Chapter 22
Chapter twenty-two
The Past: Two days ago
As soon as I walked into Alessio’s office, the force of his fist in my stomach left me doubled over at the waist, the air knocked out of me. With his other hand on my shoulder, he forced me back up and glared into my eyes.
“That’s for sending Finn to deal with Grim alone.” He reached for my hand, then shook it, holding my gaze as the ice in his turquoise eyes thawed. “And that’s for giving him closure.”
He released me and walked around to his desk as I tried to draw a breath that didn’t hurt. Fuck me, I knew Alessio’s fists were lethal, but that single punch might have rearranged my organs.
I dropped into the chair opposite his desk. “Interesting way to thank me.”
“Don’t push it, Aiani,” he warned, his voice edged with something dark that told me he was still reeling from Finn’s blackout.
Even though it was obvious Alessio and I merely tolerated each other, I truly respected the man. Not only for how he led us, but also for how he loved Finn. He loved him like a brother. I was glad Finn always had someone like him in his corner.
“I should be thanking you,” I replied, and his eyes narrowed in confusion.
“You’ve been there for Finn when I wasn’t.
You’re a great friend, and I’m glad he met you in the fighting rings all those years ago.
You saved his life, so, as much as we don’t see eye to eye, I’ll always be grateful to you.
I know you’ve been contemplating putting a bullet in my head every day since I came back into his life, but before you do, you should know I love him.
I never stopped, not for one second. And even if he never forgives me or wants to be with me, I would rather die than let anything happen to him. ”
“I’m counting on that.” Alessio’s lips tugged at the corners. “It’s the only reason I’m sending you with him to America. You’d take a bullet for him. So would I.”
I nodded.
“The problem is… Finn would do the same for you. And me.” Alessio rose from his chair and strolled to the window.
“I caused this. Joey Galiz won’t stop until I’m no longer breathing, but that’s not what bothers me.
Killing me isn’t enough anymore. He wants to destroy me by taking someone I love.
I know his type. He thinks with his gun, not his brain.
Young, foolish and murderous.” He turned back to look at me.
“But I need this to end. If a single person I love dies saving my skin, I won’t be able to live with it.
I’ll hand myself over to Joey willingly, just so I can kill him with my bare hands.
His men will take me out, but it would be worth it. ”
The strain and pain in his eyes made me realise how much he was carrying. The guilt. Not for killing Don Anthony Galiz, but for starting a war that had already cost us so many lives, and the fear of losing someone he truly loved.
He chuckled, a dark, humourless laugh. “My papi was right. Love weakens men like us.” He glanced at a photo of his family. “But it also strengthens us in a way that makes us lethal. A man who doesn’t love fights for nothing. A man who does fights for everything. Who do you think wins in the end?”
“The man who fights to protect.”
“Exactly.”
He opened his desk drawer and slid a file towards me.
I opened it to find blood-splattered photographs and profiles of Santino, Soraya, Giovanni’s children, Liliana and Raffaele, and Alessio’s twins, Siro and Isotta.
The final photograph showed Nerina wearing her rainbow tutu and a tiara. My heart squeezed in my chest.
“Those were found on the American soldiers who attacked Sani and Raya. And this morning…” he paused, waiting for me to lift my head to look at him. “When Joey realised his men had failed, he placed a bounty.”
“A bounty?”
“Two million dollars for Finch Rossetti.”
All the blood drained from my face.
“An email went out to every boss in Italy. Check yours.”
With trembling hands, I pulled out my phone and checked my emails, and there it was. An encrypted message from Joey Galiz.
Bring me consigliere Finch Rossetti, dead or alive. Reward: two million dollars.
“No Italian Boss will betray you for two million,” I said, but the rage and fear still burned in my blood.
“I doubt it. But somehow, as soon as that email landed in an inbox, it was then forwarded to everyone in that person’s contacts.”
My eyes widened. “Meaning soldiers?”
Alessio nodded and ran a hand down his face. Fuck. Low-ranking soldiers wouldn’t have the same loyalty. And the money would be tempting.
“Does Finn know?”
Alessio shook his head. “And we’re not going to tell him.
