Chapter Ten
“You’re up early,” Adelina said.
Massimo looked toward the bed. It was a little after six in the morning. He had an early appointment with Vigo of the Vigo Bratva, who had finally agreed to a meeting.
“I’ve got lots to do today,” he said. “Are you going to be okay here?”
“Yeah, of course I am. Isabella and I plan to hang out by the pool, and then I think Vincent wants another game of charades. He likes playing games.”
He chuckled. “Yeah, he used to play them with Mom and that all stopped after she passed.”
“He must have been so heartbroken.”
“He was. I think he is finally moving on.”
“He told me yesterday he was happy with me and our marriage,” she said. He saw the smile on her lips and chuckled, moving toward her.
“And you were worried?”
“I didn’t want your dad to hate me.”
“My father is not going to hate you.” He cupped her cheek. “I’ll be back as soon as possible.”
“Is everything okay?” Adelina asked.
He nodded. “Everything is fine.”
“You were quiet last night. Something’s bothering you. You can talk to me, you know. I wouldn’t tell anyone.”
“Soon.” He kissed her on the lips, and then left the bedroom. Leaving Adelina was the last thing he wanted to do, but he had to get to the bottom of who was the threat against the Russo Mafia.
He was on his way downstairs, and he should have known his father would already be awake, as he stepped out of his office.
“You’re off again so soon?”
“I’ve got that meeting with Vigo. Thank you for setting it up.”
“Come into my office.”
Time was ticking and Massimo looked toward the front door.
“It will only take a moment.”
Stepping into his father’s office, he looked to see a large note board with five capos’ names on it. He was surprised to see the Ferri name.
“Dad, I don’t have time for this.”
“Look, I know I’ve been out of the game for a while, but that doesn’t mean I don’t know what I’m doing,” he said.
“You think this is an inside job?”
“Vigo wouldn’t go against the Russo Mafia. He is not strong or powerful enough. He doesn’t have what it takes,” Vincent said. “This is a job from the inside.”
“With enough money to be able to waste giving to Gutterman? The same money I sent up in smoke?”
“Unless it was laundered money. Dirty money. Not real money,” Vincent said. “Then it doesn’t matter if you burned it, does it?”
There was one name he kept being drawn to. “Diego Bruno. The man that was going to marry Adelina. How does he play into this? He doesn’t do anything.”
“He’s wealthy. He has enough wealth to get the soldiers on his side. To manipulate other capos to his way of thinking. Don’t be fooled by a man who appears to be no one.”
“Okay, so why are the Ricardos there?” he asked.
“Everyone has a weakness and the Ricardos have been chasing their title to be leader for a long time.”
Massimo ran a hand down his face. “I’m going to talk to Vigo, then we’ll talk.”
“Adelina was a good choice,” Vincent said.
“You want to talk about my wife now?” Massimo asked.
“I don’t see a better time.”
“Dad, look, I get it, you’re ... dealing with your shit, finally, but trust me, I’ve got to get to this meeting, and if you want to, come with me.”
His father looked at him, as he stared back.
The offer was there. Massimo would take his father with him.
For a long time, Vincent had been locking himself away from the world.
The scars and pain of losing his wife had taken too much out of him.
Massimo watched as his father looked back at the board, and then toward him.
“I’ll grab my coat.”
Now, this surprised him. There were so many times over the past decade when he had asked his father to come with him, and each time he would say no. He would bow out of the fight and slink back to his office.
Together, they stepped out of the office and headed toward the door. Massimo had a quick word with his guards and told them to keep an eye on Adelina and Isabella. They were not to leave the house unless he was contacted first. With that, he and his father went to his car.
A couple of guards got into a second car, and Massimo reversed out of his parking spot, put it into “drive,” drove out of the main driveway of his home, and entered the main street.
“You okay, old man?” he asked, teasing his father.
“Old man. I bet I could still whip your ass and show you a couple of things.”
Massimo laughed. “Yeah, I bet you could, but I also bet Vigo will not know what has hit him when the two of us show up to this meeting.”
“I remember Vigo. He’s a pain in the ass, but he is fair. He can’t stand the Mafia. To him, we’re all cheating scum.”
“Cheating scum?”
“Some kind of card game many years ago, where he believed Russo was counting cards. It wasn’t the case. It was just a lucky card game,” Vincent said.
“You believe that.”
“Russos do not cheat. We’re lucky. There is a difference.”
