6. Sergio
CHAPTER 6
SERGIO
“T his place is key to our expansion plan in Vegas, Sergio. Don’t fuck up the meeting or I’ll put you on a plane back to Sicily and you’ll spend the rest of your life picking goddamn grapes!”
It’s been a week since my fallout with Javier, and Matteo’s caustic words still ring out in my mind as I swing my Porsche Panamera around the circular driveway leading up to the Sapphire Lounge, Nate Torres’s very exclusive night club. I’ve spent the majority of the ride in my own head, half-listening to my guys, Bruno and Enrico. I grit my teeth, squeezing the steering wheel tight as the tires squeal to a halt outside of the faceted, blue glass doors.
It really pisses me off when he pulls that ‘I’m the big brother, I’m the boss of you’ shit.
I don’t care that he’s next in line to take over the family businesses once my father retires. He doesn’t get to fly into my territory, tell me how to do my fucking job, and then fly out after he collects his cash...cash I made for the family syndicate! Besides, I’m not the one he needs to worry about. He should be more afraid of how my youngest brother Roman will set fire to our Manhattan empire. Matteo put Roman temporarily in charge of New York operations while he and his wife Heaven are out here living it up in Sin City, and if I know Roman, he’s stirring up plenty of shit for Matteo to wade through when he gets back.
I look to my right, catching the eye of my cousin Bruno. “Are we clear on how this meeting is gonna go down?”
Bruno nods, nodding toward Enrico sitting in the backseat. “We’re ready.”
I push open the door and step onto the pavement, sliding my key and a fifty-dollar bill into the valet’s hand.
The valet nods and slides into the front seat, maneuvering it into an empty spot with all of the other high-roller cars — Maseratis, Lambos, Ferraris, and Bugattis.
There’s a shit ton of money here tonight, and plenty more for us to steal.
We just need total control of this place.
And that’s only the beginning.
Good God, the amount of cash we can funnel through this place and its sister clubs is staggering. And once I close the deal, I’m gonna be the one to run the whole operation. At least, that’s my plan.
How can they deny me if I’m the one who lays claim to it?
The shit with the cartel will fizzle out, and they can go and screw themselves if they don’t like my decision to opt out of their proposed partnership.
If I can get my hands on this goldmine, we won’t need the Becerra Cartel.
They, like everyone else here in Sin City, will need us .
It’s a very good position to be in.
I stare at the entrance of the Sapphire Lounge, my guys flanking me on each side. I take a deep breath. Dry desert air mixed with sex and wanton lust. It’s an intoxicating scent, one that seems to hang low and heavy over the very long line of anxious patron hopefuls looping around the corner.
It’s hard to believe that the guy running this place has transformed it into the hottest club in the city. It’s nestled at the far end of the Vegas strip, a little off the beaten path and in a location that gives it an exclusive allure. It’s all glamour with its sleek architecture, rich foliage, and nondescript signage.
You don’t need a sign to tell you you’re here.
The who’s who of Vegas make it damn clear that you’re in the ranks of the VIPs once you step through the signature double doors.
He who controls the Sapphire Lounge controls Las Vegas nightlife, especially with the sister lounges scattered around the city — Platinum, Ruby Red, and Emerald. This cluster of nightclubs makes more money in a given night than all of the others in Vegas put together for a whole week. Hottest bartenders and waitresses, sexiest dancers, tightest pussies.
There’s nothing off limits at these places.
And that’s why they ended up on our radar.
The future of our grand plan to command every last corner of Las Vegas lies just beyond those double doors.
I need to make this goddamn deal!
I walk right up to one of the security guys manning the door. “Sergio Villani, here to see Nate Torres.”
He looks at me, and suddenly the typical bouncer dickhead expression disappears from his face. “Mr. Villani,” he says. He pulls out his phone. “Mr. Torres mentioned you’d be joining us tonight. I’ll let him know you’re here.”
I give him a swift nod and he ushers us into a roped-off area that’s just beyond the main doors. It’s a small lounge, empty with the exception of a bar.
“Hey,” I say to the bouncer. “We’re actually gonna take a walk around the main floor. He can find us out there.”
The bouncer nods and points us in the direction of the main area. Once he disappears, I turn to Bruno and Enrico.
“I’m going to take a lap. I wanna check a few things out. Go grab a drink but keep your hands to yourself.” The corners of my lips curl upward. “Show some self-control for once, yeah?”
