La Dolce Vita: Romantic Suspense (Battaglia Mafia Series Book 7)

by Sienna Mynx

  "I'm only loyal to my husband. Just like you are only loyal to yours. I can't trust your husband to do the right thing. He is capable of killing his own cousin. Isn't he?"

  Mirabella put her hand to her face. "Giovanni is the bad guy because that's what you and Lorenzo's lies have made him! You guys never give him a chance. You just deliver at his feet the very worst and expect him to be the very best. Who are you to sit in judgment of him? Lorenzo killed his father the day he conspired against him. That was a choice. And the difference between our husbands is the fact that Giovanni would have never done that to him!"

  "I'm so sorry," Marietta said.

  "Me too." Mirabella hung up.

  She dropped her head and cried.

  ***

  "Where is Dominic?" Nico was the first to ask.

  Renaldo came through the door when the question was thrown out. They were meeting in the front area of villa Rosso. The door to the boss’s office was closed. Nico, Carlo, and Umberto were also present. He noticed that Lorenzo was absent. Giovanni sat in a chair by himself with a drink in his hand. The side of his face rested between his thumb and his pointer finger.

  "Dominic will not be coming," Renaldo said.

  It was the first time Giovanni’s gaze swivled his way.

  "I'm sorry to tell you this, Boss, but..."

  "I already know. And we don't need him for this meeting.” Giovanni sat forward. He set the whiskey glass down and pulled out a small cassette tape player. Carlo’s and Renaldo’s eyes met. They both questioned the mood of their boss. They had seen it before. And it was never good.

  "I don't know how many tapes are in circulation. But each of you here will hear this truth now and not in the streets."

  Giovanni pressed play.

  The men fell silent. They listened to a jovial talk between Lorenzo and a now dead Giuseppe Calderone. The men on the tape discussed the unfairness of life. Being regulated to shadows behind their Dons. Giuseppe loathed and despised his brother and father. And Lorenzo had the same feeling for Tomosino and Giovanni. They laughed at Giovanni's bastard status. The fake Don is what they called him. It was Giuseppe who stroked Lorenzo's ego. Who talked about him being a far better leader. Especially if they could traffic drugs through the triangle. Lorenzo said the only way it could happen is if Tomosino was dead. Giuseppe seized on that thought. He talked through a plan where the men would do the favors. This way they both would be beholden to their sinister bond. And Giuseppe guaranteed Giovanni would learn his place quickly. That the Camorra would choose Lorenzo over the half-breed. At first, Lorenzo agreed and even gave suggestions of how it could be done. But then it sounded as if his cousin bored with the conversation. He told Giuseppe that it was a pipe dream, and they need not waste their time on it. He then dismissed the idea and suggested they go back in and have more drinks.

  Giovanni shut off the tape.

  The men exchanged looks and a few mumbled disbeliefs.

  "I know what you're thinking. You're thinking that was a conversation of a drunken man. Shit talk. We all do it. You want to believe that Lorenzo didn't betray Patri. But think of what happened afterward. Think of who we all became because of the Calderone war. Think of the blood spilled because he never told us this truth. He went out there and killed Giuseppe to bury this secret."

  Renaldo had to take a seat.

  "Carlo?" Giovanni said. "Do you remember Carmine's death? Do you remember the story Lorenzo told you?"

  Carlo frowned.

  "It was a lie. Carmine was with Lorenzo when he went in search of these tapes. Carmine was killed by David Capriccio? There is no way he could have been. Not at Lorenzo’s side. Lorenzo killed your brother to protect this secret."

  " I don't believe that."

  "Believe it," Giovanni said through clenched teeth. "And bury the loyalty you have for him or get the fuck out of my sight. Because tonight we find Lorenzo and you all will help me get justice. Do you understand?"

  The men slowly nodded their heads.

  "He's close. He thinks he can reason with me. I know he's still close. He hasn't left the country. Not yet. Check every vacant farmhouse. Every one. Find out who would sell him a hiding place. Find it and kill him..."

  "Boss?" Carlo spoke up.

  Giovanni fixed him with a silencing glare.

  Carlo put up his hands to indicate he meant no disrespect. "Can I speak freely?"

