28
TERA
Three days later…
“Ididn’t know you had nannies,” I tell Lucy.
“We had to. We’re working on new albums, both bands, so that means long hours and someone needs to help out with the babies,” she explains.
“I see. How did you find them?”
“My agent asked around to some very good friends of hers. I could’ve asked Cage, but he’d have likely given us one of the Russo enforcers,” she jokes.
“About that.”
She raises her brows.
“Is your family really the Italian mafia?”
She nods. “Yep. I’ve accepted it for what it is.”
“Which is?”
Lucy pours some milk into a sippy cup. “They buy and sell goods—illegal, of course. Weapons mostly. I’m not involved at all. It’s just not something I can stomach. Sera on the other hand, she’s got a taste for blood.”
“Really,” I probe.
“Oh, yes.” Lucy explains about the death of Sera’s parents which Xander gave me the cliff notes of.
“Holy shit. I think I’d have a taste for it too, if I were her. She’s good with a gun, you said?”
Lucy laughs. “She could hit a bullseye blindfolded. I’m not kidding. And with her mixed martial arts training, she’s a lethal weapon.”
I whistle. “Remind me never to piss her off.”
“No worries there. She doesn’t hurt family unless they become traitors. Then all bets are off.”
I nod. “That won’t be a problem. How does Cage feel about her being so active in the family?”
Lucy shrugs as she fills another cup. “He doesn’t like it, but Sera’s her own person and he knows that. He’d never tell her what she could and couldn’t do. Our grandpa, Giovanni, he’s in charge of what we call La Famiglia or Russo Famiglia. He doesn’t like women being involved in the business, but the times they are a’changing, and he’s found out there is no sexism in business anymore.”
“Wait. I thought women weren’t allowed?” I am so ignorant when it comes to this stuff.
“Not anymore. There are some women in charge of ‘families’. While the old-school families still hold true to the no-women rule, many now allow anyone who wants to and can pass all the necessary challenges, to participate in the family,” Lucy explains.
“So, people like Sera who are trained, who can shoot and defend themselves.”
“Exactly. Not everyone in the family has what it takes to be part of the business. I don’t have the blood thirst for it. Don’t get me wrong, I could kill someone if I needed to. I’ve been trained in hand-to-hand combat as well as knives and guns. But I choose not to. I don’t think I could live with myself if I killed someone just because I was ordered to, just because they had the wrong last name, you know?”
“That happens?”
“More than I care to admit knowing about.”
“Wow. Xander mentioned things, but I had no idea.” I’m not sure how I feel about that.
“This can’t be repeated.”
I nod my agreement.
