“True,” he agreed. “However, I’m hoping she’ll be too tired from fighting with you all night to argue with me tomorrow.”
I laughed. “You really are a cocksucker.”
“Hey! Don’t knock those pretty things who spend countless hours on their knees to please me.”
“You’re also a goddamn manwhore,” I added.
Like water off a duck’s back, he said, “I don’t stick my dick in all of them, Nix. For whatever reason, most of them enjoy just blowing me.”
“Enough about your dick, Ciro. I say we give Massimo maybe ten minutes or so of the four of us before we head out and let him rest. I still don’t feel good about all of us being in the same place at the same time. It’s too dangerous for Frankie.” Knowing how many people would love to take us out, Frankie being with the three of us put her in danger as collateral damage. It had actually been a blessing in disguise that she wanted to live low-key in Cedar Creek when she left. No one in that town knew who she was. Sure, neighboring cities knew all about the Benettis, but Morgan City was where they laid their kingdom. Most surrounding towns minded their own business.
“I hear ya,” he replied. “As much as I want my sister back home, I’m not ignorant to the danger this kind of life puts her in.”
“Yeah,” I agreed.
“Good thing the girl’s a badass and can take care of herself,” he joked, only it wasn’t really a joke. Growing up with us, Frankie learned how to fight, how to shoot a gun, and how to race a car. She knew how to defend herself when needed, and she knew how to escape when needed.
I also knew Ciro didn’t mean anything by it, but his comments felt akin to gargling glass. Yes, Frankie could defend herself, but there shouldn’t ever be a need for her to if I were doing my job as a man. “Ciro, you know I’ll never let anything happen to your sister, right?” I knew the answer, but the question still needed to be asked.
His sigh was answer enough, but he said, “Of course, I do, Phoenix. I never would have let you date her if I didn’t believe you’d love and protect her. But that doesn’t mean shit doesn’t happen, dude. That’s all I meant.”
“Good to know,” I replied “However, you never had a say. Nothing or no one was ever going to keep your sister from me, and that included your dumb ass.”
“I’ll be sure to use that as a direct quote at your funeral after she kills you,” he tossed back.
I couldn’t help but smile. I’ve killed many people in my short twenty-eight years, and I’ve been in more fights than I can count but going toe-to-toe with Frankie was sure to do some permanent damage.
“Look, I gotta go,” I told him. “I gotta make sure everything is ready for Frankie’s arrival.”
“Good luck, man.” And I knew he meant it seriously.
“Thanks.” I hung up and got to checking the kitchen, making sure it was stocked up with her favorites. Then I was almost brought to my knees when I realized it’s been six years. Her favorites might have changed.
She might have changed.
It killed to me to think I might not know her as well as I used to, but that was something that could be remedies with time. The next fifty years to be exact. There was no way I was letting Frankie go again, and if I had to hold her prisoner in my house, I would.
Then there was the matter of Massimo’s funeral. I knew that he and Luca had it already planned and paid for, and it was going to be a farewell to rival a king’s. However, Luca, Ciro, Frankie, and I would not be in attendance. While I was pretty confident that Massimo was respected enough by everyone that there’d be no bloodshed on his fateful day, we still couldn’t risk it. So, it was arranged that, when Massimo passed, he would be moved to a private room at the hospital where a priest will meet us, and we are to have our own private ceremony, just the five of us.
Now I had no illusion that mine and Frankie’s reunion would go smoothly. I knew it wouldn’t. Just like I had six years of pent-up pissed-the-fuck-off and loneliness to contend to, I imagine she had a lot of shit she wanted to get off her chest, too.
The night Frankie left, we learned the hard way that she had gotten fed up with mine and Ciro’s lies and caginess and had followed us to the Benetti warehouse. She had climbed on top of some abandoned crates and, through a dirty window up top, she had seen mine and Ciro’s initiation.
The. Entire. Fucking. Thing.