Bruno snickers and he and Enrico head toward one of the bars, leaving me alone to take in the scene.
Pulsating music vibrates the floor under my feet, and on either side of me are darkened rooms brimming with bodies — drunk, high, and writhing against each other. But the room I’m in, the center room, doesn’t have a dance floor. It looks as if it is made entirely of glass. All of the ceiling beams, the columns, the bar — everything has a glossy sheen that glows blue under the flashing ceiling lights. There are white leather couches lining the perimeter of the room that take on a purple hue under the blacklights. The space is packed with men and women who came for the erotic entertainment, the line for the bar at least ten people deep.
And they’re all drooling at the people working behind the bar in the meantime.
The owner knows exactly how to reel in the bucks, I’ll give him that.
I lean against a wall, crossing my legs at the ankle. Eight months ago, my family partnered with three other families to form a consortium, the Marcones, the Severinovs, and the Salesis, with the goal of commanding the major gambling hubs in the United States.
Las Vegas is our first major conquest.
And for as much control as we have over this town, we have nothing when it comes to nightlife. Hotels and restaurants, yeah, we’re covered. But our nightlife is more like foreplay for the main event.
And we want the multiple orgasms, too.
It all starts with the Sapphire Lounge.
I glance over toward the stage. Glittering white lights shimmer down the back curtain, and two side stages are in full swing, dancers swinging around poles, climbing them in what look like eight-inch heels.
I’m about to turn away because if you’ve seen one great pair of tits, you’ve seen them all. And as an aficionado who doesn’t go a night without them in my hands or in my mouth, I choose to scout out my target instead.
I’m sure he’s doing the same thing right at this minute.
When Torres agreed to take the meeting, I figured he was hungry. From what I’ve heard, he doesn’t ever take meetings and he never shows his face in the clubs. He’s elusive as hell, which means to me that someone, or multiple someones, want him dead.
But that’s his fucking problem.
Mine is proving my worth to our syndicate.
And that means I don’t leave here without this guy’s agreement to sell.
“You look like you could use a drink,” a sultry voice murmurs against my ear. I take in a sharp breath, a rich, perfumed scent immediately infusing my senses. It smells so familiar…
A quick twist to my left puts me face to face with a raven-haired girl in her early twenties. My breath hitches as her porn-star body grazes my side and piercing green eyes stun me into silence.
It’s…her.
Just Jae.
The one who’s starred in all of my twisted, X-rated fantasies for the better part of the past week.
The one who said she knew who I was before disappearing from my club and my life.
I guess she didn’t want me to know she worked for the competition, especially since said competition is kicking my club’s ass.
When the cloud of lust and confusion lifts, my mouth finally decides to wake up. “Is that an offer? I was hoping I’d get another shot.”
She cocks her head to the side, her long eyelashes fluttering over black-rimmed eyes. “I just take the orders. I don’t fill them.”
Hm. I can think of a lot of things I’d like to fill her with.
Again.
I grin. “So you work here, then? No wonder why you didn’t bother mentioning that the other night.”
“I do work here.” A slow nod follows, a seductive smile lifting her lips. “Among other things.”
“That sounds promising,” I say, my voice husky. Matteo’s warning rings out between my ears again, but I silence his annoying-as-fuck voice even though I know my focus is wavering. Red warning lights are flashing in my periphery, and it’s time to get my shit in order and mentally prepare for the meeting. But dammit, this girl is making my brain short-circuit and I can’t seem to stop the impending damage. I feel like a runaway train right now, and the end of the tracks is rapidly approaching. Still, it doesn’t slow me down one bit. “What kinds of things?”
The girl closes the space between us, trailing her hand down the side of my jacket. She flips her hair so that it cascades down one bare, tanned shoulder, leaning in so close I can almost taste her cherry-red lips. And oh, God, I wanna take a bite… Her voice drops conspiratorially. “The kinds of things that keep entitled, thug assholes like you away from things that belong to me .”
My jaw drops and I recoil just as I spot Bruno and Enrico approaching us through the crowd. “Who the fuck are you?” I hiss. “Since we never actually covered that the other night.”
“Who I am doesn’t matter. Yet ,” she says in a sweet voice, twisting around as two other men in dark suits head in my direction. “What matters is what I can do to you. And trust me, it won’t be as painfully excruciating as you think.” She grins, a dimple appearing in her left cheek. “It will be worse.”
