Chapter 19
NINETEEN
Milo
Adding Sable and Lissia to our Sunday dinner table brought a new vibe to the kitchen. The laughter over the stories my father and Antonella shared of Chello and I as children had been missing for more years than I had realized.
Sable’s presence closed a long and dark chapter in my life. No matter what happened outside these walls, in here we could conquer anything. We could be ourselves and interact as a normal family. Even if we were anything but.
“Antonella,” my dad said. “You’ve absolutely outdone yourself with today’s meal.” He poured her a glass of wine. “We’re very grateful you stayed on with us all these years.”
“I wouldn’t be anywhere else.” She added more pasta to my dad’s plate. “I’ve missed having my guys all at the same dinner table.”
“It’s good to be back.” Chello finished his salad. “I’ve missed your cooking.”
“Antonella keeps all of Julia’s recipes alive.” My dad twirled the fresh-made pasta around his fork. “Spaghetti and clams was one of her favorite things to make.”
“I hated the clams when I was a kid.” I sprinkled some parmesan cheese over my plate, grateful that my palate had adapted and now cherished these recipes. “One time, I hid them in my pocket and threw them away in the bathroom trashcan.”
“Yuck!” Lissia crinkled her nose. “You must have smelled horrible.”
“The bathroom stunk for days.” Chello shook his head. “No one could figure out what it was.”
“When it started to seep into the hallway, I panicked.” I sipped my wine, remembering how rancid that awful scent was. “So I dumped the trash into the toilet and flushed it.”
“Oh no!” Sable laughed. “Why didn’t you just take the trash out?”
“I was eight.” I shrugged, but as an adult that option made so much sense. “I didn’t want to get in trouble for not eating the clams. I thought I could dispose of the evidence.”
“I did have them imported from New England,” my dad said. “They were exceptional. Thank goodness you’ve gotten better at hiding the evidence.”
“He learned from the best.” Lissia sipped her water.
“How did you find out that the clams ended up in the toilet?” Sable asked. “I mean, if Milo is telling the story, you must know what he did.”
“It was hard to miss.” My dad smiled at Antonella. “Do you remember?”
“Like it was yesterday.” She shook her head. “These boys kept us on our toes.”
“They still do,” he said.
“The genius threw everything that was in the can into the toilet and clogged it. He flooded the bathroom.” Chello pushed his empty plate out of the way. “The dead clams floated around as if they were in the ocean. It was a mess.”
“You tried to help me clean it up.” Chello always came to my rescue. If I needed it done, he did it. “We weren’t that successful.”
“I’m still cleaning up your fucking messes.” He smirked. “But now you clean up mine too.”
“And mine.” Lissia rested her head on Chello’s shoulder.
She referred to the night I scrubbed the murder scene at the villa in Miami. I never wanted to see Lissia that lost ever again. I would do anything for her.
“I’m surprised either of you want to eat clams after all of that.” Lissia placed her hand over her mouth. “I’m ready to vomit just thinking about it.” She smiled at Antonella. “No offense, dinner was delicious.”
“None taken.” Antonella got up from the table. “Let me clear the dishes, and then we can have dessert.”
“I’ll help.” Sable pushed out her chair. “Everything was fantastic.”
“No.” My father held up his hand. “You sit. Marchello and Milo can do it.”
“You heard him.” I got up from the table and then kissed the top of Sable’s head. “Marchello and I will have this done in no time.”
As my father and Antonella entertained Sable and Lissia with more mishaps from our childhood, Marchello and I cleared the table.
The ease in Sable’s demeanor was a pleasure to see.
Now that her brother was getting his shit together, she could focus on her own life.
Becoming part of my family was her main priority.
I needed her as much as she needed me. We were a perfect fit. Now if we could rid ourselves of the current turmoil in my business, we could move forward. I had plans for us, and I couldn’t wait to share them with her.
“Sable seems to be settling in.” Marchello began rinsing the dishes. “She seems a little more relaxed than when Lissia and I came to the dealership the other day.”
“She wasn’t feeling herself.” Until I fucked her against the wall. “I’m trying to keep her mind off Medina. The less I talk shop, the more comfortable she is.”
“I wish Lissia would let business go.” He opened the dishwasher. “She expects an update every night before bed.”
“Hmm…” I dried the pots Marchello had washed as he loaded the plates into the dishwasher. “Would it help if we began the club renovation? She was really excited about that when we mentioned it before you left for Miami.”
“That would certainly keep her busy.”
“It could be something she and Sable work on together.” Renovating the club might be a fresh change of pace for Sable. “It would keep her mind off everything we’re dealing with.”
“A distraction for both of them could work for both of us.” He rinsed the rest of the plates before piling them into the dishwasher. “We’ll know where they are and Lissia can stay out of trouble.”
“That’s a tall order.” I wiped down the countertops. “But it’s worth a shot.”
“We both need to be prepared for what’s heading our way. If we can’t get the other cities to side with us, it’s going to make this fight much harder with Medina.”
“We have to make sure they choose the right side, even if we have to nudge them in the right direction.”
“It could get bloody,” Marchello said.
“Doesn’t it always?”
