Chapter 24 - Gabriel
"Tell me how bad it is," Enzo says as he answers my call.
"It's been worse," I say, looking down at the two bloodied men on the ground, knocked unconscious.
"Anything stolen?"
"Fuck," Enzo yells into the phone.
His outburst is justified. It's not a smart move to deliver a shipment to a family you're asking for help from and have it be light.
"Anyone but the Greeks' package. Can we get it squared away before delivery?" Enzo asks in a stern tone.
I glance over at Luca, who's on the phone trying to make that happen. He sees me staring at him and gives me a thumbs-up.
"Yes, Luca is getting that part taken care of right now."
There's a long sigh before Enzo speaks. "Thank fucking God."
"There's... there's a bit more," I say hesitantly.
"More? My heart can't take it, Gabe."
"According to the other workers here, the drugs these idiots were on are from Delaney's men."
There's a pause. Total silence. I look at my phone to make sure I'm still connected to Enzo's secure line.
"Those damn Irish. And who the fuck supplies them with the drugs they're pushing?"
I don't answer because I know it's rhetorical. We all know it's the Russians.
"I don't care what they say. I know they're in bed together. My patience is running thin. I may just call for them to be wiped off the face of the fucking earth."
This was the old Enzo I had grown up knowing. His grandfather had instilled in him that the only way to be a successful don was to always play chess, and so he took it to heart. But sometimes old Enzo seeped out of the cracks.
"Ready when you are," I say.
"And the meeting today? How'd it go? Are they in?" he asks.
"I had to tend to something for Luca, so I wasn't there, but he's going to—"
"No, I want you in on this every step. You two don't separate until he tells you everything. I want you on the same page. We're dealing with a lot of moving parts, and we need to be in sync on things."
"Sure, okay. I'll let him know."
"Good. I've got something I need to take care of. Finish up and make sure the Demitrakis family gets their full shipment."
Before I can reply, the call ends.
Luca's still on the phone, so I lean against the wall and wait.
When Sofia and I had emerged from our secret session, I saw a text from Enzo that simply said:
Warehouse 7 needs fixing. Take Luca.
When I whispered that to Luca indiscreetly so as not to draw attention, the son of a bitch threw a glass against the wall and stormed off. When I found him outside standing next to my car, he acted as if he didn't just cause a scene and run off like a teenager.
After a few minutes, Luca hangs up.
"Johnny's bringing the load to make it even—nothing light going out tonight, thank God," he says and rubs his forehead. "Getting a goddamn headache from all this shit."
"Well, at least we were able to handle it here versus hearing about it from the Greeks," I say as I walk over to meet him.
"Yes. And you," he says to one of his men loading up the trucks, "when these two fucks wake up, tell them if I ever see them again in this warehouse, a beating will only be the start of what they'll have coming."
"Yes, boss," the man replies, looking at the others around him working, who all nod and get back to loading the trucks.
"I know it's late, but Enzo said he wants you to fill me in on the meeting before we part ways," I say to Luca, who doesn't seem too happy to hear it.
"Shit, all right. Your place is on the way, and I could use a drink," he says and steps over the men lying on the ground.
As I drive toward my house, Luca is texting someone and getting pretty worked up.
"Isabella," he says finally. "Always thinks I'm fucking someone. I mean, if tonight hadn't happened, she'd have been right."
My hands instantly grip the steering wheel tightly, my knuckles turning white.
You’ll never touch her. She’s mine.
I pull into the driveway, and Luca hops out before I can even kill the engine. We walk to my office, and I feel myself getting a bit worked up as Luca struts down my hallway.
Once inside the room, I pour us a strong drink and take a seat.
"Much needed," Luca says and raises his glass. "Alla nostra."
I nod and take a sip, looking forward to the burn.
"So, the short version: they’re in." Luca says, taking a sip.
“Ivan can’t be trusted. I thought the Irish would have known that, too. He’ll turn on you in a heartbeat,” I say taking another sip.
"Exactly," Luca nods. "I warned Enzo he was getting greedy, but he didn’t want to address it. Maybe I should have pushed harder."
His glass clinks against the table as he sets it down, his eyes staring at the amber liquid swirling inside. I can tell he's deep in thought.
That makes two of us.
I've had Sofia on my mind since leaving her, but that's no surprise.
She's been there like an ever-present haze since I first danced with her.
I tried to resist, truly I have, but there's something about her that pulls me in, despite knowing things could lead to this very conversation I'm about to have.
I lean forward in my chair and take a deep breath.
"Luca," I begin, my voice steady. "We need to talk."