I saw my cock slamming into Val’s perfect mouth. She swirled her tongue and hollowed her cheeks, increasing my pleasure. I held her still as I slowly fucked her mouth, taking my time, wanting to pull this out. This was not a punishment. Val liked to suck my cock, and she did it just the way I wanted her to. I had taught her every move and she was a quick learner.
My eyes slid to her pussy. The sight of her pink lips parted, her clit swollen, glistening and ready, made my cock twitch. Val greedily licked my pre-ejaculate. “Good,” I moaned as I slowly slid out of her. She knew her cue and began working only on my tip, sucking and licking it. This was the part she loved the most and moisture pooled between her folds, waiting to be licked, but that would have to wait.
Val sustained my gaze as she sucked on my tip. She dipped her tongue into my slit and then swirled it around.
“Enough,” I ordered. She closed her mouth around my cock again and I began thrusting again, but faster and harder than before and then exploded in her mouth.
“Swallow every last drop.”
She did. Again and again, but again the command made her shudder with excitement.
Slowly, I pulled out. Val licked her lips. “And did I do right?” she asked defiantly.
“Be careful, or I might decide not to let you come at all,” I warned her. She tightened her lips, her eyes full of desire and lust. The sight was enough to keep my cock half-erect.
I got off the bed and knelt in front of her waiting pussy. My eyes watched her, her need for me. “Do you want me to eat you until you come in my mouth?” I asked in a rough voice.
Val’s lips parted. “Yes, please.”
“Good,” I murmured. “But first we need to practice a little more discipline. You will not come for the next thirty seconds.
You will count, and when you get to thirty, I want you to give me your sweet release. Understand?”
This was something new. Something we hadn’t done yet. Her eyes flashed with desire. “Yes.”
I grabbed her firm ass and bent over her. Her pussy twitched in anticipation and my cock filled with more blood at the sight. “Start counting.”
“One,” she said. I slipped my thumbs into her petals and spread her wide for me. “Two.”
I gave her the first lick, on her opening, and “three” and “four” came out quivering and then I really dove in. This was not going to be easy for her. I sucked and nibbled on her sensitive folds, rubbed them with my thumbs, traced her throbbing opening. Val had trouble counting, each word was a gasp, an exhale, a moan as I licked her, enjoying her arousal more than anything else.
Val was so responsive, so playful, and loved to try new things. At the count of twenty-nine, I closed my mouth over her folds and sucked hard. She cried out thirty and opened more for me, trembling and moaning as she was given her release. I moaned against her as I thrust my tongue into her. Her muscles contracted around me. I licked her , delirious for her taste. Val shuddered.
I pulled away and climbed up Val’s body, kissing her deeply, which was already getting hard again. Her fingers closed around my cock, stroking me, impatient for me to fuck her . It didn’t take long. I pushed Val’s hand away, lined up, and plunged into her.
She gasped. I began to pound into her angrily. My hand tightened on her wrists and pressed them against the pillows above her head. Her eyes flashed on mine, her beautiful lips parted. I sank my fingers into her thigh and hooked her on my ass for deeper access.
I lost myself in Val, in my lust for her until everything else faded into the background, until all that mattered was Val’s slimy pussy around my cock, our sweaty bodies pressed against each other, our mouths seeking contact.
With a violent shudder, my release overwhelmed me. Val threw back her head with a hoarse cry, her muscles contracting around me as her orgasm followed mine. I continued to pump into her, my lips pressed to the point of Val’s pulse.
With a groan, I lowered myself onto Val and stayed that way , smelling her familiar scent. My more musky scent mingled with hers and gave me a sense of possessiveness.
Val stroked my back and kissed my temple. “Will you tell me what happened?”
I took a small breath and rolled away from Val. She turned to me and I pulled her against my body, then stroked her sweaty hair away from her forehead. Val looked at me patiently, those beautiful green eyes full of understanding.
It amazed me how she could trust me, believe in me.
“It’s Horace, isn’t it?”
I nodded, “And Fabiano.”
Val lifted his head. “Fabiano?”
My anger flared up again, even though I wanted to remain in my post-sex bliss. “Horace is now Sub-Chief in Boston and Fabiano is part of the Camorra.”
Val stared at me. His disbelief mirrored my initial reaction, until it was replaced by a thirst for revenge and bitter anger.
Val shook his head. “Why would Luke appoint Horace as sub-chief? It would only cause him trouble.” Then his lips twitched, the realization becoming clearer in his eyes.
“Yes, he’s teasing me.”
“And now you will take revenge.”
