Page 68 of King of War

“So, again, what the hell do we do about it?” Rafael asks.

It’s Rayne who speaks, her voice cutting through my racing thoughts with the precision of a surgeon’s blade. “You do what you should have done six years ago. Take out Carmine. Put an end to his greed and corruption and let someone who is actually fit for the role become the new don.”

“And who might that be?” I ask, mentally running through the heads of the six remaining families.

I feel all of their eyes on me and realize what they’re thinking. “No. I don’t want this. I never have,” I insist.

“Which is probably why you’re the best man for the job,” Micah says. “The Russos and the Benedettis will always back you, and the other families respect you, Enzo, even if they don’t like you. If they learned the truth about the Bertellis I’m sure even the Carusos would condemn Carmine too, no matter their past allegiances. You are the only man for the job.”

I shake my head. “The Mancinis will make a play for the top. Nero and Marco have been making noises about a change of hierarchy since their father died.”

Micah nods, agreeing with my assessment. “They will, but only the Bianchis will back their challenge. You’ll have the approval of the remaining four families.”

“We can all agree that Carmine needs to be dealt with, but as for what happens after…we’ll see.” I turn my attention to Rayne and wonder if we should just let Nero Mancini go unchallenged to become the next don. Then maybe I could leave this all behind and follow her to San Francisco and do nothing but make love and watch her take photographs. “You’ll need to stay here until this is all dealt with. Once Carmine realizes I killed Ethan and that I know what really happened, it won’t be safe for you.”

She arches an eyebrow. “And you think it will be safe here? In the eye of the storm?”

“Yes, because I would raze this entire city to the goddamn ground to protect you. And it’s much safer than being on your own.”

She tips her head to the side, her curious hazel eyes raking over my face. “If I stay here then I get to be a part of this. That’s not up for negotiation.”

“The fuck it’s not, Rayne. It’s way too dangerous.”

“Yes, it is, but I’m not sitting around doing nothing, Enzo,” she insists.

“This isn’t a fucking game. You could get hurt.” And then how would I ever be able to breathe again?

She slams her hands onto the table. “You think I don’t know that? And hurt? Are you serious? There is nothing that anyone could do to me that would hurt more than what happened six years ago. Nothing.”

Is she talking about what Ethan did, or what I did? Maybe both.

“Woman has a point,” Rafael adds unhelpfully.

She flashes him a smile, the kind that makes me jealous as fuck, despite how we reconnected on a much deeper level last night.

Micah’s eyes meet mine. “Carmine fucked Rayne over just as much as you, brother. She has every right to be as involved in taking him down as she wants to be.”

I turn to Luca, hoping he might at least offer me a little backup. “Sorry, bro. I agree.”

She folds her arms over her chest, fluttering her eyelashes and giving me a smug smile. “You can look at me like that all you want, Rayne. It’s not happening.”

When the eyelash batting doesn’t work, she sashays over to me, hips swaying like a pendulum, and then snakes her arms around my neck. “Yes, it is.”

Fuck!

Chapter

Thirty-Four

ENZO

My hands tightly gripping her waist, I pull her close. “You’ll stay in here with Luca until one of us comes to get you, okay?”

She narrows her eyes, suspicious of my motives no doubt. I’m already regretting agreeing to let her be a part of this yesterday, but I’m fucking powerless to resist her. I guess the Bertellis weren’t as stupid as I pegged them. Using her to get to me would have been the smart move. I would boil oceans for this woman, even if she’d reprimand me for displacing all the whales and fish.

“Rayne, baby. You can be a part of this, but let’s ease them in gently, okay? I need to figure out where their allegiances lie before I let them anywhere near you. As soon as Carmine finds out you’re here, then he knows I’m coming for him. So we do exactly like we agreed on.”

I need to know she’s safe. Because now we know the truth, she’s in even more danger. If Carmine decides to take me out, she’ll be dead too. He won’t leave any loose ends.