I should go."
"Go, then," Elyse urged, "and be careful. I'll check in with you later."
He didn't go, though. Not right away. Instead, Alessandro's long legs strode over to close the distance between them. For a moment, he simply stood before her like a fallen angel, his shine obscured by darkness. As they gazed at each other, her husband reached over to brush his thumb across her lower lip. Surprisingly, there was nothing sensual or suggestive about his touch. The gesture was all emotion and pure affection.
He expressed in soft tones, "You are too good for me, wife. I know this well."
Goodness had become such a relative term in their world. Elyse didn't know whether or not she could be good anymore. Not if she wished to live and protect others from dying. Elyse smiled faintly. "If that's what you believe, I don't think you see me very clearly. I'm only trying to survive."
Alessandro vowed as he always did, "I will not let anything bad happen to you."
"Just don't die on me," she countered, "before you see my skin wrinkle and my hair turn white."
Brown and blue-gray eyes flickered with surprise then with amusement. "That may be the most romantic thing you have ever said to me."
She admitted, "I stole the line from you."
"No wonder," he grunted with a ghost of a smile.
It was his first real smile since the news about Vincenzo's death had wrung their lives inside out. She didn't know when Alessandro would be ready to open up to her, but this felt like a promising start. She was willing to be patient. Elyse chose to hope for the best as Alessandro kissed her goodbye. It was only a chaste peck on the mouth, but, to her, his lips tasted sweeter than paradise.
After Alessandro left with Monte, Elyse got to work. She went over the budget for Vincenzo's upcoming memorial service. She touched base with Mariposa De León and Antonia Svizzi. She dove deeper into Valentina's possible ties to Tommy Wilkes and Javier Santos.
By 4 pm, Elyse was drained. She decided to take a short break from her seemingly endless to-do list. A nap would've been divine, but, instead, Elyse decided to tidy up their master bathroom, do some laundry, and reorganize some of the clothes and jewelry in her closet. There was a staff full of maids assigned to the household chores, but she wasn't comfortable with letting others wait on her hand and foot. Elyse always tried to do what she could to make their jobs a little easier.
While Elyse was sorting through her jewelry, she picked up the gold necklace gifted to her by her father-in-law. She moved it from her jewelry box to their lockbox. As she set it down, a thin crack running along the side of the medallion caught her eye. Had the fracture always been there?
Weird .
Curiosity compelled her to use a needle to pry it open. She worked to loosen the rift for several minutes. When the two halves of the gold coin came loose, a piece of black plastic fell out. Elyse gasped when she realized that it was a memory card. An onslaught of conspiratorial questions descended upon her like an avalanche. Who'd planted the card in the medallion? Did Vincenzo know about it when he gifted her the necklace?
Elyse rushed over to her laptop and tried to plug in the memory card. Unfortunately, none of the slots seemed to fit. The card was too outdated for her laptop. Mierda . She set her jaw.
Undeterred, Elyse left her room and tracked down Luca. "Do you know where I could purchase an adaptor for an older memory card?"
The younger man blinked. "An adapter?"
"Yes."
Luca frowned thoughtfully. "Marcello runs a side hustle for refurbished computers and laptops. He is good with technology. He might be able to help you. "
"Marcello?" she echoed. "You mean, the young man who—"
"You saved in Paris? Yes, that was Marcello," Luca finished for her. "He definitely owes you a favor."
Elyse grimaced. Technically, she owed him for saving Alessandro's life, but she wasn't about to turn down his help. "Can you get in touch with Marcello for me?"
"Of course, Signora ." Giving a curt nod, Luca left on his mission.
While he was away, Elyse finalized the funeral arrangements with the rest of her household staff. She kept everyone organized and on track, answered questions, and resolved problems whenever they arose. Three hours later, Luca returned to the palazzo with Marcello at his side. Relieved to have a break from funeral planning, Elyse was pleased to see them. As they stepped into the foyer, she greeted Luca. "Welcome back."
"I apologize for the delay, Signora ," said Luca. "The model of your memory card is quite old and no longer in use. We had to visit several refurbishment shops to find one that carried the right adapter."
