Nico (Ruin & Revenge #1)(26)
“It’s a matter of respect.” Dante adjusted his tie, his gaze on Mia in the mirror. They shared the same dark eyes and olive skin, but his hair was fair where hers was dark, and his face was sharp and angular where hers was smooth. “With Papà in the hospital, I’m the acting boss, and I want the whole family to be at Don Falzone’s funeral to show our support. We aren’t enemies with the Falzones like we are with the Toscanis,” he continued. “And in this time of upheaval we need to keep our allies close.”
Mia rarely participated in mob-related events, and then only under duress. In her mind, the day she walked out of the family home was the day she was done with the mob, and with their father now in the hospital, there was no one to force her to go.
“It’s not safe,” she protested. “The Toscanis will be there.” And in particular, the dangerously handsome, Nico Toscani, who made her feel the kinds of things she shouldn’t feel for a family enemy who had kidnapped her and tied her up, albeit for a very short time. “What if they told everyone I was responsible for the massacre?”
“No one would dare pull a trigger on holy ground. And the police found the murder weapon over a mile away. I’ve made sure all the families know you weren’t responsible. They wouldn’t have believed it anyway. You’re a woman. And it’s been three days since it happened—long enough for the message to be passed along.” His voice rose to a pleading tone. “Please, Mia. I need you. It shows my strength to have the entire family with me. I’m asking, but you know Papà would make you come.”
She couldn’t refuse her brother. Although he’d never been there for her in the way she’d always thought a big brother should be, he was still family and he had saved Kat from Tony. “I’ll come for you, not for him. You know how I feel about Papà.”
Dante’s lips tightened. “He may be hard on us, but he cares about the family.”
“Hard on us?” She stared at him aghast. “He beats me. He killed Danny right in front of me. He tricked you into shooting Don Toscani by telling you the don had pulled a gun. And he got away with the lie.”
“He saved me,” Dante snapped. “He let everyone think he pulled the trigger. I wasn’t a made guy. It was an automatic death sentence for killing a boss without approval from New York, no matter what the circumstances were.”
Mia put her hands to her hips. They’d had this argument again and again over the years, but no matter what she said, Dante refused to accept the truth. “He had to save you because he’s the one who told you to do it. If he hadn’t taken the blame, he would have had no son and heir. I don’t understand how you can excuse what he did, how you can think he cares about anyone except himself.”
“Why are we going over this again?” he snarled. “It’s been ten years. What does it matter?”
“Obviously it matters to the Toscanis or they wouldn’t have started a war.” And, no doubt, it mattered to Nico or he wouldn’t have kidnapped her the other night.
Her cheeks heated, and she looked away. Although it didn’t make sense, she hadn’t told anyone about the kidnapping. Why incite more violence? For some reason, she hadn’t felt threatened by Nico. Why wash the blood off her face if he intended to harm her? Despite his cool composure, she’d sensed passion within him, and a hint of the compassion she’d seen the night Danny died.
“Maybe this can be a chance to mend fences.” She walked over to the huge, floor-to-ceiling window, stared out over the city spread out below. “Since Papà is in the hospital and Don Toscani is dead, you could ask for a meeting with Nico as the new Don Toscani, offer reparations—”
“The Wolf says Nico won’t be the new boss. Tony will be the successor.”
Mia turned and caught a flicker of guilt cross Dante’s face, but it disappeared so quickly, she wondered if she’d seen it all. “Tony Crackers? Nico is the first son of the first son.”
“He’s also a bastard.” Venom laced Dante’s tone, and Mia frowned at his sudden change in demeanor. “His mother was his father’s mistress. There were only daughters from his father’s legitimate marriage. The Wolf says that gives Tony a stronger claim.”
Mia felt a growing sense of unease. She’d heard that Tony survived the shooting, but with his father, the former Don Toscani, now dead, he wouldn’t be forced to go through with the marriage their fathers had arranged. Or would he want to? “Dante…?”
“How do I look?”
Mia pushed her misgivings aside and forced a smile. “You look like a boss.”
“Acting boss until Papà is out of the hospital. And you can be my secret underboss. I’ve got the password to his computer and all the accounts.” His face reddened ever so slightly and he looked away. “I need your help to find a way to free up some cash without Papà knowing.”
“Oh God, Dante. You aren’t gambling again, are you? After Papà bailed you out last time, I thought you were going to get some help.” Dante had had a gambling problem for as long as she could remember, sometimes running up debts so high her father had to send out his enforcers to deal with the bookies who tried to collect. No matter how much Papà threatened, Dante couldn’t stop, maybe because he knew Papà couldn’t disown his only son.