Chapter 27

CHAPTER 27

N ico

“Two more powerful men are dead,” Luca said. Enzo was on his way over, refusing to tell me why over the phone,

Luca had been checking and rechecking the internet on an hourly basis.

“Who?”

“Another member of the pipeline committee. He mysteriously drowned while swimming alone.” Luca laughed. “Right.”

As I’d suspected, things were heating up.

“And?”

“The judge who ruled on almost all of the projects. There’d been a combined suit against the pipeline developer. The judge was a hard-ass.”

“How did he die, electrocution?”

“A car accident. Both ruled accidents, but the FBI must be going nuts in their investigation.”

“Maybe not depending on the number of people involved.” I shook my head. “Keep an eye out.”

Enzo stormed into my office second later, completely breathless. “We have problems.”

“Problems?” I asked, uncertain I wanted to hear this.

He nodded, walking closer. “Two men broke into one of our larger production facilities.”

Luca snorted. “Which one?”

“The one where there’s office space above.”

I glanced from one man to another. Things weren’t just heating up. They were getting explosive.

A saboteur.

The unwanted news that two unknown men had been found in one of our offsite olive oil production facilities had done little more than enrage me. The location was also where we kept the limited contraband we sent over to the United States. Our family was mostly out of the drug market, one I loathed being involved in, but there’d been long-term contracts to fulfill.

If the source was found, the shit would hit the fan in the worst way.

I trusted the few people who knew completely. I was fully aware there were new instruments that helped identify any illegal drugs. I hadn’t purchased one and had read only some information on the military’s development, but I wouldn’t put it past Adonis or Mattia for that matter to hunt one down.

The two men were resourceful, and both wanted the Marciano regime destroyed. I continued to question what it could have to do with my corporation other than taking more territory in the States.

The location was secure, almost like Fort Knox. I was shocked anyone had managed to get inside.

My hackles were raised and I resisted contacting Domino. He would freak out and that was the last thing I needed at this point.

A full day had passed with no new information prior to this, no threats of any kind. Now it seemed all hell was breaking loose. Or maybe both men were tying up loose ends. Luca had provided me with a limited dossier on twenty or so people involved with the pipeline project. He hadn’t needed to do but so much sleuthing. Fortune Magazine had a four-page article on the project and the benefits of it going through.

It seemed Adonis and his thugs were picking off the most influential of the group.

I hadn’t been resting on my laurels, but I’d been hopeful there would be a break somewhere, one that I could grasp onto. A half dozen of my computer wizards had continually scoured the internet, also checking to ensure we hadn’t been breached in any manner. It was way too quiet, which usually meant something was going to happen.

But a successful break-in had been the last thing on my mind.

Elio hadn’t called. Neither had my contact. I had a very bad feeling Elio had skipped the country. What in the fuck could he be hiding that had been so damn important over the years?

At least as of this morning, everything was in order. There’d been no additional attempts to kill Alexandra’s aunt. I’d allowed my ward to make a limited phone call, which had at least made her feel better. What I didn’t like was the calm, the utter quiet. But my lead hacker had assured me a half dozen times no one had tried to break into any account.

Something was off and it felt like a ticking time bomb.

The break-in was difficult to concentrate on, but I needed to handle this in an entirely different way than using a pen.

Even worse, the alarms hadn’t gone off. If two of my men hadn’t been checking as they did their rounds, the bastards would have gotten away with whatever they were looking for.

Given the drugs in the safe room were low in supply at this point, my mind was reaching for intellectual property. We also had a separate set of books with contracts and information regarding special clients located in the facility. I’d been the one who’d wanted to keep this part of the business at arm’s length.

There were eleven months to go with contracts and our family was out.

Completely.

“I don’t like this,” Luca told me.

“Yeah, well, join the club.” I had a bad feeling this was a warning of some kind, but from which illustrious party? Maybe both.

“Get this. I received a call from one of the guards. There was no attempt to break into the locked facility where the party favors are.”

Party favors. It was the term used for cocaine, our product purchased and used by high rollers in New York. We had connections in the port of New York. We’d never had any trouble, but if there was some suspicion we were hiding illegal drugs in the cargo crates, our reputation would be ruined.

The business within the United States would be toast.

I wasn’t in the mood to entertain the possibility. “Let me guess. These thieves attempted to break into the office instead.”

“How did you know?” Luca turned his head in my direction. He’d often wondered where my instinct had come from; they were usually correct.