“I have to. The question is how. Especially now that Fabiano is part of the Camorra. I can’t attack both the Camorra and the Family.”
Val lowered his chin to my chest. “Then attack the Camorra.”
“I can’t spare Horatio.”
He nodded slowly. “I know. Not after this. But Luca will expect something, don’t you think?”
“For sure. He knows I’ll be furious when I find out about Horace. He will triple his security measures, at least in New York, and Horace will have high security, too.”
Val’s gaze grew distant. “I wonder if he has a second son by now?” She interrupted herself. I touched her cheek. “Don’t think about it. It will make it worse.”
“I can’t help it. Sometimes I can’t stop thinking about all we’ve lost, and I don’t just mean the dead. I never get to meet Aria or Horace’s children, and Anna can’t see her godmother. It’s heartbreaking. And now Fabiano. God, what else could go wrong?” He paused, but I could tell he wasn’t done yet. “I bet Rocco wants to go into Las Vegas with guns blazing to kill Fabiano.”
“Sure. He’s furious, but I can see there’s more to it.”
Val tilted his head as he always did when he was thinking intensely about something. “It’s strange that Fabiano joined the Camorra instead of the Family.”
“Indeed. It suggests that he had no other choice. But why would he be in Camorra territory in the first place?”
Val threw me a look. He deeply despised Rocco. I didn’t like him on a personal level either, but so far he had been a valuable resource when it came to strategic decisions.
“You think Rocco is the reason Fabiano went to Las Vegas. Why would Rocco do that? It makes him look bad.
Considering that his daughters are already in the Family, this will only make his reputation worse.”
“I know, but maybe he didn’t think Fabiano would survive.”
“You think I sent him away to die.”
Val shrugged his shoulders. “Don’t tell me he’s not capable of that kind of thing.”
“I’m not.” Rocco was certainly capable of the most depraved acts when he thought they were to his advantage.
I ran my hands through Val’s hair. “What would you do in my place?”
“Don’t you trust Rocco to give you advice on this?”
“I trust you completely. You are the only person who can say that.”
Val’s eyes grew tender. She kissed me, but then her eyebrows came together at the thought. “As I said, I would not attack the Family right away. Except for a few small raids on labs or clubs near our borders, perhaps, just to keep them on their toes. For now I would focus on the Fabiano situation . Maybe I would send a team to capture him and bring him to Chicago so you can interrogate him. That way you will find out what really happened.”
I smiled.
“What?” asked Val with a hint of embarrassment.
“You’re supposed to be my Counselor, not Rocco.”
“Yeah, sure.”
“I mean it. You would be the best choice. You’re smart and your heart is in the right place.”
Val pressed a kiss to my chin. “My heart might be a problem when it comes to the bloody side of the business.”
I ran my fingers down her back. “But mine won’t be. I am able to do whatever is necessary. But you are right.
Maybe it is a good thing that you are not part of the business .”
“I already help with the company. And most of your soldiers would go down the warpath if you appointed a woman, your wife, Councilor. It wouldn’t work.”
“They would have to accept my judgment.”
Val shook his head. “We don’t need another battlefield within the Outfit, no less. Not to mention the fact that Rocco is still there. Or have you made plans to get rid of him?”
“You’d like that.”
“Yes.”
I giggled. “Not that innocent.”
“He deserves death for everything he’s done.”
“But so do I, Val.”
He huffed.
“Right now, I’m not going to remove Rocco. I will wait for Fabiano to tell us exactly why he joined the Camorra before I decide what to do with Rocco.”
Val nodded, then yawned. It was past two o’clock and we had to get up early.
I turned off the lights and kissed Val goodnight.
For several moments, Val said nothing before her softly whispered words penetrated the silence, “Do you really think I would make a good Counselor?”
I smiled against her hair. “Yes, I have no doubt.”
Sleep eluded me that night, so I got up at five in the morning and sneaked out of the bedroom in my gym clothes. Val was still sound asleep. I changed into running shorts and a T-shirt and went to the small gym next to my office. I tried to run at least six miles every morning. This morning I decided to run eight miles in hopes of calming my restless mind and chasing away the lingering tension in my body.
After a quick shower in the guest bathroom and a change into a suit, I headed to the office.
It was not yet seven o’clock, but I had a busy day ahead of me. I had to go to one of our arms dealers and then go to Trentino, one of our new underground casinos.
Pictures of Fabiano were still teasing me on my desk.
I picked them up and slipped them into one of the drawers before bending over the papers with our arms orders.
A slight click made me jerk my head up with half-closed eyes.
Anna lingered in the doorway, half-hidden behind the door. Her hair was tousled and she was still wearing her white pajamas with a pink floral pattern. “Can I come in, Dad?”
