AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter Twenty-One – Luca
“The car pulled around the back of the warehouse.” Jock is listening intently to the chatter from our guys through his earpiece. We’ve been on high alert ever since the black SUV arrived, then quickly disappeared from our line of sight. We’re sitting in front of the warehouse, still in the car, waiting for the signal to go inside.
I need to believe this is going to be fine. That for once, Dante Bernardi is operating on the level. That there’s no ulterior motive here beyond ending this conflict. I’m not willing to believe he was completely unaware of what this guy of his was doing, but I’m willing to believe the guy went rogue after a while. And I’m willing to let bygones be bygones so long as I get his word this ends now.
Otherwise? There’s nothing on earth that could stop me from ending his whole fucking family.
“What’s that?” Jock puts a hand to his ear, frowning, before his eyebrows shoot up. “They took somebody out of the car wearing a hood over their head.”
“Male? Female?”
“Male.” I don’t know what it means, but I hope this is the bastard who had the audacity to taunt me. Using Delilah against me. That was his fatal mistake. If Bernardi brought him along to use him as a peace offering, I’d be more than happy to put a bullet between his eyes.
“Everything looks clean otherwise,” Jock informs me. “No further cars. No other chatter.”
“Is Bernardi with them? Did any of them see him?” Jock asks the question, then shrugs. I don’t know what that’s supposed to mean, but I don’t like going into this without confirmation.
We exchange a look, and I nod, checking once more to be sure my Glock it’s ready before sliding it between my waistband and my back, then adjusting my jacket over top. Jock exits the car, walks around to my side, and opens the door.
Here we go.
Three of my most trusted men are waiting at the entrance, one of whom opens the door for me before falling in step with the others at my back. Jock walks beside me, his head on a swivel always, his eyes trained to spot anything that looks out of the ordinary in the otherwise average, empty warehouse. The emptiness grants me a degree of confidence, since it means fewer places for assassins to lie in wait.
Up ahead, a hooded figure sits on a wooden chair, hands behind his back. He’s flanked by two burly men wearing shoulder harnesses in which weapons are clearly visible. Not that this comes as any surprise. I expected everyone to be armed. And I like the fact that we have them outnumbered.
Where is Dante?
Jock asks for me before we’ve reached them. “Where’s your boss?” Meanwhile, Connor, Marco, and Scott are combing the area, making sure all is clear.
“The wonders of technology.” A third man enters, this one wearing a suit that tells me he isn’t the average, everyday grunt. “Mr. Bruno, Mr. Bernardi has looked forward to speaking with you.” He then holds up a tablet on which Dante Bernardi’s image is clearly displayed.
“FaceTime?” I ask with a smirk. “Honestly? You couldn’t be bothered to meet me in person?”
He pretends to be dismayed. “Luca, I’m a busy man. I’m sure you understand how that goes.”
“Considering you’re the one who reached out for this meeting, the least you could have done was show your face.”
“This is the best I can do, I’m afraid. I hope that doesn’t mean we can’t reach an understanding.” He’s sitting in front of a dark fireplace, his gray-streaked black hair combed back from his forehead, a pair of wireframed glasses reflecting the light coming from whatever device he’s using. He looks older than I remember him, his jowls sagging, his voice thinner.
“So what is this all about? What do you want?”
“Joe?” One of the guards takes this as his cue to pull the hood from the head of the bound man.
And there he is. I can’t help the sharp intake of breath as I finally set eyes on him. This is the man we couldn’t find? This is the genius who managed to evade every single one of my attempts to locate him? He’s nothing. Nobody. And he looks like somebody already knocked him around a little bit before bringing him here, blood oozing from the corner of his mouth, one eye starting to blacken.
“Luca Bruno,” Dante sighs. “Meet my dirty secret.”
Has dirty… “You’re not serious,” I blurt out.
“This is my son, Christopher. Just one of those things, you know? I’m sure your father had at least one or two of his own bastards running around.” Jock grunts, but I shake my head. I’m not going to let this asshole lure us into a fight.
“At least if he had any,” I point out, “they aren’t running around town killing women for him. Unless you expect me to believe he did that on his own, without any prompting from you.”
“I’m afraid that’s exactly what happened. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t care much whether a whore lives or dies, especially when she’s not one of mine. But Christopher has always been a bit… overzealous, let’s say.” When he scowls, his wrinkles deepen. “Isn’t that right?”
“I told you, I did it for you!” For somebody so big and brave and ready to terrify a woman, it doesn’t take much to get him blubbering. “Dad, please!”
“How many times have we had this discussion? You don’t call me that. One of my little guys might have met up with your mother’s egg, but that doesn’t make me your dad. You didn’t earn the right to call me that.”
