Chapter 14 Maria #3
“Checkmate,” I said, smiling.
He smiled back, his eye twitching. “Elio could not have picked a better advocate for himself.”
“I’m not the advocate,” I said, rearranging the chessboard. “I’m just the girl who’s in love with him.”
“And I’m the guy who’s not going to allow that,” he said, standing up.
“Excuse me? You don’t get to have a say in the matter.”
“Mine has been the only say in the matter so far,” he said threateningly, going to the terrace window, and stepping through it, looking at the street below.
“Who do you think told Jimmy where you’d be?
Who has been following Elio’s every move?
It was only after Dresden Harrow received permission from me to step into New York and do what he wanted to do that he came and abducted you.
Save your outrage. You’re inconsequential.
It goes even further back. Who do you think sent him his first customers, the people who bought yachts from Elio and his friends? I am the one orchestrating all that!”
“You’re sick! You put my life in danger! You’ve been gaslighting your son all this while!”
He grinned at me. “In Elio’s world, if I cannot be God, then I shall be the Devil. And true to form, as I am sure he has told you, I shall play a game with you. You spoiled my plan when you entered that auction, but perhaps it's for the better. With you, I will be able to break Elio even better.”
“I’m not playing your games!” I cried defiantly, a tear streaking down my cheek.
“There’s no choice, Maria,” he said. “You cannot escape me. And I do not allow you into his life. When Elio inevitably fails in making the sales in Seattle—as I am sure he will, for I did not send these customers; they’re Swedes who came on their own—you shall leave him.
He shall realize the errors of his ways, and he will come crawling back to me.
Then and only then I will hand him the keys to my kingdom, and make him the next don. ”
My entire body coursed with great anger, my hands rolling into fists. He had set up his son to fail, and now he wanted me out of the picture.
“I do not love him for his money. I do not love him for his looks. I do not love him for his charm. I love him for the person he is underneath. He tries so hard to come out from under your shadow…” I said. “And you’re the biggest hurdle in his path.”
“Spare me your dramatics. Do we have a deal or no?”
“Deal? You only provided me with one half of it. Now it’s my turn to provide you with the other half; make it an even barter,” I said.
“You think your son’s so incapable that he won’t make this sale all on his own.
I say otherwise. And when he does make that sale, and when he does succeed, you will have to back off and stop interfering in his life once and for all! ”
“That’s not possible. He’s a spoiled, lazy, arrogant, and cocky man-child who doesn’t know that money needs to be earned with the sweat of your brow.
Who’s being na?ve now? You really think that he’s going to make this sale?
That he’s going to sell a fleet of Reinhold yachts to people he’s had no rapport with, people he’s never met?
You think it’s that easy? I shall watch him break, and then I will rebuild him in my image. The next Don Romano.”
“Fuck you, Frank,” I said, my wet eyes staring into his angry ones.
“You dare?!” he snarled.
“I do. I do more than dare. I’ll make you a wager. If he doesn’t make the sale, I’ll back off. I’ll make an exit from his life, honoring my word. That’s big in my book, honor. And I expect you to honor your word. If he succeeds, I don’t ever want you to interfere in his life ever again!”
He extended his hand after a long-time deliberating. He said, “He cannot know of this wager. That’s one of the rules.”
I shook his hand, giving him a brief nod.
“You think I’m his enemy,” he said as he walked toward the door.
He turned around to look at me. “If you win this wager, if he actually makes this sale, do you know he’s set for life?
It’ll only get easier for him from there.
He’ll be his own person. He’ll show that he can be responsible.
If he can do all of that without the accountability of a father and his mafia family, then I’ll be a proud father. ”
“You’re a confusing man.”
“A father first, a don second, Maria. You best understand that. And you should understand that it was nothing personal what happened to you. Despite your crassness, I think you’re a good girl.
His mother must have been really looking down at him from heaven when she nudged you in his direction.
There’s no other explanation for why you walked into the auction as you did. ”
“Goodbye, Frank,” I said, closing the door. I waited until his car had pulled away from the curb and had driven off.
The meeting was supposed to be happening right now. Even if I could transport myself instantaneously, there’d be nothing I could do. I wasn’t even sure if I could do anything at all even if I was there.
What was I supposed to do?