Chapter 32
Chapter Thirty-Two
ENZO
I pace the great room, my mind in knots.
Sirens rise in the air at a distance, so loud they can be heard in my house.
And suddenly, all hell breaks loose.
The front door bursts open with a near-distant cacophony of noise, just as Cade's phone starts to beep.
"Fuck." He is so still, staring at his phone, and there's something in his stance that turns my blood to ice.
"Boss?" I turn as Con holds out a phone.
I take it, and there's an alarm on my old car, the one I sold to Jack.
Bad thoughts crash into each other.
What the fuck just happened? And why is that tracker still operating?
Con heads for the door and opens it. "I got the car. The crash isn't far from here."
"What—"
"We need to go," Cade grabs my arm.
He is ashen, and I don't want to fucking finish the thought, but I need to.
"Tell me."
"I asked Jack to watch Lola and Lyndall and bring them home when they were ready. He texted ten minutes ago he was on his way, and then..."
I snatch the phone as we get into the car, Con at the wheel. "You activated the old tracker?"
"No, I put one on." He swallows, racing through the neighborhood watches and news posts. "Crash. Car on fire. Not far from the coffee..."
He stops.
"There's a fatality..."
"Who?" I push out as I text Silas.
Me
Accident. Lola, Jack, Lyndall. No news.
Silas
Fuck. Where?
I text him the location.
By now we can see the smoke.
Silas
Be there ASAP
"Male. I..." Cade stops, and he's shaking.
I know exactly how he feels. He has had his issues with his brother. I have too, on his behalf. But he loves Jack, and under it all, Jack is a good guy.
Now he's got his shit together and is in a relationship.
He better be okay. So better be Lola. And my sister.
Because fuck it all, she is my sister, no matter what.
As we pull up, Cade lets out a soft moan.
There's a body covered by a sheet and three cars. My old one is now a black and twisted thing.
Whoever hit Jack must have somehow pierced the fuel tank.
The other car he hit is wiped out, as it hit a truck. And the car that caused it... It's fine.
And both doors are open.
Shit.
"Jack!" Cade shouts as he breaks into a run.
His brother is sitting in an ambulance, a bandage on his head and leg, and an IV in his arm.
"I'm sorry... I... When I came to, they were gone..." Jack says to me and Cade.
But I stop listening. Because there in the melee... Right there is someone that doesn't belong here. Someone that shouldn't be here.
I stride over and grab him.
"Take your fucking hands off me, Enzo. Or you'll regret it," my father warns in cold, hard tones.
I let him go. Not because of the threat, but because I don't need to make a scene.
My blood slams in my head, drowning out the noise around me.
"It's not you under that sheet. And it's not your sister or that Lourdes girl, either."
For the life of me, I can't understand why he sounds so relieved with the first statement, and so matter of fact, like he's letting me know with the second.
But my head is buzzing and pounding.
I stare at him. "What the fuck are you doing here?"
"I had a tracker put on your cars. I got an alert about this. I feared the worst."
"You put a tracker on my cars...? I sold this one. I have a new one."
He shrugs. "I didn't know."
Then what he says really sinks in.
"Why the fuck were you tracking me? I'm a grown man, and I do not need my fucking father knowing where I go in my car."
"You either use the subway or you get a car service, unless you're seeing me or...It doesn't matter."
"It does."
Dad laughs. "And you came here because of that alert too, didn't you? I'm betting you track your sister's phone. And tell me how you took over Lourdes' life."
I don't even ask how Dad knows that. Seems he has been doing some digging of his own, too.
I narrow my eyes. "You leave her alone."
"You're as bad as me, Enzo. In fact, you might be worse. You've always been protective of that girl. Always."
I force myself to concentrate, like I force the panic to remain at bay.
Panic is not going to do a thing.
"Dad... I think Dom Rebecci took the girls and—"
"I'll help you find them."
"You?"
"Game is over, Enzo. This is my empire until I decide to hand it back to you. Besides, even if I let you still have it, you need me. I have contacts you don't."
"And I have contacts you don't."
"Then working together is good, don't you think?"
I want to say no. Every part of me wants that desperately. But I'm no fool, and saying no is a foolish thing. Very foolish.
Even if I ran the Marino family, I'm not Dad, and the best and most powerful families use all resources.
This is one time I need all the help I can get.
Rebecci is clearly off-grid, and that is a problem for me, but it might not be for Dad.
And time spent fighting is time stolen from finding Lyndall. From finding Lola. And my baby, Squish.
