My nostrils flared and I clenched my hands at my sides to keep them there. There was no doubt that Luna was beautiful in a haunted kind of way. Her brown hair was always up in either a messy bun or a braid. Today was a mixture of the two. Her eyes, clear and focused, pulled me in, but they were nothing compared to her full lips. Lips that were always bare of any lipstick but that begged to be touched.
Fuck. I couldn’t think like this, not now. Not when I needed something from her. I was using her for my own gain, but at that moment, I didn’t care how it made me look.
I pulled in a breath and the sickly-sweet smell of drugs wafted from the apartment. “You on drugs?”
Luna raised her brows and stepped out of the apartment, closing the door behind her. There was only she and I out here covered by the darkness of the night.
“Kind of blunt, aren’t you?” I didn’t answer her, knowing that she was trying to deflect. Her shoulders slumped, a sadness appearing in her eyes. “I’m not on drugs.” She shook her head. “This was meant to be a fresh start.” She sighed and leaned against the rail of the balcony. My fingers itched to pull her off it so that she didn’t fall. It wasn’t totally unsafe, but something itched inside of me to pull her close and protect her.
I leaned against the wall next to her door. “Yeah?” I tilted my head to the side, wondering what wasn’t in the file about her. I knew more than anyone that just because a piece of paper depicted your life, it didn’t mean someone could understand who you truly were.
“Yeah.” She looked off to the side and I stared at a strand of hair that blew across her face. She didn’t bother moving it, instead she just let it do its thing, either not bothered by it, or too in her own head. “They were clean before we moved here.” She snorted. “I should have known it wouldn’t last.” Her face paled, but I wasn’t sure if it was because of what she was saying, or because she was saying the words out loud.
“Addiction,” I started, swiping my tongue over my bottom lip. “I get it.”
“You do?” She blinked, slowly turning her attention back to me.
“My mom,” I gritted out. Everything in me wanted to listen to her, to take in the pains she’d grown up with and let her know that I knew what it was like. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t tell her that it would be okay because I didn’t know if it would be. And I had to get somewhere. It had already been ten minutes, and I knew it would take fifteen to get to the mansion. But I needed her to understand before I asked her. I needed her to know what to expect. “She’s a drunk. Always got a bottle in her hand.”
Her lips parted, realization flickering over her face. With only two sentences, I’d explained everything. She knew what it was like, which was why the longer I stood here, the more I knew she was the perfect person for the job tonight.
“I erm…” I scrubbed my hand down my face. “I need to ask you something.” I pulled in a breath, wincing as the smell of drugs wrapped around us. “Would you watch Cardo and Chiara for a couple of hours? My boss just called and he needs me asap and—”
“Sure.” She didn’t hesitate, if anything, I was sure that relief washed over her features. I pushed off the wall, but she was quicker than me, already heading down the stairs. Her actions were speaking louder than her words, and I wondered how much she regretted moving here with her parents. She’d gotten a scholarship to college, a time where you were meant to leave the stresses of home behind and start your own life, but she’d brought them with her. She had no escape, something I knew too much about.
But I knew my time trapped here was limited. Hers wasn’t. She was stuck here until she finished her degree.
She didn’t look back once, not until she was standing outside the apartment door. Her head turned, but her body faced the door, waiting to be let inside. I stepped closer to her, my front pressing against her back as I reached around her for the door handle. I grasped it but didn’t make another move. I breathed her in, taking in her vanilla scent.
The top of her head came to my chin, so I leaned down and murmured, “Luna,” in her ear, my breath fanning over her neck.
“Mateo?” she whispered, her eyes fluttering closed.
Neither of us moved an inch, instead, we took our fill of the moment. A moment I hadn’t seen coming but didn’t want to deny. I was drawn to her; had been from the moment I’d seen her sitting on the curb braiding Chiara’s hair. It had been a punch to my gut seeing her like that. If only I could do something about it. If only I wasn’t the captain in the Beretta Mafia. If only she wasn’t trapped in the same life I always had been. We were too similar, but also too different.
