Chapter Eleven

~ Anthony ~

Driving to some unknown location that was run by a mob boss I didn't know was not my idea of a fun time. I was especially anxious because Vito seemed so tense.

"Is this a good idea?"

Vito let out a small snort. "Probably not."

Yeah, I didn't think so.

"Couldn't we just drive to Genoa?"

"We could," Vito admitted, "but I think there is something hinky going on there and I don't really feel safe taking you back there. Not until I figure it out."

"You got that, too?" I asked. I'd been thinking along those lines for awhile now. It just seemed a little too easy for all of these things to be happening to use when we'd been so cautious.

"I don't want to, but it's the only explanation. Someone has to be tracking our movements and giving it to whoever is doing this."

"Any ideas who?"

"No, and that aggravates me. I thought I could trust all of our people, or at least the ones close to us. I don't like feeling like I can't."

"It might not be all of them, you know?" I didn't want Vito to distrust every member of the organization, especially since I was just now coming onto the scene. I needed to know there were people beneath me that I could count on.

"No, but until I have concrete proof who is behind this, everyone is on my suspect list."

I turned wide eyes toward Vito. "Am I on that list?"

"You're the reason for that list."

That didn't sound any better.

"I think we're here," Vito said as the car slowed and came to a stop in front of a large metal gate. There were two guards standing outside, one on either side of the gate.

My eyebrows shot up when the gates opened and we were allowed inside without anyone knowing our name. The guards didn't even approach the car.

"Wow," was the only thing I could think of to say when we pulled through the gate and went up the driveway. I'd seen massive villas in magazines and movies, but I'd never seen one in real life before. This place was stunning.

"Your estate in Genoa looks a lot like this," Vito explained. "I think it might be a little bigger." This place could take up a whole city block in New York City. If my villa was bigger, it would be insane.

"We have a stables and this place doesn't."

I blinked. "I have horses?"

Vito chuckled. "Several."

Huh.

Never ridden a horse before.

"Do those horses come with riding lessons?"

I'd need them.

"I can teach you," Vito offered. "I've been riding since I could walk. I even stable my own horse at the villa. There's a large tract of land behind the villa that is good for riding. I try and go out at least once a week just to get away from everything."

That would be so cool.

"I'd like that," I said instead of totally geeking out. "Thank you."

"We're here," Vito said as he stopped the vehicle once again. "Watch what you say in there and don't make any sudden moves towards Luca's husband. The man is insanely possessive of Nico."

Husband?

"I thought you couldn't be gay in the mafia." Despite what Vinnie had told me, I knew things might not be the same here in Italy. Vinnie had warned me about that after all.

"It's is highly frowned upon, especially by the old guard."

I snorted before glancing out the window. "Boy, are they in for a surprise."

Just wait until I dressed up.

Before we could get out of the car, a man came hurrying down the steps. He rapped on the window with his knuckles. I slowly lowered it.

"Mr. D'Angelo, I'm Franco, Mr. Sabatino's assistant. I need you to follow me around to the garage."

When the man started walking, I glanced at Vito. "Did you expect that?"

"No."

"You don't think they are taking us somewhere to off us, do you?"

Vito glanced at me. "How's your gut?"

My gut?

"Fine, but—"

"Nervous? Anxious?" Vito asked.

"Well, I'm a little anxious, but—"

"Anxious like you were back at the airport?"

I frowned. "No."

"Then they are probably not going to off us."

Probably was not reassuring.

We followed Franco around the side of the villa towards the back of the property. A guard was waiting next to the only open garage door. There were ten garage doors, which was totally insane.

Franco gestured for us to drive inside.

Once Vito parked and turned the vehicle off, I climbed out and hurried around to his side of the car and helped him out of the vehicle. The frown I had before deepened when the guard closed the garage door and then walked over to take a picture of the license plate of the Fiat.

Just what was going on here?

"Please, come with me," Franco said. "Mr. Sabatino is waiting for you in his study."

"Vito needs a doctor."

"I'm fine, Tony," Vito stated.

"You're not fine," I countered in a clipped tone. "You've been beat to shit. You're seeing a doctor and that's an order."

Wasn't sure if I could give my underboss an order or not, but I was still going to insist that he saw a doctor.

Vito cracked a smile. "Yes, Boss."

We followed Franco through the garage and into the house. He led us down a hallway to a large oak door. Franco knocked before opening the door and gesturing for us to go inside.

A tall brown haired man with a beard was waiting for us when we walked inside. He stood up as soon as he saw us and walked around the desk.

"Franco, have a doctor come to my study immediately. Also ask Sofia to make a light lunch for Mr. D'Angelo and Vito. Something that won't be too hard on their stomachs."

"Yes, Boss." Franco nodded before walking out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

"I'm sorry that we are meeting under these circumstances, Mr. D'Angelo."

I glanced at Vito when the man held his hand out to me. Once Vito nodded, I smiled and shook his hand. "Thank you for your assistance in this matter, Mr. Sabatino."

"Please, call me Luca."

"Tony."

"Why don't you have a seat?" Luca asked as he gestured to the couch. "My doctor should be here in a moment."

I walked over to the couch with Vito and then helped him slowly sit down before taking the spot beside him.

"Can you tell me what happened?" Luca asked.

I glanced at Vito again.

"Its fine," Vito replied. "Go ahead and tell him."

"I'm not sure how much Vinnie told you, but—"

"He told me some," Luca replied. "Something about a bomb on your plane."

I nodded and then started giving him the rundown of everything that had happened since Vito came into my life. I left out the part about me freaking out at the airport. I didn't think he needed to know that.