  Giovanni nodded.

  "Marietta is pregnant. A delicate pregnancy. She's with him. If the men go out shooting for Lorenzo, she could get hurt."

  "Carlo is right. We need to bring him in alive,” Nico said.

  "Too late. I've already put a hit on him. It's a matter of time."

  "Then we need to find Marietta. Right Boss? You don’t want her hurt.”

  Giovanni glared at the men.

  “Let us try," Carlo said. "However, you want to deal with Lorenzo we support you. But let us try to find Marietta and bring them both in. Maybe the Donna knows where she is?"

  Giovanni scratched his brow. Lorenzo had called for a meeting, but he didn't take that seriously. He had to think past his rage. He had to be smarter. But with all the alcohol in his bloodstream it was hard. If his anger brought about the death of his wife's sister, his wife would never love him the same again. He saw the disgust in her eyes when she took Catalina from him. He could barely look himself in the mirror.

  It wasn’t a battle he could win easily. He just wanted the anger and pain to stop. Giovanni closed his eyes. He sighed. Lorenzo had years to plan his escape. He was too smart to be caught by the Tacchinis or any of his men. Maybe this war between him and his cousin should end as Lorenzo proposed. Between them.

  "Boss?" Renaldo said.

  "I don't want..." his voice choked with emotion. "I don't want to risk the life of Marietta or the baby. I should have considered... her."

  The men stared at him.

  "She's in danger if she's with him," Carlo said. "Especially if the Tacchinis have your blessing to kill him."

  "And after last night, with the Benicia’s," Nico said. "Boss, we've heard of what went down. Is Isabella dead? There is a lot of chaos today."

  Giovanni checked his watch. Isabella wasn’t dead. Not until the mad scientist he hired pumped her with enough poison to find a cure for his Bella. e. He had one final move on the chess board to make. The phone rang. He got up from his seat and went and answered it.

  A woman spoke. She gave him the information he wanted. To hear her voice was the first time he smiled. He had a debt to pay her, and he intended to set everything right. Suddenly his head was clear. He exhaled, hung up the phone and sat again in front of his men.

  “Carlo, find Marietta. Lorenzo trusts you. Convince him to give her over to you and bring her here."

  "And Lorenzo?"

  "Tell him if you see him I will meet with him. Alone."

  "Boss, no. No. I will go with you," Renaldo said. The other men all mumbled their disapproval.

  "Lorenzo called me. He proposed this. He and I have a lot of unfinished business. This is between him and me. I will meet with him alone. Tonight."

  Giovanni sat forward. "As for the shooting, the other night. The Benicia’s were never our allies. They killed our men because they wanted to set me up with Isabella. It was the one flaw in my plan. I would never put any of you in danger."

  “Nico, you and Umberto stay back, and I will fill you in on what comes next." Giovanni then looked to Renaldo. "How is your wife?"

  "She's ready to deliver."

  Giovanni nodded. "You cannot miss your child's birth. Find Dominic and bring him home. Then go back to your wife. We can do this without you."

  "I'm here if you need me," Renaldo said.

  Giovanni gave him a wan smile. "I need you to go out there and find Dominic. He's a danger to himself whenever he and Catalina have problems."

  Renaldo nodded.

  The men began to file out. Most of them left. Carlo and Nico were the last.


  "Gio? About Carmine, you're wrong. I trust Lorenzo. I don't care with that evil bitch said. He didn't kill my brother. He wouldn't do that."

  Giovanni gave a sly smile. "Isabella never said it. I'm telling you that lies bring nothing but more lies. He can't be trusted. Ask my Patri how trusting Lorenzo worked out. You can't. Because of Lorenzo, he's dead."

  Carlo got up and left.

  Nico stepped to Giovanni. "How is the Donna? Is she aware of this?"

  "She hates me. I think part of her always has. Yes, she's aware." Giovanni said.

  "She does not hate you, Boss. You're a husband and a father. Go to her. Tell her your plans to see Lorenzo. You need her; she makes you strong."

  Giovanni sipped his drink.

