My nostrils flare from complete loss of control. The need to lay my eyes on Cam consumes me fully. This perpetual burden of figuring out how to keep my wife and baby safe is draining me. So that leaves me with one choice. The choice I didn’t want to make. But I’m backed into a corner, and there’s only one way out.
“Carmine, Luca, leave us,” I order with deadly calm, without looking at them.
“Adriano—” Luca starts to object.
“Go,” I insist and meet Luca’s upset gaze.
He shakes his head once, pleading with me not to do what he knows my next step will be.
“Non puoi essere serio, non farlo.” You can’t be serious, don’t do this.
“Non me ne vado senza di lei, Luca. Non è un'opzione per me. Abbandoneresti Fallon?” I’m not leaving her behind here, Luca. That’s not an option. Would you leave Fallon?
His lips thin into a hard line. “I’ll find a way to get you out of here.”
“Go!”
Begrudgingly, Carmine and Luca exit the room.
Pillon rears back in his chair and drums his fingers on the desk.
I make the only choice I can because my love for Cam doesn’t permit me to let her be charged. So I give myself up to save her.
“I’ll give you something more valuable than her. I am the boss of this Syndicate. I can give you the names and hierarchy of the entire Chicago Syndicate.”
Pillon’s thick brows climb halfway up his forehead, then he narrows his eyes. “You’ll cooperate with me in building a case against your entire organization?”
“Yes.”
“How do I know you won’t kill me as soon as I release her?”
“If I could’ve killed you, I would’ve done so already. It’s over for me now. All I care about is saving her. The rest of the Syndicate may burn.”
“First, give me some names as insurance.” He fishes out his phone and clicks on his recorder. “Who is the underboss of the Syndicate?”
“No. I want the charges against Camilla dropped. She’s to be freed of any prosecution and not to be indicted.”
He hesitates but replies, “Fine.”
“Who is the underboss of the Chicago Syndicate?” Pillon repeats.
“Luca DeMiliano,” I answer.
“Who is the boss of the Chicago Syndicate?”
“I am, Adriano Montesi.” I lean forward and demand, “I want to see her, Pillon. All bets are off if I can’t see her.”
He’s quiet for a long time, then he presses a button on the desk phone and instructs, “Release Mrs. Montesi and bring her in here.”
Time hangs heavy in the air while I wait with Pillon’s arrogant glare on me. The instant the door rasps, I lunge up and simmer with rage when Cam’s brought in with her hands cuffed behind her back.
“You fucking cuffed her?! Undo them.” I take Cam into my arms as an officer unlocks her restraints, and I rub her wrists. “Are you okay?” I stroke her stomach next, simply because touching her calms my nerves.
She nods and mutters, “What’s going on?”
“Give me a moment alone with her,” I say to Pillon while staring into Cam’s anxious eyes.
“Five minutes,” he replies before he steps out.
Her hand comes up to my face. “What did you do? What’s this about?”
Since time is pressing, I reveal, “The tape is still in his hands, Cam. I didn’t have choice.”
She furrows her delicate brows. “Did...did you give yourself up for me?”
“I had to, Cam.”
“No! No!” She shakes her head frantically, but I brace her cheeks.
“Calmati. I don’t want you to stress yourself or the baby. I had to give him me in exchange for you. I can handle jail, Cam. But I can’t live with myself if you have to stay here.”
“But this means you’ll be arrested? And publicly tied to the Syndicate? The media will be all over this. Your reign as boss will be over. What are you doing?”
“I’m protecting you, my wife, as I promised.”
Her bottom lip quivers, but she’s holding it together.
“Look, I don’t have much time. I need you to go home and take care of yourself and our baby. Let us handle this.” I press a hard kiss to her forehead as she embraces me tightly. “I will fight until my last breath to have that life we fought so hard for. It will happen for us. Fidati di me.” Trust me.
“Fate is always working against us,” she utters against my chest, so I force her gaze on me with both hands on her face.
