When Danny swallows, I sweep my eyes over them. “Something is going on,” I say quietly. “I don’t know what, yet. But I intend to find out. In the meantime, keep your eyes open. Watch. Listen. Do not engage with whatever shit the others are spewing. They don’t know anything for certain, and we’re not wasting our energy fighting shadows.”
“And if it turns out wewereinvolved?” Vincent asks. “That’s… not something that sits right with us, Cat. Any of us. What they’re saying happened to her… it’s fucking barbaric. We don’t hurt women and children.”
“Present company excepted,” Danny blurts, and Dom groans. “Jesus fucking Christ. Remind me why I promoted you, Danny.”
Pinching the edge of my nose, I take a breath and pray for patience. “Danny. Shut the fuck up and think before you speak before it gets you into trouble. Vincent - keep an eye on the younger ones and make sure none of them get themselves in trouble or mouth off. Nicolo, Tony, I want you to spread out and listen. See what you pick up. Report back tomorrow.”
Standing, I pin them all with a final look. “Remember who we are and to whom we answer. The capo makes decisions based on the needs of the family. Don’t assume things when we don’t have all the information.”
It’s a weak end to the meeting, but it’s the best I have. Dom follows silently as I storm out, my heels smashing into the gravel as I make a beeline for the apartment. This isn’t a discussion for public viewing. “Have you spoken to him?”
“No.” My screen is still dark. No call from my father. No fucking contact at all. “This is a fucking punishment, Dom.”
“I know.” He keeps pace with me as I storm up the metal steps into my apartment. “You expected this.”
I head into the kitchen and stop, my hands gripping the sides of the counter. “I expected the cold shoulder. I also expected him to be reasonable enough to separate family and business.”
“It’s one and the same to him.” Dom pushes me into a seat and pulls out my cafetiere. “Coffee?”
“Please.” I rest my aching head on the counter with a groan. “What if they’re right? If we’re responsible for Nicoletta, and I haven’t even beentold—,”
“Then we’ll manage it,” Dom says simply. A glass of water, condensation dripping down the outside, appears next to me. He drops two painkillers next to it. “Take these.”
I swallow them dry, chasing them down with the water. “Thanks. Clearly, I look as shitty as I feel.”
When I look up, Dom is leaning against my refrigerator, his arms crossed. “You’re pushing yourself too hard. You’re exhausted, Cat.”
My fingers dig into my temples. “I’m fine. I need to get to my office. I have work to do this afternoon.”
He doesn’t move. “Reschedule it.”
Sighing, I grab my coffee and jump down from the chair, pulling out a flask and pouring the drink into it. “Yes, because when my father is clearly questioning my role as the Corvo heir, the one thing I really need to do istake it easy.”
When I rip the front door open, I’m not expecting there to be anyone on the other side. Dom pushes in front of me in an instant, blocking my view. “The hell are you doing here?”
“Get out of the way, pup.” Dante’s voice is scathing. “I’m here for Caterina.”
Dom doesn’t budge.
“For the love of—what?” I lean around him to snap.
My irritation slowly turns to horror when Dante tosses something at Dom. He reaches up to catch it instinctively, and his body locks up.
“You left them behind.” Dante raises his eyebrow. “Figured you wouldn’t want them left in the training room.”
Of course, he couldn’t just throw them away. No, he had to bring them here and wave them in front of Domenico like a fucking red rag to a bull.
My hand snaps out, grabbing the black panties from Dom’s hands. “Excellent. Thanks for that. Mission accomplished. Now fuck off.”
He only smiles, and Dom tenses even more. “Oh, I think I’ve already hit my quota offuckingfor the day.”
Humiliation creeps across my skin, and something in his face flickers. But Dom steps forward, and his voice is dark. “Leave, V’Arezzo. Before I make you.”
The flicker of guilt vanishes. “Such a good little guard dog you are, Rossi. Tell me – does she spread her legs for you as easily as she does everyone else? Or do you just hang around on the edges, waiting for scraps?”
The words take a second to register. To land, stinging my skin like a spray of bullets. But Dom is already moving, his fist snapping out to smash against Dante’s face. He staggers back, nearly falling down the stairs before he catches himself against the railings with a grunt.
“Leave,” I snap, getting between him and Dom. “Now, Dante.”
