Chapter 57
Alessandro Vitale agreed to the meeting with an eagerness that tells me he suspects why I want to talk.
We’re minutes away from the proposed time and I pace my office, trying—and failing—to walk off any steam before I accidentally forget to play nice with Vitale and send us into another war.
Serafina turned eighteen months ago, and there could be numerous reasons why Vitale hasn’t reached out for her yet. Best case: they don’t want her. Alessandro Vitale is a greedy fucker, though, so I doubt it’s that one.
Nero watches me pace back and forth, wringing my hands together before I wring someone’s neck. Just when I thought Ursin hadn’t done enough to my family, this happens. If I could resurrect him, I would, all so I can slaughter his ass again.
The other useful thing to come from Vanessa’s email was learning how Padre lost so suddenly. As Ursin wrote in his own journal, he’s unfortunately correct about the part that the Five Families may function under one entity, but we’re not always loyal to one another. We’re like those dysfunctional cousins at a family gathering, always trying to one-up the other. It’s a cutthroat world at times, and clearly, Ursin’s offer was too good for Vitale to turn down. Regardless, the fact that another Family betrayed mine is enough reason to initiate war, and the Commission would have no choice but to allow it to happen.
The thing I most hate about Vanessa’s email: it went to Nero and not me. Putting aside the words in her message, it made me want to hit him when something flowed through me. Something similar to…to jealousy . An emotion I’ve felt very few times—if at all.
“Update me,” I demand, needing a distraction from my drifting thoughts. “Anything on Boris yet?”
“Not yet.” Nero’s voice sounds exhausted as he answers the same question I ask him nearly every day. It’s important we find him.
For her.
As thanks for helping with Serafina. Or a wedding gift. To go along with all the others I’ve sent her way.
A loud chime from my laptop informs me Alessandro is video calling, and I’m quick to reclaim my seat with Nero moving out of the camera’s view. I press the green button to accept the call, waiting the few seconds for technology to figure itself out and reveal the other capo.
“Mancini,” he greets with a smile much too large for anything friendly. “I figured you’d be calling at some point.”
“You’ve been expecting me?” I phrase it like a question and hide my fists beneath my desk, to see how much information he’ll freely hand over.
His smile falters a fraction with the slight tip of his head. “It was only a matter of time before you learned about the deal made for your sister’s hand.”
“Enjoy making deals with the Bratva, Vitale?”
His hands spread in front of him as he leans back in his chair. “Ursin Volkov was a force to be had, so it seemed like a good idea.”
“You betrayed us, another Family. My father’s dead because of the help you gave that man.”
“It’s simply good business. You know how it goes.” He grins, like speaking about my father’s death is nothing. As much as I’d love nothing more to continue discussing that fact, Serafina matters more than ghosts long gone, so I push it all aside for now.
“You’d sully your lineage with her.” If Vitale’s all about keeping his bloodlines pure with Italian descent, then I’ll make Serafina’s DNA seem like poison. “The children she’d produce will be one quarter Russian.”
His lips purse in a contemplative way before shaking his head. “Mancini, you must realize I considered that before agreeing to the deal. It was struck and signed, so there’s nothing you can do about it.”
In the corner, Nero coughs a muffled, “ Douche!”
Beneath the desk, I grip the edge of my chair, casting much of my irritation onto it to remain focused. Rage and death may be the mob’s language, but sometimes peace and politeness are best for striking deals.
“She turned eighteen months ago. Why haven’t I heard from you before now?”
“Before now,” he repeats in a contemplative tone. “Mancini, you were the one who reached out to me.”
That didn’t answer the question, but the whys of it all are less important. The longer this conversation goes on, the greater my headache.
“What can I offer you to break off the agreement? One, I should clarify, that wasn’t backed by the head of her Family.”
“Ah,” his eyes glint, “but it was backed by her father , which is all that matters.” He blinks slowly and readjusts his sleeves before folding his hands over his desk. He’s pacing out his replies on purpose, causing my irritation to grow. “Better question is, how much do you care for Pakhan Volkov?”
