30. ALESSIO
30
ALESSIO
“Dante, run a trace on the call,” Nico barks. “Everyone else, be quiet.” Gia’s already moving as Dante quickly types away on his computer and then nods at Nico. Nico swipes his thumb over his phone screen and says nothing, waiting.
“I suppose you think you’re clever,” Marco spits. I arch a brow at that. I glance at Sienna, and see her eyes have narrowed as she stares at Nico’s phone; Gia, on the other hand, just looks worried, wringing her hands in front of her as she eases in next to Nico.
“Clever has nothing to do with it. Considering you attacked my home while I was on my honeymoon, did you really think I wouldn’t retaliate? How naive of you, Marco. Surely you learned something from your father, because if not, you’re about to be taken to school.”
“You have no idea the war that you’ve started, Armani,” Marco hisses. His tone surprises me. Marco always struck me as much like his father, though perhaps a bit hot-headed. Even for him, this is over the top. “I’m going to enjoy every second of taking you down.”
“You sound like a wannabe mobster from a stupid movie, Marco,” Nico replies, sounding bored. “What’s the point of this little call? Because I have more pleasurable things I could be doing.”
“Fuck you, Nico. You fucked with the wrong De Luca. That little hit before is nothing compared to what’s coming.”
Nico chuckles humorlessly. “Again with the stupid lines. Do you really think I’m afraid of you, Marco? Do you really think I care you’ve aligned yourself with Seamus Gallo? Or that you’re fucking his daughter? Though I suppose the only reason you’re doing that is because you think it will get you further into his fold so you can take him down and try to take over both his territory and mine, and eventually your father’s.” Silence echoes, and I can’t help but smile smugly. Clearly Marco didn’t realize we have so much intel on him and his plans.
Finally, after a long, tense silence, Marco replies coldly, “You really think you have it all figured out, don’t you? You think because you’re a Don now, Nico, that you’re better than me. Well, I’m a Don now as well and?—”
“You are not a Don now, nor will you ever be, Marco,” Nico interrupts swiftly. “You betrayed your own father, the actual Don. What you are now is misguided, thinking you have what it takes to run an entire empire. You know nothing, Marco. You have always come in second place, and that’s where you’re going to stay until I kill you.”
Marco scoffs. “Kill me? You always were a delusional cunt, Armani. The only one who will be dying is you. And then, I’m going to take back my whore of a sister and I’m going to make her pay for daring to betray our family. And then, when I’m good and finished with her, I’m going to let my men have a turn. And when they’re done, then I’m going to sell her off to the first stupid bastard I can find to take her.”
To hear a man speak about his sister this way is revolting and infuriating. It’s all I can do not to lash out, especially seeing the pain on Gia’s face as she grips Nico’s hand in hers. Nico’s face is murderous, but his tone remains surprisingly calm when he replies, “Is there a point to this call, Marco, because all I’m hearing are more and more reasons to make your death slow and painful. Or do you just like to hear yourself spew bullshit because no one else will listen to you? I’m sure your father got tired of hearing it and never made you his underboss because he didn’t want to listen to it day in and day out.”
“I’m not scared of you, Armani. This is only to tell you that you’re going to fall. So prepare for war.”
Nico lets out a dark chuckle. “You think to intimidate me, Marco? You are barely a blip on my radar. Your uncle and father, sure, I might pay a bit more attention to them, but you, you’re nothing but an afterthought. And even if Seamus Gallo is idiotic enough to back you, there is a reason he has never gone against me. Because he knows he will lose. And now, just because you’re fucking his daughter, you think he’s going to help you take me and the rest of your family down? He will kill you the moment he gets what he wants, and everything you’ve ever planned will go down the drain.”
I can feel the rage coming through the phone. Nico is excellent at pushing hard enough to make him crack, but not so hard that he hangs up the call. I glance at Sienna, who is listening with rapt attention, but her face gives away that she’s feeling just as angry as Nico. Then I see her glance at a distressed Gia, and that expression darkens even more.