My cock is in such a twist over that total mind-fuck that I can barely squeeze out a response. It doesn’t help that her perfect ass swinging from left to right is the sum total of my focus right now. And seconds later, she’s sucked up into a crowd of people.
“What the hell was that all about?” Bruno hisses, keeping an eye on the suits and their menacing faces.
“Not sure,” I grumble, squaring my shoulders as the suits stop in front of me. I rub the back of my neck. If the stress knot wasn’t tight before, it’s damn close to paralyzing me now. I don’t know who that woman was, but she clearly knows me. And from the sounds of it, she’s not my biggest fan.
Too bad. I really had high hopes about how I could change that opinion.
“Mr. Villani,” one of the suits says in a deep voice. “Come with us.”
The guys and I follow them to a private elevator which goes down, not up. Interesting. Maybe there’s something metaphorical about sitting in the criminal underbelly of this salacious haven for the sex-depraved.
My ass will happily grace that throne.
Because that’s the only way this chapter ends.
Regardless of what the sexy-as-fuck waitress on a power trip thinks.
We get off the elevator and my hand instinctively grazes the gun pressed against my back. I don’t usually take meetings in dark, convoluted mazes with only one way in or out. And I sure as hell don’t take meetings where I’m not the one in control.
So right now, I’m at a double disadvantage.
Matteo wouldn’t be thrilled.
The suits finally stop in front of a door and knock three times before a voice tells them to come inside.
One of the guys pushes open the door and a tall, dark-haired man stands up from behind a long desk. I reach out to shake his hand but he only stares at it. I lift an eyebrow as he folds his arms over his chest.
“This isn’t a social call,” he grunts. “So let’s not pretend it is.”
What a dick. But since said dick has something I want, I let it go, fighting the urge to pound in his jaw for disrespecting me like that. He obviously doesn’t know who he’s dealing with.
But then again, neither do I. Nobody knows much about this guy, where he came from, and where he got the money to turn one club into a sex conglomerate. And to be honest, I don’t really give a fuck about his past. I just want to secure my future, and I need his signature to do it.
“Fine,” I say, my voice strained. “You know why I’m here. I want to buy you out. Sapphire, Emerald, Ruby Red, Platinum — everything. And I’m prepared to pay.”
“I’m not for sale,” he responds in a short voice.
My eyes widen. “When I contacted you, you said you’d be open to negotiations.”
“I lied.”
I clench my fists, rage bubbling in my chest. “Why did you take the fucking meeting if you had no intention to sell? Why waste my goddamn time?”
“Because I had to show you that for all of the ‘influence’ you think you have here in Vegas, you’ll never get what’s mine. You’ll never own this city, Villani. I’ve worked long and hard to build all of this, and your muscle doesn’t mean shit to me. I’m not afraid of you or your…” He nods toward Bruno and Enrico, flashing a smirk that makes my fists tingle with destructive energy. “Associates.”
“Do you realize how much of this city we control, Torres? We own the people who have the power to make decisions…do you get that? If you try to do any business in this county, we will shut your fucking ass down, do you understand?”
“So now you’re threatening me?” he asks, his expression dark. “In my club? That’s ballsy, Villani. You do remember that you and your dipshit pals here are just a little bit outnumbered.”
“That’s right.”
My head jerks toward the open door when I hear the sultry female voice once again. Her expression matches that of Torres, and for as vicious as she wants me to think she is, I’d still bend her over a couch and fuck her senseless if given the chance.
“Jaelyn, I told you to stay out of this,” Torres grunts through clenched teeth.
Her nostrils flare. “I’m just trying to make sure that these guys deliver a very clear message back to their mafioso buddies that they can’t bully us!”
“And I said I’d handle it, didn’t I?”
The girl, Jaelyn, narrows her clear eyes to slits. “Have you? Because they’re still standing here!”
The dots are connecting fast and furious and I don’t like the fucking picture at all!
I narrow my eyes at Jaelyn. “So the other night was just a little reconnaissance, huh? Well played. You’ll find out really fast how this game ends now.”
Torres rolls his eyes and looks back at me. “My sister is very loyal. Almost to a fault.”
“That’s the thing about family,” I seethe. “They always have your back. No matter what, no matter where, no matter who. And I think you know exactly who I’m referring to when I say family , don’t you?”
“Is that supposed to scare me, Villani?” Torres asks. “Because it only makes me want to bring you down harder.”
