> I love her.
> Delete line? Y/N
> Input: N
> Line preserved.
“You look like shit,”Angelo says.
I grunt in response, scrolling through my phone to suppress the itchy feeling crawling through my veins.
I don’t like having Gabi out of reach, even if I can’t touch her. This is the first time she’s left the penthouse since we came back from the island, and the urge to go after her has never been stronger.
It doesn’t matter that they have a small army of guards. I can’t shake the feeling that she’s still not safe.
I’ve handled the remaining members of Imperium, but there's no guarantee that’s the end of it. There are still well-connected family members to consider, and while theauthorities might buy the car accident and disappearances, their families aren’t likely to swallow it as easily.
For now, we’ve decided to see if they start sniffing around before taking further action. In the meantime, I’ve been mediating the situation with Ares.
Angelo is still pissed that he had to bring him into the fold and give him a seat at the council—and, worse, a say in who fills those now-vacant positions. But as annoying as Ares Stavros may be, our goals are the same. Find corrupt politicians, bankers, attorneys, and anyone with a position of power in this city who can be bought to further our agenda. It’s the way the world has always worked.
“Are you finished setting everything up with Riccardo?” my brother asks, still trying to force this one-sided conversation.
I don’t even know why he’s here, other than the fact that his wife and daughter are currently with Gabi. Apparently, he thinks we’re going to have an intervention of our own, but I’m really not in the mood.
“Everything’s taken care of,” I tell him. “It will hit the news cycle this week, and once his scams are out, his parents will get a text letting them know he’s left the country.”
Angelo nods, but still doesn’t leave. We sit in uncomfortable silence until my patience wears thin.
“Anything else, or do you plan to stand here and stare at me all day?”
He’d be well within his rights to tell me to fuck off, but instead, he tosses something onto the coffee table. When I glance at the familiar envelope, my gut clenches.
“Yes, there’s something else.” Angelo points at the letter. “Read it.”
“I’m good.” I sink back against the lounge.
“Read it, or I’ll read it to you.”
I shoot him a murderous look. “Why were you going through my shit?”
“Because I knew you hadn’t read it, and that’s what this is all about, isn’t it?”
I say nothing, but that’s answer enough.
Angelo takes a seat on the other end of the lounge.
“I was in prison when Dad brought you back, so I don’t know everything that went down. But I can tell you what I do know, Romeo. You’re the only one he left a letter for. He asked me to make sure you got it, and I gave him my word.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t want to hear any more of his thoughts on my captivity. I heard enough about it when he was alive.”
A long silence follows, and I expect Angelo to defend our father. They were always the closest.
I never resented it. I just resented the fact that I would always be his biggest letdown.
“I don’t think that’s what it is,” Angelo says quietly. “I’ve never mentioned it, because I figured whatever he had to say would be in that letter. But one of the last conversations I had with him before he died, he told me he’d fucked up with you.”
“Why?” I let out a humorless laugh. “Did he wish he left me in the institution?”
