Page 76 of The Fixer
Itisreally late, so late that the sky is turning light. It’s five in the morning, and if I had any sense, I would forgo sex and catch up on sleep.
But then Leo kisses my hand again, stares at the ring on my finger, and growls, “My wife.”
And I come undone.
I want Leo. My soon-to-be husband, the love of my life,orsacchiotto mio.Sleep can wait.
38
LEO
Two days later, I’m summoned to a meeting in the padrino’s house.
I don’t want to be here; I don’t want to leave Rosa. I’m afraid to let her out of my sight. The only reason I left is because Dante and Valentina personally offered to stand guard at my home. But I know my reaction isn’t healthy. “How do you go on?” I asked Valentina on my way out. “How do you let Angelica ever go on a play date again?”
In response, she gave me the business card of her therapist. I’m going to call him as soon as the wedding is over. I’m lucky, so very lucky. I’m getting married to an amazing woman. But she deserves to be with someone whole, someone who’s got theirshit together. I’m too much of a selfish asshole to let her go, but therapy? I can do that.
Max Guerra is seated at the conference table, as are Antonio and Dante. Ciro Del Barba is here too. Why? Not a clue. I’m about to find out why he’s involved in this matter, and I have a strong hunch I’m not going to like it.
We get to the point pretty quickly. “You’ve probably already figured out why I needed to talk to Hugh Tran,” Guerra says. “I had to know what Romeo Santini was up to. Why did he want ten million euros, and what was he planning to do with that money? I thought Tran would know.”
“If you wanted to know why Romeo wanted ten million euros, why didn’t you just ask him directly?” Antonio says in exasperation. “That certainly would have been a lot less complicated for everyone.”
Guerra steeples his fingers. “You would think so,” he says. “But it’s not that simple. Romeo has always played things close to his chest. Even Sienna wasn’t sure if her brother just wanted to kill Rocco for the power. But I thought Hugh would know.”
“He didn’t,” I say, an edge in my voice. If Guerra hadn’t come back to Venice, Rosa would have never been kidnapped. “Hugh knew nothing. Romeo nevertold him why he wanted the money. He just said it was important.”
“I miscalculated,” Guerra admits. “But I’ve taken steps to fix this mess. You’ll be happy to know that Rocco Santini was killed in his home this morning. Lorenzo Corio was stabbed last night.” He takes a deep breath. “We need Romeo.”
“No.” The reply bursts from my lips. “No. Romeo Santini kidnapped my wife at knifepoint. He broke the treaty his father signed. His life is forfeit.” I lean forward and stare at Guerra. “His life is mine.”
Ciro Del Barba, the Kingmaker, speaks for the first time. “You owe me a favor, Leo,” he says. “I’m calling it in.”
I stare at him in utter disbelief. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
“You know the price of doing business with me.” His voice is quiet. Almost regretful. “That’s the deal we made. A favor for a favor. And this isn’t something that will compromise your loyalty to Moretti. He doesn’t care if Romeo lives or dies.”
“No.”
“I warned you,” Antonio says to Ciro, his voice cold and precise. “I warned you about his reaction. You know what your problem is, Ciro? You think we’re all puppets, ready to dance to your bidding.”He turns to me. “Spina Sacra finds itself without an heir,” he says. “Sienna Santini is the obvious choice, of course, but those idiots are too hidebound to bend their necks to a woman. Guerra will marry Sienna next week. But he isn’t from Puglia. They won’t accept him either. They will, however, accept Romeo.”
“Romeo Santini is an out-of-control child,” I snap.
“He is,” Guerra agrees. “When he is king, Sienna and I will be his regents.”
“And if he is unwilling to be minded?”
Guerra’s voice is very cold. “You will find that I am prepared to go to extraordinary lengths to protect the woman I love.”
“So there we have it, Leo,” Antonio says. “That’s the choice. You can have your revenge. You are owed. Not a single person here will dispute that.” He glances around the room, daring anyone to voice a protest. They don’t. “But if you kill Romeo Santini, there won’t be a clean succession in Lecce. There will be war.”
Rosa once asked me why I worked for Antonio Moretti, and I recall my reply. I work for Antonio because he never loses his temper, and he’s never erratic. But most importantly, he realizes howdestructive war is, and he’ll do everything in his power to avoid it.
My answer comes to haunt me now.
Goddamn it. “This isn’t fair.”
“No,” Antonio agrees. “It isn’t. Welcome to my world.”