“The photos haven’t appeared anywhere yet,” Rocco said as a way of greeting me as he walked into my office the next afternoon.
“Luca must have managed to keep track of them. But he has seen them, I have no doubt.”
Rocco nodded thoughtfully as he sank into the chair across from me. “My contacts with the press beyond our borders are very limited. I hope some rag has the balls to publish an article. It’s a scandal that none of them should miss.”
“Of course,” I said. I had to admit that I was not entirely dissatisfied that the photos had not ended up in the newspapers. The possible rumors had worried Val more than I had anticipated, perhaps because of her pregnancy, but I did not want to stress her more than necessary. “I’m sure Luca will send me a message soon,” she said.
“I imagine a bloody one. I doubt he will call you.”
I smiled darkly. Luca would surely have sent a bloody warning of what was to come. He would have reacted, no doubt.
“I could tell Fabiano to call Liliana or Gianna under the guise of wanting to talk to them. That way we might be able to get information about what is going on in the Vitiello household.
Luca must have confronted Aria by now.”
I nodded slowly. Gianna and Liliana might have revealed something to their brother. He had begun his initiation process, so he needed to learn how to do even the most difficult task, like setting a trap for his sisters. I ran a hand through my hair.
As a boy, I dreamed of being a better man, a better leader. Unfortunately, I could not be both.
“Have you told John yet?”
I shook my head. “I’m meeting him later. He and Livia are coming over for dinner to see Anna and check on Val.”
“Only two weeks away?” said Rocco.
I nodded. I was worried that Leonas would be born as early as Anna, but so far Val’s second pregnancy had been without complications.
Rocco shook his head, then an expression of pride crossed his face. “I’m going to be a father, too. It’s still very early, so we haven’t announced it yet, but if things go well, my newborn and your Leonas can become friends.”
“Congratulations,” I said.
So far Rocco had not been a good father to his children. I hoped he would do a better job with this baby.
I led Rocco toward the front door. Val lingered on the stairs and gave Rocco his official smile, but something on his face told me he was in pain. As soon as Rocco walked out the door, I stealthily approached her. “Val, what’s wrong?”
She smiled. “Travaglio. I think Leonas doesn’t want to wait any longer.”
“Now?”
She laughed and then grimaced. “Well, this is my first natural birth, at least I hope it will be…. so I don’t know how long it will take, but we’ll probably have time to call my parents so they can get Anna and get my bag for the hospital.”
“Is it because of me again?” Last time Val’s pregnancy had been horrible because I had made her life so difficult. Was her labor related to our conversation yesterday?
She rolled her eyes. “Not everything is about you, Dante. This baby is already a big boy. I’m glad he wants to come out a little early. Now take my bag and Anna. I’ll call my parents.”
I nodded and hurried up the stairs.
Fifteen minutes later, we were in the car headed to Val’s parents to drop Anna off.
“Are you sure we can take this detour?”, I asked again.
Labor was something I couldn’t control and it was driving me crazy.
Val cast me a look, holding her belly. “I’m sure of it. I called my midwife and she said I still have a few hours.”
I wondered how the woman knew. Sometimes these things sped up unexpectedly. John and Livia were waiting on the front steps when we arrived. Anna began to cry when Livia tried to pull her off Val’s legs.
“It’s okay, honey,” Livia hummed. “Your mommy will be fine.”
Anna’s cries of fear were tearing me apart and usually I would have comforted her but I had to get Val to the hospital.
Only when we finally arrived at the hospital did I calm down a little. As Val had said, labor lasted another six hours and it was late in the evening when Leonas gave her first wail.
He was much bigger than Anna. A few weeks made such a difference. The midwife immediately placed him in Val’s arms and I wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
He looked like the pictures I had seen of me as a newborn.
“It’s you,” Val said with a laugh.
“Maybe she will have your eyes.”
“We’ll see,” she whispered and gently stroked his back.
It was strange to think that one of the happiest moments of my life was followed so closely by an act of war. Perhaps it was a reminder that I needed to focus on the good in my life, even though evil would always be my closest companion.
