“We’ve tried to stay out of your war, yet you and your enemies and allies draw my family in. We should’ve ended this after what happened to Anneliese’s family. Instead, we gave everyone in Italy and Sicily the benefit of the doubt and focused on the O’Rourkes and Kutsenkos. Our graciousness is over. Accept our offer, Piero.”
I haven’t told him yet what we’re willing to offer. It’s irrelevant. We could offer the moon or a pile of shit. He will bend to my will.
“You come to my home. You?—”
“You’re a don, not Marlon Brando. We’re here to help. No one in Sicily or the Continent will lose, so you all win.”
“That’s not a win. That’s a stalemate.”
“Call it a truce.”
“Not good enough, Alejandro. The war didn’t start to keep things the same.”
“It won’t remain the same. Each family will come out richer for it. You’ll get money and territory beyond your borders.”
“You think you can play God.”
“No, but I’ll be an avenging angel if anyone comes near Vittoria ever again.”
I shift my focus to Vita’s father who’s remained quiet after our initial greeting. He defers to his don, but I know he has thoughts he wishes he could share. Our gazes lock, and I know he agrees with me. He’ll support anything that protects his daughter.
“Don Piero, we stand to gain as much as we could lose.”
Nicolò states the obvious, so it’s almost patronizing, but it’s also common sense. It’s the gentlest nudge he can give in front of us. Piero stares at me, ignoring my cousins. Pablo sits to my right whileTres J’sstand behind our chairs in Piero’s study, much like they did during our meeting with the O’Rourkes.
“What’re you offering?”
“Each faction gets ten million to divide amongst themselves. Each family gets two of our trade routes into the Netherlands, Belgium, or the UK.”
Those are among the largest narcotics markets in Europe. The Netherlands and Belgium are the gateways to Europe, and the UK has a high consumption. We’re also among the leaders in weapons trading in the Western Balkans and Turkey. Our dominance in the region means we have money to spare.
“We have those already.”
Hijueputa desagradecido.Ungrateful son of a bitch.
“You can accept our offer, or we can take it all from you. If you wish to live by ‘it’s better to give than to receive,’ we’re happy to accommodate your generosity.”
I keep my tone casual and my body language relaxed, but they know a jaguar does the same while it observes its prey.
“You expect us to be happy with your handout while you give the same to our enemies.”
“We’re giving you first pick.”
“And that makes it better?”
“It does when we’ve put no restrictions on which we’ll give away. I never said I’d be so accommodating to anyone else.”
“You’d give away your best access?”
“Only to you and only for Vittoria’s sake. But the offer isn’t open-ended. It has an expiration date.”
Piero’s disdainful expression turns into a glower. I shrug.
“Piero, my family won’t strike yours, but our offer to help won’t last forever. If you turn your back on us now, we’ll do the same when you need us. And with the way things currently stand, you will need us. You and the Torettas are in a better position than the Camorra and’Ndrangheta, but when we lend them our support, you’ll lose your advantage.”
Nicolò assesses me, knowing I’m not bluffing. He’s determining how significant their losses will be if they reject us. He glances at Pablo and knows switching to Italian won’t do them any good because my cousin’ll just tell me everything.
I observe the don and hisconsigliere’ssilent communication as they look at each other. From what I learned on the plane, they’ve been best friends since they were in kindergarten. They bullied all the other kids, then they extorted them in high school. Their family names made them untouchable. They trained back-to-back, becoming Made Men together. It was a foregone conclusion Nicolò would rise toconsiglierewhen Piero ascended to his throne.