“I’m twisting fate so that our paths end up together. I will move heaven and earth to be with you.” And I kiss her with everything I have. “Now go home with Luca and promise me that you’ll stay there and won’t do anything stupid.”
“I promise. Don’t worry about me. I wouldn’t do anything to put our baby at risk. But I’m scared,” she confesses but still stays tough, blinking back the moisture in her eyes to appease me.
A strong sense of pride for this irrepressible woman wells up inside of me, and I stroke the corners of her trembling mouth while my soul twists in enragement, knowing that I have to send my pregnant wife home alone.
Unfortunately, at that moment, Pillon rushes back into his office, clearly afraid I’m instructing Cam or that I have something up my sleeve, with Luca and Carmine in tow.
“Time’s up,” Pillon states. “I’m going to set everything up to get Adriano’s statement.”
“There’s no need to be scared,” I lie to Cam, because I can’t bear to see her in pain, right before Luca practically drags her out.
If Logan doesn’t have anything valuable for me after his CIA meeting, then this is the beginning of the end for the Syndicate. Then this is the end for me.
CHAPTER 49
Camilla
I’m supposed to arrive home with my husband by my side, but of course nothing ever goes as planned in our messy lives. With much effort, I try to stay calm while anxiety wants me to break out in tears. But I fight the urge to cry – crying won’t help me. All I want is some normalcy now that I’m pregnant.
Adriano’s parting words were said with such a devastatingly painful, yet lovely, undertone that I cling to them.
Fidati di me. Trust me.
I wrap my arms around my middle as Fallon and Luca accompany me inside while Luca is barking orders into his phone, which is on speaker.
“Henry, I need you to work faster and get access to Pillon’s laptop or whatever system he’s working with. I can’t keep this quiet from the media much longer – people will discover that Adriano’s at the precinct. And once Adriano’s name is linked to the Syndicate, it’s over and done with for him!”
“Every computer in the city is working for me to encrypt data, Luca. I’m doing all the magic I can, dude. Call me back in five minutes.”
Nonetheless, all I hear is the echo of my own breathing in the vast expanse of our loft. I trace my palm over the kitchen bar, reacquainting myself with the home that houses my happiest memories. The place my love for Adriano grew and evolved. The place where we’ll have our first child.
But what if it all gets taken from me? Every time I think we’ve made it, something happens to obstruct our love.
“I’m going upstairs to wash my face,” I comment and head up the floating stairs to our master suite, but I stop and my hand flies to my mouth when I observe our bedroom.
Adriano has filled it with dozens of brightly-colored floral bouquets. And hanging above our bed is a framed enlarged black and white photo of Adriano and me. I’m standing with my back pressed against Adriano’s chest in James’s dining room with my eyes downcast while Adriano is gazing at me with a look of absolute love and a hint of a wolfish grin. And there’s an inscription painted on the wall next to the frame: Il mio angelo. Il tuo diavolo. My angel. Your devil.
The tears I’ve been trying to choke back fall freely as I wander through the gorgeous array of flowers toward the king-size bed.
“I took that picture,�
�� Fallon says softly as she comes up to me. “Why did he write that?” She points her chin to the letters on the wall.
“It ties in with our wedding ring inscription,” I explain and swipe my tears away with the back of my hand.
“Don’t cry, Cam. He’ll fix this, somehow. I know he will.” She takes my hand in hers as a show of support. “You know, I read somewhere that the true measure of a man is how he treats you when you’re alone together. And Adriano was with you every single day for four months when you were in that coma. He did everything to hold on to you. Now, you do the same. He will not go to jail.”
Although I’ve vowed not to worry, that’s impossible, and I need some information to pacify my rampant emotions.
“How? He’s given himself up, which means he’s probably giving a statement right now that he’s the boss of the Chicago Syndicate, only to ensure that I don’t get charged because of that damn tape!”
