Chapter Eleven
ORAZIO
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Orazio stepped out of Monique’s hospital room, leaving her in the care of the doctors and nurses who’d accused him of being in the way of them doing their job. They were hospital workers.
The lives of others were always in their hands. Nothing should be able to shake their composure or get in the way of them doing their job. Should he have his Rosa transferred to a different hospital?
No . He couldn’t do that. Another hospital would probably have him arrested for not wanting to leave a patient’s room. Raz sighed. The staff wasn’t the problem, he was. Even though he knew the staff here would take care of her, that didn’t stop him from feeling uneasy.
There was a knot in the pit of his stomach that wouldn’t dissolve no matter how many times he told himself he had everything under control. Something still felt off. And for the life of him, he couldn’t figure out what it was.
He hoped it was just the fact that he was worried about Monique that had him feeling this way. However, he was a man who trusted his instincts. And his instincts told him something was wrong.
“Brother,” a deep voice filled the air, a voice he recognized instantly.
He looked left to see Cas limping down the hall toward him. His brother wasn’t dressed in hospital attire. Instead, he had on gray jogging pants, a white t-shirt, and flip-flops with white socks.
Rome must’ve left that for him. Though Cas was pale, a little bruised up, and limping, he still looked far better than Raz had expected. A bit of that knot in Raz’s gut unraveled, making him feel a little at ease. A little. Cas smiled.
“You can meet me halfway,” Cas told him. “I’m the one limping, not you.”
“I thought you’d still be laid up in bed,” Orazio called back, keeping his protective stance near Monique’s door.
“You know me. I never could stay put for long.” His grin widened as he limped closer. “Besides, I had to make sure you weren’t getting into trouble without me.”
“Trouble?” Orazio raised an eyebrow. “I’m always on my best behavior.”
“Yeah, right,” Cas retorted. “So, you’re really going to keep standing there and make me walk all the way to you, huh?”
Raz hesitated, his gaze drifting to Monique’s door. The thought of leaving her side, even for a moment, filled him with even more unease.
“Monique must be in that room,” Cas mused, limping forward with a wry grin. “I get it. Don’t worry. I’ll hobble over to you. Just call me Hobble Cattaneo.”
Raz chuckled and strode forward, stepping away from Monique’s door. A chill crept over him. He stopped and looked back, waiting to see if the doctor would come looking for him. Her door remained closed. Raz turned and headed in Cas’s direction.
“Are you in pain?” he asked as he neared his brother.
“Do deer have nuts?”
“Some do.”
“There’s your answer,” Cas told him. “Some parts of me hurt. Some parts don’t. Rome sent me a bag and left me some meds. I just took one. I should be feeling less pain soon. What about you? Shouldn’t you be in bed? Didn’t you have surgery on your brain?”
Raz chuckled again as he came toe to toe with his brother. “I know you’ve heard about all the bullshit your father has done.”
“ Our father,” Cas corrected him. “And he was your father before he was mine. But yeah, I’ve heard.” Cas took a deep breath and released it slowly. “Are they okay? The ladies?”
“Are you asking about all of them, or are you worried about a certain lady?” Raz questioned, already knowing the answer.
Cas stared down at his feet. In the span of a few seconds, his brother seemed to get paler.
“She... is she alright?” Cas finally asked.
Raz didn’t bother asking which lady Cas was referring to.
“According to Leo, she is,” Raz informed his brother. “I haven’t seen her yet. I’m not sure what room she’s in, but she’s on this floor. You can visit her.”
Cas shook his head slightly before meeting Raz’s gaze again. “While we were at the casino, before this shit happened, she told me she couldn’t date someone like me because I was involved in too much illegal shit. I swore to her that I wasn’t part of that side of things. I lied and said I was just a simple casino owner.”
“There are no simple casino owners.”
“That’s what she said. And that was just one of the many lies I’ve told her. I promised her that I wasn’t involved in the other side of things. I lied to her, thinking I could keep this type of shit from her. I should’ve known that was impossible. She was kidnapped, Raz. Kidnapped because of my father. And where was I when she needed me? In the fucking hospital, unable to do shit. Even you went and helped Monique. I didn’t do shit.”
“This all happened so fast, Cas.”
“It doesn’t matter how fast it happened. I wasn’t the one who saved her. I didn’t protect her at all. While she was being taken, I was kidnapping that fucking Tatum prick. While she was in danger, I was in the hospital because my enemies ran my car off the road. I’m exactly who and what she thought I was, meaning I’m exactly who and what she doesn’t want in her life. We aren’t even dating yet, and she’s already been kidnapped and had her life threatened. There’s no way she’d consider giving me a chance now. There’s no way I’d ask for a chance after everything she’s endured because of my family. She deserves better.”
“Cas, don’t just assume there’s no chance between the two of you. Wait until you’ve talked to her. Wait until...”
Cas shook his head. “Waiting won’t help. Neither will talking about it. It’s not like with you and Monique.”
“Monique and I didn’t have the perfect start. I kidnapped her, remember? I pretty much took control of her home, bank, and everything. I did everything that a man shouldn’t do. Fortunately, she forgave me.”
“Yeah. But my first meeting with Meka was still different than your first meeting with Monique. I’ve been lying to Meka since day one.”
“You never told me how you met her.”
“We met in person for the first time at the casino. But we talked for the first time...” Cas paused when Raz’s phone started to ring. “Who’s calling?” he asked.
