Chapter Twenty-Three

Theo

Present Day

A crack fills the air and I feel the crunch against my fist as the cartilage gives away and blood spurts profusely, pouring down the guy’s face and onto the floor. Three days. I have been away for three fucking days thanks to my last away game. Three days without seeing the face of my Little Sparrow, without being able to follow her in the shadows, make sure she’s okay. Having to rely on the intel that Finn was willing to give me. And here I am now, having to put this motherfucker in his place when I should be spending my time checking on my girl.

“Answer the question, jackass.” My tone is low, threatening. I am not in the fucking mood for this shit right now.

“I-I don’t know. I swear it! I don’t know where the money is, I don’t have it!”

To my left, Tony lets out a dry, humorless laugh. “And that, right there, is the problem my friend. You see, it’s not just my money that you stole. Not even my friend’s here. It’s the Giovanni money, and that, my man, is a slight that is not so easily forgiven.”

I force myself not to roll my eyes, but sometimes it’s a bit difficult. Being Dante’s son, Tony heads up the West Coast section of the “family business.” Since Tony was raised by his mother, far removed from the family dealings, he isn’t exactly a natural at this. It was never a problem, would never have been a problem, if I hadn’t killed my father and then stepped down from my role as the head of the family, leaving it to my uncle instead .

Dante had never anticipated that he would be in the position he is now, nor that his estranged son would be his sole heir to the kingdom since I refuse to step up and take my rightful place. So, Dante called in a favor, of sorts. I get to use all the family resources, every whim at my disposal while I hunt down the fucker responsible for tearing my life apart, and in exchange, I try to teach my cousin to lead his future kingdom. Emphasis on the word “try.”

Over the last several years I have stepped back more as Tony has started to find his stride, but the posturing that he does during these little “interviews” is still cringeworthy as fuck.

I click my tongue while shaking my head in admonishment. “Denny, Denny, Denny.” The man shrinks back into the hands that are holding him in place, his face becoming paler with each repetition of his name. “That’s a bad choice, Denny my boy. You see, if you don’t have the money, we’ll have to find some other method to collect the payment.”

Shaking. The bastard is literally shaking in his once-pristine Jordans. “I-I can get you the money. Please. All I need is a few more days. An extension. Please!” He stammers this last part, gagging on the taste of his own blood.

I stare silently, arms crossed, bloodied knuckles resting prominently for the coward to see.

“Ah, ah, ah!” Tony croons in a sing-song voice. “I’m afraid that simply isn’t how this is done. You see-” He glances in my direction before looking once more to Denny. “We don’t offer extensions. No forgiveness for screw-ups. And when you can’t pay us in cash, we take our payment in flesh.”

He nods to me and I turn, silently, on my heels to walk to the lone table in the warehouse. Glancing over the assortment of tools laid out before me, I take my time perusing as I consider the possibilities. Grabbing the pliers, I turn back and slowly make my way once more to stand before Denny. Fighting back the urge to cringe, I get to work.

My phone vibrates on the table behind me, and I pause, turning my head to glance in that direction. Ma’s face flashes across the screen and walk over to the table, setting down the bloody pliers and wiping my hands on a rag before picking up my phone and swiping to answer.

“Hey Ma.”

I glance to the left, nodding at Jayce and Darrion, and they step up to take my place. Agonized screams pierce through the air as I walk away from the bloody scene behind me, leaving Tony to oversee things while my men handle the “messier” side of the business, since Tony “doesn’t have the stomach” for getting his hands dirty.

“Now, who are you trying to get information out of?” Another cry of pain, just barely muffled by the thin walls and closed office door fills the line. “Never mind. Don’t answer that.”

“Not information this time. Collecting dues.” I grimace, thinking about the mess I left in the other room for my men to handle.

Her sigh is heavy as it comes over the line.

“Ma, what is it?” I grow concerned. My mother has never been one to hold her tongue when something is bothering her.

“I wish that boy would just man up and do the work himself. Honestly. You have been helping him for how long now?”

I can hear the frustration in her voice at the mention of Tony. She has never really cared for Dante’s son, though I could never figure out why.

“I dunno. I’ve been working with him for probably about six years or so.” I shrug, not really caring about the timeline, though she’s not wrong. By now, Tony really should have a better handle on things; this is supposed to be his deal, not mine.

