Page 12 of Gabbriello Deluca

Gabbriello looked down at Miranda’s face and silently vowed to avenge her death. Whoever was responsible would not die quickly, he thought as his expression went cold.

Thanks to their family's connections with the police. The official cause of death was a botched robbery. Gabbriello knew from the note she wrote that someone offered her a lot of money to get information from him, but when she overheard them saying that they wanted to kill Gabbriello, she tried to warn him, but she paid with her life. She didn’t mention any names on the note.

He thought back to the Russian family that he and Rinaldo killed and wondered if it was one of their family members. He doubted anyone would avenge their deaths.

After losing Miranda, Gabbriello vowed to never love another human being like that again. In all honesty, he didn’t have the strength to relive that type of pain. It was far too dangerous for him to allow anyone to get that close to his heart again.

So, throughout the years, Gabbriello settled for women who understood that he wasn’t looking for anything more than a one-night hookup. And they only left him half satisfied. It was the way it had to be. Gabbriello had no desire to find love again. Instead, he focused solely on the family business and making money.

After his father died, he and his brother Mariano worked together to build the Deluca reputation all over Philadelphia and the surrounding cities. Mariano didn’t have the stomach for the illegal operations. So, he worked on all the legal businesses including managing the hotel. There was not a single high-end business venture that the Delucas weren’t a part of. Gabbriello was ruthless and after doubling their fair share of enemies, Gabbriello made it his mission to recruit protection. Many police officers and a few agents from the FBI field office in Philadelphia were on his payroll. He was going to take over the Tri-State area or die trying.

Gabbriello stepped out of the shower, feeling rejuvenated. As soon as his feet hit the black marble tiles on the bathroom floor, he felt warmth beneath his feet, thanks to the heating system that was placed under the tiles. He made sure they installed it in all the suites in the hotel. The fluorescent lights shine bright in his eyes. Gabbriello turned towards the wall-to-wall mirror and stared at his reflection. His dark hair was damp from his shower, and he could see the emptiness in his eyes.

Gabbriello preferred to shower in his penthouse, but he felt the need for a shower after that lackluster sexual encounter. He grabbed a towel with thick white fibers and dried his hair before tightening it around his waist. He opened the bathroom door, letting out the steam that was trapped from the hot shower. The cool, dry air from the room hit Gabbriello abruptly, but the contrast of hot and cold on his skin felt refreshing.

Gabbriello pulled clean underwear out of the drawer and grabbed a freshly dry-cleaned shirt and pants from the closet and dressed before heading to his penthouse.

* * *

Gabbriello woke up the next day in his own bed. He showered, dressed, and headed into his office. It was going to be a long week and he had a lot on his plate. It was only the beginning of the week, but his calendar was filled with back-to-back meetings. After his father’s death, he grew the family’s legitimate empire as well as maintaining control over the family’s illegal activities. Gabbriello realized he could no longer handle things by himself. He needed help. He opted for someone to help him organize his paperwork, schedule his meetings, and oversee his legal businesses that included the hotel, real estate and strip club.

Amber Costa was fresh out of college when Gabbriello hired her. He knew her family. Her father worked for the DeLucas of New York, and was killed during one of the rival wars. The Deluca family always took care of their own, so they made sure she had money for college, and when she graduated, Gabbriello gave her a job. She held a bachelor’s degree in communications and a certificate in finance.

Amber also understood the other business and was able to keep them separate. She moved to Philadelphia after college and had worked for Gabbriello ever since. Once hired, Amber quickly learned how to schedule his time so that the two worlds in which Gabbriello lived didn’t collide. Because she grew up in that life, Amber understood better than anyone about the Deluca way of life.

Mondays were always filled with his normal meetings. Gabbriello walked into his office and Amber handed him a cup of coffee. He met with Amber to go over his schedule for the rest of the week. After that, Nicholas, Mariano and the managers from the Emerald Club and the Deluca hotel met with him for their weekly meetings to go through the day-to-day operations and work out any problems that came up. Gabbriello made sure he stayed abreast of everything that was happening in his businesses and wanted to know about all the issues and problems that came up during the week.

He would then meet with his lieutenants to get updates on how the other part of his business was doing. The drug sales, gambling, high-end escort service and gun sales. He needed to know it all. After those meetings were complete, around two o’clock, he met with Mr. E. privately to discuss any sensitive matters that may have come up in the organization.

Gabbriello periodically got information from the cops on his payroll to make sure all was quiet. Since the death of Miranda, Gabbriello kept a close watch on any criminal activity that may have pointed towards his family or businesses. He always wanted to be prepared.

Gabbriello also met weekly with his brother to go over the family business. In his experience, unpredictability was dangerous and got people killed. Once his weekly meetings were over, Gabbriello could breathe better, but tried to stay prepared for the unexpected.

Gabbriello was finally able to head back to his penthouse. As he walked through the lobby of the hotel his phone buzzed. He pulled his phone out of his pocket. Without seeing who it was, he answered. “Yeah,”

“Gabbriello!” a frantic voice said on the other end of the line.

CHAPTER 6

Gabbriello looked at his phone before putting it back to his ear. “Jeffrey? What is it?” Irritation was threaded through his tone.

Jeffrey Santos was his first cousin on his mother’s side of the family. They were all together as kids, but when they became teenagers, his mother didn’t allow him to hang out with Gabbriello and Mariano because of their family’s criminal activity. But she was the same woman who asked Gabbriello to take care of her son on her deathbed. She knew her son was weak and without protection, the world would eat him up alive. Gabbriello’s attention went back to the current conversation when he heard Jeffery’s voice again.

“I…, I can’t find Sam. We got into a fight, and she left. She’s not answering her cell phone and I’m getting worried. She would have at least call me back by now.”

“Okay,” Gabbriello said in a calm voice. They had all been on high alert since another threat against his family was floating out in the wind. Gabbriello made sure that all his family and their significant others were watched. “Did you check her place?”

“Yeah!”

“And she’s not at the club?”

“No!” Jeffrey said.

Gabbriello could hear the panic in his voice.

“I’m getting a little freaked out, Gabe.”

“Where are you now?” Gabbriello asked.

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