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I give Sylvia a nod to leave us, and she offers me a sad smile before stepping out the door and closing it behind her.
“He’s so cruel, Rafe. I don’t want him to ever be near our child,” she sobs.
“I’d never allow him to be. I made an error today, one that won’t happen again.” I try my best to put her mind at rest, but I’ve failed her, and I know I won’t forgive myself for that.
“We’re bringing a child into the world. A world where men like him do what they do,” she says as if it’s dawning on her for the first time. And hearing it out loud actually makes my stomach turn cold.
“Don’t think about that stuff, Riley.” I stroke my hand through her hair, trying to soothe her the way Sylvia did.
“How can I not, Rafe?” She forces me away. “How can you live knowing what he’s doing and do nothing about it?” She’s looking up at me like I’m the one who’s hurting her now.
“Stop stressing. It’s not good for you,” I warn.
“Answer my question. How can you let him continue doing what he does? When he said you lived with your guilt well, he meant it, didn’t he?” Hearing what he said to her only builds up my aggression. The kind of aggression I have to keep a fucking lid on around her. She shakes her head at me before shifting off the bed and heading toward the bathroom.
“Get back into bed,” I order her, praying she isn’t about to test my patience, not now.
“Your brother runs a pedophile ring, Raphael. He hurts children. Innocent little children like the one I’m carrying inside me right now.” As if her words aren’t aggravating enough, she speaks them to me slowly like I’m stupid.
“I’m aware of that, Riley.” I run my palm over my face, attempting to calm myself. I came in here to comfort her, to try to make her feel better, and now she is blaming me for the way my sick brother chooses to live his life.
“So why don’t you stop him? You could call the police and have him shut down.” She makes it all sound so simple, and the hope in her red-rimmed eyes shatters me. As if it could ever be that easy.
“I can’t do that,” I speak through my teeth, fighting so hard to swallow my rage.
“Because of family loyalty, right?” She laughs at me, a cruel, nasty laugh that makes me want to pin her to the bed and fuck her sore.
“You wouldn’t understand, Riley, and I don’t have to explain myself to you.”
“But you could try to make me understand. You should want to explain yourself to me because I’m the mother of your child. Does that not mean anything at all?” she’s crying now, the tears streaming down her face and her body rigid with frustration. It’s not good for her, and I’m not risking her passing out again.
“Riley, you need to calm down.” I step toward her and place my hands on her shoulders. “Take your hands off me, Rafe.” She stares her eyes into mine, injecting them with venom, and I shake my head to let her know that’s not gonna happen.
“I mean it. Take your fucking hands off me. I wish I’d never met you or your sick brother. I hate that I’m bringing this baby into a world where either of you exists.” She pulls away from me roughly, and I let her words sink into my chest like a jagged knife.
“I think I preferred living on the streets with my brother than I do in your luxuries. At least there, I knew I meant something to someone.” I’m so wound up that I allow her to storm into the bathroom and lock herself away from me for her own safety. Right now, I don’t trust myself to be around her, and I march straight out of the bedroom, down the stairs to where Ricardo is waiting for his punishment.
“Who was on the gate? Who let him in?” I ask, trying my best to stay calm, at least until I have the answers I need.
“It was the new guard. He knew Adriano was your brother, so he trusted him and permitted him entry.”
“Fuck.” I throw my head up and look at the ceiling.
“Do you understand what could have happened to her?” I lower my voice in case there’s any chance Riley can hear me. “You know what Adriano’s capable of?” I seethe, unable to even think about what he might have done to her if he’d taken her.
“Do you honestly think I’d have let anything happen to her, Rafe?” Ricardo shocks me with the tone he takes back at me. “I’d die before I let anything happen to her.” He stands tall in front of me, looking almost as angry as I am. Ricardo is a proud man, and I have to respect him for his loyalty.
“He said some shit about his clients being compromised and that maybe yours would be too. I don’t know how much of it she took in because she was so scared,” he admits, suddenly looking too exhausted to fight me on this.
“I know about what’s happening. Gioele gave me the heads-up a few weeks ago. That motorcycle gang Samuele deals with is fucking shit up. We suspect they were working with the CIA agent who was trying to take Adriano down.”
“You think Adriano is their end game?” Ricardo asks, sounding concerned. I shake my head and shrug because the truth is I have no idea what the Dirty Souls’, or whatever it is that they call themselves, game is. I don’t care, as long as they don’t try to fuck up my shit.
“I’m gonna kill him, Ric,” I promise, thinking about everything Riley just said to me. “Maybe he should pray those biker fuckers get to him before I do. Because I’m done. I want him out of my life and out of business for good. No more threats. It’s time I put an end to something I should have done a long time ago.”
I storm toward the front door, and Ricardo shouts after me.
“Where you going, boss?”
