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Gabe cocked an inquiring brow.
I shrugged. “The guy’s got two kids.”
The money in the envelope wouldn’t last them a lifetime, but it would put the kids through college and leave a nice little nest egg besides. It wasn’t the kids’ fault their father was a gambling child-recruiting scumbag.
***
“So, what’s next on the agenda,fratello?” Gabe asked from the passenger seat of my Porsche as he typed away on his phone, letting Lorenzo know the task was done.
I knew exactly what I wanted to do next. It was the same thing I’d been wanting to do since I spied the dark-haired beauty in Onyx last night. For some reason, I couldn’t get the girl out of my head. Maybe it had been the interruption that was doing strange things to me. It wasn’t often I was deprived of what I wanted.
My phone rang. I pulled it out of my jacket, hoping like hell something hadn’t gone wrong with Pisano. But the number didn’t belong to any of our men. I squeezed the steering wheel tighter and held the phone up to my ear.
“Buongiorno, Belemonte.” The guy had his uses, but that didn’t mean I enjoyed talking to him.
“Buongiorno,Nico. I hope my information proved useful to you.”
“It did.Grazie,”I said, trying to keep the revulsion out of my voice.
“I’m glad. Truly. I had the most scintillating visit today, and I thought it might interest you.”
Dealing with Belemonte did not “interest” me, but if he had information about who was killing Costas—who also seemed to be the same guy who was trying to infringe on our territory—I was willing to play along.
“I appreciate the call. What can you tell me?”
“Someone is very interested in finding areas of contention between families like the Lucas, the Lucianos… the Costas. When she mentioned your family, it seemed pertinent to share that information with you.”
It wasn’t like Belemonte to hand over information with no strings.
“What is it you want, Belemonte?”
“Only to prove how useful I can be, Nico. I told you, I regret not getting to know your father better. I wouldn’t want to make that mistake twice.”
He was hoping to benefit from a long-term relationship with the Costas. It wasn’t something I could rule out if I was looking out for the well-being of the family. Even snakes had their uses.
“What can you tell me about the woman making inquiries?”
“I didn’t get her name, I’m afraid, but she was quite memorable. Very young. Long, dark hair, blue eyes, and a body that was hand-sculpted by the gods.”
My knuckles turned white around the steering wheel.
Long, dark hair.
Vivid blue eyes.
A face that no man could forget.
I had no doubt that there was more than one blue-eyed brunette in New York. But something had struck me about Raven last night. Perhaps this was why. She hadn’t been at Onyx for a night out—she was there to sink her claws into the Costas.
“Anything else?” I asked, not sure if I was looking for something to confirm or to negate my suspicion.
Belemonte sighed. “I’m at an impasse, Nico. I fear the information I have will lead to harm to the girl. That really would be a waste.”
Belemonte concerned about the girl’s well-being? I scoffed inwardly. “What is it you want?”
“Nothing much, really. If you decide to… do away with the girl, give her to me instead. I think, when presented with the choice between death and working for me, she’ll come to my way of thinking.”
“I’ll consider it.”