“A hunch. Someone is playing just as we suspected.” I was driving like a bat out of hell through the streets of Palermo, eager to confront the bastards. They would tell me something.

Enzo was in another vehicle with three other soldiers. It was enough firepower to provide encouragement, although there were some enemy soldiers that would prefer death to betraying their masters.

It would seem our family would find it difficult to be free of the past or the criminal activity plaguing the world. Maybe it was an oxymoron considering we were still in the party favor business, but we weren’t out destroying others and their territories. Although I was beginning to wonder if a hit or two might be necessary to bring this to an end.

The building didn’t appear to be a production facility. It was a requirement of the city and we’d been happy to comply. With the top three floors housing true commercial businesses, two of which the family owned, there were typically at least a hundred vehicles in the parking lot.

That usually helped stave off thieves of this nature. Only I had a feeling they’d broken into our offices in the middle of the night.

It was a fascinating break-in and one I would savor going over when speaking with them.

As I pulled into the parking lot and around to our side of the building, nothing appeared to be amiss. There were no broken windows or locks pried off. The fact they’d simply walked in, able to disable the system meant they were professionals.

With the Ferrari in park, I jumped out immediately. In my mind, time was of the essence and I wasn’t certain why. With the men trailing behind me, we entered. The front area was set up like any reception room. I had hired a part-time girl who manned the office to a point, keeping an eye on delivery workers and the production staff. This just happened to be considered a holiday, which meant the building was only halfway filled and it was likely the employees of the other businesses would be leaving soon to celebrate a long weekend.

The hollow sound of my footsteps as I walked through the front room to the back wasn’t lost on me. Maybe I’d never paid attention to what the empty facility sounded like before. It was strange.

Haunting.

And for some insane reason felt foretelling.

My world had been infiltrated in a way I hadn’t anticipated. The two men had been placed in the back, far removed from the office.

I walked by there first, noticing there had been an attempt to jimmy one of the locks. The bastards could easily get into the main door, but had been forced to go to these lengths to try to get into the office?

At least they’d been interrupted.

“Enzo. Make certain they didn’t get inside.”

“How will I know?” he asked.

“I have a feeling if they’d gotten inside, they were prepared to do a smash and run.”

Enzo grinned. “I’ll check.”

“Why do you think that?” Luca asked.

“Just a hunch. My guess is they hadn’t been told exactly what they were looking for, just records.”

“Of all of our transactions.”

“Yes.” Our illegal ones. Coupled with the cargo ship on its way to the port, it was a perfect remedy for revenge. It wasn’t a bad objective. Perhaps they’d thought guards wouldn’t bother checking on the area given the holiday. They would be long gone with the information they’d been sent to find if that had been the case.

Thank God old-fashioned security methods were still in place.

As soon as I strolled into the room where they were being held, I slowed down. Yes, I didn’t want to take but so long with the interrogation, but I also needed time to observe them. Instead of being dressed in suits, they were in workers’ uniforms. No one would typically question seeing someone coming into the office. There was equipment to be serviced.

It was a calculated maneuver. Whoever was behind this had thought it through. Their uniforms were perfect, down to their matching boots. I had to give the head honcho credit.

I walked closer, my irritation growing. The unknown men were looking at me blankly. They certainly had no discernable features, but they were covered up by the long sleeves and buttoned-up jumpsuits.

“We found these in their vehicle, boss,” one of my men said. He held up a huge duffle bag. With one look it was confirmed the thieves weren’t amateurs. They had assault rifles and enough ammunition to blow up the goddamn building.

“And the vehicle?”

“It appears to be a commercial van equipped with plumbing material. Do you want me to check to see if they are really technicians?” Enzo asked. “No IDs on the fuckers.”

“I assure you the real technicians are dead, their bodies tossed into the sea. Isn’t that correct, gentlemen?” I was now only a couple of feet from the two men. They still wore blank expressions, indicating no emotion of any kind. But I sensed one of the assholes was the leader. I’d always been able to get a feel about those things. There was an implied arrogance, a scent of holier than thou.

“You better talk to the Don,” Luca told them.

As soon as there was a slight flicker of the leader’s eyes, I knew I was right. Arrogance always trumped common sense.

“ Volete morire entrambi? Se lo fai, fammelo sapere e sarò felice di farlo accadere .” I moved even closer, taking my time studying one man’s face then the other. My statement had been in Italian, but I could tell there was zero understanding of the language. I could always tell when there was at least a flicker of understanding.

Do you both want to die? If you do then by all means let me know and I will happily make that happen.

