Chapter 15
CHAPTERFIFTEEN
FROM THE ONE-SIDED glass, Dom watched Luca pace in front of his bed. He hadn’t stopped moving since they parted ways over a half-hour ago. When he entered the room, Luca was still in a state of shock, but he’d quickly gotten over that and seemed to be talking to himself, though Dom couldn’t hear the words he muttered.
It was all out there now. Who Luca really was, where he came from. He’d been too overwhelmed to ask the why of it all, but it was probably occurring to him now to file that away for later.
Luca rubbed his face and finally dropped down to sit on the edge of the bed, and Dom stepped closer to the glass.
How could anyone think it was a good idea for someone raised outside this life to suddenly insert themselves into one of the families? It was close to impossible as it was to rise through the ranks, and that was after many years of proving themselves to the boss. For someone as naive as Luca? The Fiores were just throwing him to the wolves without a care in the world.
So really, Dom and his father were doing this kid a favor. He’d already be dead in the Fiores’ world.
Dom cocked his head to the side as he watched Luca swipe away a tear. How different would he have turned out if his father hadn’t sent him away? He’d be just as power-hungry and bloodthirsty as the rest of them, something that was hard to imagine looking at him now.
But downstairs had been a different story. Luca hadn’t cowered to Dom; he demanded answers. And whether or not he wanted to admit it, Dom admired that. But he couldn’t focus on that. It didn’t matter whether Luca was as green as the grass on his fake family’s suburban lawn, or sitting in his room crying over the fact he’d been lied to his whole life—he was a Fiore, and Dom needed to remember that.
He took another good look at the young man he was now sharing this prison with, and couldn’t help but wish Luca resembled his father more than his mother. That sure as shit would’ve made this niggling feeling of sympathy dissipate. It was always harder to want to break someone’s face when you were busy admiring it.
Luca looked up at that exact moment, almost as though he could sense Dom’s presence. But when Luca reached up to touch his fingers to the mark on his cheek, Dom knew it had nothing to do with him and everything with trying to understand his new reality.
After all, the kid was going to be a doctor; he knew all about genetics. Surely he’d looked at his caretakers in the past and wondered why he didn’t share any true resemblance. Or maybe he’d just chalked it up to being a mishmash of the two of them. Like some random beauty that came out of an artist throwing different blots of paint at a canvas.
Not that Dom was saying Luca was beautiful…
Dom clenched his fist by his side, frustrated with himself and the situation he was in. The last thing he needed was a distraction like this. He needed to get out there and track down the motherfuckers who had shot him, not be trapped up here like some precious fucking princess. It grated on his last nerve.
Turning away from the glass, Dom began to pace the room, his mind tracking over everything that had happened, but what he really needed to know was the plan going forward. Since his father had deemed him an unnecessary player in this particular part of the process, he knew jack shit.
It was time to rectify that. He might not be able to leave here, but that didn’t mean others couldn’t be brought to him. In fact, this was where they brought these assholes to make them talk. So why couldn’t he get involved? If anyone deserved a little payback and cathartic stress relief, it was him. And he couldn’t think of a better way than with the one who’d tried to turn his body into a fucking sieve.
He was told not to leave the casino. His father hadn’t said anything about leaving the penthouse.
Dom pulled his cell out of his pocket and hit Chef’s name.
“Don’t tell me you killed the kid already and need a cleanup crew.”
“Worse. I need you to watch him after you do me a favor.”
“You got it. What do you need?”
Dom turned his back on Luca and gripped the phone tightly in his hand. “I want you to bring me the one who shot me.”
“Alive or in pieces?”
“I’m in the mood to play.”
Dom could practically hear the smile in Chef’s voice as he said, “On it. We’ll see you soon.”