Chapter 14
Sebastian
I have to walk away from Mia before I do something I might regret. Like kiss her madly. And the only reason I’d regret it is because we’d probably get discovered and our cover would be blown.
I wouldn’t regret kissing her under any other circumstances. There’s just something about her. When I saw her getting ready for her date with Enzo, I knew I didn’t want her going. Even if it was just for pretend.
The entire day as Tony drove me around to the different shipping fronts he uses to distribute the products, I couldn’t get the image of Mia dating other men out of my head. Sure, Enzo is just for pretend, but what about the other motherfuckers she’ll most likely date when this whole thing ends and we get back to the States?
I can’t think about her and any other guy without turning completely red with jealousy.
I get ready, dressed all in black, to follow Enzo to whatever meeting he’s headed off to. Tony tries to stop me, making sure I know I’ll be missing the best meal his wife has ever cooked. I tell Tony maybe next time, and that Gianna will love anything they cook for her and step out the door.
Enzo’s waiting at the taxi stand a few blocks away and I rush toward him. He isn’t looking in my direction and a taxi pulls up and takes him away.
I reach the stand. “Where’d that man go?” I ask the man behind the counter.
“Parrocchia San Marco Evangelista.”
I pull out some money. “Same place.” Another taxi pulls up, and I hop into the back.
A church, such an odd choice for a place to meet.
I’m anxious as the taxi driver speeds away, and I hope I’ll be able to find him when I get there. Because if not then this trip is pointless.
The sun sets with an explosion of bright colors casting their glory across the sky. Such a romantic city.
Rome.
Romance.
It’s like it all began here, and my mind immediately falls on Mia. And what a great fall it is. I think about everything with her. The moment I first met her, knowing what a beautiful woman she was, knowing I could never have her.
I think about the kiss we shared.
And how I want to share many more kisses with her.
She’s so young.
She deserves more.
I need to pay attention to Enzo and his meeting, but my mind is occupied with Mia. I blame Rome.
I blame this sexy city, and wish more than anything I was here with Mia under different circumstances.
The taxi drops me off at the entrance of the church. My eyes scan the sidewalk and down the street, looking for Enzo.
Nothing.
The door to the church is open, and it’s practically empty inside since there’s no mass at this time.
My steps echo in the huge space, but nobody cares. There are hordes of tourists around this city all the time.
“Motherfucker,” I whisper to myself when I see Enzo.
A man that is an exact replica of Mario Grotto, only younger, stands next to Enzo. It has to be Oliver.
He’s taller than Enzo, and I can tell he’s the one pulling Enzo’s strings. Enzo nearly cowers next to the man as he speaks.
I need to get closer.
I’m a tall guy, but the architecture of this place plays in my favor today. I hide behind a wide marble column without making a single noise.
“Why is this Donovan Sabatini snooping around? Does Georgio know?” Oliver asks.
I’m not that close, but the acoustics are excellent. I can hear every single word they say. My ears perk at the mention of my business partner’s name.
“Georgio never said anything about Sabatini coming here to Italy,” Enzo replies. “Georgio said this was an in and out job. No one would know.”
“Look, I spoke with Georgio last week. He said that his partner, Sebastian Cain, would take the fall and no one would be none the wiser.”
“Well, you can’t tell me Sabatini is here because he just wants to look around.” Enzo paces. “He has to know.”
“Know what? No one knows anything. Just stick to the plan and we’ll all be fucking rich,” Oliver blares out.
“Have you spoken to Georgio? Did you tell him Donovan is here?” Enzo asks.
“No, it’s too hot to speak to him right now. He has to hide his tracks and right now he has to make sure his partner goes down for this shit.”
“Ever met his partner?” Enzo asks.
“No, some piece of shit from what Georgio says.”
I slip away to make sure no one sees me because I’ve heard enough. Georgio DeWinter stole from the Four Fathers with the help of Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum over there and blamed it all on me.
I disappear into the night, remembering everything Oliver and Enzo said to one another, and I’m kicking myself for ever believing Georgio. Is this really happening?
Did Georgio really steal from everyone and blame it all on me?
Fuck. Mia. What do I even say to her? This sort of thing will ruin her life. She won’t be able to recover from something like this. If this information ever gets out, Georgio will be hunted, just like me, and most likely killed once he’s found.
Mia might become collateral damage, or worse, she’ll be blamed right along with her father. I have to warn her, tell her what her father did. But how can I?
She’ll be devastated.
I can’t do that to her.
I turn a corner and come face-to-face with Enzo and Oliver.
“Don, what are you doing here?”
I shrug, like there’s nothing amiss here. “I’d always wanted to come here.”
“Is Gia with you?”
I shake my head. “No, she’s back at the house.” I direct my attention to Oliver. “Who’s your friend?”
“Um, this is my uncle, Oliver.”
I shake his hand and both men appear nervous, shifting their gazes and fidgeting. I’m just as nervous, but hopefully, I’m hiding it better than they are.
“Nice to meet you. Did Georgio send you here?”
