Chapter 11

CHAPTER ELEVEN

DANTE

“ W hat are we doing here again?” Marco shifts beside me, peering into his binoculars as I sigh and take mine away from my eyes.

“Slate said someone’s been using our docks for something at night without approval.”

Marco lowers his binoculars. “We think they’re using Lucio’s same route to traffic again?”

I shrug. “I don’t know. But I bet he will know.” I point toward what used to be an abandoned guard shack. We’d stopped watching this place weeks after Lucio died; we own it.

And what dumb ass would be stupid enough to be using something owned by one of the five families?

“Want me to go get him?” Marco asks, bloodthirst souring his tone.

“No. I want you to get the warehouse ready. I’ll be working late tonight.”

“Slate’s old room?”

I nod. “Yeah, that’ll do. I’ll meet you there in twenty.”

Marco slips away and climbs down from the warehouse roof that overlooks the docks below. We’ve been here all day.

I check my phone again for no reason at all and see I have no new notifications. I don’t know why I keep checking. It’s not like I even have her number, nor does she have mine.

I growl and shove it back in my pocket. It takes a bit to stealthily climb down from the roof without getting spotted. But I do so and go out front and down to where I parked. Getting into my Maserati, I sink into the leather seat as I turn over the engine. It purrs to life as I drive toward the gate that’ll lead me into the shipyard.

Once I roll too close for the guard’s comfort, he opens the gate and comes out, waving his arms for me to stop and turn around.

I get out, feigning ignorance. “Isn’t this 221 1 st Avenue? I have a meeting, and I can’t be late,” I tell him.

“No, sir. You’re lost, but in your fancy ride, I’m certain there’s GPS. Use it to find your way out of here. You don’t want problems.”

I act confused and shocked as I reach into my pocket for the small syringe hidden there. “No, this is where I’m supposed to be; you’re confused.”

I round my open car door as the man continues to try to get me to get back into the car.

“Can you at least give me directions? Come on, man, help me out. I’m running late,” I plead.

He finally gets exhausted with me and pulls his phone out. “What did you say the address was?”

I lean over to look at his phone screen and rattle off the address as I pop the lid off the needle and stab it into his neck.

“What the fuck? What was that?” He backs away from me, dropping his phone as the paralytic takes hold of him.

“Just a little something to take the edge off.”

“The edge off what?” He falls to the ground in a magnificent heap in his fake guard uniform.

“Oh, that’s the fun part.” I crouch over him, grabbing his phone from beside him and pocketing it. “You and I are going to have a little chat once you come around. Don’t worry, I doubt it’ll last long.”

Once he’s in the trunk securely, lying on plastic sheets so he doesn’t ruin my favorite car, I lock the gate, set up surveillance cameras that feed back to my phone, and then head to the warehouse to get some answers from my new friend.

I’m a little thrown off by what happened with Alyssa earlier. If I’m honest, I’m thrown off by Alyssa, period. Her presence has tossed my world upside down like I’m inside a salad spinner, and she’s in control of the fucking thing. I have to keep her far from my mind, however.

Ardesia handed the reins to me, and they’re big shoes to fill.

Once I’m close to the warehouse, I phone Marco to have him meet me to help get the paralyzed man out of my trunk. All the while, however, I’m wondering how the wedding planning is going for Alyssa.

Get your shit together, man.

Once Marco and I have the guard in the warehouse, and Marco and two of his guys are strapping him up on the wall for me to question him, I step into the hall.

Pulling out my phone, I call Brynne, which is something I don’t know I’ve ever done before.

“Hello?” Brynne sounds confused. I don’t know if I’m saved on her phone or if the confusion is caused by my number not being one she knows.

“Brynne, hi,” I reply, kicking a piece of broken concrete with the tip of my boot. “It’s Dante.”

“I know who this is, Dante. What have you done to my friend now?”

I scoff. “Your faith in me is comforting.”

She laughs. “Dante, it’s not that I don’t trust you, but you two seem like a ticking time bomb. If I hadn’t wanted a night alone with my soon-to-be husband last night, I’d have insisted Alyssa stay with us.”

“Mm, well, she’s fine.”

“Alright, now that we’ve dealt with that, why are you calling?”

