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“I don’t want to tell you what to do but that boy needs to become a man. Your mother has to let him grow up.” I don’t want to tell him what to do. Matteo is only my cousin. Not my brother. He needs to let go of his mother’s skirts as the old saying goes and Leo is the one in charge now to do it. He took the Italian mafia to war with the Russian’s getting his sister back from her sicko brother-in-law. Now he needs to man up for Matteo as well.
He huffs a huge sigh and I can see him wiping his face with his hand. He’s going to grow old fast this way. “You’re right, Griff. It’s just any time I try that Mama starts crying. You know I can’t handle her crying.”
“She’s not going to be able to handle it more if he goes to prison for the shit his crazy fuckin’ ass does.”
“Yea, I know. So, you didn’t call me to talk family shit. Why the call? What’s so important?”
“You remember my partner’s daughter, Katrina?” I fiddle with a dagger-like letter opener my father gave me when I opened this business with Max. I flip over from one end to the other. Over and over. I do this when I’m trying to consider my next plan of action.
I zone out for a second and miss the beginning of what Leo says, “…is about Kat?”
“Yeah. I can’t tell you the whole story. That’s up to her who, or what she tells anyone. I need someone to be taken care of.” I flip the letter opener again, I turn my computer on with my other hand.
“Taken care of as in…?”
“He did something damaging to her and his family covered it up. I want him to hurt. Physically will be too fast. I want him destroyed. Like Kat feels now.” I growl the last four words like the animal I feel like right now. I want him to hurt. Hurt for a long, long time.
“I can have someone look into it. What’s his name?” I can hear papers shuffling in the background and him calling out to someone.
“Buddy Ross.”
“The senator’s son? The son who’s trying to become mayor?” I can hear the exasperation in his voice. Yes, this isn’t just any asshole’s son. “Are you sure, Griff? This is going to be difficult. I’m going to have to have someone make sure everything about him. Maybe even the dark web. Are you sure you want me to dig into him like this? It’s going to take a while. I’m going to need more info even if you don’t want to.”
I rub my hand over my chin. I don’t want to spill Kat’s secret, I don’t think I have much choice though. Not if he’s going to pay for what he’s done. He’s probably done this to other girls and women too. He has to be stopped.
“He raped her when she was sixteen.” I say it bluntly. No sense in holding off, it’s rough saying it. Thinking about it makes me want to be the one to take care of him, for what he’s put her through.
“Fuck, Griff. I didn’t know.”
“Neither did I. I just found out a couple hours ago and I knew you could help. I’ll owe you big time.”
“No, no. There will be no owing me anything. You’re family and so is she now. He needs to be put out of action. He’s probably still doing this.” His voice growls low and deep. He has great respect for women. I hear something slam down on his desk. Maybe his fist.
“That’s what I thought too.” I turn my computer off, I’m not going to get any work done now, I don’t know what I was thinking. I’m too wound up. I bite my bottom lip and suck air in through my teeth as I consider the next move. There’s nothing more I can do. It has to be done through illegal channels. There’s no other answer.
“I’ll let you know as soon as I find something out.”
“Thanks cousin.”
“No. No thanks needed. If you find something else out we can use, let me know.”
“I will. And thanks again.” He hangs up and so do I. I drop my head in my hands, rubbing my thumbs against my tight temples. The headache that’s starting, travels over my forehead and over the top of my head. I almost wish it wasn’t the holidays and my mother wasn’t here. I love my mother but this is getting to be too much, what with the Max business, Katrina and what mom is planning. Whatever she’s planning.
I lift my head, not going to give in to any annoyance of a headache. Too much to do. I pick up the letter opener again studying the special handle. It’s shaped like a sword handle from the middle ages. My father wanted to be sure with my family connections I had something else to protect me besides a gun. You can’t always carry one of those around.
“Griff…” Startling at the sudden sound of Kat’s voice, I jerk my head up surprised she was able to do that. I’m usually more alert and aware. She’s becoming more of a complication than I anticipated.
“Yeah?”
This was my father’s study and office. His business was Van Halen Publishing and a small-time publishing house at the time. It went bankrupt and he killed himself or that was the rumor. Twenty-five years later and I still don’t believe it. There’s no evidence to disprove suicide though. Senator Alan Ross was one of the investors, I’ve never been able to find out why he killed himself. I don’t know how the senator was involved but now I’m sure he was. I need to call Leo and give him this added information.
“Griff.” She tries again, stepping further into the room, her blue eyes circle the room and settle on me. Nothing has changed in here since this was my dad’s. She wouldn’t know that though, she never knew him.
“Tell me.”
“I want us to do it.”
I’m confused. “Do it? Do what?”