I stop breathing. No one beyond this villa should be aware of my interactions with Vanessa, so it confirms Vitale has spies hanging around my territory. Spies I now have to sniff out and have them dealt with.
“We had business once. That’s all.”
He smiles so wide, the camera picks up his smoke-stained yellowed teeth. “You’re very judgemental over my dealings with the Bratva for someone who’s done the same. I’ll put it like this, Mancini: I have something you need. Or rather, some one .”
He taps his computer, his face being replaced with a camera feed of a cemented room. Inside, a man paces, his balding head shining in the camera’s light. He’s dressed in a suit that’s seen better days. Wild eyes bounce around the confined space, his gaze continuously darting to the door across from him, presumably seeking escape.
The feed cuts off and Alessandro returns, his victorious expression similar to that of an Olympic gold medalist. “That man would be Boris Agapov. Heard Volkov has been hunting him for quite some time.”
Fuck, fuck, fuck. The man Vanessa’s been hunting worldwide is right there . A screen away. A deal away. Alessandro showed me Boris for a purpose.
“Wouldn’t it be nice to hand him over to her?” He voices the very thoughts that have driven me for the past month. “Seems our mutual friend, Ursin, mentioned me to him. Once the young Volkov rose in her father’s place, he ran from Moscow scared, begging for help. So, I kept him concealed, figuring he’d be useful eventually.”
Which explains why Vanessa’s searching hasn’t come up with anything. When Vitale wants to hide a person, he can make it happen.
“Generous. What’d he give you?”
“Money.” Alessandro shrugs. “He emptied his bank accounts for my assistance, and while I didn’t really need nor want the cash, I was too intrigued by the situation to turn him away. Running from a mob leader makes a person valuable. And look at that…his time’s up and he’s now useful.”
Now, that’s two things I need and he has. My leg bounces beneath the desk, anticipation thrumming. Forcing myself to be calm, I coolly ask, “Is this the part I request you to hand him over, or would you rather I send Volkov?”
Alessandro smirks. “This is the part where I explain, young Mancini, how making deals works. The sacrifices they take. I want your sister to wed my son. You want Agapov. So now, you much choose between the women.”
Serafina hasn’t been a daughter of the mafia since her birth, so there’s no way I’ll allow her to become the wife of one. Boris, knowing he’s with Alessandro adds complications. With Vitale aware we’re looking for him, he’ll never let the guy walk free.
“If I pick my sister, the contract is null?”
“If you choose your sister, I’ll consider it.” The single word slithers with venom and his probable deceit. “I have no issue ending the deal and granting the girl her freedom, but you’ll need to convince my son. He’s quite fond of the idea of Serafina.”
Fucking snake. He knows exactly what he’s doing. If his son wants to pursue this, the Vitales will have clear reason to strike an attack. As much as I hate it, his earlier point was correct. While I might be the head of the Mancinis now, and therefore Serafina, the deal was originally made by her father, so the Commission will mandate the union goes forward. Which means, I could very well lose my sister even if I choose her.
“And if I choose Volkov?”
“Then Boris will be delivered to your territory shortly and my son will announce a wedding date.”
I could take the risk on his son or the Commission’s possible ruling and simply inform Vanessa where Boris is located. She can launch her own attack on Vitale and my hands will remain clean, and Serafina possibly freed from an engagement.
“I’m waiting, Mancini.”
Alessandro looks too smug. He knows I’ll pick Serafina, and he’s banking on that. Whether or not his son wants the marriage, it’s Alessandro as the head who’ll lie about their private conversation later. I see it in his expression; he has no intention of breaking the contract. He only wants to force this decision onto me. Shy of murdering his son—tempting, but would create more complications—they’ll guarantee this union goes forward.
This conversation proved one thing: Alessandro’s not seeking a deal with me. If he didn’t want Serafina, he wouldn’t have played Boris.
“If I choose my sister, you’re stuck with Boris. Doesn’t seem like a prize.”
