Chapter 28
Dean
The blue and pink lights of Castello di Vetro cut through the hazy cigarette smoke that lingered in the back area of the strip club. The booths in this spot were black leather and provided a comfortable spot to sit and observe the rest of the room.
Nothing about this meeting was comfortable.
I fought again tonight but wasn’t nearly as bruised as last time. There were fresh cuts on my knuckles that stung a little once the sweat got to them, but it wasn’t why I was uncomfortable. No, I was uncomfortable because of the person who sat across from me.
Gabriele took one long drag of his cigarette and let the smoke pour from his mouth as he watched me closely. He had asked me to stay back after my fight.
After watching all the other fighters leave earlier, including Seb, an unsettling sensation settled in my gut.
I kept my guard up like always. Face unreadable as if I were uninterested in anything Gabriele had to say.
Beside him, Roxy was playing her part in a tight red turtleneck dress. She had garnered his trust, and they seemed to be closer than the first night they met. She whispered things into his ear or played with the collar of his shirt while he draped his arm around her shoulders.
“You did well tonight. Congratulations.” He knocked the ash from his cigarette into an empty glass.
I was temporarily taken over by the urge to ask him for one to settle my already agitated nerves, but I held my tongue.
“You’re good. Very good.”
“Thanks,” I said.
“You have a loyalty about you,” he continued, gesturing to all of me with his hand. “Like you’d do whatever necessary to protect people you care about.”
My jaw tightened.
“He is one of my best.” Roxy slid her palm along Gabriele’s chest to grab his attention.
His eyes went to her for a moment, and he smiled lazily before his gaze came back to me.
“You know the gentleman you fought on your first night here was found dead the other day?” His smile remained as he drew back on the cigarette again.
I dragged my attention to the room. “That’s unfortunate.”
Antonio was killing his ex-fighters one by one.
“Hm…” Gabriele sipped the scotch in front of him and made sure to really appreciate its taste. He sucked on his teeth in thought. “You know… My fighters, the ones who used to work for my father, tell me you were his favorite. They say he treated you much better than any of them. Like a son.”
Fuck, fuck, fuck—
Gabriele chuckled darkly. “You can see why I might see that as a threat… But they also mentioned he employed you to do jobs for him, Dean.”
My heart stopped for a second, and I think Roxy’s might’ve too, based on the way she stilled.
Of course, those fighters would tell the triplets what my real name was.
We couldn’t stay hidden behind fight names forever.
But it was the way Gabriele said it that set my mind racing.
With my name in their minds, it felt like they had started to chip away at the wall of security I was trying desperately to hold up around anyone I cared about.
This was why I kept my circle small.
“I did.” They were the only words I could get out while I tried to remember if there was any moment in my past where my last name might have been spoken inside The Den’s basement.
Some of those guys, fellow fighters, knew crumbs about my family and what happened to it.
What they knew wasn’t big enough to be a threat, but—
Who am I kidding? It’s a huge fucking threat.
Gabriele’s smile was cunning as he watched me process it all. Of all the years working for a mob boss, I had never seen or met someone who could display so much malice in a smile. In that moment, what I wanted more than anything was to smack it right off his face.
Roxy jumped in again, trying to bring Gabriele back on side. “Remember what I said, though? We left Antonio. He wasn’t a good boss.”
Gabriele scoffed his amusement and rubbed his temples. “Do you think I’m stupid?”
“No, of course not,” Roxy cooed, once again sliding a hand up his chest.
Gabriele caught her wrist and held firm.
Roxy’s smile grew uncomfortable, but remained on her face as she tried to gently remove his hand. But he wasn’t letting up.
I shifted in my seat.
“I know why you’re here.” Gabriele’s eyes tracked along Roxy’s body as he spoke. “Collecting information for him because he can’t do it himself. He wants to know what more we have planned, yes?”
Roxy’s eyes darted to me, and her smile wavered. “No, that’s not—"
“Tell me, did he pay you to spy on me as another job for him?” His attention came to me. “Are you recording this conversation? Is he listening now?”
