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“I knew you would,” I croak out.
“The doctors weren’t going to let him in. Only family. But I forced them to make an exception.” She smiles at me.
I’m too tired to talk, but I’m glad they’re here. So many questions run through my head. What happened to Kelly? What happened to the bakery? What’s going to happen next? I can barely keep up with my own thoughts, so instead of saying anything I just close my eyes and give Aunt Lisa’s hand a weak squeeze.
A little later, a doctor comes into my room. Now that I’ve been able to rest overnight, they want to do some tests to check for any long-term damage from the smoke. Mainly in my lungs. The doctor says I can go home this afternoon, after they’re done, but I’ll still need a couple days of bed rest. That shouldn’t be a problem. I can’t even picture my body wanting to get out of bed. I’m glad I can go home, though.
Raf looks a bit like I feel. He obviously hasn’t slept. He’s dirty and some of his clothes are singed. I convince him that he should go home. Shower, cleanup, take a nap. Then he can come back when I’m able to leave.
He’s hesitant to go. I can see the worry in his eyes. I ensure him that I’ll be okay here with Lisa and the nurses. I’ll just be sleeping in between the tests. He finally agrees.
“Eat something too.” I add.
He leans down, kisses me on the cheek and squeezes my hand goodbye.
18
RAF
I feel betterafter Caroline wakes up. She looks weak and spent. I hate seeing her that way. I know she’ll be fine now, but I don’t want to ever let her out of my sight again. I don’t know how possible that is. She finally convinces me to go change and cleanup. Lisa will stay at the hospital with her. My smoke saturated clothes and hair probably just remind her of the fire, but I still hate leaving her side.
On my way out, I text Mateo Barone, Underboss of the Barone Syndicate.
“I need to talk to you about the last property. Free in 45 minutes?”
I knew this conversation was going to have to happen soon. Now it’s urgent. It’s more than a loose end in our business plan. We’re on the verge of all-out war. Kelly wasn’t just a soldier. He was a Made Man. So was Jake. And I can’t let this attack go unanswered. They have to pay for what they did to Caroline. He must have been watching us, looking for his opportunity, which means he knew she and I had gotten close.
Mateo responds before I pull out of the parking lot.“Yes. My home office.”
I go home, shower, and change before I go to Mateo’s home off Rittenhouse Square.
When the elevator door opens on the penthouse, Luca is there to greet me as usual. Luca is Mateo’s right-hand man.
Like me, Luca isn’t a Barone by blood. He doesn’t look it either. He’s dirty blond where every natural born Barone has jet black hair.
He’s also the best hitman on the East Coast. His kills look like accidents. Luca may not have been born a Barone, but he’s as close as you can get. Mateo’s parents raised Luca like one of their own. He and Mateo were inseparable growing up.
Luca and I enter the office. Mateo is sitting behind his oversized desk looking out over the city through floor to ceiling windows that make up the whole wall.
Mateo turns toward us as we sit down. “Looks like that last property is giving you some trouble.” Mateo tosses the newspaper across his desk to me, like a challenge. I see the headline about the fire at the bakery. “The District Attorney is getting loud. He’s identified it as a mafia turf war. Two murders and a building firebombed.”
I don’t shy away. “I’ve got a plan. A way to clean it all up.”
Mateo raises his eyebrows, intrigued. “Let’s hear it.”
19
CAROLINE
The doctors run their tests.They’ve given me some antibiotics to take, but they’re not concerned about any long-term damage. Raf did show up just in time to save me from the fire.
He also shows up just before they discharge me from the hospital, looking much better. I don’t think he slept, but he obviously showered and shaved, and seems more relaxed.
I’m feeling better too. Still exhausted, but I’ve had some fluids and I feel more aware of what’s going on around me. Raf pushes me in a wheelchair down to his car and gives Lisa and me a ride back to her house. He helps me into the house and up the stairs to my bed.
Thorough as always, he makes sure I have everything I need before he leaves.
Over the next two days, I stay in bed, trying to get some strength back. Raf comes by often. He brings groceries so Lisa doesn’t have to leave me alone, and books and magazines for me, including a romance novel that he picked up at the grocery store.
