QUIET EMPIRE (Quiet Mafia #4)

Chapter Three

Once Niccola was stable and I was assured Mama was fine after her fall, I found Papa in his office looking over some footage that had been taken earlier. I stepped inside and quietly closed the door. He removed his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose as he blew out a puff of air.

“I’ve no idea who they were.” He looked worn out, and I knew the constant battle we all had to fight to keep our family name at the top of the syndicate list was exhausting. “Vinni is running prints, but that will take a bit. Your mama is sore but all right, and Niccola,” he shook his head, carrying the guilt of what could have happened on his shoulders, “he’s going to be out for a few weeks.”

“He’ll be fine,” I assured him.

“Then this whole Elenora thing.” He shook his head slowly. “How’s Sienna holding up?”

“I haven’t spoken to her yet, but Francesco assures me she’s fine. I think she’s angrier and more betrayed that her mother pointed a gun at us than about her actual death.”

“Yes, well, wait until things settle and she has time to think about it. It will more than likely hit her then.”

“Perhaps, yes.” I leaned over the back of the chair as I thought. “I spoke to Nonna, and for once, I believe she had nothing to do with what happened.”

“Let’s hope,” he grunted. “I make no excuses for my mother. She’s a product of her generation and sadly can no longer be trusted.”

I nodded and took a moment to try to put myself in Papa’s place. I knew it must be hard on him.

“What are those?” I pointed to the spreadsheets he was going over.

“These are the reports the guys were combing through.”

“And?”

“And it turns out the Coppolas are broke.”

“What?” I took the papers from him and scanned the transactions. “But they were bringing in massive amounts of cash. Where’d it all go?”

“That’s why I’m here, trying to figure it out.”

“Maybe that Mikey person is funneling money elsewhere and not into the family’s accounts.”

“That ran through my mind, too.” Papa nodded as he thought. “Problem is the paper trail falls off from there. The account is untraceable, and there’s nothing left to follow.”

“I’ll see what I can dig up.” I handed the papers back and pulled out my phone as it vibrated in my pocket.

It was Gain. After a few moments, I put the phone back in my jacket pocket and turned to Papa.

“I need to go deal with something. Let me know when the soldiers are finished clearing the area. I’ll go get Sienna myself.”

“Yes, go. I’ll be in touch.”

“All right. I’ll check in later.”

I got changed into jeans, a long-sleeved shirt, and a ball hat, something I’d normally never be caught dead wearing, but I needed to play a part. I needed to be unrecognizable. I left the house and jumped in my car and headed to the place where we’d stayed that morning. Gain was back there now with Harris and a few other soldiers. They’d been told to stay there to keep the house looking active. They were to watch for any more visitors, and one had just been spotted.

The sun was almost down, and the advantage was now in my favor. I knew the layout of all our properties; it was something Papa had taught me from an early age. “Draw your enemy into familiar territory and take the lead,” he’d said.

And that was just what I did.

I called Gain once I’d hidden the car and raced into the woods. “I’m here. You have your night vision on?”

“Yes. Come east,” he whispered from somewhere near the house. “He’s wearing a t-shirt, jeans, sneakers, slightly shorter than me, maybe weighs twenty pounds less than you.”

Keeping low, I moved swiftly, listening to Gain in my ear as I approached our visitor.

“I see you.” I heard him moving, probably to see better. “He’s just to your left.”

“Got him.” I took in everything as I raced along a few yards behind him. His sneakers were not meant for the woods, so I ran wide and came into his side view, steering him into thicker terrain. Darkness was creeping up on us, and he yelped as he tripped then started to run faster, unsure who I was and what I wanted. I ducked and jumped the ditch. I was prepared for it. I knew what was in front of me. I knew where I wanted him to go, and he was following my plan perfectly.

Jeans were hard to run in, which was why I lived in dress pants. They were light and weren’t restrictive. You never knew when you’d have to move fast, and I was always prepared. In our line of work, it could mean the difference between life and death.

Shadows were becoming deeper, and an owl above us started his night call. The moon was bright and provided a sliver of light through the forest, just enough to keep eyes on the man.

Again, I used my body to steer him in a different direction. Quickly, I gained ground, closing the distance between us.

Yes, keep running, because…He tripped and flew forward right into the thick sludge that always gathered in this small area. It had nearly caught me a few times when I was scouting the terrain.

I raced into the mud while he was off balance and wrapped my arm around his neck. I yanked him backward, using the sludge to hold his legs down.

“What were you doing at the house?” I grunted in his ear as he wrenched to get free. “Tell me or I’ll snap your neck.”

“I came here for Mikey!”

“Who?” I wasn’t sure if I’d heard him right.

“I don’t know—” He gasped when I punched his ribs. “I got a call from my boss,” he coughed, “saying he got a lead that this Mikey was here, and I was to bring her back to him.”

“Her?” Mikey was a woman?

“What else do you know?” I fixed my grip, tightening my arm around his neck.

“Just that she was siphoning money from my boss, and I’m not allowed to return until I have her.” He fought to breathe.

Bang! The shot echoed through the woods. I strengthened my grip on the man and bent him back as I got low to the ground.

I got a quick glimpse of one of my soldiers. He moved his flashlight at a man across the way from me who was now lying face down over a rock. He must have been sneaking up on me. I gave a quick wave and went back to the man in front of me.

“There’s no one left to save you now,” I huffed.

“You think we’re the only ones coming?” He half laughed. “My employer alone hired a multitude of men, and that’s just us. I don’t know who the hell this woman is. I just want to get paid, but the word’s out and spreading fast that Mikey has surfaced, and they are out for blood. There’s a lot of money to be made for whoever gets her.”

Mikey is here?