I take a breath, right as Silas arrives. Before I can go over to join them, my phone buzzes.
Silas
Jack's fine. The driver he hit wasn't wearing a seatbelt. Went right through the fucking window. We'll go to the hospital with him. And I'll fill Zayne in.
I follow Dad to his SUV, and we get in.
My phone buzzes again.
Zayne
Spoke to Silas. Focus on the girls. I'll take care of everything else.
Our search, Dad's and mine, leads us to Edoardo Costa.
I text Cade where I'm going, knowing he'll share with Zayne and Silas.
I'm utterly reluctant to throw my lot in with Dad and Costa, or even trust Dad on this.
But I'm out of options.
Besides, I'm banking on the fact that he might still have some affection for Lyndall. That his caring for my sister is bigger than his hatred of Emilio Mancini and, by proxy, his official daughter.
I'll take anything.
And the longer they're missing...
Time's running out.
"Costa isn't a friend."
Dad doesn't answer as we drive to my place. There are guns there, my computer. Men.
"Father?"
"You can call me Dad, you little prick."
I bite down on the urge to address him as Father. This, I remind myself, is not the time to fuck with him. Not with Lyndall, Lola, and Squish on the line.
I'm aware the baby is nothing in the grand scheme of things if you're looking from the outside in.
Lola isn't even showing, and I think Squish is fucking perfect and adorable, but unless she tells someone, they won't know she's pregnant.
My baby means the world to me.
Lola means the world to me.
My sister, too.
Even if she isn't actually my sister by blood.
"Dad?" I take a breath as we turn onto my street.
My place is lit up downstairs, and the guards aren't even pretending to blend in. Inside must be worse.
Actually, there are more than I had. And I send a sharp look to my father.
Who shrugs. "What? Backup, kid. Always be ready for anything."
"I don't need one of your 'this is how the business is run' lectures, Dad. How the fuck are you buddy-buddy with Costa?"
The car pulls up, and I motion to Con, who has clearly just arrived a little before us.
He leads people inside.
Lucky it's the time of day when people are probably heading home from work or out for drinks.
I don't notice any curtains twitching. But this is a well-heeled street, so people work long hours and play harder. At the most, a couple of nannies caught the commotion, and it's easily written off as a get-together.
It doesn't bother me. I just prefer not to be noticed. At least, not unless I want attention.
I grab Dad's arm. "Costa?"
"I know him, we have connections."
I'm wasting time, and I let him go.
We go inside, and he helps himself to some booze in my study.
He dials a number on his phone, hits speaker, and sits.
Picking up the glass, he sniffs the whiskey. "Edoardo. It's Mario."
"Mario, how's it hanging?" the man says jovially, his voice lightly accented.
Dad says, "A little lower these days."
"To have youth back with the wisdom of age... You know there's a good poker game coming up at the club—"
I slam my hand down on the desk and snatch the glass from my father before he can have any.
I lean in. "I'm so fucking glad the two of you are old friends and love discussing your old man ball sacs, but catch the fuck up another time. Can we get back to the point of the call?"
My father offers me a slight smirk. "Edoardo, my son, Enzo."
The other man laughs. "Right off the old block, though not as much discipline."
"My sister and my girl are missing." The urge is there to say fiancée, but I narrowly stop myself.
Lola is nothing of the sort.
I'm not even sure she is my girl. Not now. But I ignore the anger glittering in Dad's eyes.
His murderous gaze is piercing through me. "Girl?"
"Yes, the one who has the job at Barwon." There's no shock in Edoardo's voice, which makes me instantly suspicious.
"Lourdes works at what?" Dad asks.
I just shake my head.
"She's your girl? No one told me that. Since when?" Costa asks me.
Dad's eyes narrow to slits.
"It's a work in fucking progress," I say. "Where the fuck is Rebecci, and where are the girls?"
Dad keeps his gaze on me. "I'd like to know, too. My daughter is involved."
And somehow, those words cut me deep.
"Well, no one told me your daughter would be involved, Mario. But I helped him."
I'm about to tell the prick the things I'm going to do to him when Dad rises and clamps a hand around my wrist.
He shakes his head. "You did this without knowledge it was my kid and his girl?"
"She was the hire who shouldn't have been. So, it was clear- And Rebecci confirmed it, this Lourdes is a Mancini, and he has unfinished business with her father."
"Who is dead."
"Can't be helped," Edoardo says. "Anyway, she was with Louie before you, kid."
"Louie? What the fuck has he got to do with this?"
