“No, of course not.” I motioned to the door. “Go straight home and make yourself a cup of tea.”
“That sounds nice, actually.”
I considered keeping quiet, but her safety mattered more than her comfort. She needed to be on guard. “Julia, before you go.”
“Yes?”
“You have to consider that until we know what’s happened, with strong proof, anything is possible. The Moretti family might have killed Big Sal and they’re coming after me now. They'd claim massive territory without a fight if they could pick off the bosses one by one without being identified.”
“You think they’d do this?”
“I’m not convinced it would make sense.” I knew strange things happened in this business and hidden motives were not always easy to find. “As you go through paperwork and deals and you’re seeing things with fresh eyes, bring anything you find odd to my attention.”
Julia nodded. “Okay. I’ll go through things with the idea that someone or some organization might be a snake in the grass.”
“If it’s not the Moretti family orCalle Sombra13 it could be any number of other families. However, there is one other possibility.”
Julia raised a brow. “Oh yeah? What’s that?”
“An inside job. Maybe someone in the Russo family is making a play? Or it could be Carlo and he’s covering his tracks.”
“Carlo?” Julia’s head snapped back, like she was shocked I’d even suggest it. “You mean the new Don of the Russo family?”
Her response seemed odd. Was she covering her reaction, or didn’t she know who he was? “Yes.”
“Of course.” Julia rubbed her temples. “Silly of me to forget. I think I have a slight headache coming on, that’s all. But, wait a minute, you think it’s possible Carlo had his own father killed? That seems—umm—it seems like a wild stretch.”
“I tend to agree.” I considered it a moment. “I’ve only met Carlo once, so I can’t say I know him, but these things do happen, so it’s worth taking into consideration. I’m not saying I think this is the case, but we’d do well to keep it in the realm of possibilities.”
“Okay.”
“Furthermore.” I stopped, taking my time to tell her my real thoughts. “There’s always the chance that someone else—or even a few people—planned a coup. If Carlo is hit, we’ll know for sure. At this point, nothing would surprise me.”
“Maybe you’ve been watching too many mafia movies?” Julia shrugged. “I mean, I agree. Anything is possible, but usually the right answer is just the simple one.”
I nodded and motioned to the door. “True. Time for you call it a day and get some rest.”
“Yes. Goodnight.”
I watched Julia walk to the door and something twisted painfully in my chest. For a moment, I let myself imagine the impossible—leaving together, her hand warm in mine. No threats hanging over us. No assassins planning my death. Just a normal evening. Dinner somewhere she'd love. Maybe a movieafter, her head on my shoulder in the dark. Simple. Ordinary. Everything I'd never allowed myself to want. Until her.
It sounded nice but I could hear Stone’s voice echoing in the back of my mind.“I told you so!”
Chapter 21
Julia
Ileft the office and headed to my car. Quentin was right. I was exhausted. The weekend had wrung me out—flying, airports, my family's suffocating presence, Silvio's threats, the discovery at my father’s house.
The enemy could be anyone. A rival. An ally.
Someone I trusted.
Someone close to me.
My mind recoiled from the thought, but I couldn't escape it. If someone in our family had betrayed us—if one of our own had killed my father—everything would collapse. Blood would flow in the streets. People I'd known my whole life would die.
And I'd be the one pulling the trigger.
