Chapter 16

Santino

“You know I love you, San, but why have you been hiding at my place all day instead of being home with your new wife? Don’t you two have a lot of…”–Albie coughs–“talking to do?”

I level him with a stare.

“Alright,”

he says. “In all seriousness, why aren’t you there with her? You married her yesterday and then abandoned her today.”

“I didn’t abandon her.”

“Did something happen?”

“No,”

I grind out.

He grins like the asshole he is. “Sounds like it did.”

“Shut up,”

I tell him, and he laughs.

“Shut up? What are you, a teenage girl?”

“Mia and I needed some space. That’s it. Besides, we needed to go over everything for the meeting with the Melccionas tomorrow.”

“Yeah, but we finished that this morning.”

“Your point?”

“I think I’ve already made my point and I know you’re not dumb.”

Yeah, his point is that I’m hiding the truth from him and Emilio about Mia. They’d think I was crazy. Hell, I think I’m crazy. I saw her, wanted her, and found a way to have her.

Mia is a young, innocent, and beautiful woman with her whole life ahead of her to live. Except right now, she’s down the hall, all alone with regrets fresh in her mind about tying herself to me and everything we did.

I’m hiding at my brother’s right now like a pussy when Mia could’ve run away at any point today. I don’t think she did, though. If she’s going to run, then I know she’d want the assurance that she won’t be chased. Because now that I’ve had a taste of her, no one else will do, and I’ll chase her down no matter what.

I really am a crazy motherfucker, I guess.

“I’m out of here,”

I tell Albie.

“Finally,”

he sighs. “I’ll see you in the morning. Go apologize for whatever you did or said that made you hide out here all day.”

I flip him off as I’m leaving and hear his stupid laugh as the door closes behind me.

Entering my apartment, I’m not sure what to expect, but it isn’t Mia curled up on the couch, asleep with the TV on. I’d like to believe she tried staying up waiting for me, but that’s just wishful thinking.

I turn the TV off and brush her soft hair away from her face and cup her cheek. She doesn’t stir, so I slide my arms under her and lift her off the couch.

I lay her down gently on our bed, pull the covers over her, then strip down to my boxers and slide into my side of the bed, making sure I keep my distance again.

* * * *

I wake up at seven, a little later than my usual because I didn’t set an alarm before I went to bed, and I shower and dress without waking Mia. I notice my note and the car keys I left for her yesterday on the counter are gone, and as my coffee brews, I write her another note, telling her I’ll be gone until tonight. I doubt she’ll wonder where I am, but I still want her to know.

We’ll have to talk eventually, but I can’t yet. I don’t want to argue with her and I don’t want to hear a repeat of anything I heard yesterday. I can’t fucking do that again.

All the paperwork we need for the meeting is at Albie’s from yesterday, so after my cup of coffee, I head over to his place and let myself in with my key.

“Hey,”

I greet, finding him in the kitchen.

“I could’ve sworn I locked my door last night,”

he says sarcastically.

“You did.”

“You could’ve knocked like a normal person.”

“I guess I’m not normal.” I shrug.

“You’re lucky I didn’t have company over, cooking me breakfast while naked. I wouldn’t want to tell your wife you’re seeing naked women when you’re not with her. Have you even gotten to see Mia naked yet? If not, think about how she’d feel if you saw a naked woman that wasn’t her. She might hold out longer out of spite.”

“Jesus, man.”

I rub my forehead. “Shut the fuck up and get ready. We’re meeting Leo, Luca, and Nico soon.”

“I’ll bet she looks good naked.”

He smirks, knowing it’ll piss me off. He’s always loved finding any way possible to rile me up. “Not taking the bait? Alright,” he sighs.

“Today is important, Alberto. We need to be serious. This was a part of the deal I made with Leo. We’re finally getting rid of the cartel.”

“I know this is serious, and I’m glad we’re getting them off our backs and onto someone else’s. Do you think the Melccionas will agree?”

“Luca said they took a hit recently, so they should leap at the chance. Plus, they were already in the drug game so they know how it works and have no inherent morality issue with it. They’ll gain the upper hand again from the Jamaicans again and the other gangs around their territory. Now, go shower and get dressed and be out here in fifteen minutes, ready to leave.”

“Sir, yes, sir.”

He salutes me and saunters off towards his room with his mug of coffee.

I pour a mug for myself while I wait, and by the time Albie emerges, Emilio has arrived.

“You didn’t invite me to this little coffee date of yours. Should I be offended?”

“Yes,”

Albie says. “San clearly likes me more.”

“I’m here because I knew you wouldn’t be ready on time otherwise. I can count on Emilio to be early.”

“Asshole,”

he grumbles, but knows I’m right.

We head down to the garage where our driver is waiting with one of our SUVs. I take the passenger seat while my brothers sit in the back.