“It’s not supposed to scare you,” I say. “It’s just supposed to wake you up to reality. That is, if you survive long enough to wake up.”
Torres walks out from behind the desk, about three inches taller than me when we’re standing toe to toe. But I don’t cower.
Ever.
This is our fucking town, and if he won’t give up his piece of the pie nicely, I’ll just have to use other methods to show him how painful a rejected offer can really be.
For him .
“If you think that dragging me down here so you can swing your dick around was a smart move, you’re wrong,” I growl. “I came here prepared to make a deal, a deal you led me to believe could happen for the right price.”
“Don’t blame me because you couldn’t read between the lines,” he seethes right back. “Italians, Russians…who the fuck else do you have in your little power circle? Not that it matters. I’ve battled with enough scumbags to know one thing. You find their weakness and expose it, like a nerve. Then they back down because they don’t want anyone to know that there’s a kink in their armor and that their armor is actually made of fucking paper.”
Blood rushes between my ears as his venomous tone slices into the air between us. My gun is burning a hole in my pants right now. I wanna grab it and fire a shot right between his fucking beady ass eyes.
“See, that’s the difference between us and the scumbags you’ve dealt with. We don’t have any weaknesses. Just a whole lot of strength in the form of cash. Taking over your places would have saved us the trouble of building new, but because you decided to fuck us over, that’s exactly what we’ll do. Build bigger and better. And we’re gonna squeeze the fucking life out of you, sucking every penny out of your little pussy palaces.” I force a hateful smile. “And when we’re done…when you’re done…I’m gonna watch you run from this town with that dick in your hand because there won’t be anyone left to swing it at.” I glare at him, pushing my chest against him. “I will crush you and take everything you have. Then I’ll really go to work on you. and if you’re wondering, that’s not a threat. It’s a fucking promise!”
“You know what you can do with your fucking promises? You can shove them right up your?—”
“Jae!” Torres says in a stern voice as his sister starts to lay into me. “Enough.”
“Well, are you just going to let him talk to you like that?” Jaelyn shrieks, her hands on her hips. I can’t stop my eyes from sliding to my left where she’s standing, all five feet of her, in that borderline obscene black dress. She’s got a lot of rage packed into that tight little body, and I have plenty of thoughts about how to drain it from her.
Torres looks at me, a smirk on his smug face. Fucking A, I wanna bust up that jaw of his. Shatter it. Demolish it, even!
“I am the host here, right? It’s not polite to rough anyone up in my place.” He leans close to me. “So I’m gonna give you a chance to tuck your own dick between your legs, turn around, and get the hell out of here. I hope your little crew takes the news better than you. When I send a message, no response is ever necessary. They’re gonna realize soon enough who I am and what I can do.” He pauses with a snicker. “Maybe they should have sent in their A Team this time. Maybe I’d have been a little more open to the ‘offer’ if it was delivered by a different messenger.”
Anger percolates deep in my chest, a slow, rumbling explosion about to erupt out of me. Streaks of red flash before my eyes, and before I can stop it, I launch my fist, firing a shot to the side of his nose. He stumbles, barely, and I wish I could say that the sight of his blood makes me feel better about being duped.
It doesn’t.
And even if I could pound the shit out of his face, it still wouldn’t be enough. He cut deep with his words, and now I have to turn around and take this shit show back to my family….my family who already had zero faith I could pull this off. I’d convinced them I could make the deal, to prove I could run the expansion project, to rub Matteo’s nose in my conquest. I was supposed to lay claim to this goldmine, dammit!
Instead, I walked into a setup where Torres disrespected me, tore me down, and now, has the fucking balls to laugh at me.
I grit my teeth, my pulse thrumming as I pull out my gun and point it directly at his face. Bruno and Enrico pull out their guns, one on Torres, one on Jaelyn.
“Do you really think it’s a smart idea to pull out your weapons? You do know you have to get out of here, right? And my guys have eyes on everything?” Torres taunts, sweeping a hand under his nose to catch the drizzle of blood.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Jaelyn’s eyes flash just as she swings her arm around, knocking Enrico’s gun to the ground.
A loud crack explodes into the air, and I throw myself against her, pushing her to the floor as everyone else in the room ducks and weaves to escape the stray bullet that fired from Enrico’s gun.
I stare down at Jaelyn, into her hate-filled eyes, feeling her heart race against my chest. She reaches up and grips my throat tight, cutting off my air as her legs squeeze against the sides of my torso. “Who needs guns?” she hisses through clenched teeth.
