Scorned Obsession (Scorned Fate)

“Kaz Doku? He still has loyalists?” I asked.

The man in front of me was only known as the Toronto fixer. He was the go-between for the Albanian mob based in Toronto and the Rossi crime family.

“It didn’t come from us,” the fixer said. “But yes, your problems…the burning of the club and the attempt to put you on a collision course with the De Luccis is coming from the New York Albanians.”

“That’s why they didn’t want to take our coke?”

“Yes.”

“So why help us if we’re not gonna help you move product any longer?”

The man smiled. “You got Moretti to thank for that, but we’re thinking of switching into something more legit. So this goodwill…” He tipped his chin to Gian who was overseeing the transfer of coke from our truck to theirs. “Hopefully we can do business in the future.”

“Won’t your guys in Manhattan have a problem with that?”

“Let’s just say Toronto and New York haven’t been on the same page for a long time. We need new blood. Excise the Doku loyalists.” He shot me a smile that told me he wasn’t entirely on my side and I had something to prove. We didn’t shake hands, but exchanged chin lifts before he walked away.

With the fixer some distance away, Gian came to my side. “That was easy enough.”

I turned toward our truck and started walking. “All done?”

“Yeah, let’s get out of here.”

“Tommy did all the negotiating.”

“I’m surprised they didn’t complain when it wasn’t Tommy they were meeting.”

No one from my side knew Luca was involved. That was why the fixer and I had a chat out of earshot of the other men.

“What can I say, Gian? You just have to trust me.” I walked to my SUV and nodded to Arnie. He was the one driving the commercial truck back to Manhattan.

I addressed another Rossi soldier who called out my name. “What is it?”

I was only half listening to the soldier as my past came roaring back. Kaz Doku was the Butcher of Toronto and had been an archenemy of the Rossis. Both Carmelo and Raffa held him responsible for the death of their brother in the same car bombing that blinded Raffa. He was my first kill. The job no one thought I could pull off. Carmelo thought he was sending me to my death. Outside of Raffa, Carmelo, and Frankie, no one knew for sure if the Turk was the one who assassinated Kaz Doku. The Rossis systematically got rid of Doku supporters and a new leadership emerged. So why was this happening now?

The words of the soldier finally registered in my head.

Bianca. Escaped.

“What do you mean Bianca escaped?” I snarled.

“Sticks was trying to call you but you weren’t answering.”

“You know our phones are off. Why is yours on?”

“The Albanians left and⁠—”

Never mind. I slid out my phone and powered it up.

Gian and Arnie gathered around me.

The second Sticks answered the phone, I clipped, “What happened?”

“Sloane helped Bianca escape.”

“Sloane?”

“Yes. Bianca had some bullshit excuse about a coffee stain on the Persian rug.”

“The one in the living room.”

“Uh, yes.”

I closed my eyes. Dammit, Bianca. “Then? You left them alone?”

“What was I supposed to do, boss? It’s Sloane. But I caught them sneaking into the van and that bitch Sloane fried me with a stun gun.”

I knew that girl was a maverick. “Do you know where they are now?”

“Divina’s phone is back online. You’re not going to like it.”

“They’re at The Grindhouse.”

“Yep.”

“Gather everyone and head to Manhattan. I’m still at Binghamton, so it’s going to take me three hours to get there.”

Three fucking hours I didn’t really have. God fucking dammit, Bianca.

I ended the call and dragged a hand down my face. “Fuck.” There were not enough cuss words in the world to describe what I was feeling.

“Wife flew the coop, boss?” Arnie asked.

“Yeah. With Divina and Sloane.” I stalked toward the Expedition that followed the commercial truck. I asked Arnie for the keys.

“Arnie, come with me.” I handed the keys to Gian. “Drive the truck back to the warehouse. Await orders.”

Gian asked, “What are you going to do?”

“Get my wife back,” I said. And I might have to beg.

Bianca

We were gathered in the back of the coffee shop, away from the debris and destruction of the front. Heavy commercial tarps covered the shattered windows and the bullet-riddled walls of the café. A few booths were already dismantled. The bar needed repairs and Renz lost one of his espresso machines.

Nico ordered the construction crew off the premises.

“Nice place…well, except for that.” Sloane nodded to the wreckage and slid into a booth. Divina took the seat in front of her while I sat along the edge beside her.

Nico approached us. “Dad and Mom are on their way. So are Matteo and Sera. I couldn’t get ahold of Renz. They went in for a checkup.”

“How is he?”

“He’s going to be better now,” Nico said.

Before I could ask him further, Dad and Mom rushed through the side door.

The look on my parents’ faces…it was heartbreaking. I hadn’t seen Dad and Mom so haggard. It was as if they’d aged ten years since the last time I saw them. There were bags under their eyes and creases on their faces that weren’t there before. A sign of lack of sleep and weight loss.

The tears came before I could stop them.

