“Oh, Allie, do we have to?”
Yes. There was one grainy photo that I needed a good long look at. And I needed Ellie there to confirm it was who I suspected it was. Whoever was in the car with Johnny was a witness, accomplice, or possibly even the shot-caller.
But everything had been cleared from the living room. There were male voices coming from one of the offices which I followed.
Ellie and I snuck up to the closed door and leaned in. Our eyes met across the frame. “That’s Mario,” I mouthed.
“And Ringo,” she confirmed with a whisper.
My eyes narrowed at his name. I didn’t trust that man at all. They both were talking in low tones. Whatever they were saying wasn’t in Italian, at least not in the cadence I was used to hearing. It sounded more like Mario’s grandfather’s dialect.
Which made sense. They were alone, in that circle, I suppose. Even though Ringo definitely wasn’t Italian. His accent was too American, but tonight it was different. If Ellie hadn’t confirmed it was his voice, I would have had a hard time recognizing it.
“No!” Mario’s sharp tone cut off whatever Ringo said.
And damn it, I was being discussed, because I certainly recognized the word, “bride” in that sentence. Mario had said it enough around me to sink in. I closed my eyes to concentrate on the flow of words rather than trying to translate. He was angry, but in that controlled way of his.
Ringo wasn’t much better. His bitter comebacks were sharp, argumentative.
Ellie tapped my arm to get my attention. She mouthed something at me that looked like, “What the fuck are they saying?”
I shrugged.
Then Ringo spoke.
“You’re not taking his place. Damn the code. You’ve got it good. For once in your fucking life, take the loss. We’ll get him back without sacrificing you to that witch.”
What?
“Your way would have my cousins, my uncles, and my grandfather in peril. This is on me. Not them. Don Manca will understand. He’s the one who taught us: protect the family, protect our secrets, eliminate complications. The solution is simple.”
“You forgot a big part of that section. It goes, protect the home. Your home. Your wife. Damn it, Mario. You always do this.”
There was thunderous silence. My heart filled with fear. I knew I shouldn’t be standing here as witness, right out in the open, learning my husband’s secrets. But I needed to know them.
“Is that why you betrayed me?” Mario asked.
Ellie’s eyes went wide. I held up a finger, so she’d keep quiet. It was odd how I’d picked that stupid gesture up from Mario so quickly. But it worked to keep her from barging in or making a sudden noise.
“I haven’t betrayed you. I was protecting the family.”
“By stabbing me?”
“Yeah. I knew you’d run to ground. Which meant you’d have help from the family. Not hanging your ass out in the wind and doing it all by yourself. We’re a team, remember? Friends to the fucking end?”
My heart hurt for Mario, and surprisingly, Ringo. They both sounded so…wounded.
Damn my soft heart.
I motioned to Ellie to follow me. I took her almost back to the hallway before turning around.
“I’m sure the photos are locked up. I think I heard Mario this way.” I deliberately talked loud enough they’d hear us approach.
Ellie picked up on my plan quickly. She sing-songed her mocking cadence of my husband’s name.
The door to the study opened, spilling light into the darkened outer room. Mario stood in the span, his body casting a long shadow that stretched to my toes.
“Cara, you should be sleeping.”