I pry her hands away from my neck, slamming her hands to the floor above her head. “So you like it rough, huh?” I growl. “I’ll remember that for next time.”
“Fuck you!” she says, fighting against me with a brutish energy that makes my cock thicken, despite the fact that I have her hulking brother hovering over me. I stand up, grabbing her by the arms and yanking her up along with me. Enrico’s gun is back in his hand, back on her.
She looks at him, tilting her head to the side. “Are we really doing this again? Wanna know what I’ll do to you the second time around? I won’t just knock that gun out of your hand. I’ll take it and shove it down your fucking throat!”
“Jae!” Torres thunders.
“ What?” she screams, balling her hands into tight fists. “I am trying to defend our empire here, Nate! I mean, he threw a punch at you, for Christ’s sake!”
He levels her with a stare. “Take them upstairs and make sure they get the fuck out of my club.” He looks back at me. “We’re finished. Capice ?”
“We may be finished for now, but this ain’t the end, Torres. Comprende ?” I say in a mocking tone.
“You’re just letting them go?” Jaelyn says, her cheeks flushed pink. “That’s all? After they threatened us?”
Torres shrugs. “I have something they want. Something they need. I’m the one in control here.” He looks at me. “Empty threats don’t scare me. Nothing does, you get that, Villani?”
I nod. “That’s because you’re fucking stupid, Torres. It’s just a question of finding the right nerve to expose, yeah? Isn’t that what you said earlier?”
“Good luck with that,” he says. “And thanks for coming by. Always nice to meet the competition before I crush it.”
I tuck my gun into the back of my pants. “I’d be careful about where you swing your hammer, Torres. You don’t wanna hit the wrong target. It might hit back and crack open your fucking skull.”
I stalk out of the office with Bruno and Enrico in tow, headed for the elevator.
High heels click on the floor behind us as I stab the Up button and the doors slide open.
“Hey! He said for me to show you out!” Jaelyn pushes past the guys and plants herself right next to me. Anger hums through her, the negative, yet very carnal, energy crackling between us.
“We don’t need an escort, sweetheart,” I grumble, pulling out my phone and staring at the screen. Texts from Matteo wanting an update. I swallow down the expletives sitting on the tip of my tongue.
If I didn’t know better, I’d think he set this whole thing up just to make me crash and burn.
Then again, that would clear the way for him to swoop in and save the day.
I grip the phone tight, a sharp breath expelling from my mouth.
I wouldn’t put it past him. He’s always gotta be the one to bring the big deals to the table. He’d never like the idea of me one-upping him. And this would have been a big win for us. A big win for me .
And that’s why the negotiations have just begun.
Even if Torres doesn’t know it yet.
I’m getting his business.
His kingdom will be mine .
“What’s the matter, sweetheart ? Are you trying to figure out how to spin this meeting so you don’t look like a complete fuck-up in front of your family?” Jaelyn says with a self-satisfied smirk on her face.
I’ve never hit a woman before, never felt enough rage to actually take a hand to one, but this bitch has wiggled under my skin and I can’t decide if I wanna ass-ram her or tear that tongue out of her mouth with my bare hands. “No, I’m actually trying to kill you with my mind right now,” I sneer, shoving my phone back into my pocket. “And I need you to shut the hell up so I can concentrate.”
“Well, don’t try too hard,” she coos. “I wouldn’t want you to waste too many brain cells since it doesn’t seem like you have many to spare.”
The elevator dings once we get back up to the ground floor and the doors open. Jaelyn shoves Bruno and Enrico out, giggling as they stumble into the main club floor as she loops her arm around mine. She presses herself tight against me, locking my arm with her vise-like fingers. “Don’t get excited,” she murmurs. “I just want to be sure you stay on track and do not pass go. Because there’s no get-out-of-jail-free card for you, Sergio. If you get thrown into the cage, you stay there.”
I stop short as we pass a thick glass column with lights streaming through it, backing her against it. She lands against the glass with a tiny yelp, clearly shocked that I had the balls to turn the tables, in her place. I can feel Jaelyn’s heart pick up speed as I shove my chest against hers, the pressure forcing her tits to creep upward, closer and closer to the low neckline of her dress. I lick my lips as I stare down at the luscious peaks, dragging my eyes toward her fiery gaze.