There's a thunderous silence, and I want to get my gun and shoot this fat fuck on the other end of the phone.
"Costa?" I shake off Dad's hold, and he, for once, wisely steps back.
"You bought the startup. And since Louie has all but disappeared, you've inherited the consequences of the little shit. Louie's double-crossing me. You should consider my assistance to Dom as payback."
I throw the glass, and it hits the far wall, smashing it. "Really?"
"She's not worth your time. She's a Mancini, and they're liars and cheats. We all know this."
"No. Whatever her father was isn't her—"
"It's not revenge against anyone but Louie. Lose the girl and pay the price for double-crossing me. I've cleaned up a mess. Now you can keep this stupid startup or sell it to the next person for parts."
Dad doesn't lift his gaze from me. "I'm no fan of Mancini, either. How about the three of us sit down and talk this out?"
What the fuck? I want the girls back, not a fucking mafia tea party.
Costa laughs. "Okay. It would be lovely to catch up. I'm in town, let's go get some drinks, look at some pussy..."
"Deal," Dad says before I can say another thing. "I'll contact you with details. My treat. It will be lovely to catch up."
When Dad hangs up, he just stares at me.
But I'm really not having any of it.
The entire fucking bizarre conversation is still rattling around in my head.
In fact, it's messing with my head.
He thought Lola was Louie's girl? I'm honestly so gobsmacked by how far off base that is, by how absurd, I don't even consider it to be true, not even for a moment.
Lola has taste.
And I don't care if Louie had an inkling of who Lola was, which I honestly don't think he did. He is too much of a coward to sell someone out.
Taking off and disappearing with the family wealth behind him and the money I paid him, leaving a mess behind? Now that is definitely Louie.
"I'll make him eat my gun." And I'm not sure if I mean Louie, Edoardo, or Dom.
Maybe I mean all of them.
"You'll do nothing of the sort." Dad starts making calls.
I send texts.
Me
Things have taken a bizarre turn.
Cade
Jack's feeling about an inch tall. He's extremely sorry. So am I.
Silas
Pack up the feels, girls. What kind of bizarre?
Me
Edoardo Costa helped Dom get Lola and Lynds, and now he and my dad are planning some kind of tea party at a strip club.
Cade
Digging up all dirt I can find. Take pix.
Silas
Of the strippers?
Cade
Tea. Party.
Me
Let me know if you find anything. I'll do the same.
I put the phone away. They'll probably bicker about this all to let off steam. I know they're worried, and a small part of me is pleased Jack got hurt. I'm glad he's okay, but this way, I don't have to punish him.
Though it wasn't his fault.
He's not trained.
And I do know that even one of Dad's men would have been in the same position.
It happened at an intersection. So, I can see someone running the red light deliberately and plowing into the car, sending it into the other car.
No one can stop that.
But still...
What can I say? I'm a fucking prick.
"How can you trust this guy?" I pick up the bottle and take a swallow.
Dad snatches it and pours a finger into another glass. "Running a family is playing games on different boards. And you being brainy and good with computers is great, but you need to understand this side."
"What side? Old men indulging in ego trips?"
Dad shrugs. "You can modernize the mafia, but there's a reason so much is done with cash, without computers. We have a trust system. Territories and enemies you respect."
"So, you respect Costa?"
"Yes," Dad says bluntly. "Look, we're not going to form an alliance where our families merge. But...favors...and a certain kind of trust you will never understand until you walk in the shoes."
I shake my head. "How can you trust him? He helped kidnap Lyndall. I know she's not your daughter, but—"
"Watch your words." Then he switches gears after he downs his drink and motions me to the great room. "I can assure you, Edoardo is a very reasonable man."
"Seems to love his low-hanging balls."
"Reasonable until he's lied to, or worse. Double-crossed."
"Isn't that the same, more or less?"
"Not to him. He really doesn't like being stolen from."
"And, Dad, if someone double-crosses him?"
My father smiles. It's a humorless smile.
He pats my cheek. "Then he's a fucking psycho. We just don't double-cross him in this."
"If he asks a price we can't pay? This is Lyndall."
Lola.
Squish.
I go to my safe and open it, pulling out my gun and a bunch of clips.
"I'm certain we'll come to an agreeable arrangement."
His phone rings, and he answers. His conversation is short. Then he hangs up and handpicks some of his men to come with him.
He might trust the man and be confident.
But as we roll out, I can't shake the feeling that this is starting to sound all too easy.
I text Silas and Cade once more.
Me
Dig deep. Get everything you can.
Just in case.