Both of our gazes whip to the staircase when Luca intrudes, “Adriano’s just stalling for now until we get more information from Logan, Cam. That’s the status. Logan was called in to the CIA when you were arrested, and we’re waiting to hear from him before Adriano can make his next move. That’s why you need to trust us. And we better pray that Logan has some positive news.” He pauses before adding, “Or else it’s over for all of us.”
CHAPTER 50
Logan
The CIA office is suspiciously deserted, and a few men in black suits guard my superior’s door. To my surprise, the lovely, dark-haired Senator Tara Kaden is waiting for me with a mischievous smile on her face.
“Where’s Cooper?” I ask, seeing that she’s alone. Usually, Cooper is the only one who summons me.
“Cooper has been terminated,” she states coldly. “I messaged you from his phone. Sit down, Mr. Wade. I have a proposition for you. A very lucrative proposition.”
“I’m kind of in a hurry, so—”
“I know that Camilla Montesi was arrested by the DA and that Adriano Montesi is at the precinct now, probably giving himself up. I can help you.”
With that statement, she has my full attention, so I sit down as she rests her hip against the desk. “We have a common enemy in the DA. Pillon’s meddling in business he should have no involvement in, starting with Yakiv Medlov, who’s the subject of a political tug-of-war. Senator Wallace was supposed to handle that, but he didn’t, so he’s been taken care of as well. But now, Medlov has been sentenced when he should’ve been terminated. To make matters worse, Pillon is apparently seeking to free Medlov to build a case against one of the most powerful Mafias in the state. A Mafia that you are part of. Pillon has been locating the kidnapped girls that were found on Medlov’s estate, and they’re starting to talk in exchange for money. Medlov is a threat to this administration that I can’t have. So, I can make the DA back off and handle those girls, but I need you to help me with Medlov.”
“Help you do what?”
“Make him disappear; make every part of that empire disappear as if it never existed.”
“Why?”
“The CIA can’t do it.”
“Again, why?”
“We don’t have a hacker intelligent enough to encrypt all the data retrieved from Medlov. You’re not working on the state level anymore, Mr. Wade. We’re talking about the peace between countries.”
Her story is confusing me. “Why would I get involved in something on that level?”
“Because no one else can make the charges against Adriano Montesi disappear.”
“And you can?”
“Well, I personally can’t. But he”—she jerks her chin to the door, and the fucking president of the United States enters—“can.”
“Mr. Wade.” He offers me his hand, and I shake it.
“Mr. President.”
“I’ll cut to the chase. I have a human trafficking issue that’s exploded, and it originated in the Loop when Yakiv Medlov’s sex business was dissolved by the FBI. In and of itself, that’s not a problem, but he used predominantly Russian girls as slaves, and I have been denying all reports of this rumor to the Russian president. This is a major disturbance in my peace treaty with Russia. If the Russian president finds out that we did have kidnapped Russian girls here, an international war will be looming. I want Medlov and those girls to vanish without a trace. I can’t ask the FBI because of their dead agent, Santino, and the CIA is filled with clients of the sex club who want to protect Medlov, including Cooper Sanders. So that leaves me with limited choices. However, the Syndicate can help me because I need the most discreet men. It took the Secret Service a long time to learn who you are and what you do, and there still isn’t a trace of information to be found about Adriano Montesi or Luca DeMiliano. This tells me how inconspicuously and intelligently the Syndicate’s organization is run. You’re shadows, powerful in all of Chicago, but no one, yet everyone, knows.” He moves to the desk, and Kaden hands him a stack of photos, which he tosses onto it, one by one. “This is the top boss, Adriano Montesi. Next, Luca DeMiliano. You’re a CIA agent who’s working undercover at the Syndicate. Although I think you’re actually working undercover for the Syndicate.”
I don’t move a muscle and just take all of this in. This is much bigger than we suspected. Our meddling in the first place by turning Medlov over to the FBI, which ultimately got him sentenced, wasn’t supposed to happen, by orders of the president. But it did happen because of us, which the president doesn’t know, and now, this is Adriano’s ticket out of jail!
