Gianni was a traitor, a soldier executed years ago, along with his wife. He left behind two daughters. Sophie, the child of his second wife, and Amara, the daughter from his first marriage.
Amara was handed over to Don Fernando as a slave. She became the woman who birthed Carlo, the bastard. She died years ago, rotting in the grave.
Sophie was supposed to meet the same fate, given to Giuseppe as nothing more than property. But at the last moment, word came that she’d been killed in a car accident.
Or so they claimed.
Sophie might be dead, but her daughter…her daughter is just as valuable. In time, she can become the perfect weapon to burn Carlo. A trump card I keep close until the moment I need to reopen the case on his traitorous bloodline.
“If Giuseppe has your daughter, I’ll get her back.”
I swear, the man looks ten years younger just hearing those words.
I raise a finger, point it at him, and add, “But if I find out you’re lying, your daughter’s fate will be a thousand times worse than whatever Giuseppe had planned for her.”
“I swear on my life, Mr. Bruni. Every word is true. I’ve already given all the information to your associate.”
Rafael gives me a quick nod.
I wave my hand toward Uberto, dismissing him. “You can go.”
“I’ll have confirmation by tonight whether he was telling the truth,” Rafael says after Uberto walks out the door.
“You know what to do if he is.”
A sly, wicked grin spreads across his face. “I know. By morning, they’ll find Uberto in the street with his throat slit.”
I incline my head.
I’ll get his daughter back. But if his information checks out…he won’t be leaving this city alive. Loose ends have a way of biting you later.
FOUR
Tony
Dinner unfolds in the usual, icy silence. The dim lighting casts the room in a muted glow, but the newest addition to the family, Lucia, glows like a star in the gloom.
No wonder they call her the Sun Princess.
Her beauty is striking. Her blonde hair cascades over her shoulders, and her makeup is minimal, yet it only enhances her delicate features.
Aside from one quick glance when I walked in, I’ve ignored her all dinner. But every time I look at her, rage boils up, impossible to swallow.
She’s blameless, innocent in all of this. Still, the thought of Carlo taking her virgin pussy—what was promised to me—burns through me like acid.
I seriously doubt she even knows she was promised to me. A promise her bastard father went back on. He claimed his daughter was promised to the next capo of the Bruni family, then gave her to Carlo like an offering on a silver platter.
As dessert is served, Don Fernando dismisses Lucia and my mother, Carmen, from the table.
Before Lucia can rise, I reluctantly pull the jewelry box from my pocket and set it in front of her, right under Carlo’s heavy, watchful gaze.
Lucia glances at me, then at Carlo, her expression somewhere between surprise and uncertainty. My lips curve into a smirk, and I don’t bother hiding it. Looks like Carlo’s already marked his territory, same as he did with the others before her. The bastard never wastes time leaving his brand on what he thinks belongs to him.
“Well, Tony. You remembered the gift for your new sister,” Don Fernando says.
The word “sister” almost makes me laugh out loud. I bite it back.
Lucia hesitates, then reaches out and picks up the box.