The leader shifted slightly from one foot to the other and I decided to rile him if possible. I backhanded him hard, sending his body reeling backward.

While he cupped his jaw, he didn’t fall to the floor, merely stumbling before he could right himself. When he threw me a look, there was no animosity whatsoever. Just a slight hint of amusement. I decided to take another swing at the situation in a different way.

“ Gia poion douléveis? ” I could tell almost instantly that the question I’d posed in Greek had caught them off guard.

Who are you working for?

My father’s advice of learning various languages had been one of those things my siblings and I had loathed. But the man had been right. While information might be power, in the international world of doing business, knowing exactly what was being said was priceless.

Luca grinned like some kid. I hadn’t exercised my Greek in a long time. The hunch had paid off, but that didn’t necessarily make me happy. It meant these two assholes were nothing but soldiers either hired to do a limited job or sent over from the United States by Adonis. Either way, realizing that Adonis was fishing was disturbing as fuck.

Now the one good aspect of the bastards coming here was that the production facility wasn’t a secret under any circumstance. It couldn’t be. The information kept in the locked office was something else, but this could be nothing more than a fishing expedition or a warning meant to put me on notice.

I didn’t take kindly to it.

Another soldier entered the room, laughing softly. “There’s blood on the driver’s seat, more in the back. It looks like there was a struggle.”

“Of course there was.” I stared into the young man’s eyes—the one who wasn’t the leader—taking my time unzipping his jumpsuit. He didn’t object nor did he move an inch, but a single bead of sweat trickled down the side of his face. Even better, the one in charge was furious.

As suspected, the kid was dressed in all black, combat wear for the bottom-line soldier. It was meant to be nondescript so an enemy couldn’t detect any nationality or affiliation. There was a contingency of Greeks in Italy of course, but I had a strong feeling these two were sent from somewhere else.

I’d heard of a training ground in Albania or some other godforsaken country, but it had never been confirmed. It was much like the American military, at least according to CNN. I decided to pepper the kid with a series of questions.

“ Apó poú eísai? ”

Where did you come from?

“ Ti se ésteilan na káneis? ”

What were you sent to do?

“ Pes mou to ónoma tou gamiménou pou se ésteile .”

Tell me the fucker’s name who sent you.

There were more, one more pointed than the one before. I was in the kid’s face, realizing just how nervous he was. By the eighth question, the kid was sweating bullets, his eyes darting back and forth. Luca and Enzo grasped the opportunity to be bad-asses, something that didn’t occur as often as it did when in the old days.

They were crowded close, guns held in both hands.

The leader wasn’t fazed in the least, but the young man, who’d likely been sent on his first assignment, was about to have a nervous breakdown.

“ Kápoios Amerikanós malákas .”

Some American asshole.

I honestly didn’t think the kid would break that easily. Usually, it took some level of pain inflicted on various body parts.

All hell seemed to break loose, the leader becoming enraged instantly and trying to kill the kid. Typically, that wasn’t the kind of reaction from enemies under duress, but it would seem the two men had a lot to lose if they fucked this up. I wouldn’t put it past Adonis to use their families as collateral instead of making this a typical business transaction.

The leader punched the other soldier, who went down but came up fighting. Initially, I’d thrown out my arm to my men, allowing the fight to occur. I’d hoped I could learn something else during the pitiful showing of rage.

However, the leader made the mistake of using the opportunity to grab something from the bag that they’d brought inside. Another weapon buried in the bottom.

There was no other choice and I happily made the decision, putting two bullets between each of their eyes.

I took a step back as their bodies slumped to the floor, rubbing my jaw. What the fuck was really going on here and more important, what should I expect in the next few days?

“What the fuck was that?” Luca asked.

Enzo bent down to the kid, yanking on the jumpsuit. I sensed he was looking for any scrap of information that might provide details.

He wouldn’t find anything. That was the way this worked.

“A shit show,” I grumbled, furious that things had gotten this far. However, it was no longer about my organization wallowing in our wealthy shit or about not being prepared. This was about Adonis enjoying telling me in no uncertain terms that he wanted something I owned.

Owned.

Yes, my lovely Alexandra did belong to me and damn any man who dared try to take her away. I’d pluck out their eyes, feeding both to the nearby birds. And that would be just the beginning.

“He’s clean,” Enzo said after a few minutes.

“I knew he would be. See if you can determine where the van originated, but I doubt you’ll find anything.” I was frustrated as fuck. I hadn’t intended on killing two bastards today, but I couldn’t seem to control one day to the next at this point.