  "We all heard the tape. Yes. Lorenzo betrayed the family. But he didn't order Patri's death. Lorenzo did what he always does, and it got Patri killed. There is a difference. Try to see it. If any of us have to kill our brother..." Nico's voice stopped. "It will never be undone."

  Giovanni scratched his brow. Nico had made sense. Nothing was more important than family now. He told the men to wait for him in villa Rosso. He needed to see his wife.

  ***

  The house was too crowded. Every room had a family member. The men were watching a soccer or rugby game on several of the televisions. She'd lost her twins to the aunts. The women out of Sicily loved the little brown skin, blue-eyed angels, which was what they called them. Eve, however, had her ballet lesson soon. And her daughter was piping with energy. Mirabella called the instructor and asked her to come. She wanted to give the children normalcy. Especially when so much in the world around them was falling apart.

  "Mama, can you tell Papa to come watch me?" Eve asked as Mirabella helped her step into her little sheer tutu.

  "Papa is busy."

  "Aww," Eve whined.

  Mirabella smiled. "But I'll be there. I wouldn't miss it."

  "Is it too late for me to come?" Giovanni asked.

  "Papa!" Eve squealed. She ran from Mirabella to him. He caught her in one leap. She hugged his neck and kissed his face. Mirabella stood. She was shocked. She figured he was still in battle mode with his men.

  "Can I come?" Giovanni asked her.

  The question was the most rational and straightforward of requests. But it felt so strange that she wasn't sure how to answer.

  "Yes, Papa! Please, Papa! I want to show you. You never come!"

  Mirabella looked away from his eyes. She was too angry to talk to him. She was too scared of what was coming for the family to argue with him. The anxiety she thought had evaporated returned with full force. Her hands were trembling. She woke up in the middle of the night screaming. This time, it wasn't Kei. It was her sister. The life of her sister. Their life was falling apart, and she was powerless to stop it.

  "Ask Mama if I can come. She has to say it's okay."

  "Mama! Tell Papa he can come! Tell him now!" Eve said in a tone void of patience.

  "Of course, Papa can come. Take her to the second floor next to the storage rooms. That's where the ballet lessons are."

  "Are you coming?" he asked.

  "No,” she hid her hands behind her back so he couldn’t see them shaking. It's best she has some father time. Have fun, sweetie." Mirabella said and then turned away from them to clean up the room. When she looked back, she saw Giovanni staring at her.

  "You should take her now. She's late."

  "Andiamo, Papa! Now!" Eve insisted and pulled his hand. Reluctantly he left. Mirabella went over to Eve's bed and sat on it. She blinked away her tears. And for the hundredth time she cried.

  ***

  Renaldo had spent the next two hours searching the familiar spots Dominic would frequent. At first, he went to the place Catalina told Kyra they should meet. But there was no trace of them. He then visited the local shops and restaurants. It was still early, so many of the bars were closed. And with Dominic not answering his pager, he couldn't be sure where to look next.

  Eventually, he stopped at a pay phone. He called home to check on Kyra.

  "Renaldo! Thank God you called," Kyra said.

  "What is it? The baby?"

  "No. Dominic. Ma found him in the car out front unconscious. He'd been drinking. He's acting weird. Come home. We're scared."

  "On my way!"

  Renaldo got behind the wheel and sped home. The drive was short. He arrived within minutes. The moment he was at the door Kyra pulled it open. "He's in his room. He has a gun."

  "Gun?"

  "Ma went in there to ask if he was hungry. She saw him sitting on the bed with the gun in his hand. I think he's going to kill himself. I called the house and left a message for Giovanni."

  Renaldo nodded. "It's okay. Go upstairs. I'll take care of him."

  "What happened? Did I do this? I thought he and Catalina needed each other. Did you see her?"

  "No. It's not your fault. It's okay. Go with Ma and check on our son. I'll take care of Dominic."

  Kyra was reluctant, but she eventually did as he said. Renaldo removed his gun and sat it down on the television. He went to the door and knocked once. "Domi?"

  "Go away," Dominic answered.

  "Domi, I..."

  "Go away!" he shouted.

  Renaldo opened the door. There were no locks on the doors in his house. He found Dominic seated with the gun next to him. For a minute he thought Dominic would have the gun pointed at his head.