“Like what you see?” she asks in a breathy voice. “Because I’ll fucking poke your eyes out with my fingernails if you stare at them for a second longer.”
“Oh, so you don’t like me looking at them? Is that why you’ve used every chance you can to shove them in my face?” I back away, a grimace twisting my lips. “You want me to touch instead?” I grip her hip with one hand, slowly sliding it up the side of her torso. Her body trembles beneath my fingertips, but she makes no moves to stop me. Her chest heaves, her legs falling open against my knee.
“Take your hand off of me,” she snips, pushing her shoulder into my chest. But I have too firm a grip on her, and if I’m being honest, I’m finally starting to relax and enjoy my visit to the Sapphire Lounge. I’m not really in a rush to let her go.
And she doesn’t seem to be fighting against me too hard, either.
“Jaelyn! There’s a problem with one of the girls!” A high-pitched voice laced with panic pierces the carnal fog clouding us and I loosen my grip on her, backing away. Her full lips stretch into a tight line and in that second, I’m imagining all sorts of things I’d like those lips to do. X-rated images wallpaper my mind when a searing pain shoots up my calf as she drives her high-heel into the toe of my leather shoe.
A loud groan escapes through my clenched teeth and she pushes past me. “Gotta go!” she says in a cheerful voice with a small wave. “Fuck you very much for coming!” And just before she turns away, she flashes a sparkling white smile, the brightest and widest one I’ve seen all night.
So She-Devil does know how to do more with her mouth than just spew venom.
Nice.
Let the fantasizing continue.
My eyes drop to the tip of my shoe. She really dug in that heel. Thank fuck for quality Italian leather. I wince, putting weight on it as I turn toward Bruno and Enrico where they’re waiting by the exit.
It isn’t until we’re outside that Bruno opens his mouth, but I hold up a hand to silence them. This is enemy territory and they’re not going to get a single syllable out of us while we’re still on their grounds. Whatever he has to say can just wait.
Once the valet pulls my car around, we all jump inside. I zoom around the circular driveway, peeling down the tree-lined private road headed back to the Strip, not even close to being far enough from the toxic Torres family.
Spying on me like that. As if they can beat us at this game!
Shit. I thought we were dysfunctional, but them?
They’re goddamn nuts.
Especially the girl.
And while that may be fun in some scenarios, the one where I take my big fat rejection to the table doesn’t rate.
I slam my hands down on the steering wheel over and over, letting out a roar of frustration…sexual and otherwise. “What a clusterfuck that was!” I bellow. “What the hell am I gonna tell Matteo? This is just what he wanted, you know. For me to crash and burn like that.” I shake my head. “I didn’t even get to the money part of the offer, for Christ’s sake. They fucking baited me!”
“He was never gonna sell,” Bruno grunts, turning up the air conditioner. Even at night, the Las Vegas heat is oppressive and my car feels like an oven even though it was only sitting outside for less than an hour. “Did you see the line outside when we left? And it’s barely eleven o’clock. That place is packed like that on a weeknight, can you imagine how much cash they bring in on the weekends? You were never gonna get that pie. Not even a slice, Serge.”
“Where the hell did he get the money to build up those clubs, anyway?” Enrico says. “He’s been here for how long? A few years? Who’s his investor? There has to be outside money, no?”
“There isn’t much on him,” I mutter as the trees whizz by. “He and his crazy bitch sister came to Vegas a few years ago. No word on where they came from or why they left. They don’t have a huge organization, either. They keep a small circle, only the best and only who they absolutely need to keep things running smoothly. It’s tight — and lethal enough to keep them in power.”
“If they don’t have backing, it shouldn’t be hard to take them out,” Bruno says. “We have three other families in our back pockets. It’s not a war they’d wanna start.”
“We’re not going to war,” I snip, taking a sharp left. “That’s exactly what Matteo wants me to do, to lose my shit and blast them back to whatever rock they crawled out from under. But I’m not gonna do that. I’ll find another way.” I peer out the windshield into the darkness. My headlights only give me so much visibility. The only other lights illuminating the road right now are shining from the sky.
It all contributes to the exclusive and intriguing vibe.
Goddammit, I want that vibe! I will find a way to own that vibe!
A sudden lurch makes me yelp, and the car bounces and shudders as I let up on the gas.
“What was that?” Bruno asks. “Did you hit something?”
“What, like a cactus?” I say in a snide voice. “I can’t see shit out here right now!”
