Two weeks later
Back home from Italy, I was preoccupied with work while McKayla was still interviewing my father. I’d been summoned by the other heads of the Five Families about me trying to oust Gennaro and get the Maurizio situation swept under the rug. Because things were escalating, I hired more guys to trail McKayla and my family. The car pulled up to a warehouse that Vincenzo had purchased for us to do business, and I headed in to make sure our product and money were accounted for before I had the sit down.
“What is it looking like?” I asked Elio and Renato.
“The money is here, but our men had trouble in the Colombo area.”
“What kind of trouble?”
“His men shot at us,” one of our soldiers called out.
“What’s your name?”
“Agosto,” he replied.
“Did they say anything to you?”
“Just that we aren’t going to be paying for much longer,” Agosto repeated the words.
I picked up the stack of money from the duffel bag and held it to my nose, then up to the light.
“You’re quiet. That’s not a good thing,” Renato blurted out.
“Colombos are playing with me.”
“What are you thinking?”
“This is the same bag I tried to give money to Maurizio a few weeks back.”
“You’re shitting me.” Renato looked through the bag and saw our logo on the inside stitch.
“I want eyes on him when we get to this meeting.”
“We have our people on Gennaro. We have to pick and choose our battle, Savio,” EJ explained.
“Why don’t we just kill his ass?” Renato said.
“Because he’s technically a made man. I have enough surrounding me right now.”
“Are you going to the meeting?”
“Yeah, I’m already five minutes late.”
“I’m riding with you.” Renato slid two guns in holsters.
“No, I need you to make sure these guns get shipped out properly and the money counted.
“I don’t like this, Savio,” Renato said.
“Me neither, but we can’t show weakness to our enemies.”
“I need to go with you and make sure you stay in your seat.”
“Do whatever makes you happy, brother.”
We all piled into our cars and pulled out of the warehouse, toward Tommaso’s place of business. My trigger finger was ready to release, but another dead body would only put the police on my radar. Fifteen minutes later, we arrived. I got out of the car, and Elio walked in beside me. Tommaso looked stressed, and Alize was drinking already, which meant something happened or was going to happen.
“Gentlemen.” I took a seat next to Elio at the far end.
“Savio, thank you for coming.”
“Glad I could accommodate.”
“Tell him!” Gennaro shouted.
“Gennaro, I must ask you to behave, or you’ll be escorted out,” Tommaso said.
“I’m not some fucking child you can dismiss!” Gennaro yelled.
“Could have fooled me.”
Gennaro cut his eyes at me.
“That bitch of yours has you thinking you’re better than us.”
“Tommaso, why was this meeting called?”
“Gennaro brought up our last meeting without him and tried to remove him from court.”
“It’s what’s best.”
“For whom?” Gennaro shouted.
“Before I continue talking, he’s going to have to take a seat or find my fist down his throat.” I pointed at Gennaro.
“He has a valid point, Savio.”
“Alize, you don’t want to do this.”
“I understand the situation, but we have a tradition for a reason.”
“I’m married and not getting divorced. So, either he can take the money or get out like Colombo.”
“You son of a bitch!” Genaro jumped over the table and tried to lunge at me. I shoved him back, took my gun out, and pointed at this head.
“I have three seconds of patience with you and your whore of a daughter.”
He tried to charge again, and I shot close to his foot.
“Savio!” everyone screamed in surprise. We weren’t supposed to bring guns in the meetings, let alone shoot at another made boss. As the don over everyone, I didn’t give a fuck about rules.
My actions spoke for themselves.
“He needs to be stripped and voted out,” Gennaro complained.
“I agree with Gennaro. All he’s done since he’s been the don is cause chaos,” Maurizio complained.
“Coming from the guy who’s working with the police.”
All eyes glanced at Maurizio.
“He’s lying.” Maurizio waved me off.
“Tell us why Nevio had our product when he was pulled over.”
Maurizio tried to charge around Gennaro and get at me. Elio pulled his gun out, took it off the safety, and pushed on the back of his head.