And at that thought, I turned the handle, and pushed the door open.
She stepped forward, entering the apartment, but I didn’t move. “If my mom wakes up, don’t let her run you off. You stay here until I get back.” I waited until her stare met mine. “Got it?”
“Got it.”
I took one last look at her, then pulled the door closed behind me and locked it. My cell beeped, reminding me that I needed to haul ass to the mansion. So I spun round and sprinted to the SUV. I was peeling out of the lot within thirty seconds, leaving Luna in my place, and hoping she would still be there when I got home.
Maybe I was too trusting of her. Maybe I was taking a leap of faith when I shouldn’t have been. Either way, I had no goddamn choice in the matter. She was my only option right now.
I shook my head, pushing all of that aside as I drove to the mansion. Fifteen minutes later, I was pulling through the gates. Several cars were parked, telling me that I wasn’t the only one who had been called in.
The mansion door was unlocked, guarded by one of the soldiers who told me they were all waiting in the command center. I speed walked there, then input the code that would let me inside. Several clicks of the locks rang out, and then the door whooshed open.
There were only four people in the room, Lorenzo, Christian, Antonio, and Alonzo. None of them were talking, most likely waiting for me to turn up. I wondered how long it had taken them to get here.
Lorenzo looked at me, pointed at the last empty seat, and said, “Everyone is here now. Tell them what you told me.”
I pulled out my usual seat and stared at his cell that sat on the table. A voice came out of it, one that we all recognized. “I have one of them in my ranks.” I blinked at the sound of Dante’s voice. “I have an FBI agent undercover.”
“Fuck,” Alonzo spat, leaning forward. He’d been Lorenzo’s dad’s right-hand man, someone who Lorenzo had relied on when he first took over as boss.
“And you let them live?” Antonio barked, slamming his palm on the table.
Christian’s jaw clenched. “Should have taken them out, Dante."
Lorenzo raised a brow at Christian’s statement, but stayed silent. He was acting underboss, filling the spot until Dante would come home and take his rightful place by his brother’s side. But none of us knew how long that would take, or if it would ever happen.
Lorenzo’s gaze focused on me. Was he waiting to see what I would say? “Does he know that you know?” I asked, tilting my head to the side.
“No,” Dante clipped out.
“Who gives a fuck if he knows? He needs to go,” Antonio raged. As Lorenzo’s other uncle, he had sway in the organization. His fiery temper was good when it came to torture, but in situations like these, he was quick to go to death and pain instead of strategy. And from the way Lorenzo side-eyed him, he was aware of that fact.
“Does he?” Lorenzo asked, but we all knew it wasn’t a real question. He stood, his presence filling the entire room. He didn’t need to do much to show people he was the boss. His authority vibrated around us.
“If he doesn’t know that we know…” I trailed off, staring at a spot on the wall. “We could get information out of him.”
“Or we’d get a heads-up.” Lorenzo grinned like the cat who had gotten the cream. “Imagine turning someone from the FBI to our way of thinking.” He clicked his fingers. “
Game changer.”
“It’s too risky,” Alonzo said, his voice low, but we all heard it loud and clear.
“I’ll tell you what’s too risky, Uncle.” Lorenzo flattened his hands on the desk in the middle of the room and leaned forward. “Not knowing who is in your ranks. Not being able to trust the people who say they have your back.” He paused, not looking away from Alonzo for even a second. “You know what happens when you can’t trust the men below you?” He didn’t give him the chance to answer. “People get hurt.”
“Lorenzo—”
“Keep him close,” Lorenzo interrupted, talking to Dante. “Follow him. Do your recon.”
“On it,” Dante replied. “I’ll be in touch soon.”
The line went dead, leaving the room in silence. Lorenzo still hadn’t looked away from his uncles. They were old school, trying to keep up with the new ways, but there was no doubt that they were struggling. Lorenzo was raging a war inside his own head, a war he had no intention of losing.