And while we were being introduced and drinking to a job well done, Frankie had run home, packed only the shit she needed, and had fled. Of course, not before she left a note to us all, telling us that the moon shone beautifully through the north end corner window around the docks.
Ciro had ranted and raved.
Luca had shut down.
I had lost my mind and destroyed everything in the house.
We had all been prepared to go after her until Luca came to his senses and stopped us. He took his emotions out of the equation and convinced us that she deserved her space. He promised he would put guards on her and that she’d be safe while she cooled down. However, the joke was on us. It was six years later, and the girl had still not cooled down.
Tonight was going to be fucked-up.
Chapter 6
Francesca~
The drive to Morgan City had done nothing to help put the past behind me. In fact, the drive over only fueled the anger and resentment I thought I conquered years ago.
The first few months, anger and righteousness kept me warm at night. Sure, I missed Phoenix terribly, but anger, hurt, and resentment kept me from reaching out to him. There was also the fact that I had been too busy trying to build a new life. I had submerged myself in finding jobs and a place to stay.
I had worked many jobs those first two years, sometimes holding down four jobs at once. It helped to keep me from starving or being homeless, but it also kept me from being lonely. I barely had time to eat or sleep, so there was no time to dwell in the heartbreak of leaving my family behind. I had also lucked out and found an affordable apartment almost immediately. It wasn’t much, but it had included utilities and that was practically unheard of.
The third year was when I got my job at Brighton and met Robbie and Mona and everyone else. Robbie and I clicked immediately having guy names, but I became friendly with almost everyone who worked at Brighton. No one knew my story, not even Robbie, as I lied to everyone and told them I had dropped out of college because I was no longer happy in life. I gave a speech about how happiness was more important than money and I’d rather be a waitress with real friends than a corporate rat drowning in Wallstreet waters.
They all bought it.
I sold it so well, it was hard not to believe it sometimes.
The past three years have been spent going through the motions. Sure, I had girls’ night and enjoyed my job and friends, but the hole in my heart was always there. I missed my brother, best friend, and lover. I never contacted Phoenix or Luca, but because Ciro was my brother, and we lost our parents the way we did at such a young age, I owed it to him to let him know I was alive and well. So, after I got a new phone and I texted him that it was me, over the years I sent him random texts here and there just to let him know I was fine. He never pushed for conversation and his texts were always the same.
One word-Okay.
But come to find out it was all for nothing as Luca so casually informed me. The entire drive back to Morgan City, he thought it necessary to inform me that they’ve always known where I’ve been and what I’ve been doing. I wanted to be pissed off and surprised, but, deep down, I wasn’t. They let me walk too easily and now I knew why.
I had never really left.
By the time we reached the hospital, I’d reached my limit of Luca Benetti and was ready to see Massimo. My plan was to jump out of the car as soon as it came to a stop in front of the hospital, but it didn’t work out that way. Luca hadn’t pulled up to the front of the hospital. He had driven around the back of the five-story building and had pulled into the physicians’ entrance.
&
nbsp; When I reached for the door, Luca’s voice stopped me. “Don’t you fucking dare.” I froze where I sat and waiting like a good underling as Luca got out, rounded the car, and opened the door for me. The entire time his eyes danced across the parking garage, and he was on high alert, as always. It wasn’t until I got out of the car did I notice a handful of Benetti sentinels scattered throughout the place. Seeing them, once again, hammered home that being in Morgan City was nowhere near being in Cedar Creek.
Luca placed a hand on the small of my back and escorted me to the elevators, his eyes seeing everything even though he had guards everywhere. Luca was never off. He was always on, and he’s always been that way. Even as children, Luca had always been…aware.
Once we entered the elevator, I asked the one question I didn’t want to, but I needed to. “Will it be just me and Massimo in there?”
Luca pushed the button that led to Massimo’s floor as he answered, “You have two hours of privacy with him, Francesca. That’s what’s been allotted and deemed reasonably safe.”
