AIR Luca was connected to the Family in a way that I would never be. I was loyal to Luca, but he had to understand that loyalty was not the same as unconditional obedience. Luke, Romero and Matthew were still busy in New York, and the Family meeting was to be held in the afternoon. This was going to keep everyone busy.
I had to avoid four guards. Three of them were at different points in the garden, only one was in the villa with us. I got up at 3 a. m., got dressed, packed my suitcase and slipped out of my room.
Gianna and Lily were waiting for me in the dark hallway.
“Ready?” I whispered.
Gianna made a noncommittal noise.
“Yes,” whispered Lily. “I’m going to pretend I’m having a nightmare and scream as loud as I can, and when the guards come running in, Gianna will burst in and act like a bitch and tell them to shut up because you don’t feel well.”
I knew that this way we would only get rid of two guards. One guard would stay near the water because that was the most vulnerable spot on the property, since there were no gates to get through. I could only hope that the others would be distracted enough to allow me to sneak out. I had all the necessary security codes because Luca trusted me.
I hugged my sisters before moving through the house.
A guard always sat in the open living area. I crouched down and waited for Lily’s scream. When it came, the first guard rushed out of the living room and up the stairs as planned, and I took the opportunity to run down and slip into the east wing. Lily’s screams died down as I typed the code into the lock of our back door and slipped out. I put on my wool cap and ran down the lawn by the bushes toward the gates. The guard had left his post.
The gates were high, topped with barbed wire and buzzing with electricity. It was the least likely spot for intruders to attack, so the guards abandoned it first. Smiling, I typed the second code into the system. The gate flashed once and I slipped out, then reactivated the lock.
These gates were supposed to keep people out, not lock us in. However, I should have asked Luca to increase the protection around the perimeter once I got back to New York. Without wasting any time, I ran down the winding road until I reached the corner where I had ordered the Uber driver to pick me up. When I saw the car spotlights, I could have laughed with relief.
Gianna and Lily would take care of the rest. The guards would not come to check how I was doing in my room unless prompted, and Luca had no reason to suspect anything, nor did anyone else. They trusted me.
I put guilt aside.
The plane was barely in the air when nausea seized me. I had never reacted to a flight like that.
I quickly unbuckled my seat belt and ran for the bathroom.
Vomiting in a narrow airplane toilet was at the top of my list of things never to do, but I couldn’t keep my food down. The moment I bent over the bluish-gray toilet, my stomach expelled my breakfast. I quickly flushed the toilet and washed my hands and face.
I still felt sick and slowly a terrible awareness crept over me. I was still late for my period. Fabi’s call had distracted me, but now everything was coming back. The forgotten pills, the nausea. I was almost two weeks late.
I slumped against the wall, trying to remember when it had last happened. In the first years that I had had my period, it had been very irregular, but since I had started taking the pill just before my marriage to Luca, things had changed. Two or three days, sometimes it still happened, but almost two weeks?
Things had been so stressful over the past few months because of Lily and Romero. How many times had I forgotten to take the pill? I wasn’t sure. I hadn’t counted. I should have counted after my call with Fabi.
A couple of times for sure, but I had been too busy worrying about my sister, Luca, my marriage, and everything else to pay much attention.
Maybe I was drawing the wrong conclusions. Maybe I was getting the flu, or that my stomach was reacting to stress.
Yes, that was it.
With trembling hand, I opened the door and returned to my seat. The stewardess gave me a worried look, but I gave her a quick smile to let her know I was okay. I didn’t want them to make an emergency landing because they thought I was seriously ill.
Back in my seat, I was overwhelmed with worry. I couldn’t stop wondering. What if I was pregnant? The last time Luke and I had discussed the matter, he had been very adamant that he did not want children in the near future. It was too dangerous to bring a child into the world. But when would that ever change, especially now that Dante had declared war on us? This war was ridiculous.
There was no point in getting worked up over anything.
Nausea did not mean I was pregnant. Once I got back to New York, I could take a pregnancy test and then I would know more.
Until then I had to focus on the task at hand. I had to get in touch with Val, convince her to set up a meeting with Fabiano, and try to convince him to come with me to New York. The last thing I would not tell Val, though.
It was strange to be back in Chicago. The city I had grown up in no longer felt like home, and not because there was a war between the Family and the Outfit. I was no longer the same person I had been more than four years ago when I had left for New York.
