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The decision he should have made earlier? Remarrying. What he’d said that night after I’d yelled at him for even contemplating betraying my mother’s memory remained in the back of my mind. It had also been a vain attempt at burying the guilt that had kept a noose around my neck for years, the school psychologists I’d been forced to see telling my father that was the single reason I couldn’t let go of my anger.
Maybe that’s why he’d told me that behind every man running a powerful organization was a woman who pulled the puppet strings. He’d added that if the leader was lucky, he’d enjoy the process of being told what to do. I’d laughed at him, calling him dozens of horrible names, appalled that he’d think our mother was controlling.
And I called him weak.
Fuck.
All I’d wanted was a normal family and he’d done everything in his power to create one and I’d called him weak.
The old traditions still applied. Roberto Bianchi was getting ready to retire. However, given there was little respect for the small, savage syndicate, he’d made the wise decision to require his son to find a wife. In addition to hooking himself up to the decorated politician. If the girl was from another powerful mafia family, that would add instant additional credibility. And if she happened to bring additional territories into the fold, such as crossing the lines from New York to Chicago, then Dante would be allowed a seat at the big boys’ table, as my father used to call it.
A brilliant plan, but one the girl had reason to hate as well as fear. Using her was only part of the weakness. Her determination to provide details of the horrors she’d been through was something else and possibly even more powerful. Was it possible the Bianchis had found out about our affair? I couldn’t put that past them, although the only way was if she’d figured out who I was.
Playing this carefully would take every ounce of my patience, tearing it apart bit by bit.
I had a lot of thinking and planning to do.
But I would discover her identity.
“If he gets wind of what you’re planning, the pig will hurt her,” Cayman stated, dragging me back to reality.
“Very true. That pig is set to become an important man. Dante remained in the shadows on purpose, learning far too much about how we operate.”
“Are you thinking he has a friend on the inside of our organization?”
Hmmm… I rubbed my jaw. “Possible, but a smart man would only need to pay attention to our business dealings, our works of philanthropy, and how we engage with members of law enforcement and our local politicians.”
“They’re cloning themselves into remarkable resemblances of Max’s regime.” Cayman whistled.
“Exactly, my friend. On the day Dante gets married, our stock will take a hit.” And I wasn’t just talking about with our legitimate corporations. Fuck. The ball was already rolling, snowballing. This called for different tactics.
“Then what are you going to do?”
That seemed to be the obvious question I continued to get asked. “Remove the temptation and the prize.”
“Can I offer you a suggestion, boss?”
“Why the hell not?”
“Why don’t you find a wife of your own. Better yet. Why not take what Dante Bianchi thinks belongs to him? Whether it’s Chrissy or not.”
His evil grin brought another laugh. “I knew I liked you for a reason, Cayman, my man. You’re as devious as I am. While you’re right, I still have my reservations.” For good reason.
“Understood, boss, but you won’t have much time to decide. And you love me for all the wrong reasons, boss. I keep telling you that. If you figure out the girl already belongs to you, are you taking her tonight?”
God, I wanted to.
I continued to tap my fingers on the dashboard. Then I opened the door. “At this point, tonight is just about getting the facts and to make Dante and his father nervous. They’ll make mistakes after that, which will be to our benefit. So, for now, it’s time to crash a party and have a couple drinks. Nothing more.”
“Fuck. I like the way you think.”
“Unless Dante fucks with me. Then all bets are off.”
CHAPTER 17
Christiana
An engagement party.
