“In the trunk of the Bentley. Do you want us to take him to the farm?”
“No. Enzo has agreed to the cover story, so I need him to take the body back to the Aiani residence and give him a proper funeral. Make it look convincing, like a handover gone wrong.” The frown lines deepened on his face as he clicked his tongue behind his teeth. “Did you speak to him?”
“Briefly. He was mostly vomiting.”
“Do you think he can be trusted to keep his word?”
“I’m not sure. I think he’s still in shock.”
Giovanni nodded, his mind racing as he quickly devised a plan. I found myself holding my breath, waiting for his next command and praying it wasn’t to kill him.
“I don’t trust that he won’t drive straight to the commission with this.” He shifted his gaze to me. “Elenora is safe here for the night, so you won’t be needed. I have a different task for you. I want you to follow the Aiani heir and take Angelo with you. Ensure his word is good and he goes straight home with the body.”
“And if he doesn’t?”
The loaded look I received was enough of an answer. Run him off the road. Make sure he didn’t reach the commission.I nodded, peering over my shoulder to find Enzo still hunched over his knees. Fuck, I hoped he had more brain cells than hispadreand proved himself.
Giovanni retreated inside, and I ran my hand down my face before heading back over to Enzo. His shoulders started doing that shaking thing again, and he was making strange, choking noises.
More crying? I didn’t get paid enough for this shit.
“Did he order you to kill me?” he whimpered, wiping his nose on the back of his hand.
“That depends on you.”
His head snapped up, and those innocent, bright blue eyes melted into mine, filled with fear and uncertainty. Something in my chest clenched.
“What? I don’t know what I’m supposed to do. You might as well kill me. Shove me in the trunk with my asshole of apapiwho didn’t prepare me for anything because he had too much of an ego to believe he’d ever be taken out one day. Better you do it than me getting stabbed in the back by one of my own men when they realise how weak I am.”
I sighed, crouching down in front of him. I waited until he made eye contact before telling him the brutal truth.
“Yeah. Maybe I should.” I drew my gun from the back of my trousers. Clicking off the safety, I aimed it at his head and watched his terrified eyes widen. There it was—pure fear. But also the realisation that he didn’t want to die.
“But like I said, it depends on you. You’ve got two choices. You step up, work your ass off, earn the respect of your men, and prove to them you can lead your family better than your father ever did. You have an alliance with the biggest family in the North. Keep your word, cover up yourpadre’s death for the Buccinis, and you’ll gain a powerful ally, putting your family in a better position than when you first walked in there. Or…”
“Or…” he whispered, staring down the barrel of my gun and then holding my gaze.
“Or I’ll kill you tonight and put us both out ofyourmisery.”
“Can I think about it?” A ghost of a smile crept across his lips.Damn, was that a single dimple forming?I stood up and tossed him the keys to the Bentley.
“You’ve got the drive home to think about it.”
A 4x4 pulled up behind the Bentley, Angelo flashing the lights to show he was ready. I walked towards the car but paused at Enzo’s next words.
“Will you drive? I’m not sure I can.”
I closed my eyes and exhaled sharply. Turning around, I found him standing behind me, all six feet something of him. Those eyes begged me and, for some irrational reason that I didn’t want to decipher, I couldn’t seem to say no to him.
“You’ll drive. But I’ll ride with you,” I offered. There was no way I’d be taking the wheel and giving him the perfect opportunity to put a gun to my head instead.
He nodded and shuffled towards the driver’s door, the colour gradually returning to his face. I quickly signalled to Angelo to follow us and climbed into the passenger seat, placing my gun on my thigh. He exhaled a shaky breath, then started the engine and drove us down the long gravel driveway to the gate. I couldn’t stop staring at his hands clenched around the steering wheel, the whites of his knuckles visible under the moonlight. His forearms were still covered in dried blood, as was half of his shirt.
“Have you ever killed a man?” I asked, resting my head against the glass window so I could look directly at his profile. He was too attractive not to look at.
He swallowed.“Si.”
“Bravo. Then, you’re already more prepared than you think. Just remember to leave this version...” I waved my gun in hisvicinity. “...at the door. You’re the Boss now. Half the job is acting like you’re untouchable. That means you don’t take shit from anyone.”
