White Knight (Dirty Mafia Duet, #2)(47)

Dom says nothing, but she doesn’t need words from him. Bold as you please, she steps right up to the bed and picks up the discarded lead and sticks it back to his chest.

“Now, Mr. Casso, can I get you anything? Water? A magazine?”

Dom’s gaze lifts to hers, and unexpectedly, a chuckle falls from his lips as his chest bounces. “You’ve got balls, Judith Maria Hansen. Big, brass ones that should clank when you walk through the hallways and make it damn near impossible to do your job.”

“Thank you, sir. I’ll take that as a compliment. If you want anything, please don’t hesitate to ring. I’m on call for the next ten hours, and you’ll be seeing me a lot. Even if I have to hunt you down.” With that final threat, she backs out of the room with a nod to Primo and disappears down the hall.

Dom watches her closely as she leaves. “Damn. What a fucking woman, am I right? I’m gonna have to get her number before I get the hell out of this place.”

I didn’t look at Nurse Judith with anything but an eye toward information, but now that she’s out of sight, her appearance sinks in. She looked to be around fifty, fit, trim, and pretty with short dark hair and librarian-style glasses. Also, completely not Dom’s type, as he usually goes after women in their late twenties and thirties who have daddy issues and are drawn to his power, but are definitely scared of him.

Judith is none of those things.

Which makes her all the more intriguing, especially if Dom’s staring after her with a wonderstruck expression I’ve never seen on his face.

Then, like he flipped a switch, his features morph into a calculating look as his attention snaps back to me.

“Where the hell is Enzo? If I’m out of commission, someone needs to handle things and fast. He’ll know what to do. Who to call. Who to fucking kill. Paulie and Junior will have his back, and this will all be over fast.”

Enzo. That’s who he wants to handle shit. Of course. Still doesn’t fucking matter, because he’s back in surgery after his stupid little stunt. Which probably explains why Judith was so adamant that Dom take it easy.

And fuck. I haven’t even had a chance to tell him about Paulie and Junior not pulling through. Given what Judith just said about Dom’s blood pressure, now isn’t the best time to give him any of that information. At least, nothing but the basics.

“Enzo’s out of commission. He took a bullet and they’re still working on him.”

Dom’s heart rate kicks up on the monitoring equipment, and I know that’s the extent of what I can safely tell him.

“What the fuck do you mean? Is he going to be okay?”

I don’t have a single fucking clue, but I take a page out of Dom’s book and lie to him. “He’s going to be fine. He’ll need a lot of rest and recuperation time, just like you.”

“Goddammit. Then get the others in here. I need to lay out a plan that even they can’t fuck up.”

I pull up the chair to his bedside and take a seat. The next words out of my mouth may change the course of my life forever, but I truly feel I have no choice. It’s time for me to step up and take my place. I’m done living on the fringes, leaving the safety of my family to chance.

For the first time in my life, I tell Dom how things are going to go, and there’s nothing he can do about it. “Whatever plan you’ve got, you tell me and I’ll handle it.”

Dom stares at me like I just told him I’ve been convicted of murder in seventeen states.

“What the fuck? You’re no gangster. You don’t know the first thing about how the fuck to retaliate after an event like this. You think you can go spray bullets and take them out?”

I stare down my father with even more confidence than I saw on Judith’s face. “You’re right. I’m no fucking gangster, but it’s about time this family stops writing its history with blood on the streets. We’re better than that.”

Dom jerks his head back, but the stack of pillows stops it from moving much. “And what fucking way do you think you’re going to make things happen? By talking? Those sons of bitches will kill you as soon as they see you. You’re my worst-kept fucking secret.”

My resolve hardens, and I refuse to let the caustic tone of his words affect me. Dom may be my father, but he’s never been a dad. Those are two separate fucking things.

Pushing back the chair, I rise and loom over his bedside. “You’re flat on your back. Your men are out of commission. I might be your worst-kept fucking secret, but I’m the one who’s finally going to take care of the shit you’ve let hang over this family for years.”

I back away toward the door as Dom’s stare turns harder with my every step. I grip the doorway.

“You don’t think I can do it? That’s fine by me, Dom. I’ll let you know when it’s done. You can thank me then.”

I stride out of the room and stalk down the hall.

“Cannon.”

My name comes out of nowhere, and my head’s on a swivel as I try to figure out where the hell the rough voice is coming from. The room next door belongs to Creighton, and he’s sitting up in his bed with Holly nowhere in sight.

I stop in the doorway. “What?”

He’s propped up on pillows, and I’m happy to see his color has started to come back. Of course a bullet wouldn’t be able to keep Creighton Karas down for long. The man’s practically superhuman.