Yet despite the war, the city seemed no different from any other visit. Everything was quiet.
People were looking forward to the Christmas vacations.
My hair was tucked under my wig and a scarf was wrapped around the lower half of my face. Fortunately, the ‘Chicago winter warranted that kind of outfit, so I would not attract attention. Not even my thick wool coat kept the cold from biting my skin.
I walked the streets freely, as I hadn’t in a long time. It was exhilarating to be so free. I had grown accustomed to the gilded cage that was my life. I loved Luca. I could not live without him, but sometimes I wished I had more freedom. I knew there were limits to what he could allow me.
He had helped me go to college for a while, something very few men in his position had done, but in the end he and I would always be limited by the rules of mob life.
It was the first time in forever that I did not have a bodyguard in tow. I watched the passersby, wondering how they spent their days, how it felt to be free from the constraints of the mob. I had never really been free, and neither had my sisters, not even Gianna when she was on the run because it had always been that way: running away.
I had never resented mob life as much as Gianna did, but sometimes I longed for moments of freedom. College had given me a taste, but it would always be just that, a brief taste. I would never leave my world, not because Luca wouldn’t let me, although that was true, but because it was the only place I truly belonged. It was the world I knew.
I hoped Val had not changed his routine since the last time we had spoken on the phone. I had my whole plan planned around this.
I waited in front of the restaurant where she met Bibiana for brunch every Wednesday, clutching a cup of take-out coffee in my gloved hands in an attempt to stay warm despite the freezing temperatures. A sense of relief pervaded me when a black Mercedes with tinted windows finally stopped in front of the restaurant and Val got out, tall and regal as ever, her baby bump pressing against her coat.
She must have been in her ninth month. Would I look the same in eight months? I put that thought aside.
This was no time to fantasize.
Val was not alone. She was holding hands with a little girl, her three-year-old daughter, Anna. I could not help but smile, but the smile faded when I realized that I would not see her grow up even though I was her godmother. Two bodyguards followed them into the restaurant. I knew their faces but not their names.
Checking the traffic on the road, I quickly crossed to the ‘other side and headed inside the bistro-type restaurant.
I had not made a reservation, but I hoped they would be able to get me in. I approached the waiter, removing my wool cap and hoping my wig would hide my identity, but I had to lower my scarf. I kept my back to the seating area. I knew Val’s bodyguards would be watching me because I had entered after them.
“For two?” asked the waiter, a handsome man in his 30s.
“Just me,” I said, then took off my coat, revealing a pair of dark jeans and a white blouse, so Val’s bodyguards would see that I was a little nobody with no weapons and label me unimportant.
The waiter smiled. “Don’t tell me you don’t have anyone who would take you out for brunch? A nice lady like you shouldn’t have to eat alone.”
I blinked, taking a moment to realize that he was flirting with me. No one in New York ever did that. Most people knew my face, and even though officially Luca was just a businessman with a questionable past, everyone knew who he really was.
Not to mention the fact that I was never anywhere without bodyguards.
“There’s no one,” I said, realizing how long it had been since Luca and I had gone out to dinner. My heart clenched with regret. When I returned, I would ask him to make reservations at the Korean restaurant he had taken me to for our first date.
“Follow me. I have a table for you.”
I ventured to peek behind me, but as I expected the bodyguards were no longer paying attention to me.
They kept an eye on Val and his daughter, casting only an occasional glance at a table with men in suits to their right.
The stoned men always considered only men a danger.
I took the seat the waiter had offered me and smoothed my wig, worried that it had shifted because of the wool hat I had worn outside, but everything seemed fine.
After ordering a mint tea to calm my stomach and an omelet with avocado and toast, I pretended to be busy checking my cell phone while occasionally casting a glance at Val. Bibiana joined her about five minutes after I had sat down with her daughter. I still marveled at how healthy she looked since her husband had been killed.
The waiter brought me tea and food, but he kept coming back to ask how I was doing and still flirting. It was a bit annoying because I had to focus on Val. I had to gauge the perfect moment. I barely touched the food. I always loved avocado, but a small bite had increased my nausea and only a big sip of tea had kept me from running to the bathroom.
Val and Bibiana were laughing about something, not paying attention to Anna for a moment, and then it happened.