He needs to get out of the country and stay level-headed if we have any chance of these negotiations working.
This war has to end, Aiani. Or I’m handing myself over.
No one I love will die for me. This is just another example of Joey’s impatience and recklessness.
The Americans don’t even have that kind of money to spare, so I know Frankie will be pissed off about his nephew’s antics.
But Joey’s clearly happy to run his late father’s business into the ground just to hurt me. ”
“So… What the fuck does this mean for our plan to ambush Frankie Galiz? Surely flying Finn to America to blackmail Frankie is the last thing we should be doing?”
Alessio leaned back in his chair and sized me up. He pressed his clasped hands to his mouth as he thought hard, his blue eyes piercing mine. “I have a plan. But it’s a fucking risky one. Can I trust you, Aiani?”
“Si.”
“I’m going to send Frankie the video we have of him and offer to reveal who his mole is in exchange for a private meeting. I’m going to tell him you’re coming to America. It won’t be an ambush. It will be an invitation.”
I shot up, running my hand through my hair. That was… an insane plan.
“We have to hope Frankie is angry enough with Joey right now to consider meeting behind his back. You’ll meet at your New Jersey hotel so it’s not Joey’s territory.”
“And if he doesn’t? If he tells Joey, we’re fucked,” I snapped.
“If Joey is there, you’ll send me an alert via your watch. I’ll offer myself to him in exchange for your lives.”
My eyes widened as I realised why Finn wasn’t being included in the conversation. “Are you following us to America?”
He nodded. “No one will know except Fabi. It has to stay that way.” He walked over to me and handed me a glass of whiskey. “Can I trust you, Enzo, with Finn’s life?”
I took the whiskey from him and downed it in one go. “I’d die for him.”
“Finally,” Alessio smiled, clasping my shoulder. “Something we have in common.”
The phone call
I watched as Finn moved through the swarm of bodies in the American bar and headed for the bathroom, a huge fucking smile on my face.
If this were my last night on Earth, it couldn’t have gone any better.
Frankie Galiz would be waiting for us in my hotel room in less than an hour, ready to ruin our romantic night, but I still hoped we’d make it out alive.
My phone vibrated against my thigh, and I pulled it out of my pocket to see Alessio’s name flashing on the screen. He would have just landed. I answered the call and pushed my way outside to hear him over the loud music and chatter.
“Pronto.”
“Aiani. Are you with Finn?”
“He’s in the bathroom.”
“I’ve just landed and… Fabi called. Nerina and her bodyguard, Filo, are missing. A note was left in her room.”
Every muscle in my body went rigid as I stared across the street, seeing nothing. His words rang in my ears. My body began trembling so violently that I thought my knees would crack on the pavement.
“Turns out we weren’t the only ones with moles.
Filo was Frankie’s. He’s taken Nerina as insurance.
The note said she’s not scared because she’s with Filo, who she knows and trusts, and that she’ll remain unharmed as long as the negotiations are successful.
Basically, if we don’t screw Frankie over, she’ll be returned. ”
My hand tightened so hard around my phone that I was surprised it didn’t shatter. That son of a bitch. This was the risk of an invitation rather than an ambush. We’d given him time to prepare. It meant we couldn’t refuse any of his demands.
“I’ve been trying to get hold of Finn, but his phone is switched off.”
“No,” I choked on the word, fighting back my emotions. “He can’t know. You said it yourself. We need Finn focused. If he knows Frankie has Nerina, he’ll go into that meeting like a bomb of destruction, with only one goal in mind. He’ll do whatever it takes to get her back.”
Alessio exhaled down the line, knowing I was right.
We both hated keeping this from him, but it was the only way we had any chance of coming out of this with everything we needed.
An end to the war, a lucrative agreement with Frankie, and Nerina back, safe and sound. We couldn’t risk anything going wrong.
“Remember,” Alessio mumbled. “If Joey is there or Frankie’s demands are too much…”
“I know. I’ll alert you,” I lied.
I wouldn’t alert him. He was our king, a father and a husband, Finn’s only family. Whatever it took to save Finn and Nerina would be my sacrifice. Not his.