I wasn’t wired tonight because of the fight earlier. Detective Whitmore didn’t think it was necessary to have undercovers planted in the place tonight either, since he believed I would only be around for a fight. This meeting was unexpected, without warning.
Roxy and I were alone and exposed, surrounded by the enemy.
“Your father underpaid us,” Roxy continued, her voice more serious. “When you came to Brooklyn, offering so much more, I couldn’t refuse—”
Gabriele grabbed a fistful of her long black hair and tore her head back, exposing her throat as he flipped out a switchblade.
She whimpered, squeezing her eyes shut.
“Put it away,” I growled, but didn’t move. Not yet.
“I wanna check,” Gabriele shrugged, smiling like it was a joke. He dragged Roxy from the booth and, within seconds, tore the front of her dress open. The blade cut clean through the red fabric, nicking her skin before she was left to stand in her underwear. No wires.
My entire body was tense, ready to step in. I wasn’t sure how to play this without being shot or stabbed.
Gabriele took a step back and tapped the blade on his chin as he examined Roxy’s body from afar, and then said something that made my previous hesitation go out the window.
“Forse c'è qualcosa in quella biancheria intima.”
I barged from the booth and stood between them. “We’re leaving.”
Gabriele chuckled darkly but put the blade away. “I knew you could speak Italian.” He took a seat in the booth as he looked over Roxy and me, coming to some conclusion in his head. “I seem to have struck a chord… I’m aware of that sweet little girlfriend you have, but you two? Past lovers?”
I removed my hoodie and passed it to Roxy. She quickly pulled it on.
“You are very protective of the women in your life, I see. It’s an admirable trait,” Gabriele said. “But it makes me curious too.”
I was trying to keep things calm. Move calm, leave calm. Try not to bring any more attention to Lily.
He planted his elbows on the table and balanced his knife horizontally between his fingertips. “What makes them so important to you?”
I could lose it if I wanted to. Beat the shit out of him until his face was a mangled reflection of what it once was, but the consequences would be worse. I turned around instead, attempting to guide Roxy towards the exit before Gabriele could speak again.
As she snatched the torn remains of her dress from the ground, Gabriele laughed. “Tell my father, he shouldn’t send whores to do his work.”
Roxy whirled in anger, practically shooting lasers from her eyes. Before I could stop her, she grabbed Gabriele’s drink and aimed it, glass too, at his head. While he dodged the glass, the drink within it landed with a splat across his face and chest.
“I’m not a fucking whore!” she snapped, ready to confront Gabriele with another strike before I hooked my arm around her waist and pulled her back.
Gabriele simply stood and dabbed his face with a napkin, at the same time motioning for his men to stand down after they seemed to appear from nowhere to protect him.
I steered Roxy around in front of me and moved us through the club. My eyes were fixed on the exit.
“Don’t fucking manhandle me.” She smacked my hand away as she attempted to stop.
“Move. Now.” My words were clipped.
Despite the glare in her eyes, she listened, walking ahead of me with fury in every step.
When we cleared the front doors, the smallest wave of freedom washed over me, but we weren’t in the clear.
“What the fuck was that?” I hissed.
“No one calls me a whore and gets away with it,” Roxy spat.
“No one throws a fuckin’ drink at a crime boss and gets away with it either, you fuckin’ idiot.”
She spun around, ready to protest the name-calling, but I cut her off.
“You just put a target on our backs.”
“You think I’m supposed to accept being spoken about like that? Does your respect for women only go as far as your mom and girlfriend?”
I inhaled sharply. “No… And no, I just don’t wanna stir up shit when we’re outnumbered. In a situation like that, when he knows you’ve been spying on him, you take the name-calling and deal with it later. Not when you’re surrounded by guys who have guns and other intentions.”
“Fuck you.” She turned on her heel, continuing to where our cars were parked.
I ran a hand through my hair and pulled out my phone. I needed to contact people and at least warn them about what the fuck just happened.
I called Seb first with a brief rundown. He was staying all night at his place with Kira.
With the Cadillac in sight, a few cars away, I called Lily. She didn’t answer, and the call went to voicemail. I tried again, fishing out my keys as I reached the car door. At the same time, my bundled-up hoodie hit me in the side of the head and fell across my shoulder.