"Thank you, Luca, for all of your help." She then gave Marcello an apologetic smile. "I really appreciate you for coming today as well, and I'm sorry for the trouble."
"I-It is no trouble!" Marcello stammered with his signature lisp. He seemed a little nervous for some reason. With a cough, he reached inside his trouser pocket and removed an adapter, he offered it to her. " Here . This one should work."
"You're a lifesaver," Elyse said gratefully as she took it from him.
Luca side-eyed at Marcello. "I do not know why he insisted on coming here. This was a one man job. I could have delivered the adapter on my own."
" Unlike you , some of us have manners," Marcello grumbled, glaring at Luca. "I wanted to thank Signora Vitale in person."
Surprise flickered across her face. "You did?"
Marcello turned to Elyse with an awestruck expression. " Grazie, Signora Vitale . I would not be standing here if you had not helped me that night."
Her expression softened. "No, Marcello, I'm the one who owes you. If it wasn't for your courage, my husband might not be alive today. Thank you for shielding him."
"It was nothing," Marcello insisted. "Any one of us would take a bullet for the boss. He has saved us more times than we could repay him. "
She tilted her head. "What do you mean?"
Marcello hesitated before continuing, "When I was a sixteen, I was was young and stupid. I did something to piss off the Berlusconis. Domenico would have killed my whole family if Cara had not persuaded her brother to stand down. Signor Vitale was the one who convinced Cara to challenge Domenico."
Elyse blinked as she processed this information. Malina once told her that Alessandro pursued women from other clans for favors and intel. Had he used Cara to save Marcello?
Without missing a beat, Luca nodded in agreement. "I would follow him to the grave. I owe Signor Vitale everything. My father betrayed the Svizzis in a business deal gone bad. I was as good as dead. But Signor Vitale gave me a chance to work for him when everyone else treated me like a dead man walking."
I cannot fuck around with loyalty.
Suddenly, it became clear to Elyse.
It is a matter of life or death in our world.
Men tended to forget a friend's charity when their lives weren't at stake. But men rarely forgot when kindness appeared at exactly the right moment to rescue them from certain death. Elyse knew Alessandro. Her husband was more of an opportunist than a saint. He'd been playing chess— not checkers —this entire time.
Alessandro must've noticed something worthwhile in Marcello and Luca and chose to toss them a lifeline at their lowest. As a result, her husband was able to earn their loyalty and assemble an army of men who'd go to war for him. In spite of her husband's doubts about himself, more than ever, Elyse was certain that Alessandro wouldn't need to follow in his father's footsteps to succeed as capo .
The beautiful bastard was brilliant in his own right.
Eyeing Luca and Marcello, she praised them whole-heartedly, "My husband is lucky to have men like you at his side.” Gratitude was twined with unease, though. Alessandro's tactics were as disturbing as they were impressive, and Luca and Marcello's loyalty was deeply admirable, but it all highlighted one troubling fact. Her husband wouldn't need to be so calculating if danger didn't follow everywhere he went.
Glancing at the adapter in her hand, Marcello asked with a blush, "Do you need help setting it up?"
Smiling, Elyse shook her head. "I think I can handle it from here."
Disappointment clouded Marcello's face. "You sure? "
" Signora Vitale is a surgeon, Marcello. I am sure she can figure out how to plug in a fucking adapter." With a snort of disapproval, Luca reached over and grabbed Marcello by the arm, dragging him away. "It is time for us to go. Before the boss catches you making eyes at his wife."
Blushing harder, Marcello sputtered indignantly, "I-I was not making eyes—"
"Shut up and come with me," Luca muttered under his breath as he shoved Marcello out the front door.
"Drive safe, you two," she called after them with an amused expression. "Thanks again for everything!"
Once both men left the palazzo , Elyse hurried back to her room, pulled out her laptop again, and inserted the adapter. At last, she could read the memory card. With a few clicks of her mouse, dozens of files and documents appeared on the screen. They were staggering and eye-opening. As she reviewed the contents of the data, three haunting words seized her mind. Knowledge was power . Those who wielded enough of it could turn any man into a king.
Or a queen into a corpse.