“Dad, Mom.”

I stepped into Dad first because he seemed to be the one who needed the hug the most. When it came to emotional turmoil and Dad’s hands were tied, as was in my case, Mom had always been the strongest.

I was crushed in his familiar strength and the consoling scent of Dad’s cologne assailed my nostrils, transporting me back to being his little girl, where my palm always found comfort in his warmth and heartbeat. In true Mom fashion, she hugged us both, sliding into the role of the glue that held the family together.

No words were spoken, but when I shifted, my heart splintered seeing the tears that fell from my parents’ eyes. Dad was ashen beneath his tan and Mom was paler than pale, given the contrast with her red hair.

Dad cupped my face and gave me a kiss on both cheeks while Mom squeezed my hand. “You’re really here.” His ragged whisper cracked my heart further. I had never, ever heard such torment in Dad’s voice. It was as if he’d gone through the nine circles of hell. “I failed you, piccola mia.”

My little one. Dad hadn’t called me that in a long time.

“You did not fail me. It was my fault.”

“I won’t hear of it.” Murderous revenge chased away the shadowed despair in his eyes. “Now that I have you back safely, I’m going to send those Rossis to hell where they belong…”

Alarm dampened the elation of seeing my family. I did not consider this. I was thinking there would be a sit-down between the De Luccis and the Rossis. I was Sandro’s wife and that made me a Rossi too.

“No,” I said firmly.

“No?” Dad’s voice pitched dangerously soft. “Because of the Rossis, your brother was shot. Because of the Rossis,” he enunciated, “my children were kept from me and you were forced to marry one of them.”

“Did Renz explain what happened?”

“They should have returned both of you after the incident. Not hold you prisoners. Your brother could have died of complications because they withheld proper medical care!”

“No argument there. That was Gian Rossi’s play, but Sandro is the boss now.”

“Maybe we should discuss this later,” Mom put in.

I glanced at her thankfully.

He was about to object, but she gave him a look. Dad clenched his jaw.

I exhaled a deep breath, but dragged in another one when his eyes narrowed over my shoulder. “Who do we have here?”

He walked past me to stand beside Nico, looking at Sloane and Divina like specimens under a microscope.

Mom held me to her side and wiped a strand from my face. “I missed you, Peanut.”

“Missed you too, Mom.” I gave her a reassuring smile, but I couldn’t abandon the two women who helped me escape.

“You’re Tommy’s wife?” Dad asked Divina.

I walked past Nico and Dad and stood in front of the women. “She is. Where’s Dom?”

“Where’s my husband?” Divina asked in a voice that trembled.

“Yeah, where’s Tommy?” Sloane asked in a firmer tone.

“And who exactly are you?” Nico asked her.

“I’m the one who got your sister out,” she replied.

“Are you waiting for a reward?” Dad asked.

“Dad!” I was appalled.

“I’m not saying no,” Sloane responded without missing a beat.

I rolled my eyes and gave her a dry look. “What? It wasn’t out of the goodness of your heart.”

The side door opened again and in walked Dom, Matteo, Sera, and Ivy.

More emotional reunions ensued. Ivy and Sera got to me first.

“Renz is on his way back,” Matteo said. “Damn, sis, we were so worried about you.”

“I’m fine. But it looks like you guys are worse for wear.” Their faces were too grim. The guilt mounted. “Did you guys even think Sandro wouldn’t look after me?”

“I knew he would,” Mom said. “That’s what I was telling the boys.”

Matteo’s jaw hardened, but it was Dad who answered, “He’s got things to answer for. We welcomed him into our home and he wouldn’t answer our calls.”

All the men in my immediate family were understandably pissed. Dom stepped forward.

“Cuz, glad to see you’re okay.” I couldn’t read his face. My dad’s side of the family was the legitimate side. Nowhere did they expect that Dominic “Dom” De Lucci would step up to be the boss of the De Lucci crime family. He’d been boss in the five years since our great-uncle became too sick to continue. It didn’t sit well at first with Uncle Paulie who was in the same mind as Dad to keep their children from being made men. Aunt Carlotta and Luca were more encouraging for obvious reasons and Emilio Moretti, of course, was ecstatic and died happy when his grandson became the youngest boss ever to take over a powerful New York family.

I gave him a tight smile before saying, “We have to talk.”

“Bianca,” Dad started. “You don’t have to…Dom and I⁠—”

“Dad,” I said firmly. “I’m married to a boss now⁠—”

Everyone started talking, cutting me off, the arguing giving me a headache.

“Not if I can help it,” Dad spat with so much menace, and even if I knew it wasn’t directed at me, it momentarily made me quail and reconsider whether I was in over my head, but when he added, “I can have the divorce papers drawn up and served⁠—”

That was when I snapped, “Fuck no!”

“Bianca,” he ground out. “This is not a phase.”