“Don’t want Lily wondering why you’re missing a hoodie and getting the wrong idea,” Roxy scowled, marching off to her Aston Martin parked behind my car. Unbothered by the fact that she was only in her underwear and heels.
I unlocked the car and ripped my hoodie from my shoulder, dropping into the driver’s seat as I threw the hoodie into the backseat and held the phone to my ear.
Out of habit, I pulled out my old lighter. Until I remembered, I don’t fucking smoke anymore.
Lily still wasn’t answering.
“Come on,” I said through gritted teeth, dialing again as I started the car. “Pick up.”
It went to voicemail again, with Lily politely telling me to leave a message.
“Fuck,” I muttered.
I tried Mom instead. She answered after several rings, pleasantly surprised by the call before she started telling me about her evening at bingo.
“Mom, listen. I need you to stay with a friend tonight.”
She was quiet for a second and responded with a reserved, “Okay… Do I want to know?”
“Probably best you don’t.”
“Be careful.”
“I will.”
I hung up and tossed my phone into the front seat, shoving the gear into drive. Right as I looked ahead, Roxy peeled out onto the street and passed me. I went to follow suit, but my eyes caught on the front door of the club, where Gabriele and several of his men lingered.
His attention came from Roxy’s car, and then he looked at mine, drawing back on another cigarette before he tossed it to the sidewalk and snuffed it out with his shoe.
I pulled away from the curb and dragged the steering wheel down to perform a U-turn, heading in the opposite direction to Roxy. It meant taking the long way home to Lily’s, but it gave me some control over the situation if he had us followed.
I wasn’t sure anything would happen. The prick could just be playing mind games. Regardless, the speed limit was only an option as I gunned the engine.
I let myself into the apartment and went straight to Lily’s bedroom, where the lamp was on and even more light was streaming from her bathroom.
Her laptop sat open on her bed, playing music, while a small cardboard box with a brightly colored label sat beside it.
It was packaging for something round and small, according to the vague images on the side, but I barely processed it as I rushed to the bedside by the window and crouched down.
My hands fumbled for the travel bag under the bed before I took the handle and flipped the bag onto the covers.
“You’re back early.” Lily stopped in the bathroom doorway, but the pleasant look on her face disappeared as she saw what I was doing.
My thoughts, however, were quickly snagged by what she was wearing: A baby blue, satin lingerie-type dress. The delicate fabric clung to the top of her breasts and hung loosely over her body, yet somehow framed every curve and shape beneath.
And her legs.
Lily might’ve only been 5’3”, but her legs were long for her stature.
If this was any other time— Holy fuck.
Lily wasn’t as distracted as me. She frowned at the bag. “What’s going on?”
I cleared my throat and moved to her dresser, where I began pulling clothes. Keeping them in their folded state, I shoved them into the bag. “We need to go.”
“Why?” Despite her question, she began pulling on an oversized hoodie and leggings, leaving the lingerie on underneath, and whipped her freshly styled, wavy hair into a claw clip.
“Gabriele figured out what Antonio is doing. They know my first name.” I zipped the bag. “Somethin’ feels off, so I’m takin’ you to your parents’ place.”
“No, wait—how would I be any safer with my parents than I am here? And what about your mom? We should stay at yours.” She came around the bottom of the bed to be at my side, and then sat on the covers and crossed her legs.
“She’s staying with a friend tonight— He hasn’t seen her face, and doesn’t know our last name. But you.” I stopped what I was doing to look solely at her. “Gabriele knows your face.”
Lily’s throat bobbed, and the slightest hint of fear settled in her blue eyes.
On the road to her parents, I watched my mirrors to make sure we weren’t being followed.
Lily sat quietly in the front seat, playing with the hem of her hoodie as she glanced out the window. Every so often, she would uncross and cross her legs. Or wrap her arms around her middle.
The silence was deafening.
When I glanced at her side-on and noticed that she was chewing the inside of her cheek, I placed a hand on her thigh and squeezed gently. It pulled her attention off whatever was going on in her head, and she smiled faintly, but the worried crease between her eyebrows remained.