Raz checked his cell phone. It was Bryce. That knot in Raz’s gut tightened.
“It’s Bryce,” Raz told his brother.
“Shit.”
“I know,” Raz mumbled before answering the call. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s my dad,” Bryce replied, sounding angry.
Fuck! “What’s happened?” Raz asked.
“I just received word that he’s called a meeting for the entire organization.”
“Who the hell gave him the authority to do that?”
“According to my informant, my dad said that the don is missing, and two of his sons, referring to you and Cas, were in a wreck and are now fighting for their lives. And he said the third son is out of the country. He’s called an emergency meeting, and I’m guessing that he wants to be appointed as the don until your dad is found or until you all have healed. Where the hell is my uncle, Raz? What the fuck is going on? Rome called me over to look after your stepmom, and he told me a little bit about what’s going on. But he was in a rush to get to you and couldn’t tell me more. He never mentioned that uncle was missing.”
Raz sighed as he swiped his hand over his face. “My father isn’t missing. He’s... he’s detained.”
“Detained?”
“Yes. Don’t worry. He’s safe.”
“Why does that sound like a bullshit answer? Raz, where is don Cattaneo? I’m not asking as your cousin or his nephew. Right now, I’m asking as a member of the Cattaneo organization. Because that’s the question other members are about to start asking. And they won’t accept a bullshit answer like he’s detained but safe. Do you know how many businesses our family is tied to? With the don missing, those business owners are going to start feeling antsy, wondering if this will affect their money. Money will make people do crazy shit, like instate my father as don if they feel that will keep things stable.”
“I know. Fuck! I know. Where is your father holding this emergency meeting?” Raz asked.
“At Luxe Bistro Royale. And you know who owns that restaurant.”
Shit. The Tatums.
“So,” Bryce continued. “It’s safe to say the Tatums will be at the meeting despite them not being part of the family or the organization.”
What the fuck was his uncle trying to pull? “What time is this meeting supposed to start?”
“In ten minutes. I just found out about it. I’m driving to the restaurant now.”
Raz glanced down at his watch. Shit . He couldn’t make it there in ten minutes. Even so, he couldn’t allow his uncle to meet with the organization and family without him present. There was no telling what lies his uncle had prepared.
“I’ll meet you there,” Raz told Bryce before ending the call.
“Meet him where?” Cas asked.
“Uncle Patrick called an emergency meeting for the organization.”
“He can’t do that.”
“He can when the don and his sons can’t be reached and are considered missing or on life support.”
“Who tried to reach us? No one has reached out to me.”
“Me either. And uncle must know that. I need to be at that meeting.”
“I’m coming with you.”
“You can barely walk.”
“I’m already feeling better. I took some of Rome’s miracle drugs.”
“This could go bad, Cas. Very bad.”
“I know, which is why you need me. I may not be able to walk without limping at the moment. But I can still shoot.”
Cas’s last sentence rocked Raz to the core. This was family they were talking about. Sure, their uncle was a dick. But he was still their uncle. If they had to, would they be able to hurt him? Would they be able to hurt Bryce’s father?
“If uncle Patrick can’t be talked to,” Raz started. “We may have to use extreme means to shut him up. We may have to do what father never had it in him to do.”
Cas nodded. “I know. He’s gotten worse over the years. We all always knew this day would come. Dad just tried to ignore it. It can no longer be ignored. What happened because of him this time can never happen again.”
Raz knew Cas was referring to Monique and her friends more than the Tatum issue. What happened to Monique was also what was fueling Raz to take these drastic measures. He was letting emotions rule him, something a don should never do. Yet, he couldn’t allow what happened to Monique to go unpunished.
“If it has to be done, do you think Bryce will be okay with it?” Raz asked.
“Fuck yeah. Bryce may even be willing to pull the trigger for you. Bryce lost all love and respect for his dad after that shit his father pulled in Italy all those years ago. Leaving Bryce for dead like that changed their relationship forever. And their relationship had already been rocky before then. Uncle Patrick only cares about himself. He runs around talking about family this, family that. In the end, he’s only looking out for himself. This can’t continue.”
Cas was right. This wasn’t just about what happened to Monique. His uncle was a wild card, a loose cannon, a problem. And it was time for that problem to be handled.
“Let’s go,” he told Cas, turning on his heel to leave the hospital. “Call Rome to let him know where to meet us.”
Raz rattled off the name of the restaurant as he and Cas strode down the hall. Cas’s limping was less noticeable now. Those pain meds of Rome’s must’ve been kicking in. Raz stopped in front of Monique’s door. Should he go in to check on her before leaving?
“Raz, we need to go,” Cas rushed him.
He couldn’t go in. If he saw her, he wouldn’t be able to leave her. And this had to be handled right now. I’ll be right back, love, he thought, wishing she was awake so he could say those words to her.
Tearing his gaze from Monique’s hospital door, Raz told Cas, “Tell Rome to put extra guards at the hospital. I want one right outside of Monique’s room. No, I want two outside her room.”
“On it,” Cas replied. “And I’ll call Leo after my call with Rome. Now, let’s hurry the hell up before uncle convinces them to do some crazy shit.”
Sighing, Raz continued down the hall with his brother, leaving Monique behind, hoping he’d be able to return before she awakened. What Orazio didn’t know was that when he finally saw his Rosa again, both of them would be different.