By the time I was done, Vito was leaning heavily on my side. "How soon is that doctor going to be here?"

Luca frowned as he reached for his cell phone. Before he could dial, there was a knock at the door. "Come."

Franco opened the door and walked in with a man in a suit, a doctor's medical bag in his hand.

"Ah, Dr. Luis," Luca said. "Thank you for coming on such short notice."

"Of course, sir," the doctor replied.

Luca waved his hand toward me and Vito. "My friends here were involved in a car accident. Can you give them a look?"

I stiffened when the doctor's eyes darted to me and Vito. There was something in them that I didn't like. I didn't know if it was fear or nervousness or what, but I knew I didn't like it.

It made my skin itch.

I slowly stuck my hand in my pocket and grabbed the knife I'd put there earlier. At the same time, I leaned Vito back against the couch, stood, and then moved to stand in front of him.

I held the knife out in front of me. "Touch him and you die!"

I heard Vito startle behind me. "Tony—"

"This is like the airport, Vito."

Despite his injuries, Vito was up in a flash, pointing his gun at the doctor. "Who are you?"

"Tony, Vito, what is going on here?" Luca asked.

"Do you know this man?" Vito asked.

"Yes," Luca replied. "Granted, he is not my normal physician, but he's been here a couple of times."

"Search him," I snapped. "Search him and his bag."

When Luca just stared at me, Vito said, "Listen to him, Luca. Tony doesn't mess around with stuff like this."

Luca frowned for a moment before slowly turning to look at the doctor. "Franco, search him and his bag."

I was glad he was taking me at my word, especially since I didn't have any evidence to prove there was something wrong here. I wasn't even sure what it was, but something wasn't right.

As soon as Franco reached for the man's bag, the doctor darted for the door. Franco dropped the bag and started to go after him, but I was faster. I leapt over the coffee table and kicked the good doctor in the ass. When he stumbled forward, I grabbed him by the shirt collar and jerked him back.

I forced him to turn around and then go down to his knees, holding the knife to his throat. "If you don't have something satisfactory to say in the next five seconds, I'm going to have to pay to have Mr. Sabatino's rug replaced. Blood stains are a bitch to get out."

When I glanced up, everyone was staring at me with wide eyes and dropped jaws. "What?"

Did I have something on my face?

Vito chuckled as he shook his head. "Nothing, Boss."

These people were weird.

I tightened my grip on the doctor and gave him a good shake. "My patience is wearing thin."

"Please, please, I don't know anything."

"I may be from New York, but I'm not stupid." I shook him again, a little harder. "Speak."

"Please, Mr. Sabatino, you know me. You know I would never harm anyone. I'm a doctor. I save lives, not take them."

While I felt some of what he said was true, not all of it was. There was a lie in there somewhere. I just had to find it.

I pressed a little harder with the knife until a small trail of blood trickled out. "My patience is even thinner now. Either speak or I buy a new rug."

"Please," the doctor wailed. "They've got my family."

And that was the clue that I needed.

"Who has your family?" I asked.

"I don't know." The doctor slumped. "They forced their way inside my house an hour ago and took my family hostage. They said if I didn't do exactly what they said, they'd kill them."

"And what were you supposed to do?"

The doctor let out a little sob before digging into his pocket and pulling out a syringe. "I was supposed to give this to a man named D'Angelo."

"Me?" I almost dropped the knife as shock rolled through me. I grabbed the syringe and then shoved the doctor away from me. "Man, I'm getting really tired of people trying to kill me."

It seemed to happen just a little too often.

"Luca, can I borrow a few of your men?"

Luca's eyebrows lifted. "Can I ask why?"

I pointed at the doctor. "I need to go rescue that dumbass's family."

"Why don't you and Vito get cleaned up and get some rest," Luca replied. "My men can handle the rescue."

"As much as that man deserves it, I don't want any innocent people involved in this mess. Make sure they don't get hurt."

Luca nodded before grabbing his phone and barking out some orders. After he was done, he glanced at Franco. "I want the good doctor taken to the basement. He can stay there until we get this all figured out."

"Yes, sir," Franco replied.

"Also, make sure a room is prepared for our guests. I'll see about getting another doctor."

"Just get me a first aid kit," I countered. "I can patch Vito up."

It wasn't like I hadn't done something like this before.

"He should really see a doctor," Luca pointed out, "maybe have some tests run for internal injuries."

"Tony can look after me," Vito stated. "The less people that know we're here, the better. If word got out that we were killed in your territory, there's going to be an all out war between the families. Neither Tony or I fall under the family veil."

My eyes widened. "Do you think that's why we were dropped off here? To implicate Luca?"

"That would be my guess," Vito replied. "We were kidnapped outside of Tortona and now we're in Palermo. If they had simply wanted us dead, they would have killed us there. If they want to implicate Luca, they kill us here."

"But I have no beef with you," Luca said. "While our families haven't always been the best of friends, there have been no major scuffles in over twenty years."

"Actually," Vito started, "I don't think it's you specifically. Tony and I suspect a rat inside our organization. They seem to know pretty much everything we do before we do it. I think they are simply trying to push the blame off on someone else and you drew the short straw."

Luca's dark eyebrows snapped together. "Could it have anything to do with Nico? I know not all the families agree with two gay men being in our business. I'm pretty sure they spit blood when they found out we got married. Gay is not popular in the mafia."

I snorted as I crossed my arms. "They'd better get used to. They can put a bullet in my head before I sleep with a woman."

I refuse to pretend I was something I wasn't, and I was not straight. Never had been, never planned to be. I was gay right down to my toenails and I liked me that way.