42. Chapter 42
forty-two
C urtis’ gaze flew to the dark-haired beauty standing a few feet away. Though Kate had warned him and Lina about Sofia’s arrival, Connor’s revelation had riveted him.
“Sofia,” Connor and Tony said in unison, Tony, surprised, and Connor, worried.
“Your family ordered the hit,” Sofia said, the sorrow in her eyes broke Curtis’ heart.
Dressed in a stylish gray suit, her wool overcoat draped over her shoulders, and her hair sleekly held back in a low bun, Sofia looked like a woman who could own New York City. But right at that moment, she was crumbling right before his eyes.
“Sofia, if I had known, I would do everything in my power to put a stop to it.” Connor went to her, holding her by the arm.
She snatched her arm away from him. “Don’t touch me.”
“I’d do anything to change what happened. You know that,” Connor pleaded.
“God. When is this ever gonna end?” Tony massaged his forehead. “I am so tired of this fucking feud. All these losses.”
Connor and Sofia looked at the older Stiletto.
“All these deaths could’ve been avoided. Rocco’s and Sean’s.” Tony shook both of his hands in an agitated way, his Italian heritage showing. “Who’s next? Me? Liliana and Luca?”
From Sofia’s dramatic gasp and making the sign of the cross, Curtis guessed Liliana and Luca were Tony’s children.
“No, Tony. Don’t say that.” Sofia went to her brother.
“There’s always someone next, Sofia,” Tony said. “If our mother learned of this, she would raise hell against you, Connor.”
Sofia shook her head. Tears started down her cheeks. “No, you’re right, Tony. This has to stop.”
“You have the power to prevent more bloodbaths from happening,” Lina suggested.
Curtis could tell from her micro-expression that Lina was losing patience with the dramatics. He was engrossed. It was better than watching a Korean drama.
“If the three of you confront Serafina in a united front, you’ll have more power than she does. Your generation can end this stupid feud once and for all,” Lina said.
“United?” Tony echoed the word as if he didn’t understand its meaning.
“Yes, unite the families,” Lina suggested with a smile. “We have a couple in love right here.”
Lina looked at Sofia with kind eyes. “I know you’re hurt. It will take time to forgive each other for what happened. But it is obvious you love each other.”
Sofia looked at Connor warily.
“You’re suggesting they get married?” Tony asked.
“It is up to them, of course,” Lina said. “I’m just pointing out the obvious solution. All this started because they couldn’t stop loving each other. So they did it in secret. Nothing good comes from secrets, as we have witnessed.
“Let their love be the bond that will heal your families,” Lina urged.
Tony studied his sister. “I will never force you to do anything you don’t want. I’m not Mamma .” He glanced at Lina. “But she makes a lot of sense.”
“I…” Sofia gazed at Connor.
“I’ll marry you in a heartbeat,” Connor said.
Sofia drew a deep breath, looking unsure. Curtis held his, waiting for her answer.
“Shit! Incoming,” Kate’s voice broke in his ear at the same time the elevator dinged again.
Both Curtis and Lina sharply turned toward the elevator.
“Who the hell is coming now?” Tony questioned, but his face darkened as he saw his mother.
“Well, well, well. Are you having a party and forgot to invite me, Junior?” Serafina Stiletto catwalked in on four-inch black patent stilettos like she owned the building, followed by a guard bigger than Sal.
Lina subtly moved to stand in front of Curtis. Damn the woman’s protective instinct.
“And who do we have here?” Serafina looked at Connor, and her eyes glinted when she turned her gaze to Curtis. “You got me presents, darling.”
“ Mamma , what are you doing here?” Tony asked.
“That should be my question,” Serafina said, without moving her eyes from Curtis. “Imagine my surprise when I received a call from Sal here.”
Shit.
Sal grinned as he showed his smart watch.
Damn technology!
Lina’s hands fisted, feeling stupid for not stripping the stupid-looking bodyguard of his tech.
“What the fuck, Sal?” Tony glared at Sal, looking betrayed.
Sal looked confusedly at his boss, belatedly realizing he’d made a mistake.
