Chapter 5 #3
"It was always about the old men sitting down at a table and signing a worthless piece of paper," I bluntly reply.
"Well, the way Stefano did it wasn't too smart either."
"I understand Mauro Mancuso's ire. It's bad enough that he can't produce his own heir, and now Caroline can't give him a grandchild either."
Victor takes a deep breath. "I went over this with the lawyers, by the way."
"And?"
"Mancuso doesn't stand a chance in court. Michael is a Petrucci by blood, and Valentina never agreed to Mancuso adopting her. It leaves him at a massive custodial disadvantage."
I allow myself a smile. "Which means he'll try to play dirty instead."
"Most likely. Mancuso can only petition the courts for custody if there is no living Petrucci or a Peroni relative on Valentina's side to take the child."
The words cut deep.
Mancuso's bloodline is already compromised, but ours isn't too far from extinction either. Aside from a few cousins, I'm the only Petrucci left from the original dynasty. Valentina doesn't have any surviving relatives either. The thought fills me with a quiet kind of dread.
"He could go after my cousins," I tell Victor.
"I'll tighten their security," he says.
"Send Grazia overseas if possible. I'm sure we can get her into one of those French art schools she wants to go to," I reply. "And Mario was always Ivy League material. Don't you have a buddy sitting on the Harvard Admittance Committee?"
He smiles broadly. "I do. I'll make some calls."
"Leave Angelo in charge of his crew. Double his security. He must be protected at all costs. But Mancuso can't be allowed anywhere near Grazia or Mario. He's powerless outside of Chicago, so let's use that to our advantage."
"I do find it terribly sad that it's come to this."
"Me, too. Where are we with the investigation into my brother's death?
" I ask, eager to change the subject. My gaze wanders back to the gardens, where Valentina is pushing Michael on the swings.
The boy is having the time of his life, feet and hands high in the air, laughing delightedly. "Have we made any progress?"
"No lead on the bomber yet," Victor sighs. "But the wiring and circuitry of the device match another murder case from three years ago. There weren't any leads there either. There were plenty of suspicions about it."
"And our friends in the PD? What do they think about it?"
"Same. Mob hit. Likely Mancuso. But Stefano had a lot of enemies toward the end," Victor replies.
"It will be downright impossible to pin it on someone in particular, unless we can get to the bomber first. According to the cops, the bomb was a pretty sophisticated device, just not sophisticated enough to provide us with a signature. "
"What about Valentina's involvement? Is it still being considered?"
Victor scowls. I almost feel bad about mentioning Valentina, but I have to do my due diligence, regardless of how I feel. Emotions and vulnerability are dangerous for a man in my line of work, and Victor knows it.
"Luca, come on."
"We have to consider every possible angle," I say.
"Not anymore. Valentina swore to you that she cut off all ties with everyone in the Camorra the night she ran away from home. The same night her stepfather learned about her pregnancy," Victor says. "Look at her."
I am looking at her. And I am fucking mesmerized by her smile, by the sparkle in her soft brown eyes whenever she laughs. I love the subtle golden glow of her skin when the sun touches it. The way her oversized blouses flow over the curves she tries a little too hard to hide.
Michael is a sweet, well-mannered boy. He's a testament to her character.
"She told me to ask someone who was allowed to know him," I say, watching Victor's face. "What did she mean by that, Victor?"
He holds my gaze a moment too long. "Ask me again when you're ready to hear it."
"We'll need to double our own security going forward, as well," I tell Victor. "I want an upgrade on the mansion's surveillance and alarm systems, along with a team on a twenty-four-hour standby protocol, ready to intervene at a moment's notice."
"That's doable. But I am worried that it might not be enough. Mancuso could be preparing for something right now as we speak, something we may not be able to handle."
I scowl at Victor. "I will obliterate what's left of his bloodline if he comes anywhere near my family. Didn't I already make that clear?"
"Let's make it through Sunday first. We'll adjust from there. Once the paperwork is in order and filed accordingly, Mancuso will have lost any possible claim over Michael."
"And Valentina will have one less mobster to worry about," I reply.
Every fiber in my body aches at the thought of our upcoming wedding night.
The marriage needs to be consummated. Her flesh has already told me everything I need to know.
The desire, the longing—it's mutual. It's intense and fiery and could destroy us both.
It's not something I wish to resist, nor do I have the power to.
I just have to survive the fire when I give in to it.