We talked strategy for a while, the time ticking by. Any other time, I wouldn’t have been conscious of the time, but when the flashing numbers on the clock next to the computer screens flashed 1:57 a.m., I wondered how much longer we’d be here.
“Meeting’s over,” Lorenzo finally said, standing upright and I breathed a sigh of relief. He glanced down to his watch. “It’s two a.m. Go home, get some sleep. We have a meeting at ten. Don’t be late.” He spun around, not waiting for anyone to say anything else, and let himself out of the room.
We had the FBI in our ranks. Things could go really fuckin’ wrong, or it could be the best thing that had happened. Only time would tell.
CHAPTER 6
LUNA
The apartment was quiet. Almost too quiet. It wasn’t until Mateo left that I realized how used to the noise I had gotten. It was something I’d blocked out when I was in high school, but I’d found it harder here. The quiet made way for everything else to come to the front of my mind. Things I didn’t want to acknowledge. Things that had no right to push their way through.
I’d always been good at keeping a lid on things, but after telling Mateo how coming here was meant to be a fresh start, I’d cracked it open the tiniest bit, and now everything was fighting to make its way out. I somehow had to slam it back down and glue the lid on tight, but it felt like an impossible task.
I needed a distraction to take my mind off…everything.
I was too afraid to turn the TV on, probably because the last one we’d ever had was about five years ago. We’d had it a total of six days before my mom and dad had sold it for a baggie of the white stuff. The expensive things were always the first to go to feed their habits.
Shaking my head, I sat down on the edge of the sofa, staring at the walls. Photos of Cardo and Chiara were scattered about, some of them hanging haphazardly as if they’d been knocked over but were hanging on by a thread. It didn’t matter though because their smiling faces made up for it. I wondered if I’d ever smiled like that when I was their age. Maybe I had, but I couldn’t remember it.
There was never a photo of me on the walls anywhere we’d lived. It had always been bare, only the essentials needed, and even those weren’t always around.
I rubbed at my temples, trying not to think of that damn apartment. It was packed in there tonight, the music blasting, not letting me relax for even a second. When would it end? When would they finally stay clean? Would they ever stay clean? No. They wouldn’t. It was a truth I hated to admit, but without it, I’d be stuck here forever.
Wasn’t I stuck anyway though? I had nowhere to go. I knew no one here. I’d never made any real friendships because of my parents. I’d never let anyone get a glimpse into my life. It was too unpredictable if I let someone see. They’d judge me more than they already did, and then I’d never get away.
I closed my eyes, hoping the banging inside my head would subside the longer I was out of my apartment. It was serene here in the haven of Mateo’s home, but from what he’d said, it may not stay that way. For now, the silence was a welcome reprieve.
“Mateo?” a small voice called, followed by a squeaking door. “I had a bad dream.”
I snapped my eyes open, flung myself off the sofa and to the small hallway, trying my hardest not to scare Chiara in the process. “Hey there,” I whispered, silently grateful that I wasn’t the only one awake now.
Her eyes widened so much I was sure they were going to pop out of her head. “Luna?” She shook her head as if she was seeing things. I grinned at her confused face.
“Hey.” I kneeled down in front of her and took her small hands in mine. “Mateo had to go to work for a little bit, so he asked me to watch you.”
She turned her head to look in her room. “Can you read me a story?”
“Sure.” I stood, not letting go of her hand and let her lead me into her bedroom. Cardo was still fast asleep, his one leg anchored up the wall and the other hanging over the edge of the other side of his twin bed.
His side of the room was a blue fest, and I couldn’t help but smile thinking about the day he told me to paint my apartment door blue. Whereas Chiara’s side was pink, the ultimate girly paradise.
She leaped back into her bed and I tucked her in with her unicorn comforter. I settled down next to her and cracked open the book that she handed me. She had a pile of six on her little nightstand, and I wondered how many times she’d had them read to her. I’d read the same book over and over again as a kid, and the more I read it, the more I found new things inside of the story. It was never the same each time I read it. That was the beauty of books.