My father’s congratulations came soon after learning of Leonas’ birth. Although he had not shown the slightest interest in meeting Anna, he was looking forward to meeting my son, the heir to our lineage, as he had never ceased to emphasize. I did not mention this to Val, although he was very aware of my parents’ opinions. Val was allowed to leave the hospital the next day. I wanted her to go home as soon as possible, considering the growing conflict with the Family.
“I can’t wait for Anna to meet her little brother. I hope his excitement doesn’t wear off when he realizes he’s not a toy,” Val said as we entered our villa.
John and Livia would bring Anna later and stay for lunch.
“I’m sure everything will be fine. It’s nice for her to share our attention.”
“I know,” Val said, smiling at Leonas who was sleeping soundly in her fanny pack. I stroked her back. I had not left her side since she had given birth. My protection was at an all-time high and it was hard to suppress that feeling.
My phone vibrated in my pocket. I pulled it out and Rocco’s name flashed on the screen. I had a feeling that this was an update on the picture situation. I wasn’t sure I wanted it right away, but business couldn’t wait.
“All right. Take the call,” Val said. “I’ll go to the kitchen and show Leonas to Gabby and Zita. They are probably busy cooking lunch. I smell roast chicken.”
I kissed her, then pressed the phone against my ear.
“What is it, Rocco?”
“Congratulations on your son,” she said, but I could tell from the sound of her voice that that was not the reason for the call.
Something had happened.
“What’s going on?” I asked in a low voice, heading toward my office so Valentina wouldn’t hear anything.
She didn’t have to worry.
“The photographer is missing.”
“What do you mean missing?”
“I tried calling him but he didn’t answer. Then I called his agency and they said they couldn’t reach him. I sent someone to his apartment to check how he was doing, but he wasn’t there. His car was parked at the usual place.”
“Do you think someone from the Family kidnapped him?”
That was the logical explanation, almost too logical for Luca after seeing the photos of Aria with me.
“Yes. Or it could be the mole.”
My mouth tightened. We had suspected a spy between us for a while, but we had no clue who it could be. “Considering that the photos haven’t made the news yet, it might be Luca’s intention to make sure it stays that way.”
“We can leak the photos directly to different social media platforms. Once they are online, even Luca can’t stop them from spreading.”
“No, Luca is already out of control. He will make mistakes.
This is what we wanted. Look what he did to those bikers.
He is unpredictable. The pictures hit him where they were supposed to .” The Jersey bloodbath had been hotly discussed in several online forums in the darknet, with much speculation pointing to Luke. I had no doubt that it was him.
“All right. What should we do with the photographer?”
“He’s probably dead by now, or wishes he was. We need to focus on finding the possible spy in our ranks.”
“Luca has started to eliminate the Family from what I’ve heard.”
Of course he had. He vented his anger on anyone who ever opposed him and killed as many opponents as he could.
I had started removing soldiers who were not loyal to me long before I became Chief. Luke had a lot of catching up to do . “He attacks his borders and tries to form cooperation with the MCs in his territory.”
“They don’t cooperate well. They follow their own rules.
We can never know if we can trust them.”
“I have absolutely no intention of trusting any of them. I want them to attack the Family’s clubs and stores. In return we will provide them with drugs and weapons .”
“I will try. At the moment I don’t have close contacts, but I will try to make some.”
He rang the doorbell. “I have to hang up now. Keep me posted.”
I walked out of my office just as Gabby opened the front door. Anna saw me immediately and rushed toward me, the skirt of her plaid dress fluttering around her short legs. I took her in my arms and gave her a kiss on the cheek. Livia had done her French braids again, Anna’s favorite hairstyle. “Where is she?” she asked excitedly.
I smiled, nodding toward the kitchen door from which Val had just left with Leonas on her arm. Anna’s eyes went wide.
“It’s white!”
I giggled. “He’s light blond, but his hair will probably darken a little over the years, like mine.”
Anna looked at me. “Was your hair white when you were little?”
“Like Leonas’ hair, yes.”
“And I have mom’s hair?”
Val smiled as she stopped beside us. “Almost.”
Giovanni and Livia joined us, smiling proudly.
“Did everything go well?” Val asked her parents, then kissed Anna’s forehead.
“Everything went well,” Giovanni said, but his eyes flicked to me and narrowed. Ever since he had discovered the makeup photos, he had kept his distance from me. I thought that because he feared that otherwise he would show his anger. Being my father-in-law and also Underboss turned out to be complicated.
