Chapter 10 Carmine
CARMINE
Thank fuck I managed to remember most of the research I'd done on the Ferrinis over the years. Their name hadn’t come up that much since we were on different coasts, but I was generally aware of them.
Any criminal worth their salt knew of the Ferrinis, even more now that they had partnered with the Menettis, making them an even bigger force to be reckoned with.
We didn't need to know a lot, since we were on opposite coasts, but a little knowledge never hurt. Now it was coming back to save me.
I needed Dom's family to accept me, accept us.
I followed Dom and Andro into the house.
Andro set his son on the ground, and the little guy, who looked to be about five or six, held out a hand.
The man I had always heard was a cold-blooded killer with ice and venom running in his veins, slipped his hand into his son’s and let the little guy drag him down the hallway.
“Theo, are you bothering Daddy while he's working?
" A man wearing a pair of navy slacks and a soft blue sweater with the sleeves pushed up his forearms stepped out of a room and into the hall, stopping the child in his tracks.
The man looked up and smiled at us. "Oh, Dom, I didn't know you were here. "
"Hi, Joey, this is Carmine." Dom moved to put arm around me, then thought better of it. I could have used his quiet strength.
"Nice to meet you, Carmine. Are you staying for dinner? We can let Chef know that we'll be having extra. Of course he always makes plenty."
"Um." I swallowed thickly and snuck a glance at Dom.
"We'd love to," Dom said.
"Great! Felik and Jeremiah are coming too. Cord's youngest has the sniffles, so they're staying home. The last thing we need is another cold running through this house."
Andro came up behind his mate and wrapped his arms around his omega. He kissed his neck, and Joey's eyes rolled back. He elbowed Andro. "Quit that, we have company."
"It's Dom. Three months ago he walked in on us while you were giving me a blowjob at my desk."
Joey's eyes went wide. "You told me he didn't see anything. You didn’t see anything, right?"
"I saw nothing, I assure you," Dom said.
Andro chuckled. “Why do you care, love? It was my dick he would have seen, not yours. He didn’t see anything because you’re a champion dee–”
Joey put a hand over his mate’s mouth. “Your son is right there.”
The boy had walked over to a decorative table that was against the wall, and he was currently making car noises while he drove along the edge.
“I don’t think he heard me,” Andro said.
This was...different than what I was used to. More family-like and light.
"Come on." Andro led us into a room which was not his official office, but it was some sort of study. It had bookshelves along the wall and a table with multiple chairs. Andro sat down at one, and his son climbed into his lap. "You can fill me in on what Carmine's plans are while he’s in town."
I followed Dom's lead and sat down when he did. "Mostly I just want to make sure there are no loose ends where Webb is concerned."
"Great. It’s always a good idea to leave no stone unturned. Dom, why don't you introduce him around."
"Thank you, sir. That would be great."
Andro and Dom talked a while longer about some assignment that Dom worked on in the past. I knew they were careful not to say anything revealing with me there.
Meanwhile, I watched the child curled up on Andro's lap.
The little boy had his thumb in his mouth and his eyes were drifting closed.
Andro rubbed his back softly. Soon the kid would be totally conked out.
"Is he asleep?" Andro nodded toward his kid.
I realized he was talking to me. "Almost."
"Good. He's at the fun age where afternoon naps are being phased out. It's a rough one. You never know what sort of kid you're going to get one day to the next. "
"He seems content today." Dom seemed relaxed around kids. That was reassuring.
"We took him to the trampoline park this morning." Andro wrinkled his nose in disgust like the thought of such a place turned his stomach.
I tried to picture Andro at a crowded trampoline park with tons of rowdy kids running around. It wasn’t easy.
“I’m thinking about buying one.” Andro shocked me once again. “It could be safer for the kids, we could have more vetted families around, and it would be a great place to launder money or run drugs.”
Dom’s lips twitched. “And what did Joey say?”
“He said I can’t buy entertainment places for the kids just because I don’t want to deal with other brats running around. But there was a boy twice Theo’s size and he wouldn’t let him have a chance on this roller bar thing, I don’t know what it was. But it upset Theo.”
I clenched my jaw to keep from laughing. I had a feeling I was seeing a side of Andro not many got to see.
"Anyway, I don’t want to bore you all with shop talk. Tell me about your great-uncle Anthony, Carmine. How is he these days? It's been years since I last saw him. A decade at least, I think. Do they still call him Big Tuna?"
"He's great. Retired last year, but he still keeps his hand in a few things. And yes, most everyone still refers to him as Big Tuna. Though, as I understand it, there is no one left alive that understands where the nickname came from."
Andro laughed. "Indeed. That doesn't surprise me. He never did appreciate the moniker."
We talked a while longer. Andro knew an obscene amount of information about my family and their dealings on the west coast. It seemed insane to me that he would know so much, but it was probably why he was so incredibly successful where he was.
The man had a mind like a steel trap, and his husband was a whiz with the books.
My phone rang, and though I didn't want to be rude, I had to check who it was. My uncle Lorenzo’s name flashed on the screen.
"Excuse me," I said as I stood. "I—"
Andro waved a hand "It's fine. Take it."
I took a few steps away, I wasn't expecting privacy. There was no way I was going to be allowed to be alone in Andro's home. He wasn't dumb, and neither was I.
"Hello, Uncle," I said. "I don't mean to rush you, but I’m with Mr. Ferrini right now."
"Really? This won't take long. We've finalized the purchase of an abandoned strip mall about sixty miles from where you are."
"Okay." I wasn't sure how that was relevant to me. I knew we owned property all throughout the nation; it was one of the ways we laundered money and also allowed us to have multiple places we could stash bodies. Living or dead.
"There are some squatters we want removed. We'd rather not engage with the police."
"Ah. I can handle that." It wasn't my usual gig, but I was likely the only one around, and it would save them from hiring local or flying someone out.
"Great. let me know when you have it taken care of and I'll send out the cleaning crew."
"Copy that."
I didn't bother asking him to send me the details. The address would be in my email momentarily.
I hung up the phone and turned back to Andro and Dom.
"I take it your family needs some clean-up on the property they've purchased just off route 12?"
Dom held back a laugh, which he covered with a cough.
"How did you..."
Andro smiled. "There isn’t anything that happens in my territory that I don't know about."
With the way he stared at me just then, and then he slid his gaze over to Dom, I knew we weren't hiding jack shit. Did we come clean now? Would it matter? Perhaps Andro was just toying with us, and soon we'd get the ultimatum. Break up or else.
Or maybe our punishment had already been decided and this warehouse trip was a trap.
I snuck a glance at Dom. His face was a mask, but I knew he understood what was happening.
We'd been found out. Andro probably knew before we even stepped onto the property.
"Go handle that task you've been given. Take Dom with you. You won't need backup, but call it a shadow opportunity. Maybe you two can learn something from one another."