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“Is his leaving the prison good or bad for us?”
“In this case, good. I’ve talked to his father. We’ve come to an agreement.”
If he’s saying that now, he probably means they made that agreement years ago. No self-respecting mobster would let a betrayal slide for so long. I usually take part in most of Antonio’s conversations, but I wasn’t present at that one. And he never mentioned it afterward.
“What agreement?”
“Francesco is going to marry Sienna. The union will bring both families together. There will be no stopping us.”
Acid spreads in my stomach. “Francesco is well over fifty. Isn’t Sienna?—”
“Twenty-one. Yes.”
Memories of Sienna populate in my mind. I’ve only seen her in person a few times. Even for Christmas, Antonio visits her at her college in New York. A girls-only college she’s attended ever since she finished boarding school. He never wanted her to spend much time in Chicago, and I wondered if he was overprotective of her. Now, it all makes sense.
He was keeping his daughter a novelty. Out of the public eye. A virginal shining object that’ll be a gift to the man who did five years in prison for Antonio.
“Is she on board?” I ask.
He shrugs. “She will be. You know, being my daughter is a blessing and a curse. She’ll have access to great wealth, but if she doesn’t marry into the right family, she’ll be a huge liability. Marrying Francesco is a good way to protect her. She’ll be taken care of.”
“Okay.” Even though having his daughter marry for business doesn’t sit well with me, I remember this isn’t my concern. “I still don’t see how I can help. Is she visiting?”
“I want you to pick her up in New York and bring her home. Travel tonight. Since Francesco is due to be free within a few weeks, I want her here to organize the wedding and get all that shit in order, so when he’s back in the free world, they can marry quickly. He’s waited long enough.”
Oh, great. Babysitting a twenty-one-year-old. “Doesn’t she have someone local who keeps an eye on her?”
He waves me off impatiently, like the question annoys him. Antonio has never been one to enjoy explaining himself—so far, that’s served him well in life. “Yes, but this is different. Bringing her here will require some… convincing. I trust you to do it. Not some kid from New York I barely met and gets paid to watch her from a distance.”
“Fair enough. I guess I can do it since this is my last month under your employ,” I say, as a way to remind him that we’ve had a deal. Most people don’t leave this occupation alive. They know too much. But he knows I’ve been compensated well for many of my crimes, which is the only way I can leave. By also having committed sins. By having blood on my hands.
“I’ve always hoped you’d reconsider. You are the best security I’ve had since…”
I inhale a long breath. My father used to be his head of security—while he was fucking Antonio’s wife.
“It’s been an honor,” I lie, in a voice that leaves no room for negotiation.
He looks at me, tilting his head as if to read my thoughts. “All right. Make sure my daughter is at the altar to marry Francesco, and before she leaves for honeymoon, you’ll be released from working for me.”
“Deal.”
Sienna and Francesco’s wedding will be the happiest day of my life. Sadly, I can’t say the same for her—and thankfully, that’s not my problem.
2
Sienna
“Areyou sure you don’t want to come for happy hour?” my roommate Lisa asks, twisting the door handle of our dorm room.
“Yes.”
She shakes her head. “There will be cute guys at the bar. And half-off margaritas.”
I roll my eyes. Not even an entire pitcher of margaritas would fix my problems right now. “I’ll pass.”
“Suit yourself,” she says in a singsong voice, then closes the door behind her and leaves.
I look around my spacious, clean dorm room. I haven’t told Lisa that my father called me hours ago to inform me I’ll marry some sleazeball asshole to keep him happy. I’ve learned to say very little about my family to anyone I know. It’s safer for them.