The fucking party was tonight and my sister would kick my ass if I canceled. We were likely more protected on the estate than anywhere else. Plus, I had to admit that sending low-level soldiers that had likely been trained at this mystery camp meant Adonis had nothing other than a suspicion of her existence.

But from where?

My thoughts drifted back to Greg. I hated myself for it, but as Domino had reminded me. I couldn’t rule anything or anyone out at this point.

In addition, I would need to confirm with my hackers there’d been no morning breach. That concerned me more than anything. With various military operations throughout the world, various methods of worming into other systems had been developed. Of course it wasn’t technology that would be shared or glorified on some news program.

Everyone thought the Russians were the strongest with military operations. Bullshit. Adonis had been in the United States long enough he’d learned a great deal. And if he had serious connections to anyone inside the various military organizations, the man would be highly lethal. It wasn’t about just using guns or bombs any longer.

Mattia would be a perfect partner for him.

The two of them could potentially start a war in both countries, easily expanding their territories. Mattia had always wanted the top dog position, which I suspected Adonis did in another country. Why not take both?

The Armenians on the East Coast in the US were disjointed, the Bratva a limited challenge. With time and complacency, both countries could be ripe for a takeover. That pissed me off.

A laugh formed, but I squelched it. This wasn’t a laughing matter in the least. It was an exercise in superiority. And in my mind, this had everything to do with the congressman who’d been murdered.

How many others in top positions had lost their lives over the years? Few had likely been killed with violent measures. Poison, industrial accident, an accidental fall, or even a car accident could have been used without being questioned. Especially if Adonis had been careful.

If I was right, the man was gearing up to take more territories in Philadelphia and if I had to guess, I’d say he was moving up to New York. After that? He could take the ports and wreak fucking hell on international trade.

Hmm…

“Let’s get this cleaned up and we’re going to be quiet about it. If this was ordered by who I think it was, he’ll want to gloat. I refuse to give him that.”

“Cunning, boss,” Luca said.

“No, buying time.”

I knew it was only a day or two, but it could be enough. Or the entire situation was truly nothing more than a fishing expedition. The party would continue, but caution would be taken. Perhaps all the pieces I’d been searching for would be put into place by that point.

The men were left to clean up the facility while I headed to my car.

I was barely out of the parking lot when my phone rang. Seeing Mike’s, the retired sergeant from the police department, number appearing on my screen was enough to cause me to flinch.

“Mike. Do you have anything for me?”

He laughed then coughed. “Yeah, but you’re not going to like it.”

“Right now, I’m not fond of anything going down.”

“Did you hear about the death of the union president?”

“I admit I don’t get all the information from the United States.” This was new. Maybe it was being kept quiet or had been seen as a murder. I thought about why the man would be killed. Yes, I knew he’d made waves about challenging not only the basics about construction and the various projects already underway, but was trying to impose a firmer hand to who could be members and who was shut out. Labor unions were still viable in several larger cities in the US including New York and Philly. That was the limit of what I knew.

“The dude drowned in a boating accident. All suspicious, but you know how it goes.”

“You’re trying to insinuate he was murdered?”

Mike snorted. “Let’s just say he’d had a press conference announcing all these tremendous changes literally two days before. He also had money invested in the big pipeline project. Don’t you find his sudden death interesting timing?”

Fascinating. The death toll was going to continue to rise until Adonis was caught.

And there was only one way of making that happen. Well, fuck.

“Yes, but I’m not there. I’m not abreast of all the political activity. However tragic his death might be, what does that have to do with my friend or with the Greeks?”

“Maybe everything.”

“Go on.” I glanced into the rearview mirror to ensure I wasn’t being followed.

“Meaning while it’s only rumors and unsubstantiated, it would appear your buddy wasn’t the good guy you thought he was.”

Now that caught me off guard, but it also solidified the questions I’d already formulated in my mind. “What the hell are you getting at?”

“As I said, there are only rumors, but it would appear he got in tight with the Greeks when Adonis’ father was still in control. I will tell you that I trust the people I heard this from and it was weird. The sources were nervous, not wanting to talk about it.”

My entire body tensed. “Why the fuck would he do that?”

“Did he ever tell you he wanted to run for senator?” That really was the missing piece.

Sighing, I tried to remember the conversations we’d had. Yes, Greg had been eager to advance in his career, but I couldn’t remember him mentioning political activity. “Okay, so why the connection?”