“I’m my brother’s keeper. Take one step and let me prove it to you,” EJ remarked.
“We all need to put the guns down and talk this through,” Tommaso demanded.
“Fuck him.” Gennaro jerked out of their hold and stormed out of the room.
“That money he paid you, Maurizio, should count toward a good faith.” Tommaso stepped between Maurizio. He smirked and raised his hands in surrender. Something about his cocky demeanor pissed me off. I had a feeling he was up to something.
“It’s going to cost more than five hundred thousand.” Maurizio shifted and walked out of the room.
Ring! Ring!
“I’m in a meeting.”
“Before you freak out, she’s all right.”
“Who?”
“McKayla.”
I ended the call, gripped the handle of the gun in my hand, and clenched my teeth. Thinking who would be foolish enough to walk a thin line of touching anything that belonged to me.
“What’s wrong?” Elio asked.
“We need to go.”

I pushed the door of the hospital room open, ignoring the nurse’s orders as my men put our people in place and checked security in the back and front.
“What room is McKayla Calabresi in?”
“Sir, you can’t just walk in here and demand anything.”
“Either you give me her room number, or I will find a room for you because you’ll be lying right next to hers!”
“Savio!” Sante called out.
I jogged over to him and followed him down the hall to the last room in the back corner. I stopped at the door and calmed my breathing before she saw me go into beast mode.
“She’s banged up, but mostly shaken up,” Sante explained.
“Who did this?”
“I have our people looking into it now.”
“I want names, or you don’t sleep for the next forty-eight hours.”
“I gotcha, Sav.”
The sound of the monitor beeping and light tears caused my chest to burn in agony. For someone who didn’t willingly come to me by choice, over time I’d learned to see all her faults and what made her special.
“Get out,” McKayla said.
“Savio, where have you been?” Adelina questioned, holding McKayla’s hand.
“McKayla.”
“No, I want you to leave.” Her monitor started beeping fast as I approached her bed.
A nurse burst through the door.
“Sir, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
“She’s my wife.”
“I don’t want him in here,” McKayla begged, and my jaw twitched.
“Savio.” Adelina came around the hospital bed and pulled me to the door.
“I’m not leaving.”
“Just for tonight, son.”
“She’s not thinking clearly.”
“I understand, Savio, but she’s been through something traumatic.”
“And I can help.”
“Not when you’re the cause of the trauma, son.”
“Fuck!”
“Hey! You need to leave, or I’m calling the police.” The nurse pointed in my face.
“He’s going to leave,” Adelina said.
“McKayla.”
She turned her back to me, and the door opened again. Rena walked in with food and a somber look on her face.
“This isn’t over,” I said and stormed out of the room. Sante directed our men to stand guard.
“What did she say?” I asked.
“That she and Rena were driving back from work and out of nowhere, someone shot at them.”
“Son a bitch.”
“Who?”
“Gennaro.”
“Could be or Maurizio.”
“Maurizio wouldn’t be this sloppy.”
“I agree with you on that.”
“Any police?”
“Since it was on a busy street, yeah, our men were questioned.”
“Anybody talk?”
“No, of course not.”
“All right, keep me updated.”
“Where are you going?”
“Getting back to McKayla.”
“Savio, her words to you were to stay away.”
“She’s confused.”
“Go home. I’ll stay up here and report back.”
“I can’t just leave her here.”
“You really care about her.”
“She’s under my protection, Sante.”
“There are deeper reasons than your willingness to acknowledge.”
I dismissed his comment.
“No one goes in her room without you approving.”
“I know.”
“The second she asks for me…”
“I’ll call you.”
“Keep Renato updated and text me if she needs anything.”
“Go find out who did this.”
“They want the beast to come out.”
“Are you going to the dinner for the families?”
“I have to. If not, they’ll know something is wrong.”
“McKayla won’t be up for it probably.”
“We’ll decide when the time comes.”
“Just remember she’s your wife.”
“I’ve tried to forget and can’t get her out of my head.”