The elevator jolted upwards, my heartbeat increasing with each floor we passed. “Who all knows I’m here?”
“Up until the guards saw you downstairs just now, only me, Ciro, and Phoenix knew you were coming,” he replied, and I hated how he answered so casually. I hated how he could say those two names like they meant nothing when, to me, they meant everything.
I wanted to ask him if they were here, but Luca already knew I was asking that question when I asked if it was going to be just me and Massimo in his room. So, the fact that he hadn’t answered my underlying question kept me from asking him outright.
When the elevator came to a stop, my heart almost did too. I knew there was a possibility that Ciro and Phoenix would be on the other side of these doors, and I wasn’t sure I was ready for that. Seeing Ciro wouldn’t be nearly as hard as seeing Phoenix, but it would still be an emotional punch to see my brother after all these years.
When the doors opened, I saw nothing but more Benetti sentinels, and I was momentarily relieved that I had more time before facing Ciro and Phoenix. As Luca led me out of the elevator, I realized how egotistical I was being. It’s been six years. Surely, Phoenix wasn’t still pining over me. There’s no way he hasn’t moved on to someone else. Men like my brother, Luca, and Phoenix weren’t meant to suppress their masculinity. And there wasn’t a shortage of women willing to do whatever it took to be with one, two, or all three of them.
No one showed any surprise as we walked past, but then they shouldn’t. Benetti men were trained to always be in control. If they were surprised to see us, they were doing their best to hide it. Especially, in front of Luca. I also noticed that the hallways were devoid of visitors and noise. This floor was private and secluded.
We stopped in front of room 1478, and I reached for the door handle, but suddenly the reason I was here hit me at full force. Massimo was dying, and I was here to say goodbye. My hand froze and I had to steady myself before walking into his room.
The world was going to weep with his passing.
Luca’s breath tickled my ear as he leaned down and said, “He’s waiting for you, Francesca.” His lips touched the side of my head. “It’s going to be okay.”
I let out a shaky breath but wrapped my hand around the handle and pushed the door open. I walked inside and was surprised that Luca hadn’t followed me inside. However, my thoughts immediately shifted towards Massimo as I watched his head turn to see who was visiting him.
His face lit up and I felt worse than I already had. “Little Frankie Mancini,” he cooed. “My beautiful, beautiful girl.” His arms opened and I ran into them.
He didn’t care that I was practically across the hospital bed and neither did I. He didn’t care that I almost knocked everything askew and neither did I. He didn’t care that I was soaking his hospital gown with my tears and neither did I.
All that mattered was that I was here, and I hadn’t been too late.
When I finally pulled back, Massimo was all smiled and shiny eyes and I had to reach over and pluck some tissue from his necessity tray. He chuckled as I cleaned myself up, but he was kind enough to give me time to compose myself.
Once I was cleaned up, he asked, “How have you been, Francesca?”
“Selfish,” I automatically replied. “Completely selfish, Massimo.”
His head fell to the side and his face softened with my regret. “Don’t do that, dear. Don’t ever feel bad for going out to live your life.”
I shook my head. “I didn’t go out to live my life,” I corrected him. “I left because I was hurt and pissed off at the guys. And, in that rage, I let myself forget about everyone else. I was so angry and so wrapped up in my own misery, I forgot about everyone else who loved me.” My eyes teared up again. “I’m so sorry, Massimo. I’m so sorry for not keeping in touch.”
Massimo reached out and patted my knee. I was sitting on his bed, not eager to move at all. “Well, why don’t you do this old man a favor and tell me all about what you’ve up to? I’d rather hear about this new life you carved out for yourself, Frankie, than listen to regret that doesn’t do anybody any good.”
I smiled because that was so like Massimo. He forgave us all our mistakes. He always looked towards the positive and did his best to steer us away from the negative. “I’d like that,” I told him. “I’d like that a lot.”