Antonella went to the refrigerator and took out her famous Italian Rum cake. The aroma had filled the fridge all afternoon, tempting me every time I opened it.
“What’s the occasion?” I asked. “That cake is usually reserved for birthdays.”
“Well, we’re celebrating.” She set it on the counter. “The two of you have made excellent decisions when it comes to your love lives. I thought the cake would be a nice way to welcome them both into this house.”
“That’s sweet of you.” I winked at Sable, who had now changed her seat to be closer to my dad as he held court for her and Lissia. They both hung on his every word. “I appreciate you looking after Sable.”
Marchello went back to the table, pulled Lissia out of her chair, and guided her into his lap. She didn’t miss a beat as she settled in; all the while she kept talking. The more animated she became, the faster her hands moved. A trait we all possessed around here.
“She suits you, you know,” Antonella said. “Your mother would be proud of her boys. You’ve grown into strong men, just like your father, but you have her capacity to love deeply.”
“Thank you.” I dried the last pot. “I wish my mother could be here to see this.”
“She can see it.” Antonella took a knife from the drawer to cut the cake. “I’m certain of that.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“I’m always right.”
“I can’t argue with you.”
Ricardo came into the room holding a package. “I’m sorry to interrupt,” he said. “But this was just delivered to the front gate.”
“At this time of the night on a Sunday?” my dad asked. “What could be so important?”
“Who is it for?” I held out my hand for the package. “Does it say?”
“It’s addressed to Sable,” he said.
“Me?” She looked at Ricardo. “Who would send me something?”
“I’ll let you know after I open it.” I glanced at Marchello.
“Ricardo,” Marchello said as he scooted Lissia off his lap. “Take Lissia and Sable to the home theater and watch a movie with them.”
“But the package could be from Chance.” Sable got up and came toward me. “Let me see it.”
“It isn’t from Chance.” I took her hand. “I need to meet with my father and brother now. I’ll come up when I’m finished.”
“Come on.” Lissia hooked her arm in Sable’s and tugged her to the hallway. “We’ll go on an online shopping spree. That always passes the time when Marchello and Milo discuss business.”
Antonella had already made herself scarce by hurrying up the back staircase to her room, and Ricardo had whisked Lissia and Sable out of the kitchen before Sable had a chance to object.
“Open it,” my father said. “It’s probably the message we’ve been waiting for.”
“It doesn’t make me comfortable that it was addressed to Sable.” I tore open the brown paper that covered the medium-sized box the item was stored in. “That makes it feel too personal.”
“It’s meant to be personal.” Marchello slid the box away from me. “I’ll open it.”
“Is there a note?” I asked as he took the smaller box out.
“No.” Chello opened the lid and removed a blue pendant on a thin silver chain.
“Jewelry?” I stepped closer to him to get a better look. “What is it?”
‘When is Sable’s birthday?” My dad took the chain from Chello.
“September,” I said.
“Sapphire.” My dad studied the odd pendant dangling from the chain. “This is her birthstone.”
“But what is it supposed to be?” I took it from him. “It looks like a cocoon. What the hell does that mean?”
“That’s exactly what it is.” My father pressed his lips together. “That’s the message.”
“I’m not following,” I said. “What does Sable’s birthstone and a cocoon have to do with one another?”
“The butterfly cocoon symbolizes entrapment,” he said. “It’s used in sex trafficking circles because the space is dark and cramped.”
“The victims are trapped,” Marchello said. “That sick fuck.”
The thought of Medina addressing the package to Sable unsettled me. He used her as a threat because I let him see her as my weakness on Valentine’s Day. I should have put a bullet in his head that night. We wouldn’t be in this position if I had eliminated the threat.
“Medina is getting too bold,” my father said. “It’s time to strike.”
“I agree,” Marchello said. “We have to interfere in the business of Philly, Boston, and Chicago. We can’t wait to negotiate.”
“Hit them where it hurts.” My father slammed his fist on the table. “We need to make three coordinated attacks on their ports. Nothing gets in or out for forty-eight hours. We’ll reevaluate once that’s done.”
“If they still don’t give in, we’ll target their warehouses,” Chello said. “We won’t back down until we burn down any means they have to make money.“
“Two days will slow them down enough to realize they’re doing business with the wrong side.” I nodded. “They’ll give in, because if we paralyze their operations, not even Medina can help them. Their cartels won’t be happy, and they’ll have to scramble to make things right.”
“They’ll need us to do that,” I said. “They’ll be begging us for forgiveness.”
“That forgiveness will come at a high cost for them.” Chello ran his hand through his hair. “That’s the price they’ll pay for going against us in the first place.”
“These actions will solve the problems we have with the three cities, and I will make them pay for betraying me,” my dad said. “But it will open up a new set of complications.”
“Once we hit them, it delays any plans Medina has to traffic anyone, and that will make him retaliate.” Marchello glanced between me and my dad. “We’ll be the direct cause of him losing money. He’ll come straight for us.”
“We need to be ready for whatever he throws our way,” my dad said. “We’ll have the backing of our cartels, but that might not be enough.”
“Let him bring it.” Threatening Sable was a fatal mistake on Medina’s part. He was about to feel the full wrath of the Accetti family. No one could protect him. “I’m fucking ready.”