I lean against the wall, eyeing Marco as he comes out of the room behind his two guys and gives me a thumbs-up.

I nod, returning my stare to where lime green paint peels off the wall from years of neglect.

“Dante? You there?” Brynne asks, her tone perking into concern.

“I’m here. I don’t know how to say what I called to say.”

“Now you’re making me nervous. Spit it the fuck out.”

The command in her tone makes me think she’s right where she belongs as the head of the Bianchi Crime Family, and I grin.

“I wanted to ask you for Alyssa’s number.”

She laughs, and I can tell the laugh is at me and not with me. My answering awkward chuckle only makes my cheeks heat.

“I don’t think she’d like me giving you that.”

“Well, it’s only I had a question for her about the wedding planning, and I didn’t want to bother you with it, and she’s with Lorenzo and Antonio, so I know they can answer it for me without me having to wait until later,” I lie.

“Mhm.” I can’t tell if she believes me or not. “And this would have nothing to do with her being with Lorenzo and Antonio, would it? She’s as safe as safe can be with those two. Lorenzo is harmless unless cornered, and I’m pretty sure Antonio has no interest in women, if you catch my meaning.

I do catch her meaning but don’t care because that’s irrelevant. I knew Brynne wouldn’t allow her around men who were unworthy or untrustworthy, but I only wanted to speak to her.

“No, it’s got nothing to do with that. I know you wouldn’t let her get near men who would hurt her.”

“Which is why I’m nervous about letting her around you,” she admits, and a pang elongates in my chest like a growing fire.

I rub at it as I hear the man in the room begin to come around, his groans carry down the hall.

“Are you working?” Brynne asks.

“Yeah. Got something to do that Slate wanted to be wrapped up before the wedding.”

She sighs. “I know how you Ricci men get when you’re working, so don’t go too far, hm? I’ll text you her number, but only because I think you could be good for her. But, Dante?”

“Mmm?” I ask, moving and closing the door to shut out some of the man’s screams as he realizes he’s tied to a wall and butt naked.

“If you hurt her, Slate won’t defend you. He’ll hand you over willingly to stay in good graces with me, and I won’t go easy on you.”

My smile broadens. “I understand.”

We say our goodbyes and the contact info shows up later, along with another threat attached.

She’s my best friend. Treat her as such.

I pocket my phone as I head into the room to work.

Someone’s been using our docks, and we need to know who. Sighing, I look over at the nude guard, who has already pissed down his leg in fear, and roll my eyes.

“I could be planning a wedding right now, but no, you fuckers can’t keep your hands to yourselves, so I have to deal with you.”

“I don’t know what you mean, man. Please, come on, I have a family.”

I shut the door behind me, taking off my tie and shirt and placing them somewhere I shouldn’t get blood on them.

“That’s what they all say once they’re here. Out there, however, you all think you’re invincible. Why is that?”

I grab a screwdriver and walk toward him, pressing it into his collarbone as his screams become ragged bits of what they were five minutes ago.

“Stop, please! I don’t know anything,” he begs, tears mixing with snot and rolling down his face.

“You don’t? Pity.” I press in further, watching his eyes grow weary with worry as the bone snaps and his cries grow raspy.

“I can do this all night. I was trained by the best. Ever heard of the Reaper of New York City?”

His eyes go wide, his pupils constricting with panic.

I smile. “I have to do my teacher proud when I work, so I always do my best. You might want to go ahead and tell me what I want to know. Make this easy on us both.”

“I’m telling you, I don’t know anything.”

I nod. “Who do you work for? Why were you on our property?”

“Your property?” The confusion in his tone seems genuine, but I’m not convinced. My gut is always right, and I know he’s no fool.

“The Ricci Family owns the property you were working on.”

“Fucking shit.”

“Heard of them, too, huh?” I twirl the tip of my screwdriver over the anterior side of his shoulder, pressing in until I break through the skin, twisting like I’m fixing him with self-tapping screws.

His sniveling is getting annoying.

“I didn’t know. I don’t know,” he stammers.

Using my other hand, I pull out the hammer I’d placed into my back pocket, slamming it onto the screwdriver’s end to drive it through his shoulder.

“I guess we’ll be here all day, then.”