“We’re on our way down,” Kate informed Lina and Curtis. “Hang tight.”
Serafina’s unsmiling face turned to Connor. “Hand over the bitch who ordered the hit on my son, and we’re even.”
“Your son killed my cousin first.” Connor looked at Serafina like she was nuts.
“Fine. Then I’ll hunt her down myself, and I won’t be as charitable as I am now.” Serafina turned, walking away without a care. “Victor, kill the Murphy and the Asians.”
“No!” Sofia ran to Connor as Victor casually pulled a gun out.
“Mother!” Tony hollered as he stomped forward.
The seconds ticked by slowly in Curtis’ view. He heard Lina shout to him as she went low, “Hit the floor!”
Instinctively, he followed her order and kissed the ground.
Lina tackled Tony by the legs and pulled him down. Connor was already on the floor, covering Sofia with his body, when a gunshot rang out.
Curtis looked up to see Sal holding up Victor’s gun arm away toward the wall, wrestling with the bigger guy for control of the weapon.
Lina jumped up seconds after the shot and intercepted Victor’s other hand, which gripped a blade, poised to stab Sal in his side, and twisted it out of the joint. Victor screamed. She swiftly secured the gun from Victor’s hand and out of Sal’s reach.
Wide-eyed, realizing what would’ve happened, Sal cursed, “Fuck! You’d kill me, man?”
“You stood in the way!” Victor yelled in pain.
“Idiots! The lot of you!” Serafina screamed, face red.
“Enough!” Tony was back on his feet, brushing the dust off his suit. “Sal, secure Victor.”
“All’s secure. Standby,” Lina whispered into her comms, signaling for backup to stand down.
Curtis got up and looked over at Connor, who was checking if Sofia was hurt from the abrupt drop to the floor. She was shaking but held on to Connor.
I guess all is forgiven there.
“Things are gonna change from this second, Mamma ,” Tony said. “You are no longer in charge of our lives.”
“Oh, and who’s gonna be in charge instead? You?” she mocked.
“Yes, me and Sofia.” Tony didn’t raise his voice this time. “Your way isn’t for us, Mamma . It is time for you to move aside or we split ways.”
Lina moved back to Curtis stealthily as she watched Serafina like a hawk. She kept herself between him and the unpredictable woman. One look at him assured her he was okay, and she signaled him to keep quiet.
Things are volatile right now .
“You wouldn’t be where you are if not for me and my ways, Junior,” Serafina fumed as she marched to her son.
“I’m not disputing that.” Tony stood his ground and looked his mother in the eye. “We are grateful for what you’ve done for us, but didn’t you build this so we can take it to the next level? For the next generation? For Liliana and Luca? And Sofia’s future children?”
“And Rocco! You forget your brother. But now he’s gone! Murdered by these bastardi !” Serafina screamed.
“Rocco is dead because of me, Mamma . I didn’t know he followed me,” Sofia said through tears. “If I hadn’t kept my relationship with Connor a secret, he probably would still be alive.”
“And you, ungrateful child,” Serafina hissed. “How could you betray your family with the enemy?”
“Connor is not the enemy, Mamma !” Sofia said. “Why do you insist on keeping alive this old feud that nobody even remembers how it started?”
“Because it is what we are!”
“Is it? Harboring and nurturing hate?” Sofia said. “I don’t want to have anything to do with that. Not anymore. It already took my brother away. I don’t want it to take our future, too.”
“And what are you gonna do, huh? Become his whore?” Serafina gestured at Connor.
“Do you even listen to yourself?” Connor came forward. “And you wonder why your children are rebelling against you?”
“Do not talk to me, scum.” Serafina stuck her nose up as if she thought he was dirt on her shoes.
“That’s it,” Tony said. “I should’ve done this years ago. I didn’t want to out of respect for you. Because I know you needed to feel powerful.”
He turned to Sofia. “You’ve set all the paperwork for transferring businesses?”
“Yes.” Sofia nodded. “Once you give the green light, everything will be dispersed.”
“What are you talking about?” Serafina questioned sharply.