Anna spilled a drink on herself and started crying. I got up quickly and went to the women’s bathroom. Once there, I hid in a stall, waiting. My heart was pounding in my chest as I listened to the sound of the door opening and a moment later, footsteps. Heels.
“It’s okay, honey,” Val hummed. I smiled at the love in her voice. Soon her daughter’s crying subsided. I flushed the toilet and Val remained silent. When I left the cabin, she looked up after dabbing her daughter’s dress with a napkin. It took a second look at my face to recognize me. His eyes widened and snapped briefly to the booths behind me, expecting me not to be alone. Did she think this was a trap?
My goodness. I was his cousin.
“Hi Val,” I said with a smile.
Slowly she relaxed and smiled back at me, but then her eyebrows came together. “What are you doing here?”
Anna’s brow furrowed in confusion. She was all Val.
Brown hair, same facial features except for Dante’s blue eyes. What would my baby and Luca’s baby look like? I touched my belly, wondering and realizing that I would be happy if I found out I was pregnant.
Val followed my hand and I quickly snatched it away. She let go of her daughter and came toward me and pulled me into a hug, but her belly made things difficult. When she pulled back, her eyes were warm. “It’s good to see you again, but you shouldn’t be here. It’s too dangerous.” “Aunt Aria?” said Anna in her high-pitched voice, finally recognizing me despite my wig. Val quickly turned around and put a finger to her lips. “Shh, Anna. No one can know that Aria is here, okay? She’s playing hide-and-seek and we don’t want her to get caught, right?” “Right,” Anna said with a quick nod as she approached me. I lowered myself to her level and hugged her. “You’re getting bigger every day.” “I’m going to be a big sister soon,” she said proudly. “I know. I’m sure you will be a great big sister.” She nodded with even more enthusiasm. A thump was heard and a deep male voice followed. “Mrs. Cavallaro, are you all right in there?” “Yes, give me another moment, Enzo. I had to take off my sweater to clean it. Anna got it dirty, too.” I smiled, knowing what she had done. His bodyguard would not have come in if there was any risk of seeing Dante’s wife half-naked. When Val turned again to look at me, he looked serious.
“I came to see Fabiano, Val. That’s the only reason I’m here.” He gave me an apologetic look. “We don’t have much time before Enzo starts to get suspicious.” “I know. How about we meet tonight?” “It will be hard to get rid of my bodyguards.
Since I’m pregnant again and war has been declared, Dante is more cautious.” After a moment, he gave me a resolute look. “But I’m sure I can come up with something.” I nodded, “Can you arrange for Fabi to come too?” Enzo knocked again. “Mrs. Cavalarro?”
Val rolled his eyes. “Yes, I’ll be out in a moment!” She paused. “Aria, I’m not sure I can take him, but I’ll see what I can do.
Let’s say five o’clock in the afternoon at the Santa Fe?” Val splashed water on her blouse. “I’ll be there.” I gave her and Anna another hug before slipping back into the cabin, and a moment later I heard Val and Anna leave the room. I waited a few minutes for another customer to come in before exiting the bathrooms and returning to my table. Val was talking to Bibiana as if nothing had happened.
She had become a good actress in her marriage, but so had I. I paid and left the restaurant before Val’s bodyguards recognized me after all. The Chicago cold gripped me as I walked through the streets. I knew where I wanted to go, to my old house, to see if Fabiano was there, but it was a risk I could not take. If my father had recognized me, he would have turned me in without a second thought. I should have found a bar where I could wait until my meeting with Val later, but I would have bought a knife first, just in case. chapter 16 AIR I arrived at the Santa Fe thirty minutes early and chose a window table so I could keep an eye on the street. I trusted Val, but I wasn’t stupid. She was my friend, but more than that she was Dante’s wife. I didn’t think she would tell him about our meeting, but I preferred to be especially cautious. The waiter brought me a tea. I understood that he found it strange that I was drinking mint tea for dinner, but it was all I could stand at that moment. I had almost been tempted to go to the pharmacy and buy a pregnancy test while I waited for the meeting, but I had decided against it. A pregnant woman in a long black coat caught my eye as she got out of a cab. She hurried toward the restaurant and a moment later Val appeared inside without Fabiano, but I had feared that would be the case. He saw me and signaled for the waiter to join me. Val slid into the table across from me. “Aria,” she said with a sweet smile, but I could tell she was tense. She had not brought her daughter. Of course she hadn’t. This was not our war, but we were part of it. The waiter approached and took the order before leaving again. “Anna is so beautiful, Val.