I opened my mouth, reading the words scattered around the pictures, getting into the story of the unicorn who was best friends with a big fluffy black cat. Together they went on an adventure to find hidden treasure.
She yawned when I was halfway through the story and closed her little eyes, but she didn’t let go of my hand. She wanted to feel secure. I knew the feeling all too well even though I was about to turn nineteen. Feeling secure was more important than anyone realized, and when they did realize, normally it was because they didn’t feel safe anymore.
I wasn’t sure how long I lay there watching as she fell asleep, but I started to feel my eyelids drooping, and there was nothing I could do to stop them closing completely. For the first time since I’d moved here, I didn’t feel completely guarded. I didn’t have to try and listen to the sounds outside my room. I didn’t have to pile furniture in front of it so no one could come in.
I felt at peace. Something I wasn’t sure I’d ever truly felt. Not deep down. I was always on edge, waiting for the other shoe to drop. But as I drifted off, my lips lifted into a small smile and my breaths came easier.
* * *
MATEO
I stood in the doorway to Cardo and Chiara’s room, not sure how long I’d been watching them. I hadn’t gotten home until three this morning, and it wasn’t until my alarm went off at six that I realized Luna was still here. She was hanging half off of Chiara’s bed, and I was counting down the seconds until she finally—
“Ow.” Her body smacked off the floor with a thump, her head slamming against the wooden frame of Chiara’s bed and I couldn’t help but laugh at the sight of her sprawled out like a newly birthed giraffe in the small space between the kids' beds. “What the—” She lifted her head and stared up at Chiara. Neither her nor Cardo had stirred at her falling out of the bed.
I watched as she closed her eyes, her chest lifting on a deep breath. She was gathering herself, not realizing that I was standing here, taking her in like she was a science project I couldn’t quite work out. I hadn’t even thought to go and see where she was when I got back. I’d passed out on the sofa, too exhausted to know what my name was.
But she’d stayed. She’d made sure the kids were still okay.
She stood, and I finally got a good look at her face. “Fuck,” I spat, causing her to jump, but I didn’t care because she had a trail of blood
trickling from her forehead and making a path down her cheek. “You’re bleeding.”
I didn’t think, I went into automatic mode and reached for her. My hand grasped her wrist, probably harder than I needed to, then I yanked her into the bathroom. It only took two steps to enter the still steamy room from when I’d had my shower.
“Mateo,” she whispered, pulling on my grip, but I didn’t let go. “What are you doing.”
I turned us so we were chest to chest. “I told you. You’re bleeding.”
She lifted her hand to her face, spreading the blood on her cheek. “It’s fine.” I didn’t answer, I simply grabbed her at the waist and placed her on the small counter where the sink was. The space was small, but enough for her to balance on.
“Wait here,” I demanded, brooking no room for argument. I’d watched her on the edge of Chiara’s small bed, and instead of intervening, I’d just stood there, waiting for her to wake up. I’d let her fall. Fuck. This was my fault. I should have woken her up and thanked her for staying. She’d been here all night, and there had been no way for me to contact her to let her know when I would be back.
I rifled through the cabinet, searching for the first aid kit, and when I put my hand on it, I breathed a sigh of relief.
“Seriously,” she huffed out. “I’m fine.” Placing the kit on her lap, I then opened it, grabbing everything I needed. “Mateo.” The alcohol wipe was first, so I ripped it open and lifted my arm to press it to her face. But at my movement, she wrapped her small hand around my wrist, halting me. “Are you listening to me?”
“I hear you,” I grunted, meeting her stare. “But you’re bleeding.” It was explanation enough, but she didn’t seem to understand me. Her eyes glazed over, her hand on my arm letting up slightly. “Let me clean you up,” I murmured.
Mateo Caputo: Unseen Underground Page 7