“How do you know who you’re after?”

“You should know. She’s in the picture with you.”

“What?”

“Phone.” He struggled to speak. He awkwardly reached for his phone, and I let him open it. What I saw made my blood run cold.

No. Confusion tried to cloud my brain. Whoever Mikey was, I knew he or she had been making deals for years. Whoever they were, they would have to be much older than me.

“She’s pretty, but orders are orders.”

I saw black as I squeezed with all my might and jerked his spine to snap it at the base of his neck. I tossed him aside, scooped up his phone, removed the password setting with his limp thumb, and hurried back toward the house with my soldier protecting my back as I went.

I needed to change, and I needed to get the hell out of there.

I almost made it to the tree line when a whistle rang out. Gain motioned for me to follow him into the trees.

“You good?”

“No.” I tossed him the phone, and he looked at it then at me, confused over the photo of me and Sienna.

“Do whatever it is you guys do and tell me everything that is on that phone.”

“Yes, boss.”

I made a brief call then ordered the soldiers to stay put and to report to me if anyone else arrived between now and the time I checked back in.

“Permission to shoot?” Harris, one of my top soldiers, asked as I was about to leave.

“They’re after Sienna.” I whirled around to drive my point home. “You have permission to slaughter.”

* * *

Papa: We’re clear and have tripled our protection.

I quickly called my father as I headed back toward the car and filled him in.

Vinni met me at the end of the road, and I tossed my keys to Gain and ducked in the back of Vinni’s car.

“I have your bag and one Andrea packed for Sienna.” He looked over his shoulder to check his blind spot as he eased onto the main road. “You good?”

“No.” I tapped Francesco’s number. He answered on the second ring.

“I promise you she’s good.” He must have stepped out onto the balcony by the sounds that could be heard over the phone. “She just fell asleep.”

“How many soldiers do you have that can get to the hotel?”

Silence.

“I don’t know.” He paused. “Maybe three or five?”

“Find more.”

“Elio, what’s happening?”

“Someone’s put a hit out on Sienna. They’ve named her as Mikey. That’s why we were attacked at the house. I have a feeling they’re heading your way.”

“Mikey? That makes no sense. How could they think it’s Sienna? The timelines of the transactions wouldn’t even match up.”

I thought about all those late nights when Francesco, Papa, and I combed the web for any dealings with someone named Mikey. We did find a couple of companies, but no one would agree to speak to us about it. I made a mental note that when they came under my rule, they’d answer to me or have consequences.

“I don’t know. She was just named as Mikey. Maybe it’s an organization.”

“Jesus,” he huffed. “All right. I’ll make some calls. But hang on. I need to wake up Sienna, because, Elio, you need to hear what she has—”

A call came in, and I pulled the phone away from my head to read the screen.

What the hell kind of timing was this?

“I’m on my way. I’ll call you back. Just get some guys there fast.” I hung up and flipped over to the other call.

“I’d ask how you are, but something tells me I know the answer.” Mariano chuckled, and I could tell by his slurred words he had probably had just taken a hit of cocaine.

“So, you finally sobered up enough to crawl out from under a rock. What do want, Mariano?” I watched Vinni’s head tilt at the name as he glanced at me in the rearview mirror. We hadn’t heard from Mariano in a long time, and I was sure he was also wondering at the timing.

“Can’t a guy say hi to an old friend?”

“And?”

“I wanted to hear your voice and find out if the rumor that she was dead was true, but the fact that you answered and aren’t out on a killing spree with Tieri just told me my answer.” I rubbed my eyes, massaging the tension that found me whenever Mariano was around. “I’d ask how my girlfriend is, but that’s right, the two of you played me. You slept with her while I thought she and I were finally making progress as a couple.”

“First, she was never yours to begin with. You knew who she was from the very beginning and tried to use her as a pawn to take me down. Of course, you failed because you can’t keep your nose out of the powder, and she saw you for who you really are. An addict who can’t keep his d**k in his pants.”

“You never let her give me a chance! You just stepped in and stole her from me. Every chance I had, there you were luring her away with your money and flashy suits.” He snapped, and his angry rant morphed into a dark laugh. “But not this time.” He paused. “This time I have the advantage because I’ve been watching her.”

My blood ran cold. I knew he’d run to the Coppola house for protection.

“I’ve been watching how Salvo slowly sank his claws into her while you weren’t around. Their bedroom talks, their garden talks, my favorite was when Anna tried to get between them, and Salvo made sure he defended Sienna. It’s always the subtle moments that you don’t see right away that mean the most. How’s it feel, Romeo? Now you might just lose your Juliet.”

I closed my eyes, knowing Sienna and I had been parted for ten years and had still found our way back to each other. I knew a few weeks within enemy territory, as much as it pained me, couldn’t affect us. “It’s sad where you spend your energy, Mariano. Maybe you should be a real man and come visit me yourself. Or be a decent son and visit your parents.”

Silence. There was a reason it was only Donte serving dinner that night. We’d made sure the rest of the staff were not on duty and were away from the house. We couldn’t risk the news being spread about how we’d had the DeSimones over for their last dinner. Mama had sent the odd text to Mariano and to some of Bria’s close friends from Bria’s phone to make sure people thought they were still around. I made sure to say something just this once to plant the seed in his chaotic mind. It was just a matter of time before I played my cards on that one.

“You know what the best part of this is?” His voice strained like he’d just taken another hit. “There are people around you, people you know, and they’re just waiting to make their move.”

There were always going to be those people, which was why whenever we did anything big, like murder another Don and his wife, we did it with as few eyes as possible.

“It wouldn’t be a crime family, Mariano, if everyone around you was loyal.” I hung up, knowing he always needed the last word.