Tony turned back to his mother. “The last time we spoke, I knew you would never give me the reins to our businesses. When Dad died, you might’ve fought to keep the power for us. But over the years, you got high on its seductions. It stopped being about us.
“I never want the power you wielded over us,” he continued. “But I will take it from you.”
Serafina laughed. “Take it from me? And how are you going to do that?”
“By dividing it among your men. They’ll be their own bosses now. Instead of a kingdom where one person rules—sometimes with savageness—they can have a choice to run their own businesses.
“Sofia and I have met with your lieutenants and gave them options: fight among themselves or divide equally and coexist in a profitable way. I gave them the business—after working for you all these years, they’ve earned it—whatever they’re going to do with it, it’ll be their choice. I can’t make them all do things my way, but I can hope.”
Serafina froze where she stood. “You can’t do that. They’re mine, they’re—”
“They were filed under a lot of shell companies, but good thing I have a brilliant lawyer. We want out of this life, and we don’t want the past to haunt us in the future. As you did with us, I have my children to think about. I wish you would think of them, too,” Tony said. “Can’t you see, Mamma ? You’ve become the enemy.”
From everything Tony had told her, Lina could tell that the last part struck Serafina the hardest. She backed a few steps away from her son as her gaze flew from him to her daughter.
“No more revenge. No more blood,” Tony told her. “Rocco’s death should be a lesson, a reminder to us to do better.”
“Your brother curses you from the grave,” Serafina snarled at them, but there was no more weight in her voice.
Tony studied Serafina sadly before he turned to Lina and Curtis. “If you would allow us the courtesy of taking care of our family matter in private, I give you my word you won’t get trouble from my mother or us ever again.”
Lina and Curtis nodded. Though they both agreed Serafina should answer for all the crimes she’d committed throughout the years, nothing that had been said could be used by the police to build a proper case against her or the Stilettos organization.
Lina was certain if Sofia was as good as Tony had said, she’d made sure all the business transfers wouldn’t be connected back to her or Tony.
Their recordings would still be a good asset to have if they ever ran into trouble with the Stilettos again. But at this moment, Curtis and she could only trust Tony at his word.
Curtis held out a hand and nodded. “Good luck with your family.”
Tony firmly shook his hand. “Thank you.”
Returning to the defeated-looking Serafina, Tony urged his mother to walk with him. “Let’s go, Mamma . We’ve arranged a beautiful retirement for you. Remember when I was little, you said if you didn’t have to be who you were, you’d love a small villa on Elba?”
Connor and Sofia came to them, their hands clasped. “Thank you for…” Connor searched for the right word, “…facilitating this.”
“I’m just glad it worked out,” Curtis said, relieved. “Serafina showing up was—”
“A blessing in disguise,” Sofia said. “It pushed Tony to take the final step and me to realize whatever happened, I can’t live without Connor.”
She looked at Connor with a smile. “We’re getting married.”
“Oh, thank god. Finally.” Connor beamed and pulled her into a hug.
“Congratulations!” Curtis exclaimed, shocked.
The news shocked more than the two of them because a high-pitched shriek filled the air. “No!”
“Watch out!” Tony warned.
Lina had literal seconds as she saw Serafina throw a thin dagger, and it flew at them. She didn’t think, she only knew she had to stop the dagger. She barely registered Curtis shoving Connor and Sofia away. Her focus was on the incoming knife.
She could feel it as it flew past her cheek and her fingers caught it by the tip of the blade. Years of training controlled her next reaction as her arm swung back and flung the dagger at Serafina.
There was no scream this time. Silence filled the air as Serafina fell back onto the floor, undignified. The sharp tip of her blade imbedded on the concrete floor between her spread legs.
Her face white as she almost faced her own death, Serafina stared at Lina with petrified eyes as Lina advanced toward her. The heartless woman finally shook with fear as Lina pulled the dagger out of the floor.
“If you ever try that again, I won’t miss next time,” Lina warned.
Lina turned her deadly stare at Tony, who was as shaken up as his mother. “You better take your mother home, Tony.”
Before I kill her .