I have a choice to make here. I can say Georgio has no clue I’m here and have them possibly try to get a hold of Georgio to see why I’m here, or I can say he knows, and that I know.
That I know… everything.
I decide on the latter.
Because I can’t have these two contacting Georgio and telling them a man we made up is here meeting with them. Georgio is a smart man. He’ll put two and two together really quickly.
“You both should know why I’m here. Georgio sent me to make sure you two were sticking to the plan.”
They share a glance before Oliver clears his throat. “Yes, sir. We’re right on schedule.”
I don’t know what the schedule is, but I play along, making sure they’re none the wiser. I need hard evidence.
Enzo laughs a little. “I feel a lot better now that I know why you’re here. You were stressing us out. We thought you worked for the Four Families, for Hector Delaurio in Chicago.”
I smile. “Nah, we’re good. I’m with Georgio all the way. And pinning everything on that asshole, Sebastian Cain. Classic.” I laugh a little, trying my best not to blow it.
They both smile. “Poor fucker has no clue.”
He does now.
“I’m just wondering if we have everything handled when it comes to him. Are you sure Sebastian has no idea, and he’ll be handled by the end of this whole thing?”
“Yeah, he’s over in Hong Kong chasing his tail around,” Enzo says. “Don’t worry, we have someone that is going to bring him to the Four Families and then they can decide what to do with him.”
“Hong Kong, huh? What are you two doing after everything goes down?”
Oliver smiles. “I’m taking out my father and taking over his operation.”
I think of Mario and how his family works together like a well-oiled machine. “With Lucia?”
Oliver nods. “Yeah, she’s the only one who plans on sticking by our side. Bruno’s out. Everyone’s out.”
I nod. “Yeah, they all seem very traditional.”
“It’s so annoying,” Enzo says, brushing his hand through his dark hair. “What about you and your daughter?”
“I plan on returning to the States and continuing on as usual.”
Oliver laughs, slapping a hand on my shoulder. “That’s what I like about him. He is a real class act. More money than he can handle and he’s going to pretend nothing happened.”
I smile with a wicked gleam in my eye. “Maybe not nothing.”
Both men laugh and I wish this place wasn’t a church, so I could take these two assholes out with my Colt .45 ACP right now. I’d never kill someone in a church.
Ever.
Even if they’re evil as fuck and headed straight to Hell.
“I’m going to check on Gia,” Enzo says, glancing at me after saying it. “If that’s ok with you.”
I smile. “Sure thing.”
We say our goodbyes, and I think about people I can trust. Can I call Hector? They made it clear that Hector is not involved in these shenanigans. I can’t just call him out of the blue. He’d never believe me.
Mia.
She’s really the only person who can make everyone see that I’m innocent and her father is part of a bigger scheme of ripping off all his business partners.
Once the other three members of the Four Families find out one of the heads of a family has betrayed them, there’ll be a war. The ‘Il Ordine Pubblico’ will be null and void.
Georgio DeWinter doesn’t really know what he’s doing, does he? Why would he put the life of his own daughter in danger?
Part of me wants to call him right now and tell him… I know.
But not yet. I’ll bid my time, plan it all out. I need to be smart about this, because this obviously took a lot of planning to pull this off.
I can’t believe there’s any part of him that would think Mia’d be ok if anyone ever found out.
I guess he plans on no one ever learning the truth.
Sorry to put a damper on your plans, buddy.
Now, I get to be the one to tell Mia her father was behind the whole damn thing. It pisses me off.
Everyone’s out to kill me.
Everyone thinks I’m guilty.
The fact Georgio DeWinter doesn’t care if I live or die makes me madder than fuck. How could he do this to me? I’ve stood by the asshole through thick and thin, and had his back fully.
As I make my way back to Tony’s on foot, people mill about in the streets, laughing and dining in their little cafes. I breathe it all in. The air. The happiness. The romance.
It makes me think of Mia. How I’ll need to tell her soon.
When I get back to Tony’s, Enzo isn’t there, and I breathe a sigh of relief. I want to tell Mia before I have to play pretend in front of Enzo. I’m tired of keeping on this game face.
I find Mia on the back patio, gazing up at the sky. It’s a clear day with just a hint of a breeze tugging at her long, silky hair.
“Did you find Enzo and Oliver?”
I nod, unable to find my words.
Her face lights up. “And?”
I can’t stop staring at her. Out here, in the most romantic city in the world, she’s different. Maybe it’s in the air. Maybe she’s always been this way, but there’s something about her, right now in this second, and I wonder to myself if I can kiss her yet.
Is anyone here?
Will someone see?
I brush the moment away.
“I was hiding for a bit, listening in on their conversation. Then, Enzo spotted me and I had to pretend to be Donovan Sabatini.”
“Did they suspect anything?”
I shake my head. “No.”
“So, what did they say?”
I have no desire to tell her that her father is a criminal.
I feel responsible for her. I feel indebted to her.
I feel so much my heart is ready to explode the more I think about telling her.
But I have to.
There’s no way I can keep something this big from her.
It’s kind of like her and I are on the same side of this thing. We’re in it together.
Fuck.