When we arrive at the Carfano building, we’re greeted in the lobby by one of their foot soldiers who takes us up to the third floor and into one of the larger conference rooms. I already noticed the additional men in the lobby, and I see the extras they have strategically placed in the surrounding conference rooms to look as if they’re in meetings too.

All three men stand and shake our hands.

“Today will go exactly as we want,”

Leo tells us, the confidence in his voice leaving no room for an alternate outcome. It’s why he’s the head of the most powerful family in the city. He knows he’ll get his way no matter what, and has every resource at his fingertips to ensure it happens.

He's gained my respect, and I trust him to hold up his end of our deal to get us out of the Gulf Cartel’s business. Because if he doesn’t, then he won’t get my trucks, and without those, he won’t be able to fulfill his contracts and will lose all respect and hierarchy position in our world.

If I was a vengeful man who loved my father, I would probably rejoice in the beginning of the Carfano downfall. But since I’m not, and I’m not looking to be the new target of every man and woman fighting for the top of the criminal pyramid, I’m choosing to help him. It benefits me far more than it doesn’t. The main reason being Mia.

“How’s Mia?”

Nico asks, staring at me sternly.

“She’s fine,”

is all I give him.

His jaw ticks. “That’s it? She’s fine?”

“You could always call her and ask her yourself if you don’t believe me.”

He takes a step forward to say something else, but Leo cuts him off. “Enough. We need to remain focused. We saw how fine Mia was at the wedding, and if she wasn’t okay, she would have called one of us. You know that, Nico.”

Nico nods and steps back to where he was.

“Besides, don’t you recall how Luca’s relationship with Angela started?”

Leo adds with a little shake of his head.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,”

Luca mumbles, rubbing the back of his neck. “Don’t compare the two.”

“That’s right.”

Leo nods. “Your situation was different. You kidnapped Angela and kept her locked away in your apartment until she fell in love with you.”

“You kidnapped Cicariello’s daughter and she ended up in love with you?”

Albie asks incredulously.

“That’s a simplification of it and not everything that happened,”

he growls defensively. “Don’t make it seem like I forced her, Leo, or that she had Stockholm Syndrome or something. Jesus man, why did you have to drag me and Angela into this?”

“Because I had a point to make. You and Angela started the way you did and look where you are now. You never know with Santino and Mia. Give them time.”

I don’t know where this is coming from with Leo considering what he implied at the wedding, but I can only assume he was testing me or some shit, and now he can see that I don’t mean harm to Mia.

One of Leo’s men knocks on the glass door and opens it a fraction. “They’re here, Boss. There’s three of them and they’re being checked for weapons now in the lobby.”

“Thanks, Joey.”

The man nods and goes back to his post beside the conference room door.

“Let’s take our seats,”

Leo directs, and we all take seats that face the door so that when the Melccionas come in, they see us sitting as a united front.

A few minutes later, three men are escorted into the room by two of Leo’s men.

“Good morning, Lou.”

Leo shakes their leader’s hand first, then the other two, and I follow suit.

“Morning,”

Lou replies. “This is Sal and Frank.” He says to me, pointing to the men beside him respectfully.

“Good to meet you.”

We take our seats and Leo takes control of the meeting from the start, going over everything we discussed as Lou listens intently.

“So, you want to just hand this over to us? We have our own trucks to do so, but why?”

He directs the questions to me.

“My father made the deal when he was alive and I don’t want to be involved with drugs anymore. I never did. We came to you because we know the Jamaicans are trying to gain a foothold in your territory and have been succeeding recently. This is a way to have a direct link to the source. I’m sure you can work out a deal with them for your own product to sell, but that part is on you to hammer out later with my contact, Javi. We’re here to offer you that opportunity.”

“And there’s nothing in it for you?”

“There is,”

I tell him honestly. “I married Nico’s sister on Saturday, so I’m doing business with them now. I don’t have the time or inclination to continue my business dealings with the cartel. You and I both know pissing them off is not something one should do without expecting brutal retaliation, so we’ve chosen to find another transporter for them before moving on.”

“You seem to know a lot about my business and what we’re looking to do, Leo. You keeping tabs on your old uncle?”

Wait. Uncle?

Did he just say uncle?

“I have eyes and ears all over the city, Lou,”

Leo tells him. “You should know that. Just as I know you’re a man who will take this deal seriously. Am I wrong in thinking that?”

“No, you’re not.”

“I didn’t think so.”

Lou looks to his men on either side of him, and the one to his right gives him a subtle nod. “If I agree,”

Lou starts, “then I’ll need some assurances.”

“Of course. We’ll have a contract drawn up that we both agree on.”

We spend the next half hour going over his terms and conditions, and I give mine, and we end up with an outline for an agreeable contract.

“My lawyer will draw this up and will send you a copy to review before we meet to sign. Then we can set up a meeting with Javi and have everything laid out for him so there’s no delay in the transferring of hands.”

“Sounds good. I’m glad we came. I wasn’t sure what proposition you were going to lay out for me, but it’s better than I could’ve hoped for.”