I put down my papers and pushed back my chair. “Sure , Anna. What is it?”
There was something strange about her behavior. She was not usually so demure with us, although she was reserved when strangers were around. She closed the door and tiptoed in, avoiding my gaze. I pulled her onto my lap and she leaned her head against my throat, her fingers fumbling with my jacket.
“You can tell me anything, you know that, don’t you?” I said softly.
She nodded abruptly. “If I do something wrong, Dad, something you don’t like, will you kill me like Horace?”
For a moment, my heart stopped beating. Grabbing her by the shoulders, I moved her so that I could see her face. Her eyes expressed sincere trepidation and it was the worst sight I could imagine. The shit with Horatio and Fabiano meant nothing compared to the fucking anguish I felt because my daughter thought I might kill her if she hurt me. The very idea…
I nudged her on the chin. “Anna, no matter what you do, I will never hurt you. I will protect you with my life from any harm.
Do you hear me?”
“Even if I become a traitor?”
“I will never hurt you. Never.”
He bit his lip. “Okay.”
“Who said such a thing?” I asked, trying to maintain a gentle tone of voice.
“Leonas said you should kill Horace because he is a traitor, and that you would do the same to anyone who betrayed you.”
I gritted my teeth. I kissed Anna’s forehead. “I love you more than anything, Anna.”
“I love you too, Dad,” Anna said and snuggled back against me. Despite my workload, I decided to spend some time with her. “How about we play a song together?”
“Really?” She sat down with her eyes wide open.
By now I rarely played the piano. For one thing, I had no time, and it had never been my passion, but playing with Anna had a special place in my heart.
She jumped down from my legs and took my hand, practically dragging me toward the library. This was my daughter, not the scared girl from a few minutes earlier.
Anna settled down on the piano bench.
“Don’t you want to play the harp?”
She shook her head abruptly. “I want to play the piano with you.”
“All right.” I sat down next to her. “Let’s see. What song do you want to play?”
“Never mind!”
I laughed. I looked for the song in her booklet, then opened it. Anna liked to listen to the Beatles and play their songs. She was an old soul in a young body. “Ready?”
She smiled at me, forgetting her worry and fear. I would have done anything to keep her that way.
I should have known that Rocco would act. The moment I had told him I wanted to capture Fabiano for questioning, he had been tense.
Valentina had just celebrated our 11th anniversary when Giovanni showed up at my door, completely agitated.
“What is it, Giovanni?” I asked as I crossed the hall to join him. Gabby quickly returned to the kitchen to give us some privacy.
“One of Rocco’s men showed up at our outpost near Kansas. He is more dead than alive.”
Leonas hovered in the living room doorway, his eyes wide and curious. I signaled for Giovanni to follow me to my office. I had a feeling I would not want to talk about this in front of my son.
“One of the men Rocco sent to Las Vegas to capture Fabiano?”
Giovanni huffed. “Apparently, Rocco sent them there with clear orders to kill Fabiano and all the fucking Falcone brothers who were with him during one of those horrible, deadly fights.”
I stiffened. “Is that what he said?”
Giovanni grimaced. “He wrote it down. The Falcone family let him live so he could deliver their message to us, to you, that is . But they cut up his body pretty badly. They cut off his tongue and his fucking ears. They broke virtually every bone in his body that he didn’t absolutely need and then delivered him to the threshold of the outpost. The doctors are not sure if he will survive the internal bleeding.”
I turned my back on John; I needed time to regain control of myself. Rocco had transgressed my direct orders.
We had discussed our plan several times. Capture, not kill, and only when Fabiano was alone. The Falcone brothers were not to be targeted to prevent a war with the Camorra.
“What did he write?”
Giovanni’s footsteps echoed, then he showed me a picture of a bloody piece of paper on his phone. “This is what I found.”
I took his phone and read the scrawl.
Dante, I didn’t take you for a man who plays dirty.
Your speck of territory didn’t mean shit to me.
Until today. Attacking my territory? Trying to kill my brothers?
Nice move.
I hope you are prepared for war because I will bring it to your door.
Playing dirty is my specialty and I will show you how to do it right.
I will make you bleed in ways you never thought possible.
It’s going to be a lot of fun.
Remo Falcone “He’s a fool,” Giovanni said. “Unleashing his wrath will bring us trouble. I guess Rocco did this without your knowing, or did you change tactics without telling me?”
I shot him a look. I would never have made such a stupid move. Remo was not playing by any rules and was completely unreasonable. A fool like his father and even more deadly if rumors could be trusted.