“Come on, dude. In exchange for various names and activities, Greg was likely offered money and backing from very powerful sources, including the Greeks. You need to remember, since the fuckers arrived in Philly, they’ve had some success in gathering wealthy friends. It made him not so popular within the ranks over the last months he was alive.”

He allowed the information to hang while I processed it. I found it tough to believe and almost got angry, but had to shove it aside. “Rumors, huh?”

“Yes, as I said, from qualified people I trust, Nico,” Mike said almost reluctantly.

He wouldn’t give up his sources and I wouldn’t ask him to.

I wanted to be shocked, angry even, but he’d wanted the best for his family. That much wasn’t a stretch. Plus, his father had been pushing him to go into corporate law. But still, I was pushed into memories of the good times the two of us had shared when politics and greed hadn’t been topics of conversation.

Opening the can of worms would keep the ugliness festering.

“How much damage did Greg do?” I finally asked, trying to put this into some kind of perspective.

“He supposedly developed a list of people who had it out for organized crime, supplying names to the Greeks. Over the years, from what limited investigation I was able to do, a good number of the people on it have died. A few were by natural causes, but others were inconclusive or mysterious. Nothing as blatant as the beheading a week ago. A few have retired and moved on, but their decisions were rather premature, if you understand what I’m saying.”

The people wanted to live.

I wondered if the list had ever been handed over to Adonis’ father all those years ago. If not, that would make him a target on both sides. Fuck.

“A list? Do you have it?”

Mike snorted. “No, buddy. No one has seen it. Unsubstantiated rumors, but with the death of the union guy, it would appear Adonis Dimitriou is adding to his ‘get rid of’ list. I don’t know why you’re so interested, but you should stay the fuck away from this. Nothing good will come from trying to learn more.”

Nothing good would come. As if I gave a shit.

Other than with Greg. I was more than troubled by what I’d heard, so much so it was almost impossible to concentrate. However, if what Mike was telling me had any truth to it, that would answer a half dozen questions. Including why after learning the identity of Alexandra, they’d kept watch on her. Maybe looking for the list that had been lost?

Maybe he’d thought it was in her possession. I rattled my brain trying to remember what I’d saved. Where the hell had I stored the single box of his information I’d kept?

The attic maybe.

It was worth going through.

“Is it possible my buddy was killed by a member of the police department?” I knew my question was out of the blue, but worth asking. I expected Mike to laugh or derail the thought immediately.

But he was quiet.

Too quiet.

“Mike?”

His sigh was heavy. “You didn’t hear this from me and I can’t provide you with any additional information at this point. You got it?”

The man was scared. “Fine. What do you know?”

“Supposedly your friend ruffled enough feathers it was determined he was an issue. I can’t tell you who killed him, but I can tell you that people were glad when he was dead. He pissed a lot of people off.”

They were hoping the list died with him.

But I had a feeling it hadn’t.

The killing had continued over the years. However, if a copy had been kept, willed to Alexandra, that would certainly end the killing spree and put Adonis behind bars for the rest of his life.

A witness of a brutal crime was one thing. But the daughter of the man who’d held their souls in the palm of his hand was an invitation Adonis couldn’t ignore.

I wasn’t certain I bought any of this. Greg had been a good guy. He’d been so above the law we’d stopped talking about our families during the last couple of years. I’d admired the man for being able to provide a decent representation to some bad people without destroying his morals.

However, the fact he’d been requested by various crime syndicates hadn’t placed him in the good graces of law enforcement either. I’d even warned him that his enthusiasm would get the better of him. I’d agreed with his father that he needed to choose something else. He’d had options. He’d told me about several job offers. Why hadn’t he taken one of them? Maybe he’d be alive.

Politics were impossible to ignore no matter what country you lived in. There were always morally gray individuals who attempted to have their cake and eat it too. But I had a terrible feeling the heat was building to another explosive level.

My original thought about Alexandra and what she’d stumbled onto still applied. She was the single entity who could derail the system.

And send dozens of people to prison.

Destroying all she owned had been a disheartened attempt at eliminating anything Greg might have left as a protection for his life. If the man was smart, he would have kept documentation.

If found, that would put the fear of God into anyone.

And place a huge red target on Alexandra’s back. Sadly, in my mind I wondered if the information they were seeking was located in the few boxes she’d acquired over two decades before or it they’d been destroyed.

There was only one way to find out, but what I’d heard could crush the admiration she had for her father.

This was a no-win situation and one I wasn’t eager to see come to a conclusion.

At least with regard to the beautiful woman who’d crashed into my life.