“Good. I’ll be in touch within the next day or two.”

The three men leave the conference room with the same two men leading them out and down to the lobby again.

“That went just as you said it would.”

“Did you not believe it would?”

Leo asks, raising a brow.

“I did. It must be nice to get what you want all the time.”

He smirks. “It is.”

My brothers snicker and so do Nico and Luca.

“Did he say uncle?”

I finally ask, not able to hold back any longer. I didn’t want to look stupid in the meeting by asking in the middle of it.

“He did, but he’s not my uncle. My mother’s maiden name is Melcciona and Lou is her cousin. He likes to say he’s my uncle to make it seem like he’s somehow closer related to me than he is. I’ve never known him or thought of him as family, and don’t plan on it in my lifetime.”

“Interesting,”

is all I say, and Leo’s eyes narrow.

“It’s really not. Now, I want you to contact whoever you deal with from the Gulf Cartel and set up a meeting for the end of the week, preferably. We should have all the paperwork finalized by then.”

I pull out my phone and scroll until I find the number I need. I put it on speaker phone so I don’t have to relay the conversation afterwards, and it rings twice before the familiar raspy voice, thick with accent answers, “Hola, Santino. Como estas?”

“I’m good, Javi. You?”

“Bueno, bueno. What do you need?”

“We need to meet, Javi. This week, if that’s possible for you. I have something I need to discuss with you that’s important.”

I have to be careful with how I word things. Javi can be a friendly man, but he’s in charge of the shipments and transportation logistics in the Northeast for a reason.

“Sí, this week is good,”

he says. “Thursday night at the warehouse. Ten o’clock.”

“That works. See you then.”

I hang up and look to Leo who says, “I can have a surveillance team set up and waiting a few hours beforehand to ensure we’re covered. I want this handled properly.”

“You think I can’t handle it properly?”

“I’m not saying you’re incapable, Santino. I’m saying my family’s business is relying on everything going according to plan. I need to have control over the situation so there aren’t any ambushes. I take safety and planned precautions very seriously.”

Of course he does. Especially after his father and uncle were gunned down on the street unexpectedly, and then with what happened at Giorgio’s last year. “Fine, but a tip for you would be to not go at Javi aggressively or controlling like you’re used to. He doesn’t trust anyone. The fact that I asked to meet him about something important probably already has him thinking the worst and has his trigger finger twitching.”

“Exactly,”

Leo says. “I am him. We’ll get along just fine. You asked me for my help in getting rid of them from your life, so let me do that.”

I scratch my chin and look out the windows for a brief moment. If I could punch Leo in the face, I’d relieve a lot of stress and pent-up aggravation I have right now.

My father, the bastard that he was, taught me to always keep a level head if I was going to be a leader and continue to have the respect of those around me. A hot-head can be feared for the unknown of what they’ll do in any situation, but behind their back, their men don’t respect them.

Fear and respect can go hand in hand if there’s a balance.

I give Leo a curt nod. “As long as the deal gets done and we’re all alive afterwards, we’ll do things your way.”

“Good.”

Leo claps his hands together and stands. “I’ll get these papers to my lawyer and have them drawn up within 24 hours and sent to you and Lou. Then we’ll discuss the plan for Thursday.”

My brothers and I walk out of there, and it isn’t until we’re outside that any of us utters a word.

“He can be such an arrogant prick,”

Emilio says.

“Yes, but he has the right to be,” I reply.

“You were rather accommodating, San,”

Albie comments. “You’re letting him take control and making us seem like we can’t handle our business or Javi on our own.”

I whip my head around and pin him with a glare. “I’m doing what’s needed to get out of the deal dad made. None of us want to be in business with the trigger-happy cartel who’s known to have left a blood trail from here to Mexico from anyone who got in their way or looked at them wrong. The fact that we’ve managed to only lose 2 men since the start of this deal is a feat.

“I refuse to lose any more men or be brought down by them one day, and I know Javi won’t simply let us off the hook if I ask him to. Leo is who he is for a reason. His reach is far and powerful. More than any of us. I’m man enough to admit that. If I need to step back and let him take control, then I will. And so will you and all our men. We’ll be better off afterwards and won’t lose any income in the process since we’re now aligned with the Carfanos. Do either of you have anything else to bitch about, or can we get the fuck out of here? I’m starving.”

“Jesus, man, okay.”

Albie holds up his hands in defeat. “I get your point. I just hate that we’re the weaker ones in this scenario.”

“I know,”

I agree, “but no one else will think that when we’ve successfully dissolved a contract with the Gulf Cartel and then partnered with the Carfanos.”

“True. I get it.”

“Me too,”

Emilio agrees, and it’s good to know my brothers have my back.

We walk a couple blocks to grab lunch, and then I go back to Emilio’s apartment for Monday night football. It’s what we do every week during the season, but this week it has the added benefit of further avoiding talking to Mia.

I think a few days of space and time away from me is what she needs, anyhow.

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