Livia hummed about Leonas, but he did not wake up.
“Dad?” Anna looked at me. “Why is he sleeping?”
“He’s tired.”
“But I want to meet him.”
I stroked her hair. “Soon, Anna.” She looked at him, her head tilted to the side as if he were a toy she didn’t understand . Val turned a small smile to me, looking exhausted and happy. No matter how difficult things were in the Outfit, this sight always gave me hope for our future.
We all headed for the dining room. I made Anna come down so that she could follow Val and ask her questions about Leonas.
“Can I talk to you quickly?” asked John when the women sat down at the dining table.
“Sure,” I said and led him a few steps away. “I know you don’t approve of my plan.”
Giovanni shook his head. “There should have been another way to handle this, Dante. I don’t like how this might reflect on Val.”
“No one knows anything.”
“Again. To be honest, I’m glad Luca was able to keep the photos from making the news.”
I said nothing, not wanting to admit that I was too.
The plan was working anyway, and so I was determined to file it away as a success, at least for outward appearances. “This plan confirmed my suspicion that we have a spy in our ranks. The photographer was kidnapped and I doubt that Luca could have sent someone from his Family so quickly. They would have had to ask around for the address and that would have attracted a lot of attention. The job must have been done by one of our people who knew where to find him.”
“The man has been on our payroll for years. Many people know him. The list of possible spies would be very long.”
“I know. We have to write down every name we can and analyze them. If we can narrow it down to certain people who might have reason to be dissatisfied with their position in the Outfit, we will take them aside and talk to them. If they behave suspiciously, we will intensify our efforts.”
John frowned. “I don’t like the idea of a spy among our men. Do you really think so?”
“I hope not, but I think we have to accept the possibility.
Do you have any apparent suspicions?”
John looked away with a distant expression.
Something in his face made me believe there was someone he had in mind but was still reluctant to name.
“Giovanni?”
He quickly shook his head. “I will write down the names for you today and e-mail them to you. I think we should reach our wives, they are waiting for us.”
He was right. Val and Livia were looking in our direction. The plates were already full of food. I tilted my head, but my suspicion remained. If John hesitated to reveal a name, it had to be someone he was close to, so one of his closest soldiers or a family member. “Is Horatio still in Chicago? He worked closely with the Family and may have leads on possible suspects.”
John’s expression darkened. “We had a fight yesterday. I haven’t spoken to him since. He’s supposed to help me with our new drug lab until next week.”
I hadn’t seen Horace in a couple of months. Since the war with the Family had broken out again, he had worked mainly for Peter in Minneapolis and only occasionally when John had insisted in Chicago, as had been the case for the past two weeks, but we had never crossed paths. It had been a constant conflict between the two that he had refused to finally return to Chicago and work with his father. After all, Horatio was supposed to take over the role of Sub-Chief at some point. I knew John was dangling the position for him on the condition that Horace would settle down and marry a woman of his parents’ choosing.
So far I had never interfered, either as Horatio’s brother-in-law or as Chief.
Forcing him into a bond that he was reluctant to respect was not part of my duties. But eventually Horace would have to take John’s place, so one of them would have to back off.
Val gave me a questioning look. I relaxed . I didn’t want to give her reason to worry. She should have focused only on our newborn, not on the problems between her father and her brother.
After lunch, I went to the office and tried to call Horace, but the answering machine picked up. Instead, I called Peter, wondering if Horace had returned to Minneapolis without telling his father. I would have preferred to spend the day with Val and the children, but as Chief, I could not let problems get out of control. Perhaps I needed to have a word with Horace. The conflict between him and John was affecting their work and Val, both of which were unacceptable.
“Dante, I’m glad to hear from you,” Peter said. “Are Leonas and Val home?”
It was easy to see why Ines was so happy with him. He was one of the most accommodating Made Men I knew, but that did not make him any less effective. He had mastered the ‘art of channeling his dark side. One of the reasons I admired him.
“Yes, just this morning. I’d rather have them in the mansion right now.”
“Understandable. I thought of additional protection for Ines and the children. Ines is not very happy with the prospect of more guards in and around the house.”