“Six years! That boy needs to grow up. If he is ever going to run the family business, he needs to get his act together, put on his big boy pants, and do the work himself. Honestly, if he hasn’t learned by this point, I am not sure that he ever will. I don’t know why Dante thought it would be a good idea for him to step into the role when he was the one who sent that boy away in the first place.”

Rolling my eyes, I bite back my retort. Dante tasked me with teaching Tony the ropes, and while he is very skilled as a business man, he just isn’t the best fit for this business . Always watching from the sidelines, and having other people do the dirty work for him. It may be fine business practice for running a restaurant, but it certainly isn’t going to do him much good if he wants to maintain his role of leadership in the family .

Dante is the only thing holding his men in check right now. If Tony were forced to step into his father’s role, I’m not sure how many people would follow him at this point. Still, Dante put his trust in me, and I’m going to do my to damnedest to not let him down. And since I refused to step in the role that was rightfully mine, it’s no longer my place to question Dante’s decision in the matter.

“Was there a reason you called, Ma? Other than to rant about your favorite nephew?” I try to bite down the sarcasm, but Ma still catches it.

“Don’t you sass me! I may be on the other side of the country, but I can still fly over there to put you in your place, son.” She huffs, but I know it’s all bluster, before she shifts gears, changing tactics. Her voice becomes velvety smooth as she continues, “Can’t I just call to say hi to my son once in a while?”

I deadpan. “You can. But generally, you don’t unless there is something on your mind. I am the one who usually calls you, remember?”

“And about that!” Her voice escalates, annoyance clearly coming over the line. “Just why haven’t you called me recently?”

“Ma,” I pause as the screams suddenly stop, and the room becomes eerily silent. Damn. Guess his payment has been made in full. That went faster than usual. My guys must have taken pity on the fool. That, or the jackass was so weak he couldn’t even handle a bit of light torture. Either way, Tony isn’t going to like it. Rolling my eyes, I fight back my sigh at the thought of me having to deal with Tony after his disappointment in his latest toy dying too soon.

“I’ve been busy, between work and helping Tony, and trying to finish up the house. You know. Time just got away from me. I’m sorry.”

The line is silent as I wait for her response. After a long, drawn-out pause, she replies. “So, it has nothing to do with the fact that you saw Danica again, then?”

Drawing in a deep breath, a sharp, stabbing pain fills my chest at the thought of seeing il mio passerotto, of being so close to her for the first time in years. Of actually speaking to her again. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“Oh, I think you do.” I don’t have to see her face, to know the pointed stare she would be giving me over the line; eyebrow raised skeptically, with arms crossed over her chest. It is a look that I have received so many times, I could probably draw it with my eyes closed.

I blow out a breath, resigned to the fact that I cannot hide anything from this woman who raised me. She knows me too well. “How did you even hear about that? ”

With a cluck of her tongue, I can just imagine the disapproving look she would be giving me as she shakes her head. “You should know by now that I have my ways. My boy, I love you, you know this. But you need to stay away from her.”

I freeze, body tense. “I-”

“Don’t even try to deny it. I know you have been watching her, keeping an eye on her to make sure she is safe. But that is completely different than inserting yourself back into her life. I am telling you right now, figlio mio, to leave her be.”

“Ma-”

She cuts me off again. “Don’t ‘Ma’ me. I mean it. I love you, and I understand why you did what you did, but you hurt her. And now she is finally in a good place and moving on with her life, at least from what I hear. Don’t insert yourself back into her life unless you can promise that it is for good this time; that you won’t walk away again. If you can’t make that promise, then you have no business stepping back into the picture and you need to just let her be.”

Thoroughly chastened, I bite back a response. Snapping at Ma isn’t going to help anything, and I know she’s right, though I hate to admit it.

She sighs. “My sweet boy. You know I love Danica like she is my own daughter. And there is nothing I would love more than to see the two of you together again and happy. But I also don’t want to see you hurt again, either one of you. So, think before you do something you might come to regret, yeah?”

Swallowing, I force down the lump in my throat as I try to ignore the pain in my chest that starts any time I think about my little sparrow and how much I miss her.

“I have to go, Ma. I’ll be careful. I promise. Love you.”

Abruptly, I hang up before she can say anything further. With a deep breath, I straighten my shoulders and shake my head to clear it, before stepping back into the mess in the other room.