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“All this over a woman?” Lorenzo met my eyes between Tommy’s and Frankie’s bodies. The corner of his mouth tilted up, and he nodded. “Worth it.”
Marco turned to the three men I didn't know. “I want you to make sure he leaves town. Report back as soon as he’s gone.”
“You got it, boss,” the smallest of the three said, gesturing for the other two to follow him into the elevator with Lorenzo. The doors closed, and I let out a relieved breath. Lorenzo was gone, and I wouldn’t have to see him again.
Frankie and Tommy sat next to me on the couch, leaving enough space that our thighs didn’t touch.
“Now that it’s just us, what happened, Red?” Marco settled in the chair across from us and next to Mickey, who looked ill.
“He said he was sorry that Luca was in jail and propositioned me? I don’t know. It was weird. And then he mentioned seeing Pete before he died, and my gut told me to run.”
Marco nodded, then turned to Mickey. “Has he been acting weird?”
“Uh, not that I’ve noticed. He’s never even mentioned Sasha. Or Pete, beyond being sad that he couldn’t make the funeral.”
Aldo, the oldest of the cousins on the other side of the Morettis, paced near the floor-to-ceiling windows. “Lorenzo has always been a greedy bastard. This isn’t the first woman he’s tried to scoop up from a cousin.” It was the first time I’d ever heard Aldo have passion about anything.
“I don’t think it’s about me. He called Luca the little prince, and I—”
All the men laughed, and Marco said, “That was Luca’s nickname in the family until he became the Butcher.”
Frankie shook his head. “It’s amazing that you all kept calling him that after all those ass beatings.”
“It was all in good fun.” Joey adjusted his cufflinks. “Now look at him, the head of the family and feared by most of the country. I’d say we did him a favor.”
“Bullying, a real character builder,” I scoffed, folding my arms under my chest.
“Sorry, Red. Go on.”
I bit my lip, measuring just how much shit I was going to get. “I may have defended Luca and called him the king and the boss. And then he made it sound like he was gunning for Luca’s spot.”
Mickey shifted in his seat and frowned at Marco, who only shook his head.
“Lorenzo has always had delusions of grandeur.” Marco glanced at Aldo. “You remember what he was like with Dante Sr. died? Insufferable, but ultimately harmless.”
I scooted to the edge of the cushion. “But—”
Joey sat on the arm of the couch. “Sasha, Lorenzo will be handled.”
“If you’re sure.”
Marco stood, straightening his jacket. “Lorenzo’s all talk. He did this same song and dance when Dante was killed, and Luca stepped up. Then again, when Luca set his sights on Zoe Chronis. He’s always trying to rally the troops, but he’s got none.” The rest of the guys stood, and I followed suit. “Now, what he did to you, that signed his death certificate.”
Aldo checked his watch. “I need to get out of here. We good?”
Marco nodded and one by one, the guys left until it was just Marco, Frankie, Tommy, and me.
“Now that we’re alone. There was something else.”
Marco frowned and gestured for me to continue.
“He mentioned the family going through so much tragedy and then said, ‘I’m sure Dante was as much an accident as Pete was.’ There’s no way he could know, is there?”
Frankie sucked his teeth and pulled out his phone.
“After Dante Sr. died in the car accident.” Marco lifted an eyebrow, and Tommy nodded. “There was talk that the brakes had been tampered with, that Pete drove into oncoming traffic on Luca’s orders, or that Rosa had her husband offed for fucking around. Lorenzo hasn’t let it go. It was the same shit when Dante Jr. was shot. Suddenly, Luca was this game player gunning for the top spot, which, as you know, is bullshit. I’ll look into it, but it sounds like the same ole shit coming from Lorenzo.”
I nodded, not fully relieved but less worried than before. “Okay. That makes sense. Just keep an eye on him?”
