32. Nico
Nico
32
We wait on the dock while the men tie the vessel lines. My father and I, surrounded by our men, observe from the sidelines. We have painstakingly gone through hours of surveillance, weeks of investigations to get to this point.
Our fourth shipment is due to arrive on this boat.
We know the Cossis had access to this information because we fed it to them through Senator Cosa.
Our men at the other docks say they saw someone slip onto the boat, a tactic consistent with the other attacks.
Unfortunately for that soldier, if he was a Cossi spy, he was in for a rude awakening. Two dozen of our finest men were waiting for him.
And now, this is the moment of truth.
Alec approaches the gangway and strides up to greet the captain. They talk and I clutch my gun when the captain points to the far corner of the deck.
I crane my neck to see what he’s pointing at. When Alec turns to us, he gives us the signal.
The men cheer. The shipment is safe. Alec motions for some of the men to join up and they charge up the gangway, helping him bring down a water-worn crate.
Two of our men trail behind him, dragging a bedraggled looking man with his arms and legs taped together. They dump him at Albert’s feet.
We look down at him with distaste.
He’s dirty and reeks of piss. I don’t even need to know his name to know who he belongs to. The distinctive tattoos on his arms give it away.
Cossi.
On Albert’s command, someone rips the tape off his face. The man immediately starts pleading for his life. Begging, sobbing, promising us whatever we want in exchange for mercy.
Unfortunately for him, we only want one thing: the truth.
“Who sent you?” I ask
“Cossi.” He answers, quickly.
“Just Lorenzo?” I ask again.
“No, no – Mr. Cossi and his friend - the suit”
It’s all the information we need to know. I turn to Albert and he frowns but gives the nod.
Tommy pulls out his gun and shoots the man point blank.
“Get rid of the body and get this product off the dock,” he barks.
“And the other part of this, Father?” I ask, looking over at Enzo.
I’ve been waiting for this day for a long, long time. I crack my knuckles in anticipation.
Albert turns to us. “Make it quick and make it clean. But yes,” he nods, his voice clipped and the anger visible in the lines of his forehead, “kill the son.”
That’s all I need to know. I can’t stop the grin that spreads across my face.
Time to die, fucker.
Alec makes his way over to one of the cars parked along the edge, dragging out a tied-up Jimmy Cosa, Jr. My father raises his eyebrows. We didn’t exactly get permission for this kidnapping beforehand, but what can I say? We’re resourceful.
He’s been stripped down to just his boxers. Bruises and cuts decorate his body. We’ve taped his mouth shut and zip tied his ankles and wrists.
The hard plastic looks like it’s digging into his skin, leaving behind angry red marks.
Good.
“Do you know what’s about to happen, Jimmy?” I ask, crouching down to get on his level.
His eyes are wide with fear as he looks between all of us. I’ll give him credit; he struggles against Alec’s hold.
But he’s no match for us. He knows it and we know it.
This is just a formality. A little send-off before the big event.
I shove my hands in my pockets and study the piece of shit. In one swift move, I rip the duct tape off his mouth.
He screams.
“What the fuck, Nico?!” He gasps. His voice is weak. Just like him.
I slap his face. “You’re going to die, you know that, Jimmy? We all will eventually. But today is your day.”
His face crumples and he starts to cry. Pathetic.
I shove the tape in his mouth.
“Would you like to do the honors?” Alec asks, holding out the gun.
“Nah,” I say, “I want to watch.”
Jimmy spits the ball of tape out. “You’re all going to Hell,” he screams.
I smile at him.
“That’s probably true. But you’re going there first. Save us a spot, yeah?”
I turn to Alec who presses the barrel of his gun to his temple.
“Alec, take care of the trash, please? We are on a schedule.”
“Wait,” Enzo says, “We should let Christina be a part of this.”
I shrug. Our little Angel hates violence - but if Enzo wants this to be his grand gesture, so be it.
He pulls up his phone, dialing Christina on video. Her smiling face greets us and my cock hardens. I need to be buried balls deep in her, not this bullshit.
“Princess, we have news for you,” Enzo says, smiling back at her. “You’re likely to be stood up at the altar.
She looks confused so he switches the camera view so she can see Jimmy tied up on the ground.
“Oh my god, what?!” she shrieks through the phone.
I smile darkly.
“He will never lay a finger on you. You never have to worry again. This is my vow to you, my love,” Enzo says vehemently. “If you have anything to say to him, say it now.”
She’s silent for a long moment before I hear her speak, her voice low and clear.
“You can rot in Hell, Jimmy.”
That’s our girl.
Enzo changes the camera view back to face him and blows her a kiss. “We’ll be home soon, baby girl. Love you.”
He hangs up and puts his phone back in his pocket and gestures towards Jimmy.
Alec exchanges a surprised glance with me but I shrug again. “We love her,” I say, simply.
“And if you don’t mind, we’d like to get back to her.”
“My pleasure.” Alec says, leveling the gun.
The shot echoes around us and Jimmy falls to the ground. Without me even having to ask, our clean-up crew comes over and starts to roll out the plastic.
“Well boys, that’s what I call a good day’s work,” I joke, draping my arm over Enzo’s shoulders.
“Let’s get the fuck out of here,” he agrees.
Enzo must be able to read my mind because he grins, nodding to the square outline visible in his pocket.
I can’t help the matching grin that spreads across my face.