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My dad coughed and turned onto his back, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He’d snored until we reached the Ben Franklin Bridge and were on our way into the city.
“Thanks for coming to get me, sweetheart.” His voice was groggy and cracked when he spoke. “I was starting to lose hope anyone would find me.”
“How come you didn’t walk off the lot and get help?”
“They locked me inside. I tried to climb the fence, but I didn’t have the strength to reach the top.”
I cocked an eyebrow at him, confused. “Why would someone go to those lengths to fence in a construction site? It looked like a bunch of dirt and building materials to me.”
He shrugged. “I bought that property for Angelo Sr. about five years ago. He obviously never did anything with it.”
“Are you saying he’s the one who did this to you?”
“I have no idea. One of his crews was handling the construction for this job. Angelo stays out of that stuff and lets his men handle everything. When I asked him about the property, he said the funding was held up, but I think they spent the money instead of paying back the note. The bank was about to foreclose. Angelo wanted me to give them more time to pay off the lot.”
“That doesn’t make any sense. You couldn’t get an extension on a loan Angelo owes.”
“Carlini Construction owns the lot, Gianna. I could have asked the bank, but the property was already mortgaged to the hilt. I had nothing to show for all the money we spent. The bank was getting nervous and started asking questions. I told Angelo I couldn’t accommodate him and I would have to sell the plots.”
“You think this was a warning?”
“Maybe. I’d like to think my oldest friend in the world didn’t do this to me. But I don’t know anymore. This world is not what it used to be. Times are changing. Younger guys are becoming more ambitious. They’re trying to take Angelo out.”
I gasped at his word
s.
“If they want to get rid of Angelo Sr., that means his entire family. You have to be careful, Gianna.” He glanced down at his hands folded in his lap and sighed. “If anything were to happen to you, I could never live with myself.”
“Angelo would kill anyone who ever touched me, you know that.”
“I do. But his love for you scares me sometimes. He treats you like property, and you see just how disposable property is to these people.”
“Daddy, Angelo loves me. He might act like a lunatic sometimes, but he would never hurt me.”
“Loving him could be the death of you,” my dad challenged. “I don’t want to see you in the middle of all this.”
“I am already in the middle of this. So are you. We’re involved in the Morelli business whether we like it or not.”
“My biggest regret is allowing you to be wrapped up in this life. I should have moved you away from Angelo when you were a kid.”
“Nothing could have kept Angelo from me. Not even you.”
He pursed his lips. “I know. That’s why I never put a stop to it.”
“Don’t fight it, Dad. It’s too late. Just know Angelo will do whatever it takes to keep me safe.”
He forced a smile that was for my benefit, but I saw right through the facade.
Chapter Thirteen
Gia
My mother looked like a modern-day Jackie Kennedy in her Chanel dress, strings of Mikimoto pearls around her neck, and chunky designer sunglasses rested on her nose. She was way overdressed for the occasion. I was also positive she was from a different era. Nonetheless, she was her usual glamorous self. I’d always remember my mother this way, with her doll-like features and soft voice that sounded as if she sung every word she spoke.
“Mom, you know it’s night outside, right? You can lose the sunglasses.”
She strolled across my bedroom to retrieve the dress Angelo had bought me from the closet and held it out in front of her. It was a red Valentino number that cost about as much as some of the cars I’d helped Angelo steal when we were kids. “Of course, darling. I know the difference between night and day. I didn’t have that much wine at dinner.”