Blood rushed to my face, both from embarrassment and hurt. Was there a reason for Dad to think otherwise? No. Because I’d been fickle with what I wanted in life. First, I wanted to become a PI like my McGrath cousins before I finally settled on an economics degree from Harvard. Then there was that fashion show and all my hero worship of being like Ivy. Uncertainty weighed me down for a second, but I had to be honest.

“Dad. Let’s not talk about this here before we”—you—“say something we regret.”

Mom put a hand on Dad’s shoulder, but even before she did, the fury on his face had softened and I witnessed a father’s pride and pain on his features. This was the conflict inside me. There was no question Dad only wanted what was best for me. If he could shelter me from all this, he would. But I was twenty-three years old. It was time for me to chart my path.

He sighed. “I didn’t mean you’re flighty.”

“I never gave you reason to think otherwise,” I said. “But it’s time for me to make my own mistakes and not have you as a safety net.”

“My daughter was forced to marry,” he gritted. “It was hardly your mistake. You were coerced. To have you blackmailed…”

“I am not considering divorce. This is not a phase, Dad. Thinking of divorce at this point is like quitting before giving the marriage a chance.” I took a step toward Dad and I hated that I saw betrayal on his face. “This is Sandro we’re talking about⁠—”

“He’s a Rossi.”

“So?”

“Over my dead body will you be married to a Rossi.”

Standing behind Dad, Mom rolled her eyes and I tried not to smile because he became visibly peeved whenever anyone made a comment about me getting betrothed to Sandro.

“You think this is funny? All my life I made sure my children wouldn’t become made men.”

“Yet you have no problem enjoying the benefits of being connected to one.” I nodded to Dom.

“Damn, cuz,” Dom said. “Shots fired. Who is this girl?”

“Don’t encourage her,” Matteo snapped.

“I’m not your baby sister anymore,” I snapped back at my brother. “I’m a grown woman married to a made man. Now.” I switched my gaze to Dom. “Where is Tommy?” I tried to ignore the hostility emanating from the other guys, but I wanted the assurance, especially for Divina.

“Are you negotiating his release?” Dom asked. “Because that was the condition I gave Sandro.”

“What?”

“You for Tommy.”

I blinked. I had a terrible poker face and my sly cousin caught on.

“Well, I’ll be damned,” Dom muttered. “He never told you.”

“Never told her what?” Nico asked.

I had no room for annoyance, outrage, or indignation concerning my husband keeping this secret from me. What I was feeling was less guilt about taking action against his knowledge.

“It doesn’t matter now.” I leaned forward. “Just know I’m not simply playing mafia wife. I have a duty to the women of the Rossi crime family. And apparently there’s nothing more to negotiate if your condition was me for Tommy.”

“Is Raffa Rossi holding something over Sandro’s head?” Nico asked. “Because it’s common knowledge that in spite of who’s boss, he always has a say with how Rossis do business.”

Again, I wish I played poker.

“What if he’s blackmailing Sandro?” he continued. “We obviously know how you feel about him.”

“You better release Tommy. And soon,” Sloane spoke behind me. “I didn’t risk my neck for nothing.”

“Excuse me, who are you?” Dom demanded.

“She got me out,” I said. “Be nice.”

Trevor entered the café and handed Dom a printout. Matteo and Nico read over his shoulder.

“She’s going to be paid handsomely for it,” Dad said.

“Money is nice,” Sloane said. “But it’s not everything. I’m doing this for Divina. Since the Rossis came into her life, they’ve done nothing but push her around.”

“And you’re her champion, I presume,” Dom mocked. “Sloane Scott? Of Scotty’s Cleaning Service. Looks like here, you’re in need of cash.”

“You have no right!” Sloane shrieked when she realized what my cousin had in his hand. She made to grab the piece of paper from Dom. Of course, my cousin, who could be annoying as fuck, held the damning information out of reach.

“Dom, seriously?” I scolded.

All levity disappeared from his face enough to make Sloane back down. “You bring an unknown into De Lucci territory.” He didn’t need to stress that this building was the heart of the De Lucci crime family operations. That was why we were in the café despite the construction. It was the only public place. He wouldn’t let a rival crime family into The Underground—the basement—nor the residential spaces above us. “I make it my business to know.”

“Sloane is just helping,” I told him. “But let’s not get sidetracked. Tommy?”

He sighed and slipped out his phone.

“Your cousin is a giant asshole,” Sloane said in my ear.

“I thought you wanted me to introduce your business.”

“I’m having second thoughts.”

“My men are bringing him over,” Dom said. “Sandro is blowing up my phone.”

Matteo and Nico mentioned the same thing.

“Well, answer it,” I said. They’d confiscated Divina’s and Sloane’s phones so no one could call them either.

The men looked at each other and I wanted to knock their heads together with their identical smug faces.

“Payback is a bitch,” Nico said.

The café door opened again, and Renz appeared.

“Bianca?”

I burst into tears.