Chapter 17 Marco #2
"We've secured the warehouse perimeter," I tell him, glad that this morning his eyes are sharp, a welcome change from the confusion I've seen too often lately. "The cleanup is done. I’m waiting to hear from Falcone about whether he knows these guys.”
“You couldn’t make them?”
“No, but they’re pros.”
Antonio nods, his fingers steepled under his chin.
The gesture reminds me of when I first met him decades ago.
I was a kid, but even then, I admired how he wielded power without being an asshole, as my father was.
Then, when my father and brother died, he’d taken me under his wing when others wanted me gone. Sins of the father and all that.
"And our losses?" he asks.
“You, none. Me, two. Them, eight. I’m not sure if there were more and they bailed or not.”
“And Frank called you?”
“He said you asked that I help.”
Confusion flickers in his eyes and my gut clenches. Now isn’t the time to have his mind glitch.
“I suppose I did.”
Beside me, Gabriella shifts in her chair. I imagine she’s feeling the same concern for him as I am.
"We need to retaliate," Antonio says, the old fire igniting in his eyes.
"First we need to know who," I say.
Gabriella jumps into the conversation. “I might be able to help with that.”
Antonio's gaze shifts to his daughter, a mixture of pride and concern. "How?"
"We have a plan. Something that might flush out whoever's behind this."
We? I give my head a small shake. I only agreed if he does. Which he will. Antonio rarely says no to Gabriella.
"Agent Blackwood wants information on Marco's business," she explains to her father. "He's convinced I hate Marco enough to betray La Corona. If I feed him carefully selected information, we can track what gets back to our enemies and identify the mole."
Antonio's gaze sharpens. “You think this Blackwood is going to hand over this information to whoever is working with him? Wouldn’t it be easier to feed false info to men we suspect and see if it gets to Blackwood?”
“That’s the problem,” Gabriella says. “So far, we have no suspects. But if we feed it to Blackwood, he’ll say something to whoever he’s working with, and that person will act on it, revealing themselves.”
"And you believe this FBI agent is connected to the attacks?"
I shake my head. “That we don’t know. We could have two different things going on here. Blackwood’s investigation and this inner attack. Or one could be using the other. Either way, we’re under attack from all sides.”
“This could be our chance to find out who,” Gabriella says.
Antonio turns to me. "Marco? You're on board with this?"
I cross my arms, unable to hide my reservations. "I hate it. Putting Gabriella anywhere near Blackwood is a risk I don't want to take. But she's right. He's our best lead to whoever's targeting us."
"This will take more than a few days," Antonio observes, looking between us. "Your agreement was for a week and it seems like Blackwood will be more responsive to Gabriella if he knows she’s under your guard and has access to your business movements.”
The thought of Gabriella leaving my house, being beyond my protection, is unsettling. "She can stay as long as it takes." I glance at her, suddenly uncertain. "If she's okay with that."
Surprise flickers across Gabriella's face. "I just need to pack a few more things.”
Antonio watches this exchange and then shrugs. "Then it’s settled. I trust you, Marco, to keep Gabriella safe. I know Gabriella is smart enough to get the information we need from Blackwood.”
I nod, relieved and terrified.
Each night she stays, another piece of my carefully constructed walls crumble. “Because Gabriella is meeting with Blackwood, we should probably let Dom and Leo know. Otherwise, if they find out about the meeting, they’ll think she’s betraying La Corona.”
Antonio scrubs his hand over his face. “Yes, of course. I think it’s time we told them everything.”
I arch a brow, surprised that he’s finally ready to share about his condition.
“I don’t know that they need to know about your situation.” Gabriella’s expression is full of concern.
“They do. It’s past time, really.”
I’m in total agreement with Antonio. “If this plan goes wrong, we’ll need them on board. But just them. We’re smoking out a traitor, so we need to keep this plan to ourselves.”
“Absolutely,” Antonio says.
“But I trust Roman and want to coordinate with him," I say. "Set up secure communications, establish what information we feed to Blackwood."
“Alright,” Antonio says.
“Everyone else in our businesses needs to be kept in the dark.”
“We all have men we trust like you trust Roman,” Antonio starts, “but I’ll defer to you on this, Marco. You’re the one Blackwood seems to have a hard-on for.”
I’m relieved that Antonio is willing to let me lead on this plan.
“I’ll go pack up a few more things.” Gabriella stands, her eyes softening as she looks at her father. “We’ll find out who’s behind this, Dad.”
He smiles. “I know you will.”
Gabriella leaves the room to gather her things, my eyes lingering on her retreating form longer than they should.
When I turn back, Antonio is studying me with an expression I can't quite read, but it makes me nervous.
"You care for her." It's not a question.
I shift uncomfortably, defaulting to denial. "She's under my protection."
"I know you don't want to marry," he says with disappointment. "That was never your path. But if something happens to me—"
"Nothing's going to happen to you," I interrupt. The thought of losing Antonio, my mentor, the closest thing to a father I've ever truly had, sends a chill through me.
He waves away my protest. "We both know what's happening to me. My mind…" He taps his temple. "Some days are better than others. But it's getting worse. I know it. You know it. Gabriella knows it."
I clench my jaw, hating the helplessness I feel. "Then call Luca home. He should be here, not in Italy."
“Luca will be home at Christmas. I’ll speak to him then.” His eyes harden, turning serious. "But I need your word on something else."
“Alright.”
"Promise me you'll look after Gabriella. Not just during this clusterfuck we’re in now, but always. No matter what happens."
My gut clenches. “Antonio, that’s under Luca’s—”
“Luca will protect her, but I want you to as well. You know her, Marco. She’s smart but headstrong.
I can’t deny I wish we could make a match, but…
” He holds a hand up as if he knows I’ll protest. “Short of that, you can promise me to look out for her. Keep her safe. When she does marry, make sure he’s good to her.
Be a godfather to her children. Can you do that for me? ”
It's the earnest emotion in his voice that sways me.
"I promise. I'll protect her with my life."
Antonio nods, satisfaction settling across his features. "Thank you."
I nod and even give him a wan smile, feeling a little sick to my stomach at the commitment I’ve just made.
I haven’t agreed to marry her, but I’m tied to her until death do us part, nonetheless.