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“Her uncle is Mathis Colley,” I said.
“Ah.” The Don stared at her for a long moment. “Is that so? Very interesting, Steven, very interesting.”
“I thought you might want to meet her, Don.”
“You were right to bring her. Please, sit down.” He gestured at four chairs in front of his desk. I took the one on the far right and Luca sat in the one on the far left. Colleen hesitated then chose the chair right next to mine.
The Don sat with a sigh and leaned forward.
“You were busy last night,” he said. “You brought home a prize as well as striking a blow to our new enemies.”
I inclined my head. “Yes, sir. It was just a small hit, but I think it made our intentions clear.”
“You did well,” the Don said. “I’ve already received some very angry messages from the Celtic Club. They’re very curious about why we decided to murder three of their soldiers with no provocation.”
I smiled and tilted my head. “I can’t blame them, Don,” I said. “It’s an audacious move.”
“All thanks to you, young Steven,” he said. “Now that the Russians are busy cleaning up their own messes and are weakened from their failure two years ago, we have some latitude in the city.”
“And the Celtic Club is a prize,” I said. “Their territory brings in good money. They move almost as much as all of Eastwick, and they’re half the size.”
“They won’t make it easy on you, Steven,” Don Leone said. “You know this will be a fight.”
I nodded and smiled. “Good,” I said. “I hope so.”
Don Leone laughed. I could feel Colleen shifting uncomfortably next to me, but I didn’t look at her. I smiled back at the Don, feeling confident and strong for the first time in a while.
Up until this point, I’d been spending every day consolidating my hold on Gray’s Ferry and building my crew. It wasn’t until the last few months that I felt ready to move on and do some expanding.
And now it felt good to push into a war, even if I knew violence was going to follow soon.
Maybe I wanted that violence. I’d been Dante’s Lieutenant for so long, and we went through so much shit. Then two years ago, I was promoted to Capo in my own right, and now it was time to prove my strength without Dante.
“Now, I suppose we should discuss you, young lady,” Don Leone said, looking at Colleen. “Is your uncle really Mathis Colley?”
“Yes, Don,” she said, giving him a defiant look.
“Wonderful,” he said, laughing. “And how did Steven find you?”
“He shot me,” she said.
The Don stared at her then laughed again. He looked at me, shaking his head.
“Is that true?” he asked.
“She was hit by a stray bullet,” I said. “I took her back to my place and had the good doctor take a look at her wound. She’ll be fine, Don.”
“Oh, that’s delightful,” Don Leone said. “You couldn’t leave a wounded girl alone there, could you, Steven?”
“No, Don Leone, I could not,” I said.
“Even if she might be an enemy now and make your life harder, you couldn’t help yourself,” he said. “But you’re smart enough and loyal enough to know that you had to bring her with you today, so well done.”
“I wanted to know what you thought I should do with her, Don,” I said.
“Interesting,” he said. “But I want to ask you that same question. What do you want to do with her?”
I looked at Colleen and she looked back. I could see the rage in her eyes, and I knew she hated that we were talking about her future like she had no say in it.
But unfortunately, for right now, she really didn’t. As much as it pissed her off, she was all mine, at least until I decided to let her go.
“She’s valuable,” I said. “She claims that her father left the Club and that she has no contact with them at all, but I haven’t verified it yet.”
“Do you think that’s true?” Don Leone asked.
“Yes,” I said. “I believe her.”
“Interesting.” Don Leone steepled his fingers in front of him. “And yet you still want to keep her then?”
“Yes, Don,” I said. “Even if her father left the Club, she’s still Mathis’s niece. He can’t show weakness, not during a war. He won’t be able to let me keep her, even if he wanted to.”
Don Leone nodded his head slowly and I saw Colleen’s anger deepen.
“I believe you’re right,” Don Leone said.
“And more than that, I want to make sure she’s okay,” I said, keeping my voice low. I looked at her as I spoke. “The war is going to get more dangerous, Don Leone, and I couldn’t forgive myself if this girl got hurt even more because of me.”
Colleen stared at me and gave a confused look. She tilted her head to the side and I kept looking at her, unable to tear my eyes away. She was so beautiful and I was so angry with myself for hurting her, for taking her, for threatening her, for keeping her.