  "What's going on? You have my wife out there thinking you're going to kill yourself."

  Dominic frowned. He looked down at the gun and then understood. "Not myself. Not yet. I'm going to kill Armando Mancini."

  Renaldo shook his head. "That's suicide."

  "You said you would help me?”

  “I was wrong.”

  “Yeah, we’re all wrong."

  "You and Catalina had a fight. That's not the end of things..."

  "Catalina and I are done. Giovanni was right from the start. I should have never... it doesn't matter. Armando is going to pay."

  "The problem isn't Armando. Catalina made a mistake. Punish her for it, but don't throw away your life because of it."

  "And if Kyra betrayed you with another man? Would you be so forgiving?"

  "It would kill me inside. And I would kill that man. Just like you want to kill Armando. But I would hope that I would have your counsel to stop me. To help me see what I could lose. Catalina is who you want. She's all you've ever wanted, Dominic, since you fell in love with her. Everyone sees it. Why do you think Armando used her vulnerabilities against her? To get at you. To break Gio. You chase her away, and he wins. Do you understand? He wins."

  Dominic sighed. "It's too late. We’re done. I can’t look at her."

  Renaldo reached for Dominic's gun. He was relieved that Dominic didn't stop him. "It's only too late if you let her go. If you force her to do something she will never come back from."

  "Get out. I want to be alone." Dominic said.

  Renaldo nodded. He went to the door and looked back at his friend one last time. He smiled. Dominic was hurt, but he was strong. He'd recover. And he was going to make sure Armando didn't destroy them.

  ***

  "I haven't seen Rosetta," Zia Josefina said.

  "She's in her room, isn't she?" Mirabella asked. The laundry was behind. She had loads of it from their visit to America. She turned on the machine and looked at a concerned Josefina. All Mirabella knew to do was busy work. If she stayed still too long, her mind began to wander. And then it surfaced. The claustrophobic feeling of not being able to breathe. The uncontrollable urge to scream. She had to pretend her raging conflicting emotions didn't exist so she could function. But it was hard. She was on the verge of another episode.

  "She’s not in her room. She went to bed, but she is gone. No one has seen her leave. It's strange."

  "She's here somewhere. The house is so filled with people. She might have gone to the cellars for quiet. Check there."

  "Oka
y. I'll check. You're right. She has to be here." Josefina turned to leave but bumped into Giovanni. "Hi, Gio."

  When Mirabella heard her say Giovanni's name she kept busy. She pretended to be extremely interested in reading the dials on the washing machine.

  "How are you, Josefina?"

  "Better. I'm worried about Vito. I was going to find Rosetta. I think we should go to Rome today."

  "I've already spoken to Enzo. He will take you both to Rome. We've made arrangements for your stay."

  "Grazie, Gio! For everything. Grazie!"

  Mirabella glanced back at them embracing. Giovanni looked up at her. She turned her head and continued to load the washer. Josefina must have left because Mirabella heard the door to the washroom close.

  "Eve's lesson is over. She's quite the ballerina," Giovanni said.

  Mirabella continued to separate the coloreds from the whites.

  "I need your help, Bella."

  She paused. She didn't look back at him. She stood still and waited.

  "Dominic's in trouble. I got a message from Kyra. I think you and I should go get him. Together."

  "Are you going to say anything about what I saw last night? Anything?"

  "I was drunk."

  "So?"

  "I don't know what happened. I can’t remember most of it."

  "I'll tell you what happened. You attacked her. You threw her out of this family and your heart. For that girl, the sun rises and sets on your shoulders. You treated her like trash."

  "I'll apologize."

  "But will you mean it? That's the question, Giovanni. We are all the enemy now. Even me!" She dropped the container of dish detergent, and her hand trembles overcame her. Giovanni saw it. Damn it he saw it.

  “Bella?”

  Mirabella doubled over and burst into tears. She couldn’t help it. She felt like her body was caving in on her. He pulled her over to him and held her the way he normally did. And it helped. She clung to him until the panic attack lessened. But she was panting and sweating as if she ran a marathon.

  “Calm. Be calm,” he told her.

  “I’m so angry with you! You break my heart! Every time I think of what I saw you do to her… it scares me.”