“Fuck you, Nico,” Marco hisses. “You think you’re so smart, and yet you can’t even see what’s right under your nose.”
“Oh? Does your little side piece know that you were fucking your father’s wife?” Nico asks. “And does Gallo know that you’re currently trying to find more women to marry off to further your own agenda?”
“Carmen was a hot piece of ass,” Marco replies smugly, confirming what we suspected. I glance at Nico who nods, and when I look at Dante, he makes some more notes silently on the paper in front of him. “That whore was getting it from every man she could spread her legs for, and she loved to brag about it. It was so easy to pump her for information, and once you have it…well, that’s how you win. Just like how I know that you have the other whore with you in your big house. What, you wanted to fuck both my sisters? One isn’t enough for you? Can’t imagine what you’ll do when you learn there are three of the worthless whores. Though I suppose if you go after Giovanni’s two whore daughters too, you’d have the fucking harem you always wanted, huh? Well, that’s where you’re wrong, Nico. Because soon, I’m going to take everything you have, and I’m going to make you watch as I destroy it. And depending on my mood, maybe I’ll make you watch me burn your house to the ground with your precious little whore wife inside. It’s the least she deserves for betraying her family. Your days are numbered, Nico. So you better be ready.”
The line goes dead.
No one moves. “Did he just admit that there is another De Luca daughter and two cousins?” Sienna finally asks, breaking the silence.
“Apparently,” I reply. “Papa, you get all that?”
“I got it. Aurelio is on it now. We need to figure out those names as quickly as we can,” he adds grimly.
“But how can there be another daughter?” Gia asks, confused. “Sienna is twenty-six, and I’m twenty four. Unless she’s older, like Marco’s age, but she had them all so close back to back, that it doesn’t make sense that she could have had another one in between.”
“She did live for five years after you, Gia,” I point out gently. “And you wouldn’t be able to remember anything when you were that little, right? So it’s possible she had another daughter in those four years.”
“But no one said anything,” she argues.
“No one said anything about Sienna either,” I remind her.
Gia purses her lips and looks away. “What is it, topolina ?” Nico asks her. “You’re clearly sensing something about this.”
She sighs. “I’m probably being stupid, but I just feel like there is more to this than we are realizing. And the fact Marco is bragging about it means it’s big enough he wants us chasing our tails to find it. He’s a liar, but when it comes to gloating, he’s going to take every opportunity to put it out there. Whenever he beat me, he always made sure that my other brothers knew about it so they would know he got to me first. That wouldn’t stop them from coming and doing the same or trying to get to me first the next time, of course,” she finishes bitterly.
“I’m going to feed Hades his balls,” Sienna mutters. I look at her in surprise, arching a brow when her gaze lifts to mine. She holds my stare, and I realize how serious she is. I’m not sure if I should be afraid or amused. Instead, I turn back to Gia and Nico and push that thought aside for now.
“Where do you think the other baby was from, topolina ?” Nico prompts Gia.
She sighs. “I don’t know. I’m probably reading too much into this. I mean, after I was born it would make sense my father would insist my mother make it up to him by giving him another son. So it could be that she had another baby a year after me or so, and she managed to get them out before anyone discovered it was another girl.”
“How old was your mother when she died, Gia?” Pietro asks.
“Ummm, I’m not sure,” Gia frowns. “Father is in his sixties now, and she was a bit younger than him, so in her thirties maybe?”
“Then she would still have been of child bearing age,” Pietro nods. “If she were older, it might not work, but at her age, it’s entirely possible she had another child. Aurelio has his contact on it, and so far they haven’t steered us wrong. I’m sure they’ll find something. In the meantime, we have other things we need to focus on.”
“Mainly—”
BOOM!
The sound of the explosion is so loud that instinctually, I tackle Sienna to the floor, as Nico does the same for Gia. Gia screams, but Sienna only gasps, allowing me to roll us both underneath the desk and away from the windows that shake. I hear screaming and shouting in the hallways and outside, and then I hear Nico curse when another explosion rips through the air, followed by gunfire.
