26. Matteo #2
“Yeah, sure.” Enzo scoffed. “I’m sure Silvio would just love to hear his little princess is your newest hired assassin.”
I cringed. “Probably not. Relay that she has my deepest gratitude and that I owe her a no-limits shopping spree with Summer after we get this whole mess squared away.”
“You want me to handle this?” He was asking if I wanted him to take out the Russians before my return.
Shaking my head, I replied, “No. If we’re planning to cut off the head of the snake, I should be the one to do it.”
“When should I prepare for your arrival?”
I flipped my wrist over to check my watch. It was already after three in the afternoon. The private airstrip was over an hour’s drive away, and that didn’t take into account logging flight plans and making sure the pilot was ready to go.
A heavy sigh rattled my chest. I was itching to obliterate these Russian bastards and hated sitting on my hands while they celebrated, thinking they’d bested me.
“We’ll leave first thing in the morning. That should have us landing in Chicago sometime around noon.”
“I’ll make the necessary arrangements on my end,” Enzo said.
“Good. We’ll see you tomorrow.”
I was halfway to hanging up when his words halted me. “One more thing.”
“What?” The pressure mounting behind my eyes increased. As it stood, I’d spend our last night in Italy warding off a migraine.
There was a beat of hesitation on the other end of the line. “I need you to sign off on sending a security team to Indianapolis.”
I frowned. “And why would I do that?”
Enzo blew out a breath. “For Gemma and her husband.”
“Her fucking what ?“ I shouted, my eyes bulging.
Not like I had any room to cast stones. Summer and I tied the knot quickly and quietly.
So quietly, in fact, that Enzo didn’t even know about it.
Though he would soon enough, and I was more than happy to delay whatever earful I was bound to get from my cousin—even if only for the next twenty-four hours.
“Trust me, took me completely by surprise too. You know how she feels about marriage.”
Yeah, I did. She made it no secret that she was not at all interested in being legally bound to a man, especially if that man was involved in any kind of mafia dealings.
She’d made it crystal clear she wanted no part of the world we’d been born into.
Hell, that’s why she had begged Gio to let her disappear and start a new life.
Stunned, I dared to ask, “Who the hell did she marry?”
“Remember that video I showed you of her losing her shit on the hockey player at the DMV?”
I huffed out a disbelieving laugh. “You’ve gotta be kidding me.”
“Guess it’s true what they say about there being a thin line between love and hate.”
My mind was swimming, trying to process all this information. “Okay, but I still don’t understand. The guy’s rich. Can’t he pay for private security?”
“Technically, yes . . .” His voice trailed off.
“What aren’t you telling me, Enzo?”
“Private security isn’t equipped to handle this kind of threat,” he explained.
“And what kind of threat is that?” I pressed, the pounding in my head intensifying.
Never in my wildest dreams could I have predicted his following words.
“Dario came after them. Threatened Gemma’s life, then put a hit out on her husband.”
“What the fuck?” I roared. “Why?”
Enzo sucked in a hissing breath. “Sorry to say this situation doesn’t get any better. He was trying to scam our bettors out of money, and when Gemma refused to cooperate, things got ugly.”
“Jesus Christ,” I muttered.
“You know she wouldn’t ask for help if she wasn’t terrified out of her fucking mind.”
I could empathize with Gemma, having recently almost lost the woman I loved at the hands of others.
There was no question that if it were in our power to do so, we would offer our assistance. She might’ve branched out on her own, but Gemma was still family, and we never denied a request for help.
“Send Marco’s team. It’s better if they do something useful instead of waiting for Gio to magically reappear.”
“On it.”
“Do we have a location on Dario?” His behavior could not go unpunished.
Bitter laughter sounded from Enzo. “The worthless piece of shit bit off more than he could chew, gambling with our clients’ money, so he took a page out of Gio’s book and turned into a ghost without paying them their winnings.”
I rolled my eyes. “Of course he did.” My uncle was a spineless fucking coward. Not that it was a surprise to anyone, considering he spent years beating up on women and children. Only weak men needed to do that to feel powerful.
“I’ve already taken care of those who were stiffed and added a little extra on top for the trouble.”
“Great. Is there anything else, or can I enjoy one last Italian sunset before returning to the endless Chicago winter?”
“Nothing else on this end,” Enzo announced. “Fly safe, and I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Can’t wait,” I grumbled under my breath as I hung up.
Shaking my head, I looked skyward. Though this trip abroad hadn’t exactly been a vacation, it had been a nice reprieve from the constant demands of my everyday life, where I’d been forced to fill my big brother’s shoes with no warning.
But I had a responsibility to those who loyally served my family, and it was time to go home and lead them into battle.
“I heard you shouting. Is everything okay?”
My head dropped to find Summer had entered my makeshift office, and a smile curved on my lips. Who needed to watch a sunset when you were able to bask in the radiant glow of this incredible woman’s attention?
I nodded. “Yeah. Enzo had news.”
She eyed me warily. “Good news or bad news?”
“Little bit of both,” I admitted. “Good news is we uncovered who committed arson and torched our house. But the bad news is we have to go home and deal with them, so I’m afraid to say our honeymoon is over.”
Her gaze dropped to the floor. “I understand.”
I stepped closer, tipping her chin up. “We can come back. Just the two of us in a few months, if you’d like. Or I can take you somewhere else. Anywhere in the world your heart desires.”
Blue eyes shining bright, she shook her head. “It’s not that.”
My hand cupped her jaw. “Then what?”
Summer’s lower lip trembled. “Is it really safe for us to go back? Maybe I should stay here with the girls.”
“Absolutely not.” My tone grew firm. “We stay together.”
“B-b-but—“
Gathering her into my arms, I pressed my forehead to hers. “I understand that you’re scared, but know this: I will personally destroy anyone who tries to hurt my family. Those Russian fuckers who came for us in the middle of the night will wish they never even thought of crossing the Bellinis.”
With two fists clenched in the fabric of my shirt, she let out a near-silent sob. “Matteo.”
“The penthouse will be on lockdown until I neutralize the threat. Only you and I will have biometric access to that apartment. No one will be able to get to you or the girls there. No one, do you understand?”
Summer sniffled softly, burying her face into my chest as she nodded.
“I’m not going to let anything happen to you,” I whispered against the top of her head.
And that was a promise I would keep or die trying.