The implication wasn’t lost on me. He knew about me and Labria. Did Cenzo tell him? Or did he tell Cenzo? I couldn’t ask. There were too many strangers in our midst. I invited Myra,Gianna and Michael to my table. I had questions, and they had answers.
As the afternoon wore on, I went through the motions of appropriate social interactions. I exchanged contact information with my half-siblings and promised to stay in touch. I accepted condolences from various associates and family members. But inside, I felt more alone than I had at the church. I felt more isolated than I had been standing before my father’s casket at the church. I thought I knew my father, and I didn’t know shit.
I thought of Labria waiting at my townhouse, of the secrets we were keeping, of Cenzo’s cryptic warnings. What else didn’t I know? What other revelations lurked beneath the surface of my carefully constructed life?
The man we buried today had been a stranger to me in many ways, despite sharing a home with him for eighteen years. Now I was surrounded by his legacy. I was left with siblings I’d never known. Later, Nicco told me my baby brother was born from the brutal rape of Hannah, who was younger than me. The weight of the Bregoli family name carried both privilege and poison. Why was my father the way he was when his brother Dom was beloved and praised?
I’d never felt this much fear in my life. There was this fear that I would end up like him. The terror of the thirteen years I had with my mother wasn’t enough to quash the paternal side of my DNA that could one day make me into a monster. I never thought of my father as a good guy, but from the stories I’d heard today, he was the fucking devil.
I stuffed my face with the owner’s wife’s Schiacciata Fiorentina stayed an acceptable amount of time for a grieving son. Nicco gave me the okay to leave, and I wanted to run away and into the comfort of Labria’s arms. As I finally made my way toward the exit of Carlito’s Restaurant, I realized that Gianni Bregoli might be in the ground, but his ghosts would haunt mefor years to come. I made a silent vow to never be anything like that man. He was a villain. I was a hero. I also vowed to undo his wrongs. After twenty-eight years as an only child, I wasn’t going to turn my back on Gianna, Michael or Gabriel.
Chapter Four
LABRIA
Istared at the stack of lease agreements piled on my desk until the words blurred together. The fluorescent lights in my office at Stern, Foster, and Pellegrino buzzed overhead. It had been two weeks since I’d walked out of Lord’s house. I left behind most of my clothes, my favorite books, and what remained of a relationship I once thought was worth uprooting my entire life for. There were two weeks of sleeping in Maurizio’s bed while trying to pretend my world hadn’t completely imploded.
My phone sat next to my computer. My cell screen was dark. I picked it up for the fifth time that hour, scrolling through my messages and call history. Nothing. No texts. No missed calls. No voicemails from Lord. Not a single word.
I set the phone down harder than I meant to. I needed to control my emotions. What had I expected? That he’d beg me to come back? That he’d apologize for cheating on me and becoming someone I didn’t recognize anymore? That he’d even acknowledge I was gone?
The silence was worse than anger. Anger I could have fought against. This quiet dismissal felt like confirmation that I’d madethe right choice. If he could so easily let me go, then whatever had been between us wasn’t worth salvaging. Fuck Lord!
I forced my attention back to the commercial lease before me. There was a dispute between a restaurant owner and their landlord. Simple, straightforward legal work that had nothing to do with criminal enterprises or mafia family loyalties. This was the kind of case I’d handled dozens of times back in Chicago before meeting Lord. Before everything changed.
A soft knock would have been polite. Instead, my office door swung open without warning. Dominicco Bregoli stood in the doorway with his imposing frame. He wore a tailored charcoal suit that probably cost more than my monthly salary. His dark, dead eyes scanned my office with casual authority before settling on me.
“Ms. Harris.” His voice carried the calm certainty of a man who never needed to raise it to be heard. “May I come in?”
It wasn’t a question. He was already closing the door behind him.
“Don Bregoli.” I straightened in my chair, instinctively smoothing my skirt. “I wasn’t expecting you.”
“Few people do.” He smiled without warmth as he took a seat in one of the chairs across from my desk. “I was in the neighborhood. Thought I’d stop by to give you an update personally.”
My stomach tightened. “An update?”
“Gianni’s death investigation has been officially closed.” Nicco crossed one leg over the other. “Ruled an accident. Too much alcohol, passed out in the desert, dehydrated and starving, heat exposure. His heart stopped. The coroner found no evidence of foul play.”
I nodded. I’d heard the whole story from Maurizio. The story was his father had been found dead in the Mojave Desert. He told me Nicco was handling everything.
“That’s good news,” I said carefully. “Closure is important.”
“It is.” Nicco studied me with those calculating dark eyes. “Speaking of closure, I understand you’ve moved on rather quickly.”
The air in the room suddenly felt thin. I kept my face composed, the way I did when opposing counsel tried to rattle me in court. “I’m not sure what you mean.”
“You haven’t done a very good job hiding where you’re staying.” His tone remained conversational, but his eyes never left mine. “With cousin Maurizio.”
My heart hammered in my chest. I fought to keep my breathing even.
“Lord knows,” he continued. “Though he hasn’t mentioned it to me directly. He knows.”
“And how would he know that?” I asked, my voice steadier than I felt.
Nicco’s lips curved into something that wasn’t quite a smile. “We have eyes everywhere, Ms. Harris. You should know that by now. You’ve been part of my family long enough to know that.”
I wasn’t family. I was an outsider, a temporary fixture who had outlived her usefulness. I was just the Black girlfriend that got replaced by someone acceptable to marry.
