He reaches into his inside jacket pocket and pulls out a handkerchief, then hands it to Tommaso.
I’m going to need a hell of a lot more than a handkerchief to get the blood and gore off me, but I don’t say anything as Tommaso wipes at my skin. Keeping my eyes off Carmine and his dead guards, who are a few feet from me, I regard Stefano.
His lips curl into a pleasant smile. “I’m sorry that you and I didn’t meet under better circumstances, Gina, or that I couldn’t attend your wedding. We will rectify that, though. You and Tommaso will remarry at our home in Calabria with all the family there.”
“Papà,” Tommaso warns.
“How many times will we remarry or renew our vows?” I ask my husband, making Stefano chuckle.
“As many times as required.” He flashes me a crooked smile before it fades. “First, though, there’s the issue of what to do with Rosa.”
Both Tommaso and Stefano are looking at me, and I understand what’s happening: they’re giving me the opportunity to have a say.
Tommaso steps closer so our bodies are touching, and I need to crane my head back to look at him. “Both she and Arturo need to die, along with your father and Leandro. What happened here can’t be known to anyone else.”
The fact that he killed a ‘Ndrangheta Don willnotgo over well.
“And they all deserve to die for their sins against you, Gina.” His startling crystal-blue eyes burn into mine. “But for Rosa and your father, you have the choice: a quick or slow death.”
Quick and merciful. Or slow and ruthless.
The darkness in me accepts the final outcome; however, the light in me chooses the merciful option.
“Quick,” I whisper, staring up at my husband, the ruthless crime leader, yet a man with strong morals. My king.
Chapter 45
Gina
Tommasodragshisthumbover my lips, then leans down to kiss me gently. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.” I lean into him, but glance warily at Stefano, knowing he has the ultimate power to ruin the future Tommaso and I desperately want.
Stefano clears his throat, flanked by Marco and another man who, now that I get a closer look, bears a strong resemblance to my husband, and I realize he’s Riccardo, Tommaso’s oldest brother.
Even though the patriarch of their family just told me that Tommaso and I were to remarry at their family home with the rest of the family present, I still don’t know his role in all of this. Which makes me fearful of what he can do and the power he holds.
Vittorio walks back into the room and claps his hands, making me jump, and reminding me that we’re at another Don’s home in Cosa Nostra territory. “Stop playing with them, Stefano.” He grins and walks over to us. “Tell Tommaso the good news.”
“Which is?” he asks, and I can hear the tightness in his tone.
“You passed,” Vittorio replies before Stefano can.
I’m confused, but Tommaso and his brothers seem to know what he’s talking about. Marco curses, and Riccardo shakes his head with a small smile.
“For fuck’s sakes,” Tommaso growls, turning to glare at his father. “This was all atest?”
Stefano regards him, his unreadable mask falling to show the love he feels for his son. “Clearly, I didn’t orchestrate the situation with Altera and Caruso, but I did use it, yes, as the final test for you.”
“Test?” I look between them all, confused. “Final test?”
“We’ve all been put through trials throughout the years,” Riccardo explains. “To advance up the ranks in our family and to earn our positions.”
“Not only to earn your positions,” Stefano says gruffly. “But to identify which path and role you were best suited for.”
“There’s no automatic inheritance of the roles and power,” I deduce, and he nods with a smile.
“You passed, too, my new daughter.”