He continues, “The kidnapped girls are starting to talk in exchange for money. They are enemies of the state right now and are being handled accordingly. However, Medlov is still a loose end, and I don’t like that. And our hackers couldn’t encrypt his entire system, so I need the best hacker, and that’s Henry Nash, who’s also part of the Syndicate. Have Henry destroy any digital data and take care of Medlov, and I’ll ensure all the charges against the Syndicate are dropped. Any future implications will be shut down, and you’ll be protected by the U.S. government, by the most influential people in the country. I can make Montesi’s charges disappear if you make Medlov disappear. And I can’t be tied to Medlov. Break him out of jail, and let the police and the FBI search for him to no avail as not to raise suspicions with law enforcement. And I can take care of the DA right now and get you that tape, which is his only leverage against you.”
“Why would I trust you?”
“What would I gain by lying? If we’re partners, then I need the discretion of the Syndicate to be protected as well. Do this, and you’ll have the protection of the Secret Service for your members and their families. You’ll be untouchable.”
“And we’ll owe you,” I add, knowing how this works.
“It’s mutually beneficial. We’ll be in business together, starting with this mission. But you need to decide now. Time is ticking for Adriano.” He checks his watch and returns to the door, forcing me to answer quickly.
“Fine, but I need someone to take Adriano from the precinct and handle the DA now, before the media gets involved. If Pillon discovers he’s being cornered, he’s going to contact the press instantly.”
“The senator will go with you. She’s mandated to overrule the DA by me. Get Adriano, and I’ll ensure everything is dropped and the DA disappears. Then you plan this very carefully. You have six months.”
The Syndicate is on the verge of making history.
CHAPTER 51
Adriano
I’m left alone in the office for almost an hour before Pillon returns with a camera and a stack of files. He systematically sets everything up while I’m forced to wait patiently since I’m out of ideas. Once he starts his interrogation, I’ll need to delay talking about the Syndicate as long as I can while Carmine tries to get me out of here. But that doesn’t prove to be necessary when Carmine barges inside without knocking, accompanied by Luca, Logan, and Senator Tara Kaden.
I feel a slow smile pulling at my lips when Logan nods once, i
ndicating that he has a back-up plan, so I let them do the talking.
“Tara, what are you doing here?” Pillon snarls, crowding her, but she stands her ground as Luca and Logan flank her, sending a warning to Pillon, who then retreats. “What the fuck do you want? You’re interfering with an interrogation.”
“No, she’s not,” Carmine replies as he fishes my pack of cigs and my gold lighter from his inside jacket pocket, tossing them to me, and I catch them in the air.
My brother realizes that I could use a smoke right about now. Flicking open the lighter, I take a draw and chuck the lighter onto the desk.
“There’s no need for the interrogation because there won’t be an investigation,” Kaden states as Luca’s hand moves to the back waistband of his pants and he closes the door.
I frown and look at Logan as he addresses me, “Montesi, you’re such a lucky bastard that you brought me in.” And he turns off the camera Pillon set up.
I take the cig between my thumb and forefinger. “It’s about fucking time luck is back in my corner.”
“You might be able to stop me from looking into Medlov’s case, but you can’t stop me from investigating the Mafia in Chicago.” Pillon’s conceited performance is wavering.
“It’s not your jurisdiction, and you have the wrong men,” Kaden says in a controlled voice.
“What the fuck are you talking about?” He strides to her, but Luca pushes him back with a hard shove before he gets too close to her.
Kaden opens her black briefcase and places some papers onto the table. “Pillon, you’re ordered by the Senate to back off and sign these papers as your statement.”
Pillon snatches the papers and reads them quickly. Then he crumples them in his hands. “T-This is from the president...No! If I sign this, you’ll kill me. Because whatever happens, you can always exonerate him and his wife with my signed confession that I was conducting a wrongful investigation into innocent entrepreneurs.”
For Cam (Chicago Syndicate Book 4) Page 30