Adrenaline rushes through me and I can’t help but grin despite the circumstances. The war has begun.
“Dante!” Nico yells over the sounds of gunfire that are getting closer and closer.
“I’m already on it,” he yells. “Get Gia and Sienna into the passages, they’ll be safe there. Everyone else, we’re ending this now.”
“We need to know who it is,” I call out even as I follow Nico’s lead and urge Sienna to follow them toward the inner wall of the office near a bookshelf. I watch as he puts his hand on the wall next to the bookcase, and then as a slice of the wall opens next to it. I’ll give it to the man, he’s a clever bastard hiding it so close to what would be obvious.
“Go, topolina ,” Nico urges Gia, who is pale and looks terrified. “You’ll be safe in here. Don’t come out for anything, and don’t open any of the doors no matter what. If they can’t find you, it gives us more time to get rid of them. Do you understand?” She nods mutely, but she doesn’t release her grip on him. He gives her a quick hard kiss before he looks at Sienna with cool eyes. “You’ll keep her safe.” It’s a direct order.
Before I can blast him for daring to speak to her that way, Sienna nods and replies, “I need a gun.” Before I can reach for my own, Nico moves to the bookcase, presses his palm against the top of one of the lower shelves, and a hidden drawer opens from the bookcase wall revealing two handguns with full magazines. Nico grabs both of them and hands one to Sienna, along with a full mag. She takes it and loads the gun expertly.
“We’re going to talk about your James Bond shit later, Boo Bear,” I tell him before I look at Sienna. She looks tense, and a little apprehensive, but also so damn strong. “ Coniglietto , you will remain safe, or I’ll be taking it out on your ass later,” I warn her, reaching out to grip her by the back of her neck. I pull her mouth to mine in a hard kiss, needing the connection with her.
She kisses me back, her free hand coming up to grip my shirt. “If you get hurt, I’m going to be pissed,” she gasps when I pull away. “So be careful, or this time, I’ll put the knife to your balls instead of your throat.”
“Always, cara mia . Especially when I have such exciting things to live for.” I grin.
“Shut the fuck up and save your fucked up foreplay for later,” Nico barks impatiently, stepping away from the open passageway.
“He’s just jealous,” I assure Sienna, who grins. “Now go.” She nods, steps back, and we shut the door. I quickly lose my smile, turn to Nico and ask, “Where are the other hidden stashes? The number of bodies I’m about to drop are going to require a lot of ammo.”
Nico moves briskly across the room and puts his hand on the wall, another concealed door opening to reveal a room full of weapons. “Load up and let’s go,” Nico barks at Dante and I as we begin to grab everything we might need.
“Again, are you trying to be James Bond with all these hidden rooms and passageways?” I ask him as we head for the office door.
“My father was incredibly paranoid,” Nico replies absently, checking his guns one more time.
“Well thank fuck for that,” I chuckle. “Now, let’s have some fun, hmmm?” Nico and Dante give me a look that tells me they’re not amused by my humor.
We leave the office, all of us splitting up as we go. I head to the right, aiming for the back stairs, while Nico and Dante go the other way. Mario is waiting for me, but there is no sign of Tommaso, a fact that I’m sure Nico has noticed as well, but that’s not my problem. “Where is she?” Mario demands, following me.
“She’s safe, but for now you will guard this door with your life,” I tell him firmly. “Giulia Armani is with her as well, and they are the targets. Our enemies are not to get to them. Call in whoever you have to to help you. Understood?”
“Understood,” Mario replies, his soldier’s eyes dark and cold. “Alonzo has already called and said he’s off to help. I thought I heard him cursing at someone, but then the call cut off so I’m not sure what’s happening with him.”
I curse. “Fuck, I forgot about Rori. I’ll find them and get her to safety as well.” Then I’m heading for the stairs, my gun raised and ready to fire at anyone who tries to get in my way.
Alonzo is never going to forgive me if he’s stuck protecting Rori instead of fighting.