Massimo sat up straighter and adjusted his hospital bed to accommodate the both of us. As soon as I was nestled up against him, like a father comforting his broken child, I started telling him everything. Even though I didn’t tell him the details of what I saw that night at the warehouse, I told him how I ran and how my life came to exist in Cedar Creek. I told him about Robbie, Mona, and Brighton. I told him how I dropped out of college, but I was relatively happy with my life. And, the entire time, he just listened. He listened as if he truly cared about my life; about me.
When it was his turn, he told me all about the kids he’s been helping these past few years, about how he made the right choice to keep helping the kids of the neighborhood versus chemo treatment. He told me his last day was going to be filled with peace at knowing that he spent every day of his life doing what he loved best, loving us.
We went back and forth with all the things we needed to say to each other and all the new things we wanted to learn about each other. He even told me about the elaborate funeral Luca had planned for him. He said that, even though he might not be able to see the funeral, his spirit will be able to feel it wherever he may be. That had brought on another bout of tears that he soothed away.
Eventually our conversation led to the topic of Ciro, Phoenix, and Luca, and when I told him that I really didn’t want to talk about them, he left me with one piece of advice.
Holding me in his arms, he said, “I’ve watched those young men turn into a force that strikes the fear of God into everyone they come across, Frankie. I’ve watched the light die out and darkness take over in each one of them. However, no matter what they’ve done or how soulless they may seem, you are the only thing that still makes them human. You, my dear girl, are the only chance at redemption they have, because you are the only thing on this earth that those three men care about.” His arms tightened around me. “Don’t dismiss the power in that, Frankie. Treat it like the fragile bomb is it. And recognize the magnitude of damage that bomb can inflict.”
His words were cutting me to the bone. He was quietly scolding me, and he wasn’t wrong. I knew leaving them would hurt them, and that’s why I did it. I wanted them to hurt as much as they hurt me, but I never wanted to damage them.
“I still love them all,” I confessed. Phoenix included.
“I know, Frankie Girl,” he said, squeezing me. “I know.”
Chapter 7
Phoenix~
I didn’t partake in this scene often, but I was feeling anxious and I found I didn’t care for that particular feeling. It’s been years since I got butterflies or felt an
y sort of nervousness, but I was feeling unsettled now, and I needed to ease the tension somehow.
“Just like old times, huh?” Ciro grinned as he meticulously set up his tray of instruments, studiously ignoring the muffled screams echoing off the walls.
“It does bring back a certain feeling of nostalgia,” I replied, taking a seat at the far end of the basement.
“It’s like being back in that warehouse,” he chuckled.
I let out a sigh, leaned back, and got comfortable. Well, as comfortable as anyone could get in these goddamn metal chairs. “Who do we have here?” I asked, nodding towards the poor sonofabitch tied to a chair just like mine. Only mine was stationed comfortably outside the splatter zone. That poor fuck’s chair was positioned and bolted right over the drain.
Ciro smiled, showing me all his teeth. “This stupid bastard is Robert Miller,” he answered.
My brows shot up in interest. “Robert Miller, huh?”
Ciro turned back towards the man. He smiled as he cocked his head. “Yep. Mr. Robert Miller of Meredith.” Meredith was a small outlining town about a half hour drive from Morgan City.
“Nice town,” I commented.
“Yeah,” Ciro agreed. “Not bad.”
I threw one foot across my knee and got situated to watch the show. “And how did Mr. Robert Miller…uh, find his way to Morgan City?”
I watched as Ciro grabbed a handful of Robert Miller’s hair and yanked his head up, causing the man to scream louder behind the handkerchief stuffed in his mouth. “Last night’s delivery,” Ciro said, his voice taking on a dark edge. “Did you hear about it?”
Of course, I did. Ciro knew it too, so this line of questioning was for entertainment purposes only. “Michael Morelli was caught trying to short the shipment,” I replied.
The Holy Ghost Page 4