A thin stream of smoke pours out from under the hood, and within seconds, billowing clouds immerse us.
I swing the car over to the side of the road and hop out. I reach out to pop the hood and the hot metal singes my fingers. I pull them back with a gasp. “Sonofabitch!” I shout at the sky. What in the hell else can go wrong tonight? We’re on a desert road headed back to the city with barely any cell phone service. This area is famous for being a dead zone.
Sitting fucking ducks is all I can think right now.
“What are we supposed to do? Hoof it back to the city?” Bruno asks, throwing his hands in the air.
I pull out my phone and hold it into the air. No bars.
I fist the sides of my hair. It’s rare I let anyone see me lose control, but my cousin and Enrico are my right-hand guys. If I’m gonna lose my shit, they’re the only ones who’ll ever witness it.
I pace around the car, hoping that I’ll step into a space where I can communicate with someone…anyone…using this damn phone. I roll my eyes skyward. I really didn’t want to have to deliver the news earlier than necessary to Matteo, but we can’t exactly hoof it back to the hotel. I grit my teeth, dialing Matteo’s number, walking around like a fool, hoping the call will connect.
And then, miracle of all miracles, it does.
It finally rings once, twice, three times…
“Are you serious?” I scream into the phone. “Where the hell are you?”
A screech of tires on the pavement jolts me and I jump, twisting to face the bright headlights flashing us.
“Hey, somebody is coming. Maybe they can help us—” Enrico starts to say, but the rest of his words are drowned out by a smattering of gunshots peppering the doors and windows of my car. I dive to the ground, Bruno landing right next to me.
“What the hell is going on?” Enrico yells, fumbling for his gun. I’ve already got mine in hand, firing off shots at the windows, hoping to pierce the skulls of whoever is inside driving that van.
A cold sensation snakes around my gut.
Whoever is inside.
Whoever, my ass!
I may not know who’s inside of that van, but I sure as hell know who sent them.
Fucking Torres!
He didn’t like me making a threat, so he decided to carry one of his own out in retaliation.
I stagger toward the side of my car, gunfire exploding into the otherwise still air. The van has slowed to a stop and the back window opens, unleashing a sea of bullets cracking and popping against metal and glass. Seconds pass, stretching into what feels like years as I duck and weave to escape the flying shards of glass.
I pop my head around the top right bumper, still ducking low to the ground as I fire one last bullet at the tires. A screeching sound is followed by a loss of control as the van skids left and right before peeling away on the dead tire.
I collapse against the side of the car, short, harsh pants expelling from my lips. Breathing feels like the slivers of glass are digging into my chest, slicing at my lungs, and I lay my head back on the roof.
“Guys,” I rasp when I can draw in enough air to mutter the words.
But I’m greeted by silence.
“Guys!” I yell, twisting around to look for Bruno and Enrico. I don’t see them so I run around to the back of the car where Enrico is sprawled out on the ground, blood gushing from a wound in his side. Bruno leans over him, pressing his jacket against it in an attempt to stop the bleeding.
“It’s not working,” he grunts. “If we don’t get him the fuck out of here, he’s gonna bleed out!”
A blaring ringtone erupts from my pocket and I grab my phone, stabbing the Accept button. “Matteo?” I yell.
“Why aren’t you back from the meeting yet? Are you still negotiating, your way?” he snaps.
“Don’t fucking start with me! That asshole tried to kill us!”
“Didn’t I say you were out of your league with him?”
“Matteo,” I say, my voice shaking. “The guy fucked with my car and then sent his guys after us after the meeting! They shot Enrico and he’s gonna fucking die if we don’t get him help! So find the Doc and get out here! We’re on the road leading to the club.” My eyes fall to Enrico’s face which is getting whiter by the minute. “He’s in bad shape,” I mutter. “Hurry!”
Matteo mutters some colorful expletives and hangs up the phone without another word to me, but I’m sure there will be many more spewed at me later on when we get back to the hotel.
I stuff my phone back into my pocket and drop to my knees next to Bruno. I bring a hand to Enrico’s face. His skin is cold and clammy, his lips as pale as his skin.
I slam my fist into the side of the car, pounding it against a bullet lodged into the bumper as a deafening roar erupts from my lungs.
“What are we gonna do now?” Bruno mumbles.
“First, we save Enrico,” I say, clenching my fists tight. “And second? We show Torres exactly what retaliation feels like, Villani-style.”