Massimo had never cheated at anything in his life. Pushing his foot to the gas, making his way away from civilization, where King had wanted full visibility at a local café. Vigo had opted for an out-of-the-way diner, in the middle of nowhere. Minimal guards, minimal weapons.
He had a sneaking suspicion it could be a trap, but right now, he had to eliminate suspects. However, he couldn’t get his father’s board out of his mind. It kept dancing through his mind, on repeat.
“Why did you put Ferri’s name? I thought you liked Adelina.”
“I do, and she is no longer a Ferri. She is a Salvatore. Ferris are hounds, Massimo. They want an easy way into the good life. What better way than to help the enemy get close to Russo to take them out?”
“But Ferri is not close to the Russos,” he said.
“Which is why I put them as more of a pawn than anything else, but think about it. Out of the blue, they wanted their daughter to marry Diego, right?”
Massimo frowned. “And?”
“Why? Adelina was not a great catch and think about all of the other wives Diego had. He doesn’t go for any that look like Adelina. He likes them small, cowardly. He doesn’t like a woman who might have the risk of hitting back.”
“Dad, you didn’t see how Adelina looked at some of these parties.”
“No, you’re right, but look into Adelina’s eyes.
She is a fighter, so unless his preferences have changed and he wants a woman to break, she is not for him.
Diego has always gone for the scared, timid women.
He likes to scare and intimidate. It’s his deal.
Mainly because no man has ever been afraid of him.
He doesn’t exactly hit tough. He brings money to the Russo Mafia. That’s it.”
“And you think he approached the Ferris, and to earn a place once Russo has been taken over, they offered up their daughter as payment?”
“Yes,” Vincent said. “I know it sounds far-fetched, but shit like this happens.”
“Okay, so explain the Ricardos to me.”
“As you know, they’ve been struggling for years. A few bad decisions, and a large chunk of their fortune was gone. Many people don’t know that they also lost a large portion of Russo’s wealth.”
“What?”
“Yep, Russo was able to work back the wealth that had been lost, but along with it, the respect and trust was long gone.”
“How come I didn’t know about this?” Massimo asked.
“Some things you need to know, and other things you really don’t need to know.”
“How did Russo earn that money back?”
“Hello,” Vincent said, with a smirk.
“You won it back?”
“He came to me, and of course I did. A weak leader is not what anyone wants. Russo asked me to help him, and I did. Why do you think I can get away with not going to any of the social functions? I earned his respect and my title. I earned the respect of our family. I earned my dues with Russo.”
“So, what you’re saying is we’re pretty much one of the few families that haven’t pissed Russo off?” Massimo asked.
“There are plenty who haven’t,” Vincent said. “Is that our stop?”
Massimo looked ahead, and sure enough, he saw the neon sign declaring THE GREASE BALL. Only, some of the letters were missing, and it looked more like, HE G EA E ALL.
He saw two cars, and he parked and climbed out. There were two men standing by one of the cars.
“Vigo is waiting for you,” one of the men said.
Massimo followed one of the men inside The Grease Ball. There was a single waitress behind the counter and no other customers other than Vigo sitting in front of a large stack of pancakes.
“Gentlemen,” Vigo said. “Well, well, well, I am surprised our meeting would bring out Vincent Salvatore. To what do I owe the honor of such a visit?”
****
“This is the life,” Isabella said, after taking a sip of her iced tea and sitting back on the chaise lounge.
Adelina smiled at her friend, then sat back herself.
She was in a full swimsuit, whereas Isabella was in a bikini. There were no guards around, and she had no idea when Massimo was going to get home. She had opted for a glass of orange juice, as after Massimo had left the room, she had no choice but to run to the bathroom, where she had thrown up.
At first, she had thought she was coming down with something, but after some tea and toast, that sickness had abated.
While Isabella had been talking nonstop about the gossip she had heard at lunch yesterday, she had drifted off wondering the cause of her sudden morning sickness. It could only be one thing. Pregnant.
She had to be pregnant. It was the only logical explanation. No woman was sick in the morning and then miraculously healed throughout the day. She placed a hand on her stomach and wondered if she had a baby in there.
“Are you listening to me?” Isabella asked, looking toward her.
She quickly withdrew her hand and panicked. “Yes, of course I am.”
“What were you doing?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing?”
She shook her head.
“Adelina, you had a hand on your stomach.”
“Sorry, I was just resting.”
Isabella’s eyes went wide. “Oh, my God, is that what I think it is?”
Adelina had no idea what to say, so she forced a smile and looked at her friend. “What?”