Chapter 21 #2
“The Devil founders started their career in the mafia,” continues Tragen.
“They quickly rose through the ranks, but they could never hope to be in real positions of leadership, because they weren’t Italian.
They weren’t made men. So there were tensions there.
And then the underboss Coltello, wanted to kill the capo—Moretti. And then there was Logan Colt.”
“Logan Colt,” I echo.
“Yeah. Logan Colt was the catalyst to the all-out war that completely fractured the mafia, turning the two factions against themselves, allowing Devil to finish the job. The Moretti family was exterminated, and Coltello and his acolytes went into hiding.”
I really couldn’t care less right now, either about Logan or about the mafia, but since I’m in a car waiting helplessly to get to my girl, I guess I’ll bite. “Why was Logan the catalyst?”
“Because he fell in love with the capo’s son’s wife.
The don’s son was Carmelo, and he was an abusive prick who raped a girl named Lia.
She was the daughter of a made man, and she fell pregnant, so she was forced into marriage with him.
She tried to run away with her daughter, and Logan was given the task of hunting them both down.
He was madly in love with Lia, and helped raise her daughter until she was four. ”
I close my eyes in exhaustion. I literally don’t care. No part of me is capable of experiencing the least emotion, except where it concerns Piper.
“You don’t seem very affected by my story,” observes Tragen.
“I really don’t see why I should care about your little mafia sob story. My mind is kind of elsewhere.”
“Don’t you understand?” snaps Tragen. “That daughter is Piper.”
I blink open my eyes and stare at him in confusion. “What daughter?”
“Didn’t you listen to a single thing I’ve just said?” he fumes. “The girl who was raped by the capo’s son. The girl whom Logan was in love with. She had a daughter. And that daughter is Piper.”
I rub my eyes, utterly lost. “I don’t understand. Piper… Piper has parents. Or had. She never spoke to me about any of this. Anyway, her early years were spent in California, and…”
“Have you ever heard of a thing called adoptive parents?” thunders Tragen. “Or of witness protection? Piper Day—AKA, Aurora Moretti—was handed off to Laura Day by Logan Colt after her mother died, to keep her safe. Until very recently, we all believed her to be dead. Now that we know she’s not…”
“She’s in a lot of danger,” I suddenly realize, as my mind finally manages to wrap itself around Tragen’s words.
“You said there were factions in the mafia. And she’s the last living member of the capo’s family.
So Coltello must want her dead. Her legitimacy in the mafia also makes her a target for Devil.
Maybe Logan isn’t strong enough to protect her from the others.
And you…” I turn slowly to him. “What do you want?”
Instead of answering, he smiles proudly. “Finally thinking with your head, I see.”
“What do you want?” I insist, my lungs feeling like they’re being strangled by my heart.
“I don’t want anything,” says Tragen smoothly. “I’m only a hired man.”
“You’re a Devil man,” I protest feebly.
“Until a higher bidder comes along. And that’s what happened.”
His set jaw tells me he won’t answer another question. I sag back on my seat, my head reeling as I take in all this impossible information.
My little nerdy chatterbox of a cricket… the granddaughter of a mafia capo?
It’s insane and yet, it does neatly tie up a lot of questions.
From her parents’ inexplicable deaths, to the people shot for getting too close to the truth. To Devil apparently wanting to kill her, and yet leaving her alive. To Logan’s involvement, trying to get us to a safe place in Oregon.
Fuck. If only I’d managed to get her there. If only I hadn’t said all those words that must have reopened the still fresh wound and made staying with me intolerable for her.
If only she hadn’t run.
If only I still had her with me, in Oregon. None of this would matter, if only I could hold her in my arms.
I know I could make it right. I just know I could.
Maybe it would take years to earn her forgiveness. Maybe a lifetime.
But I would just keep trying, until I succeeded. I would dedicate my life to it. To her.
Instead, I’m stuck in a motherfucking car with my Tragen, who I’m only now realizing is nothing but a soldier himself. He used my trauma against me, making me kill the soldiers that he knew he couldn’t count on.
I believed him when he said he was letting me get revenge, but I was nothing but his pawn.
Did the soldiers I murder even see Piper that night? Were they really guilty?
Probably, but what happened wasn’t about revenge. It was all just a sick manipulation, so that Tragen could succeed in his contract.
Because that’s what he is. A soldier who accepts contracts.
Only it’s not Devil who gave him this contract.
I have no idea what kind of contract it is. Or who gave it to him.
But I do know he needs me on his side. I’m his best soldier. What he doesn’t know is that I’m also going to be his killer.