“Rocco is a liability.”
“He is,” I agreed.
John looked at me calmly. “Will you remove him from his post?”
I smiled coldly. “No one but you and Pietro knew about the plan to capture Fabiano. I prefer to keep it that way.”
“Sure. My lips are sealed. And you know how Pietro is .”
Even if an attack on Las Vegas was pure madness, I’d rather have my soldiers think I was behind that crazy plane than let them know that my fucking Counselor retaliated himself.
“What are you going to do with Rocco? Are you going to kill him?”
“Not yet,” I said softly. “Send Santino and Arturo to capture him and bring him to our safe house for questioning.”
Giovanni paused. “What about his wife and kids?
How much should they know?”
“I doubt Maria will be sad to see him disappear from her life.
Don’t give her detailed information. This has to stay in the inner circle.”
“Do you think he would run away if I called him?”
I laughed bitterly. “Rocco is a master of self-preservation and if he knows what is best for him, he will run as far as his legs will let him.”
John lifted the phone to his ear. I moved to the window, slipping my hands into my pockets. I had clung to Rocco for too long. In the past, many of his decisions had been very helpful, but in recent years he had become a burden, as John had said. Now all that would end.
I wasn’t going to kill him, though. Not yet. There was a reason we had the safe house with its soundproof cell-like rooms . They were designed to keep people in cages for a long time. Rocco was not going to die for his crimes, he was going to live as long as I considered him valuable, and I had a feeling that one day he might be.
I did not want to consider peace with the Family, but if all failed a non-aggression pact might be the way to go.
Offering Scuderi as a peace offering to Luca would have been an option then. I hoped it would never come to that. Yet no matter how much I hated Luca and wanted him dead, he was a man with values, not many, but the ones he had were ironclad. He was a family man like me. Remo Falcone and his twisted brothers were little more than bloodthirsty, out-of-control monsters. There would be no peace with them as long as I caught my breath.
“Do you want me to join you?”
I had forgotten that John was still in the room with me.
How long had I been lost in thought? “Yes.”
“All right. Let me say goodbye to the children and Val, and then we can go out.”
I gave another brief nod, happy to be alone for a while.
Perhaps I had clung to certain traditions for too long. Luke had abandoned many old structures when he had assumed the role of Chief, had even appointed his brother as Councilor, instead of the man who had been traditionally appointed to the position. He had chosen absolute loyalty and gratitude over family ties.
The Falcone had also killed many old Underbosses in their territories until there were only those left who were as mad as they were and absolutely loyal.
The Outfit was based on continuity. My father always compared it to a clockwork mechanism. Every cog in the work had to fit together perfectly for the clock to run smoothly. I had always considered continuity the only way to ensure a smooth process. But some of the old gears were obviously broken and needed to be replaced. This was going to be a long process, one that would encounter many discordant voices, so I had to be absolutely sure of the direction I wanted to take before I made anything official.
Someone knocked and the door opened. I didn’t have to turn around to know it was Val. His arms wrapped around me from behind, his cheek pressed against my shoulder blade . “Dad told me about Rocco’s fiasco.”
I covered her hand with mine. “You told me to get rid of him.”
“I didn’t think he would challenge you like that. I just didn’t like him very much.”
“I stand by my choice. I think now that I will have to remove Rocco from his position you should become my Councilor, Val.”
Val froze. I turned so that she was looking at me.
“You don’t know how happy that makes me, but I don’t think this is the right time yet. Things will get worse before they get better, I can feel it.”
I shook my head. “I will do my best to minimize the consequences of Rocco’s mistake. Trying to negotiate with the Falcone family at this point is futile, however.”
“Why don’t you ask my father to take over as councilor for now? He is loyal to this family, to the Outfit, and keeps his cool. He has never lost his temper, even when the thing with Horace happened. She’s sixty years old, so that’s an age many soldiers consider respectable for a Councilor.”
I took her head in my hands. “That’s something I’ve considered, and maybe I’ll ask him to take over until the Outfit is ready for you.”
Val smiled. “One day they will be ready.
You will lead us into a modern future. The Outfit must adapt to survive.”
I looked at my watch, wondering if Arturo and Santino had captured Rocco yet. “Can you take care of Maria and her boys today? They might be shaken.”
“Sure, I’ll ask Enzo to accompany Leonas and me there. Anna is at Bibi’s for a night anyway, so she is settled.” I kissed Val, grateful to have her.
Over the years she had been the rock of my life. She was the ‘only person I could trust in any situation.
