Aria Ruso
Tensions were growing far too quickly, and I was afraid that we’d gone too far to turn back now. As Cade and I silently made our way toward the public cafe where Matteo insisted we have this meeting, I shook slightly at his side. I knew the different ways this could go, and there were so few of them that would end in our favor.
Matteo was set on betraying Cade, and only I would be able to sway him from making that decision. Maybe.
“If anything goes down, Serg will be outside the door. I expect you to run to him immediately. I don’t care what’s happening in here. I don’t care if I’m down. Serg will get you out.”
I gave him a sidelong look before glancing at where Carter trailed behind us. I knew that no matter what, he’d keep me safe, but that was the least of my concerns for today. “I’m not leaving you.”
He glanced down at me. “Could you listen to me for one time in your life?” he asked.
“If you make a reasonable request, maybe I’ll listen. Until then, no thank you.”
He took a long breath as if to calm himself, but we continued forward as if neither of us had said anything. The cafe came into view, and nobody stood outside, meaning that if there were guards, they were either hidden in surrounding buildings or inside the cafe. Carter didn’t stop us, so we continued.
“I’m serious, Aria,” he told me.
“So am I. If you don’t trust him enough to meet in public, maybe you should think twice before continuing this alliance,” I said. “We can turn back now and figure out how to handle this without meeting with him.”
He shook his head. We both knew that though it would be the most convenient option, it wasn’t the best. I wasn’t even sure if it was possible anymore. I had to figure out how to stop my brother from doing something insane and killing Cade. I had to convince him that Cade wasn’t the bad guy.
But more than that, I had to make sure he didn’t tell Cade the truth of our arranged marriage-not until I had a chance to tell him first.
I glanced at Carter one more time as we came to the cafe doors and strode through them, looking around the room. Matteo sat at a corner table, legs extended across the seats as he stared at us stoically.
“I don’t like this,” I muttered to Cade, but he only took a deep breath and led us toward where my brother sat.
Matteo shot daggers at me and narrowed his eyes as if he were trying to decide exactly what to make of this situation. “I wasn’t expecting you to call a meeting,” he said.
“You weren’t?” Cade retorted, taking a seat across from my brother. “Because the attacks from your men and the lack of regard you’ve given us as we face all the other Italian families is a problem.”
“We already discussed this,” Matteo said as if it was not a serious matter in the slightest. “I can’t be expected to keep all my men on a leash, and I certainly never agreed to be at your disposal when you have minor conflicts. I was under the impression you had more than enough resources to handle a little dispute.”
I watched as Cade’s jaw ticked, his control slipping. Did Matteo see the thin line that he walked?
“What happens to you if this alliance falls through?” Cade asked.
Matteo scoffed. “Nothing.”
“See, that’s what you believe,” I told him. “But if the alliance goes down, or I believe for one moment that I’ll go down, you will have the full weight of the Irish mafia on your doorstep. You won’t survive the hour, and none of your men will, either. If I believe for one moment that I will suffer, I promise that you will, too.”
That had Matteo’s smug look fading. He thought that he had the upper hand, and maybe if he had played his cards right, he would have. Unfortunately, Matteo had never been a good strategist, and he ran a flawless plan into the ground.
I was beyond grateful for that.
“I have followed through on my end exactly as the contract states,”
Matteo said. “It’s not my problem if you can’t handle your battles.”
Cade used his rage as a weapon as he rested his palms on the table and spoke words that felt like a blade cutting through the air between us. “You haven’t followed through on the contract. Your men have attacked mine, and we consider that an act of war.”
Matteo had the audacity to laugh. “I took care of the issue.”
“You didn’t control your men, and that’s the problem.”
“I killed ten of them this past week-all the survivors from any of the attacks and anyone who voiced support. I hung their meat suits from my front porch for two days to show how serious I am.”
Meat suits. I cringed at the words, but Cade didn’t outwardly react. I looked deep into my brother’s eyes, and what I saw there sent chills down my back. He looked amused by his actions-by the death that he caused. I realized at once how unhinged my brother was and how careful we needed to be as we proceeded forward with this conversation. Nobody should be amused by death the way he seemed to be, and only the craziest person would hang bodies from their home as a message. Only the most depraved person.
This wasn’t my brother, and I had no idea what had happened to him to make him this way.
“It doesn’t change what happened, and it doesn’t change that you have your people coming closer and closer to my home. I can see you testing the limits, and you’ve found them. If you can’t stay out of my business, this alliance won’t be worth continuing for me-not with all the risks involved,” Cade said clearly.
“There are no risks.”
Cade huffed. “Your buddies have been threatening Aria-the other
Italian families want her dead to end this alliance, and that’s a risk I can’t continue taking.”
He looked at me with an entirely unconcerned expression. “It’s not like that.”
“Are you serious?” I asked. “They want me dead, and there have been people who have tried to kill me. It is like that. Do you really not care about it at all?”
I could see the answer in his eyes before he even spoke. He didn’t care whether I lived or died, and though it should have stung, it didn’t matter to me at all. It didn’t surprise me. I wanted the relationship between us to mend, but he didn’t care either way. Maybe I’d be better off stopping trying altogether.
The more I thought about it, I realized that I had already stopped trying. I had already decided not to help him anymore.
“You’ll be fine,” he told me, looking back at Cade. “The dealings of the other families have nothing to do with me or my business, and I assure you that you’re safe in this alliance.”
“The dealings of the other families have the potential to kill your sister,” Cade said, his voice hard and deadly. I couldn’t stop myself from shuttering at the sound of it. I was coming to recognize that tone-the one that told Matteo he was an inch away from crossing an uncrossable boundary. He would defend me at any cost, and Matteo didn’t seem to realize it.
“Not my problem,” he said. “This alliance is.”
I nudged Cade before he could respond. He met my eyes for a brief moment, and I shook my head lightly. This meeting wasn’t going to lead anywhere beneficial, and arguing with Matteo would do nothing but hurt us in the long run. Cade took a long exhale and brought himself to his feet.
“I think we’re done here.”
Matteo stood and smirked. “We didn’t even talk about anything important.”
“I have learned all I need to know.”
Matteo shrugged, the smile spreading as he looked at me. “Can I have a hug before we go?” I tensed. He had never asked me for a hug, so I didn’t move. His eyes hardened slightly, and I knew the request wasn’t a request.
“For old time’s sake.”
I forced my leaden limbs to move around the table, and I allowed him to embrace me. I couldn’t bring myself to look sentimental as my body became aware of all of his motions out of a sense of self-preservation. I felt his hand slip into one of my pockets before he pulled away, and I took care not to look down at it.
“I hope to be seeing you again soon,” Matteo said with a wave.
I hope the opposite, I wanted to say, but I bit my tongue as we made our way from the diner. I paused at the threshold and glanced up at Cade with a sheepish smile. “I need to pee,” I lied.
He only nodded, escorting me to the bathroom and standing outside the door. I strode into the stall and shoved my hand into my pocket, pulling out a small slip of paper and opening it. In Matteo’s scrawling handwriting, a single sentence sat.
Give me info within the week, or I’ll get what I want alone.
I knew exactly what he wanted, and I knew the threat that the note implied. If I didn’t give him information, he’d proceed alone, and I would suffer the consequences.
I tossed the note in the toilet before flushing and joining Cade outside the door. He gave me a once-over, and I smiled up at him as we left the diner. I knew I had to do something, and I needed to act quickly, but I had no idea what to do short of telling Cade the truth.
And the truth would certainly get Matteo killed.