“I’m going to miss her terribly,” I said. “When is your baby due?””In about three weeks, if she decides to be on time,” she said with a smile. “And you and Luca, do you want children?” I looked away and without thinking, brought a hand to my stomach. “Yes. But Luca will not bear children in the war.” He nodded, but there was a knowing look in his eyes. “That’s why Dante didn’t want a second son, but there’s never a good time to bring children into our world. Our people are sometimes so involved in drug wars and power games that they forget what really matters.” “Family,” I concluded, and she nodded. We looked at each other . That was already more information than our husbands probably wanted us to share. Val was supposed to be my enemy. As if she remembered it too, her expression stiffened. “Why are you here, Aria?” “I told you, for Fabi. I’m worried about him. It’s Christmas and he’s alone.” Val did not contradict me, because she knew my father. “How is he?” I asked worriedly, remembering my last call with him, which was still breaking my heart. Val shrugged his shoulders. “He is still in the process of insertion. He seems fine, physically, from what I can tell.” Clothes could cover a lot of things, we both knew. “Do you think there is any way to see him?” Her eyes flickered with uncertainty. “It’s part of the Outfit . I’m not sure that’s a good idea.” His loyalty was to Dante and yet he was there, but his friendship with me had limits. “But he’s also my brother, my blood, Val. I practically raised him until I had to leave for New York. I want to protect him like a mother would with her child.” I wasn’t sure if that was true, since I didn’t have any children yet, but I knew Val would understand. He touched his round belly, his dark eyebrows coming together. “This war is so unnecessary,” he murmured. “Our husbands would not agree. Or is there a way to convince Dante to return to the truce?” Val sighed.
“Pride and honor. They will prevent Luke and Dante from making another truce. We both know they never liked each other very much.” “I wish that weren’t true,” I said softly. My eyes were drawn to the doorway because the door opened. I froze as I registered the tall man who entered the restaurant. Blond hair, cold eyes, dressed in a gray three-piece suit. Val followed my gaze and paled. “I didn’t tell him anything, Aria. I wouldn’t do that…” He stopped beside our table. Dante Cavallaro. “He didn’t,” he confirmed in a dangerous voice that made me cringe. He pointed his cold blue eyes at Val. “But at a time like this, I won’t let you go anywhere without my knowledge.” “You followed me,” he said, staring at his cell phone lying on the table. “That, yes, and Enzo recognized a familiar face this morning during your brunch with Bibiana, but he wasn’t sure, and by the time he sent me a picture of Aria and I told him to get it , she had disappeared.” Enzo had managed to take a picture of me? God, I was an idiot. Dante made me wince when he slid into my table, not Val’s. I was forced to move to the side to give him room to sit. That way he was barring my way out. My heart rate doubled. Val’s eyes widened and worry filled her face.
Concern for me. “Dante,” she said in a conciliatory voice. “Get out. Two of my men are waiting for you. They will take you home.”
“Dante,” she tried again. “Valentina,” he said abruptly, and the look he gave her made me shiver. I rested my trembling hands in my lap. She stood up slowly, her eyes sorry as they rested on me. “Thank you, Val, for coming here,” I said, trying to keep my voice calm but failing miserably. He nodded, then turned and walked away. Dante turned his body toward me. I met his gaze, trying to hide that it scared me, but although I had become a good actress, I knew he could see right through me. His own face betrayed nothing. Could I hope for pity? Compassion? But I knew the answer to that question.
Dante ruled the Outfit. He was like Luke in many ways. “Now I’m going to call the waiter and pay for dinner. We’ll get up together, you’ll stand by my side, we’ll go to my car, and you’ll get in,” he said in an impassive voice, his eyes casting a clear warning. I swallowed and nodded. Because that was all I could do. It wasn’t as if I really had a choice. I forced myself to smile as the waiter approached. Dante paid and stood up. He picked up my coat that I had thrown on the back and handed it to me , his face was a mask of politeness. His eyes told a different story . I stood up and let him help me put on my coat . I shivered when his hands touched my shoulders and he leaned closer, his mouth close to my ear. “Don’t try to run away or do anything stupid, Aria. I would hate to have to hurt you.” I gave another sharp nod and he let go of my shoulders, then grabbed my hand. I stiffened even more but followed him out and toward his