When John and I arrived at the shelter, Santino’s black 1969 Chevrolet Camaro was already parked in front . He had received the car from Enzo for his 18th birthday and had been rigging it up ever since. Arturo’s station wagon was right next door.
“Arturo has a strange sense of humor driving an old hearse like your Enforcer,” muttered John as we headed for the warehouse doors. We had shelter in several cities where we held prisoners for interrogation or ransom.
“I’m afraid it’s more for convenience than for humorous purposes.”
The large entrance to the warehouse was almost empty except for a dining table, mismatched chairs and a sofa with a TV so the guards could entertain themselves.
The screens on the desk were black because we had no prisoners in the cells at the moment. Rocco was sitting on a chair, looking agitated, while Arturo was perched on a chair right in front of him looking like a cat trying not to devour the mouse. Rocco was not wearing his usual suit, but pants and pullover, so they had found him at home.
Santino had been lying on the couch but had straightened up when we entered. His similarities to Enzo were distant but unmistakable. He walked over to me and shook my hand, then Giovanni’s, before moving toward Rocco.
“What does this mean?” asked Rocco with false bravado and stood up.
Santino pushed him back into the chair. “Sit down unless your Chief tells you otherwise.”
Arturo gave me an abrupt nod of assent, then focused back on Rocco. Rocco slipped two fingers into his collar and pulled nervously, then looked at me. He did not quite meet my eyes. “Would you explain to me what is going on?”
Giovanni huffed but Rocco’s eyes were on me.
A tugged smile tugged at my mouth. “You really don’t know ?” I moved closer to him, noticing the thin coating of sweat on his forehead despite the cold in the building.
Rocco’s eyes shifted to Santino who towered behind him, then to Arturo who had just blinked as he watched him . “Dante, this must be a misunderstanding.”
“Really? So you didn’t tell your men to attack and kill Fabiano and the Falcone family?”
Santino raised his dark eyebrows. Arturo made a small sound that could have been laughter.
I stopped right in front of Rocco, forcing him to tilt his head back to look at me. “I gave you an order. It was clear and easy to understand. Capture Fabiano and bring him to me. And what did you do? You didn’t try to capture him. You tried to assassinate him.”
“I did what I thought was right,” he said, with a hint of panic creeping into his voice. Perhaps he was beginning to realize what it meant to him.
“You transgressed my orders! I told you to capture Fabiano, not start a shooting spree in Las Vegas.”
“It got out of control.”
“Don’t lie to me,” I growled. “You sent your men to kill Fabiano because you wanted him dead. For God’s sake, Rocco, you attacked the Camorra. You shot Remo Falcone and his brothers. That means open war with the camorra!”
I had difficulty controlling my anger, but I did not lose it in front of my men. “I wonder why you were so eager to kill your son if not to prevent me from finding out whatever secret you are keeping.”
Rocco blanched. “We’re both good at keeping secrets, don’t you think? I’m not the only one who has killed without his Chief’s orders.”
And I lost my head. I grabbed his throat, pressing my thumb on his Adam’s apple, making him choke. His eyes watered.
I lowered my mouth to his ear. “You will not say another word, or I will do with you what the Falcone did to your men. I will start with my tongue and then move on to my ears. Arturo is good at gouging out the eyes without killing the victim, and Santino is very good at breaking the bones, one by one, so the torture lasts as long as possible. But you know that, Rocco, don’t you? After all, you were my Councilor.”
Rocco’s face trembled with fear. I let him go and straightened up, smoothing my vest. “Take him to one of the rooms. I need to talk to him.”
“Dante,” Rocco said pleadingly. “This is all a misunderstanding. I’ve always been loyal.”
“I think our understanding of loyal is very different, Rocco.”
Arturo stood up with an anxious gleam in his eyes, but I raised my hand.
“Let Santino handle this. I plan to keep Rocco alive for a long time, until he can serve a better purpose than becoming fish food.”
Arturo nodded, but the disappointment was clear in his eyes.
Santino pulled Rocco to his feet and dragged him toward the underground cells. He was a tall boy, a man, even taller than Enzo, and he had no problem keeping Rocco under control.
Giovanni sighed. “I will arrange for guards to take turns with Rocco. We can’t just pick anyone in case Rocco opens his big mouth.”
I gave an abrupt nod of assent, then took off my jacket and threw it on the couch. Rolling up my sleeves, I headed toward the cell Santino had chosen for Rocco. Giovanni was behind me.
Santino was waiting in front of the cell. “Do you want me to be there?”
“Wait outside for now. I’ll call you if I need you.”
Santino looked at Rocco. “It must be strange dealing with someone you’ve known for so long.”
“It makes his betrayal even worse,” I said only.