“It wouldn’t keep your precious Sofiasafe. The contract is already out there.”
“Then end it,” I growl. “Whatever you want. I’ll do it.”
“I could just kill you,” he muses. “After all, it’s partly your fault, too.”
“What?”
“Don’t!” Sofia comes running into the living room. “Don’t hurt him!”
Four guns swivel towards her.
I lose another ten years of my life. “Sofia. Get in the damn bedroom.”
“No.” She has that stubborn look in her eyes. “No.” Turning to Caruso, she says, “If it’s me you want, then I have the right to know why. And leave Nico out of it.”
Caruso assesses her. Then he gestures with his hand for his guards to lower their weapons. “You’re bold. I appreciate that. But it doesn’t change what you did.”
“What did I do?” she asks. “I’m not involved with the mafia.”
“Involved, no. But you stuck your nose where it didn’t belong. And now one of my valued associates, one who’s helped the family for over twenty years, is in jail. Everything he did for us is over. Do you know what a massive inconvenience that is?”
A sick feeling sweeps through me.
“This is about my father, isn’t it?” I ask.
He nods. “I guess I can understand why he didn’t tell you. Not when you wouldn’t join his company.”
My teeth grind. “What. Did. He. Do?”
Caruso crosses his arms over his chest. “Elio Parisi. He was desperate for money to save his company. And it just so happened he was installing a security system in one of my father’s apartment buildings. He knew who my father was, of course. Everyone knew back then. And Elio, he saw an opportunity. In exchange for money, he’d do installs in the buildings we wanted. Buildings our valuable associates owned. And he’d provide untraceable access whenever we wanted.”
Hatred for my father burns white-hot. “So he’s been working for you all along.”
“Not entirely for us,” Caruso replies. “He had plenty of his own clients. But he’s been in our pocket since then. It’s been very useful. Until—” He glance at Sofia. “She had to stick her nose into it. She was going to bring us down?—”
“I didn’t know!” Sofia blurts. “I was just trying to help a woman with her stolen jewelry. And I saw a connection to Elio’s company. But I didn’t know it had anything to do with the mafia.”
“Elio said you targeted him. Because of what happened with his son. He said you were manipulating his son to gain access. So you could take the company down.”
“I didn’t know,” she repeats. Tears thicken her voice. “I wasn’t trying to take anyone down. I wasn’t targeting Elio. And I would never have manipulated Nico that way.Ever.”
“How did Edwin fit into this?” I ask. “These three, I get it. But him? Was he working for you or my father?”
“That’s a great question,” Caruso replies edgily. “Because I didn’t even know about this… issue with Sofia until Elio was arrested.”
Everyone turns to look at Edwin. He stares at the floor. Wraith walks over to Edwin and kicks him.“Talk.”
“I know Elio,” Edwin whispers. “I used to work in one of the buildings he did installs for. And he would pay me for information sometimes. Leads. So when he heard about Sofia, he asked me to keep an eye out for her. Let him know if she showed up, looking for Nico.”
“So you could send her off to bebeaten?” I roar. “You fucking bastard!”
“Nico.” Sofia looks at me. There are tears in her eyes. “I’m sorry I brought all this trouble to you. I didn’t know… I wouldn’t have taken her case. Not if I’d known it meant hurting you.”
Ah, fuck.
“No, Soph. It’s not your fault. It’s my sick fuck of a father’s.” I cross the room and pull her behind my back.
Keeping my gaze steady on Caruso, I take a few breaths before I trust myself to speak without shouting. “So you want to what, torture her? Kill her? Because she messed up your agreement with my piece of shit father?”
