AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"No." I turned away, looking bored. "I have to speak to the Vitales tonight."
His eyebrows raised in surprise. "The Vitales?"
I gave him a curt nod. "Those are Dante's contacts."
"How does he know them?"
"Massimo Vitale is his cousin, twice removed."
My father studied me with newfound respect. The Vitales were ruthless mafia based out of Italy, and held a lot of power in our circle.
"Maybe you can arrange a meeting between us. The Kings can pick up their slack."
He was referring to the rumors that the Vitales had tampered down on their sale of sex slaves. In fact, a whole shipment of women had been discovered by the FBI at a port in New York a couple of weeks ago, and the Vitales hadn’t blinked an eye.
And yet, even though they weren't trafficking as many women, the Vitales still were ruthlessly driving out anyone looking to fill in the gap, through any means, including violence.
By the interest in my father’s eyes, he was looking to pick up the opening in the market, with their permission.
I leaned back in my seat and gave my father a cool look. “Maybe."
My father's lips pressed into a firm line and he stared me down. I could sense his rage and anger, unhappy that I wasn't going to line up to his wishes like he'd expected.
I may have done so in the past, but the revelation that he'd been raping Lily put a permanent wall between us.
He could fuck off, for all I cared.
The only reason I hadn't put a bullet in his brain was because of the leverage he was holding over me.
Even though Bourbon and Rose were living outside of our household, he still had Benny and his guards at their home, watching over them to make sure they didn't escape.
He'd made it quite clear that, just as he was holding Aster over Bourbon and Rose's head, their safety was his leverage over me.
As the ire in his gaze landed on me, I expected him to fire off a demand to obey him. Instead, his features calmed, his jaw still grinding but his lips twisted upwards in a cruel smile. "You've done well with Aster. I must admit, I wasn't sure if you'd be able to keep her under control."
"Thank you." I was surprised by the compliment, and strangely pleased. I hated the hum of pleasure that coursed through me at his words, and I straightened my tie, newly bought and the same color as Aster’s dress, to cover my reaction.
"If you can get the Vitales to the wedding, I'll allow you to bring the girl to see her sister, as long as you can guarantee that she'll be on her best behavior."
A terseness settled between us, as my father made his intentions known. The Vitales for the girl.
I knew that Rose was dying to see Aster, and, as much as I hated myself for it, I still wanted to give Rose everything she ever desired.
She was my soft spot, and my father knew it, dangling it over my head as often as possible.
"I'll see what I can do," I responded, not committing to anything. “But I want to start taking Aster out of the room.”
He laughed, shaking his head. “You think you can control that woman?”
“I know I can.” I didn’t back down.
Still chuckling, he sighed. “I’ll consider it. But if she escapes or does anything to harm us, it’s your head on the line.”
I nodded, agreeing to his terms.
"See that you get the Vitales to the wedding," my father pointed a finger at me, then he climbed out of the door and walked off without a goodbye or a backwards glance.
I waited only until after I saw him walk into the club then directed Brett back to the house.
