Page 57 of The Broker
I don’t even bother to ask him how he knows who I’m visiting. “Someone shot him. Do you know who ordered the hit?”
“No.” Frustration coats his voice. “Unfortunately. Let me know if you find out, and I’ll make it worth your while.”
“Nice try. I don’t work for you, Ciro.”
“No,” he agrees. “You don’t. A pity.”
I hang up and head to the small cafeteria, where I buy coffee for Mara and hot chocolate for Liliana. Who could have attacked Acerbi? It could be Verratti, but neither Salvatore nor his father had left their compound in days. It could be the Russians, but I think they’d pause before resorting to violence on Italian soil.
It could be Revenant. I have no proof that he’s part of this attack, but my intuition tells me he’s involved.
So far, the hacker has done an excellent job evading detection. He’s thwarted every attempt we’ve made to determine his identity.
And I haven’t forgotten that he threatened Valentina.
When I find him—and I will—I’m going to make him regret it.
After five hours, the surgeon comes out into the waiting room. Mara jumps to her feet. “How is Giorgio? Is he going to make—”
“It’s too soon to tell,” the woman replies soberly. “He lost a lot of blood, and the next forty-eight hours are going to be critical. But he went through surgery well, and I’m optimistic.”
“Can I see Papa?” Liliana pipes up. She woke up an hour back, drank her hot chocolate, ran around the waiting room in a sugar frenzy, and then Mara bribed her with a cartoon so she’d sit down. Is she aware of the magnitude of what’s going on? I don’t know. Every time I look at her sweet round face, I see Angelica, and guilt eats at me.
“I’m sorry, piccola.” The doctor smiles down at the child. “Your papa needs to rest. You can see him tomorrow.” She turns back to Mara. “He’s in post-op recovery, but he’s sedated. You can have a minute in the room.”
“Go,” I tell her. “I’ll watch Liliana.”
When Mara comes back, her eyes are red. But her voice is steady as she confronts me. “Are you going to make this right?” she demands. “Are you going to put a bullet in the brain of the person responsible for this?”
“Yes,” I promise. My guilt has crystallized into icy fury. “But to do that, I’m going to need Giorgio’s phone.”
I wait until Mara and her daughter are settled at a hotel arranged by Del Barba’s team before heading back home. It’s almost three in the morning when I unlock my front door. “Thank you for your help today,” I tell Benito and Goran, who insisted on accompanying me there. “Have a good night, what’s left of it.”
I let myself in and tiptoe upstairs past Valentina and Angelica’s bedrooms. The adrenaline has worn off, and I’m drained. I open my bedroom door. . .
Valentina is asleep in my bed.
For a moment, I’m overwhelmed. I stand in the doorway, and it feels like someone punched my heart. She’s here because she knew I would be upset and didn’t want me to be alone.
Everything I’ve dreamed about is here, laid before me for the taking.
It’s based on a lie. If she finds out the truth about Roberto’s death, it will be over.
I step into the room. “Valentina,” I say softly. “Hey.”
She wakes up. “Hey,” she says sleepily, remembering why I left, and concern fills her eyes. “Is Giorgio alive?”
“For the moment. The doctor said the next forty-eight hours are key.”
She sits up, the sheet falling to her waist. She’s wearing one of my T-shirts. “Where is he? He’s not in Bergamo, is he?”
“No, Milan.”
“Ah, the King Maker’s territory. What did Del Barba want in return for protection?”
“My Spider.”
She winces. “I’m sorry, Dante. I know you loved that car. I’ve never seen someone turn as green as you did when I merged onto the A4.”