Lorenzo thought he’d gotten me out of shit in my early twenties when I attacked and killed a group of people. Little does he know that event was what grabbed Luca’s attention, and I’d been working small jobs for him until he promoted me to Lorenzo's old position.
Lorenzo, however, tried to dissuade me from that bloody life as he "cleaned up" my connection to the massacre. Had I been honest about why I murdered them, it might’ve changed the trajectory of our relationship. But I was so fucking offended after all those years of him leaving to follow Luca to New York and reappearing only to treat me like an annoying younger brother, even though I'm only four years younger than him. So, I simply told him I did it for fun.
I let him take care of my mess because, truthfully, it’s a lot of work hiding bodies, and if he was willing to do it for free, then I was going to let him. But that’s when he directed me toward being a surgeon. The only one who has been in denial about my true nature is him.
He's nothing but a hypocrite, as if I’m the vulgar one when he’s literally been doing this for years longer than me. The difference is, now I get paid full-time for it.
Luca has never given up on or shunned me.
My own blood, however, is quick to look down on the monster I really am.
“Killing sprees are reckless. They create more cleanup and show immaturity. And?—”
I cut him off. “Oh, Lorenzo, you’ll just never get it, will you?” I wedge the phone between my ear and shoulder as I pour in laundry detergent. “I’m not you. Have no intention of ever having a pole up my ass and panting over my master.”
“Don’t speak about Luca like that. Show some respect,” he growls.
“Oh, I do respect him and his position. It’s you and your tactics I don’t care for. If you’re trying to convince me to finish my final year of residency again, give up now, Lorenzo. I’d hate to be really pissed off with you. Who knows what I might do? You know, because I’m soreckless.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
I turn on the washing machine and then begin to clean up the kitchen counter.
“Just remember that, while you and your woman might be in Italy, there’s still plenty here you’ve left behind for me to destroy. Don’t piss me off.”
“You’re in over your head if you think you have any leg to stand on with which to threaten me,” he snarls. “Let me assure you, if you try to break anything linked to Lily or bring her the slightest discomfort, Iwillhurt you.”
I laugh, noticing the way he threatens tohurtinstead ofkill.It’s Lorenzo’s weakness, but since he also hasn’t tried to convince me to return to my previous life yet, I’m assuming he’s called for another reason. “I’m rather busy on a cleanup job right now, Lorenzo, so unless you have something exciting to add, I’m hanging up.”
I lift Romi’s handbag to wipe underneath it, and an envelope sticking out of it catches my attention.
My lack of morals is on full display as I open the envelope and peek inside. I’m smiling as I see what looks like photos of Romi with vibrant red hair as a child and then a teen. It’s very much her. Even when she’s wearing nice dresses, she’s got dirt on her knees. She most likely gave the boys hell, even back then. I continue flicking through the photos, studying each of them as my brother continues to speak.
“Want to explain to me why I’ve uncovered information about a small group of Bratva members who were murdered a few months ago? There are rumors going around about a boogeyman who uses scalpels as weapons, creating wounds and then stitching them back up as a torture method. No one here knows anything about it, simply that they found the bodies and began cleaning up so it wasn’t linked to them. Sounds pretty extreme.”
“Sounds like they really pissed someone off,” I reply, giving nothing away.
My brother, for as irritating as he is, is very perceptive. I should’ve known that somehow he’d dig up every little bit of information in a matter of weeks. I’m not entirely sure why Luca’s kept my involvement secret, but part of me wonders if it’s because of his loyalty to Lorenzo. Although what Luca says goes.
It irks me to admit the two are close. Lorenzo would never agree to my involvement. But even then, I can’t imagine Luca making it so personal—not when it comes to his empire. So, there must be something else I’m missing. Either way, I don’t care. I receive a task, and I complete it. End of story.
“Anyway, I don’t know what this has to do with me, but if that’s all, I’m hanging up.”
“What were you thinking, provoking the Bratva like that?” he questions. “This is different from when you were twenty and went on a massacre. This can jeopardize?—”
I hang up.Snooze. I won't willingly listen to another one of my brother's self-righteous lectures. And though he’s right about it drawing the wrong kind of attention, I remain quiet about the fact that everything has been orchestrated by his—our—boss all along.
I pause at a photo of Romi and an older gentleman. Her father, perhaps? Interesting. He looks like a farmer of sorts, with a dusty long-sleeved shirt and a cowboy hat. But what draws mein is the proud smile she has, wearing a leather jacket that at the time was slightly too big for her.
The next photo is of her on a pink four-wheeler, showing what looks like a fucking bedazzled llama on the back of the jacket.Thatis very her.
I slip the photos back into the envelope, thoughtfully. I wonder if she’d still wear a bedazzled llama on her back now as an adult. And I conclude that she definitely would. There’s not much I could imagine the little spitfire being embarrassed by.
Another thought crosses my mind. And I smile, because who am I to deny myself such a good time?
14
ROMI
