I push into the office, everyone sprawling out where there is a chair; I sit in the chair that used to be my dad’s. Micah refused to sit here, saying it was disrespectful to me since he was just filling in. I didn’t know how to tell him; he was better at this than I would ever be.
I fold my arms on the desk. “Leo’s telling the truth.” I spread everything on the desk so they could see.
“Son of a bitch,” Micah says, surprised, and looks up at me. “So, that means….”
I shrug. “He lives for now. But I have to call a meeting with his brothers.”
Micah’s eyes soften. “Are you sure? I can if you need me to.”
“They were too young to be involved, but I need to find out what they know.” I swallow. “I have to do this.”
I could kill a man in cold blood but couldn’t face two men attached to my past. Even though they are way too young to have been involved, the last name Perez still gives me fucking nightmares.
Get your shit together.
I pick up the phone and dial the number I stole from Leo’s phone.
Evander Perez.
Chapter 4
Leo
I’ve paced this room so often since Alessa brought me breakfast that I’m surprised I haven’t worn a hole in the floor.
She came in a little while ago and announced my brothers were on the way, then tossed me some jeans and a button-up shirt. She said I can’t meet them in Gage’s basketball shorts and a t-shirt. I didn’t miss the look of trepidation on her face. She has no idea what’s going to happen at this meeting, either.
What did Frankie do to her?
Evander and Mateo have stayed mostly low key since Frankie died, trying to fix everything he messed up. Frankie was a horrible leader, so he didn’t leave themanyallies, hence the reason for going after Alessa. What better way to get allies than becoming allies with the strongest ally in the world?
On what felt like my five-hundredth pass around the room, the door opens, and Ryder steps in. “Let’s go,” he barks, his face giving nothing away. I know if he gets the chance, he will be the one to kill me. I can see the hate simmering in his eyes, just waiting to be unleashed.
I reluctantly follow behind him, and I don’t know if I’m walking into a massacre or not. I know I’m telling the truth, but did Les want to believe me, or does she want me dead for lying to her?
He leads me into a conference room where everyone is already seated with Alessa at the head of the table, and Evander at the other end, so they face each other. I take a closer look at Alessa and notice how pale she is. Ryder points me to a seat on her right before leaning against the table behind her with Dexton, both with arms crossed over their chests. Everything about it screams protective, but something tells me it’s all for show because she doesn’t need it. Her scary as fuck uncle Micah is sitting to her left, casually leaning back in his chair. Evander and Mateo told me some gruesome stories about Micah growing up, and the look he’s throwing me right now is worse than the death glares I keep getting from Ryder. Gage is sprawled out on the couch against the wall. His legs are spread wide, arms on the back of the couch, staring at me with a tilt to his head. Mateo is sitting to Evander’s left. He looks at me with a raised brow, and I subtly shake my head, trying to convey for him to keep his big mouth shut.
Evander and Mateo are two years apart but look almost identical, except Mateo has green eyes instead of dark brown like Evander’s. They both have the same shade of dark brown hair. Mateo’s hair is just a little wilder than Evander’s perfectly styled hair. They both look like Frankie, which seems to piss them off.
Evander clears his throat. “What’s this about, Ms. Poletti?”
Alessa stares him down for a full minute, and you can see her trying to collect herself. I wish I could reach out to her in comfort, but I figure that’s a bad idea since you could cut the tension in this room with a fucking knife.
Kind of like the one she held to my throat last night.
“There is no easy way to put this, gentleman, so I’m just going to lay it out there,” she says finally, looking every bit like a Mafia queen sitting in a black pantsuit, her hair braided and twisted at the base of her skull. She looks gorgeous. “I know about your plan.” She lets that bomb drop, and you could hear a pin drop. To their credit, Evander and Mateo don’t react. “But as you can see, it didn’t quite work out.”
“I’m not sure I know…”
“Cut the shit, Evander,” she barks. Everyone straightens their spines, and it almost makes me laugh. This little woman has thiswhole room on pins and needles just from reputation. “This meeting will go much smoother if you tell me the truth. Why did you send your brother to me?”
I told her they didn’t. She’s trying to catch me in a lie. It’s fucking smart.
Evander and Mateo share a look before Evander sighs. “We didn’t send him to you. He was showing you off the next day because we didn’t believe him. We told him to get closer to you when we realized who you were.”
“Why?” she says between clenched teeth.
“We don’t want this feud anymore, Ms. Poletti. We want to run this family differently,” Mateo finally speaks up, giving me the evil eye. I shrug. Yes, I got busted, but that’s what you get for sending a novice against the rival family.
