Page 89 of Ivory Obsession
“It’s a dangerous play,” Giovanni said. The rest of the men hadn’t spoken at all. I assumed they were happy for Giovanni to speak for them.
“It’s the only play,” I replied, meeting his stare with equal intensity. “The truth is that the Moretti name has plenty of pull in this city and with the healthcare facilities that are popping up everywhere, transportation and logistics are going to be much easier for us.”
“And what about the cops? You think they’re going to turn a blind eye to all this?” One of the Caruso goons finally spoke up, his words slurred by the cheap whiskey that Marco had graciously provided.
“What are they going to do? Investigate the perfectly legitimate transporting of drugs between clinics?” I countered. “We’re not talking about street level drugs here. We’ll be able to transport anything. Anything. Without scrutiny.”
The goon’s brows furrowed, the gears in his head grinding slowly.
Giovanni spoke up. “They gonna look the other way if they know the Moretti’s are involved?”
“We’ll be operating under the radar,” Marco chimed in, blowing a puff of smoke into the air. “Clean records, clean money. No need for them to ever know our involvement. And I’m serious—the clinics and labs are there to help people. But if we can make extra money on fentanyl, why not?”
Giovanni’s gaze flickered to the cash, now pushed aside, forgotten amidst the grandeur of our vision. “And you have the resources for this? The equipment? The manpower?”
“Everything is already in motion,” Marco said, his voice steady as a ticking clock. “We’ve been preparing for months.”
“And Jade?” Giovanni turned his gaze back to me. His question was a punch straight to the gut. “The skip said you were getting serious with a girl. Is she going to be a problem?”
Jade. My distraction. My dilemma. My obsession.
“Dr. Bentley is not involved. Her research spurred this on, but she isn’t part of this.”
Giovanni’s eyes bored into me, and I could tell he wasn’t just asking about her involvement in our plans. He was digging deeper, prying into my personal matters. It was no secret that Jade had become dearer to me than I’d ever anticipated, and it was unsettling how quickly the Carusos had picked up on it.
“You sure, Moretti?”
“Yes,” I said, my voice sharp enough to cut through lead. “She’ll never be a problem.”
Giovanni studied me with those cold, calculating eyes of his—long enough for my heart to beat a rapid tattoo against my chest, long enough for sweat to form a thin sheen over my brow.
“Alright,” Giovanni finally said, breaking the tension. “We’re in. But remember this, Dante: if anything goes sideways, if we so much as suspect that you’re playing us...” He let the words hang in the air like a threat, unsaid but understood.
I nodded, acknowledging his warning. It was always the way with the Caruso family; they’d shake your hand with a smile while keeping a knife at your back. As long as everything went according to plan, we’d stay on their good side. But one wrong move...well, I’d seen what happened to those who crossed Giovanni Testa.
And if Caruso found out…I shuddered at the thought, my blood running cold at the mere idea of his wrath. I was playing a dangerous game, but I knew this was the only way. Every move from here on out had to be precise, calculated, flawless.
Marco leaned against the door frame, his hawk-like gaze intense as he watched the men around him, his hands casually tucked into his pockets. “We’ll keep our end of the deal,” he assured them, his tone unwavering.
I felt each man’s eyes on me, their scrutiny like a furnace’s heat. But I wore my poker face well; I’d been schooled in deception since childhood. A wrong look or a hesitant word could cost us everything now.
“So long as we all understand each other,” Giovanni said, rising from his seat. He extended a hand towards me, and for a moment, time seemed to stand still.
“You’re going to make so much money, Giovanni,” I said. “You have no idea.”
As he offered his hand, I reached out, clasping his gnarled fingers in a firm grip. His eyes met mine, two seasoned players acknowledging the high stakes of the game, and I could see the cautionary glimmer behind his hardened gaze. This wasn’t trust – it was a fragile truce built on the promise of wealth and power. But it was a start.
“Let’s hope so, Dante,” Giovanni replied, releasing my hand. “For your sake. And for the sake of your lady doctor.”
Chapter Thirty-Nine: Jade
My headaches were getting worse, not better.
I stumbled into the sanctuary of my apartment, a place now shadowed by the day’s nightmares. I took to lighting up my scented candles around my apartment, the flickering flame lighting the space softly.
Lavender—the scent that once calmed my storms—could barely touch the pounding in my head.
The lab, my life’s work, had turned into an interrogation room. My mind replayed every question, each insinuation they lobbed at me, trying to tie me to things far beyond my comprehension. A scientist, I could handle. A suspect? That was new territory.