“He’ll get his value in time. I wonder what Pakhan Volkov would give up for him.”
Anything. Vanessa will do anything, give up anything, to have Boris in hand. If his location were to remain hidden, she wouldn’t stop. She’ll run herself into the ground trying to find him, and desperation does things to people. She’ll grow irrational, frantic. With enough passing time, she’ll hand Vitale anything he wants that’s in her power.
And he knows this.
I can’t let Vanessa make that kind of sacrifice. Not for someone as unworthy as Boris.
The very notion of not choosing Serafina is a hard pill that churns my stomach, but instinct says, this is a gamble I need to take. I’ve lost one way or the other. I either lose both, or I lose one.
In the end, I refuse to hand Serafina over. If it takes a war, so be it, but for the immediate future, I must play this smarter.
“Send Boris to me.”
Vitale’s eyes nearly sparkle in the camera. A flash of both expectation and surprise goes across his expression, almost like he was certain and uncertain which woman I’d choose.
“How will your sister feel about this?”
I feign not caring with a barely-there shrug. “Like generations of Mancini women before her, she will do what’s necessary for the family.”
She’ll slaughter me if she ever learns about this.
“I’m glad you see the best path forward for our two great organizations.” His tone is gentle, placating. “Your father was a good negotiator too. His loss is still felt deeply within the Cosa Nostra.”
His blood is on your hands.
“Thanks.” Padre is not who I wish to be talking about, especially to the man who helped the attack. Choosing a Volkov’s happiness over my sister’s would horrify him.
“Well...” Alessandro reaches off to the side, bringing his phone into view. “I’ll have Agapov dropped off to you by this afternoon. As for your sister, Alessio is busy with business, touring Europe. He’s adamant to wait until your sister is a bit older, so we’ll be in touch.”
Small miracles. A fact only played when he felt it necessary because had I known I have more time to appeal the union, it would have made my decision easier.
Vitale ends the call, leaving me staring at my own reflection. As I shut the laptop, Nero moves into my line of sight, hands coming down on my desk. “Who are you? You chose Vanessa over Sera?”
“I chose nothing. Sera’s not marrying anyone she doesn’t wish to, but Agapov in Vitale’s hand means Vanessa will never get to him. Not without starting a war.”
“So let her start her own battles. Besides, you didn’t play one very crucial card: that she’s your wife.”
“On purpose. It’s best kept under wraps for now. It wouldn’t have made a difference anyway. If anything, he would have grown more determined to make me pick.”
“So no war.” Nero straightens and crosses his arms. “Walk me through how there’s a reality in which Volkov came before your sister.”
“The idea of breaking the contract isn’t something Alessandro will entertain because it’ll hit his ego, but he obviously won’t say that, so he’s using his son as an excuse. If he wanted to, the Commission could enforce the deal. So I chose the sure thing so I didn’t lose both. Trust me, I’ll lock Sera in a box at the bottom of the ocean before I allow any Vitale to lay his hands on her.”
He smirks. “Maybe not such drastic measures, but I hear you. Okay.” He blows out a breath. “Well, I assume you have a plan then?”
“For now, get Boris to Russia after he’s delivered. As for Sera, she’ll be fine for the immediate future. I’ll stick men on her, but Alessandro won’t attempt anything. Agreement or not, he’s aware he has to play by the rules if he wants a proper marriage the Cosa Nostra will respect. He’s too old-fashioned to risk his own reputation.”
I reach for my cell, discarded off to the side, to text Elio to gather a few good men he trusts most to complete this task, but my latest activities stop me. Before Nero burst in with news, I was in the process of texting him the same number Serafina’s been communicating with.
A number belonging to a person she’s been texting since her birthday…
Maybe it’s a coincidence. Maybe it’s rash to consider. But?—
I spin my phone around, showing Nero the screen. “Get me anything you can on the owner of this number and soon . I have to call Madre and tell her not to worry about the men I’ll be sending her way.”
“And Sera? She’ll freak if you stick people on her.”
With a parting grimace, I say, “Only if she knows they’re there.”