Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 59304 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59304 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
She gasps. “Are you serious?”
“Deadly. Otherwise, I don’t care if you fire me, I’m telling Dario. That’s what I should do, anyway.”
But I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Veronica hesitates.
“I remember what you said once,” I say. “You only swear when you mean it. You take these things seriously.”
“I do.”
“So, swear it. I need to make sure I’m here to help you if you need it.”
She says nothing for a long time, making me wonder if she’s going to do it. Then she sighs and says, “I swear.”
“Thank you. I’ll keep my phone on loud.”
“Great,” she mutters sarcastically. “Now, please let me sleep. I need my rest.”
I leave her hut, not exactly feeling confident, but slightly reassured.
Not about the whole situation, or me and Dario. But this small piece of it, at least, is somewhat under my control.
CHAPTER 28
DARIO
“Rocco,” Eddy says, clenching his hand into a fist. “Fucking Rocco.”
“I know,” I growl, as we stand on my parent’s balcony, staring out at the ocean reflecting the stars.
“I doubted you,” Eddy says with a sigh.
“I can’t exactly take offense there. I doubted you too.”
“I didn’t suspect him. He’s so slick… so loyal.”
“Neither did I, but I should have. He’s made some comments about not being appreciated. And I think he intimidated Siena.”
“We need to find him,” Eddy says. “This island isn’t exactly big. We need to root him out and make him pay for what he did, or at least make sure he can’t pull any more of these stunts.”
“Agreed,” I growl. “But we need someone to stay here with Father too. I’m thinking I’ll return to the party, make it clear where we stand, and get a search going for Rocco.”
“What if some men are working with him?”
“Then they’ll have to face me,” I snarl.
Eddy claps me on the shoulder. “No, nephew, they’ll have to face us.”
“Keep watch on Father,” I tell him.
“Let me know if you find the prick.”
I leave the hut and return to the party. The music is still going, but the mood has dropped drastically. I approach the sound stage and tell the engineer to cut the music. I climb onto the tables, not saying a word. I don’t need to. Soon, everyone is looking up at me.
“If any of you think that my father’s behavior needs correcting, step forward now. Make it known.” I pause, then repeat. “Make. It. Known.”
The men exchange glances. Their women hugging tightly to them. I don’t enjoy instilling fear, never have, never relished being the big bad wolf like some men in this life do. But it’s necessary.
When no one steps forward, I nod. “Good,” I snarl. “Because this wasn’t my father’s fault. Rocco Greco has betrayed us.” A collective gasp comes from the crowd. “That’s right. My godfather has decided he wants to humiliate my father. He wants you all to doubt him. We all know how much reputation means in this business. Rocco wants to eradicate my father’s. I’m standing up here to let you know–that’s not fucking happening.”
I slam my fist into my palm. “If any of you have an issue, you tell me now.”
Silence. Wide, terrified eyes are all that follow.
“If any of you have been working with Rocco, step forward. This is your only chance. If I found out later that you’ve been in cahoots with him, I won’t be so damn lenient.”
“Never,” one man shouts.
“We’re loyal to Vittorio!”
“Good,” I growl. “That better be the truth. Now, I want everyone to search this island from corner to corner. We’re going to find Rocco. He’s not getting away with this.”
Immediately, the men disperse. If I had any doubt about Rocco’s guilt, the fact he’s not here is proof enough. Why has he suddenly disappeared?
For the next two hours, we searched the island. We find no sign of Rocco.
“He must’ve left the island when he sensed things not going his way,” Eddy says.
“The island’s not big, but it’s not tiny either. He might’ve found some hovel somewhere, and we can’t search everyone’s room. Our men, our Family, sure, but there are other people staying on this island. Few, but enough. We storm into their rooms, we risk getting the authorities involved. That’s the last thing we need.”
Eddy massages his forehead. “We’ll find him, Dario. We have to.”
“I hope you’re right. I hope he’s gone.”
“Why?”
“I’m afraid of what I’ll do when I get my hands on him.”
CHAPTER 29
SIENA
Itoss.
I turn.
Sleep feels a million miles away.
It’s two AM, but I feel wired. A little piece of me hoped Dario would visit me once he had handled his business. I’m not sure what he could say or do to make any of this okay… but something?
Climbing out of bed, I pull on a T-shirt and some shorts, slip on my sneakers, and head out the front door. Nico is sitting on a chair outside my room, snoring as his chin rests on his chest.