QUIET SECRETS (Quiet Mafia #2)

Chapter One

Certi segreti è meglio che restino tale

“Drop your guns!” Francesco yelled. “Stop!”

Nothing registered as I pulled back the hammer and my finger twitched on the trigger. I kept it pointed at the man holding Sienna. A dark storm swarmed my head and filtered out all rational thoughts.

“For the love of God, stop!” Francesco was now in my face, and I struggled to see around him. “Elio, put the gun down.”

“Why?” I shouted, annoyed he was interfering. “Get out of my way!”

“Elio,” he pleaded as he studied my face. When he realized I wasn’t going to lower my gun first, he whirled around and faced the woman. “Elenora, lower your gun.”

“Him first!”

“I didn’t start this,” I shouted, not moving my eyes off Sienna’s terrified expression. She was mouthing something, but I couldn’t follow.

“Don’t test him, Elenora. You have no idea what he’ll do for her,” Francesco pleaded.

“Let me go!” Sienna tried to rip her arm out of the man’s hold, but he yanked her back, and she fell to her knees with a cry. “Elio, stop.” Her scream burst through my murderous state. “She’s my mother.”

Mother? What the hell is happening here?

My gun wavered slightly, and the man holding her pulled her around behind him. To what, shield her from me?

A cloak of red filled my vision, and I blinked back my rage. Sounds came and went in waves while my head calculated the wind speed versus my bullet finding its way into the main artery running through his neck.

“Stop!” The desperation in Francesco’s voice as he held his arms out straight between us began to seep into my consciousness, but I was a hair of a second from staining the road with blood. “Hey,” he directed his attention to the man who held Sienna, “let her go, or I can promise you he will drill a bullet into your head.”

He’s right. I will.

The man looked at Elenora for direction.

“Sienna, do you know them?” Elenora snapped.

“Yes!” Sienna tried to find her footing.

After a moment’s hesitation, Elenora gave him a nod to let go. Sienna shoved his shoulders, making him step backward on the uneven ground.

“Get off me!” She raced over to me and flung herself into my arms. I wrapped my free hand around her back and held her close, but kept my gun pointed at him.

“What did you do?” Elenora glared at Francesco, but she lowered her weapon and ordered her men to do the same.

“What I had to.” He looked back at us, and I could see the pain of whatever was happening wash over his face. “Elio, this is Sienna’s mother.”

“Hey,” Sienna put her hand on my arm, “it’s true, she is. Please stop.”

I tried to make sense of what was happening. My brain seemed to be struggling with just how we got to guns being pulled, and Francesco suddenly being here, and knowing Sienna’s mother.

I waited a beat more, then lowered my weapon with a growl. It took all my strength not to pull the trigger. I never lowered my weapon until I knew the entirety of any situation, but when Sienna was involved, I broke all my rules.

“Oh, thank God.” Francesco heaved forward, resting his hands on his knees.

“What the hell is happening here?” I barked at everyone.

“We need to talk,” Francesco, my father’s loyal consigliere and second father to me, said quietly, “but not here in the open.”

“I’m not leaving.” Sienna madly brushed her tears away. “I’ve waited a long time for this.”

“And I understand that,” Francesco moved closer to her so he could lower his voice, “but not here, not like this. We need to get somewhere private, not here on the side of the road. Remember everything else that’s going on right now.”

She blinked and studied him, knowing he was right, then stepped around to address our visitors. “Will you come and talk?” Elenora gave a nod. “No guns.” Elenora nodded again.

“All right.” Sienna turned her gaze to me, and I took a moment before I finally nodded. “All right,” she repeated and turned to take my arm. We walked back to my car. It was still running and was parked in the middle of the road. Her hand shook as she gripped her purse, no doubt reeling from what the hell just happened.

“Vinni, take Wyatt with you,” I ordered over my shoulder for him to take Sienna’s best friend, who still seemed to be stuck in a trance.

“Yeah, boss.”

“Are you okay, Sienna?” She nodded but didn’t speak. “Don’t check out on me.” I kissed the top of her head. “I have a feeling another storm is about to hit us.” I opened the car door and helped her inside.

Francesco came up next to me.

“What the hell is going on here?” My rage still idled at the surface, ready to blow at any moment.

“Let’s take this to your uncle’s.” He glanced over at Elenora, who was getting into her car. “Mariano is at the Hill House.”

“Are you insane?” My jaw nearly dropped to the ground.

“Trust me on this.”

Normally, I wouldn’t ever question Francesco, but taking strangers to my uncle’s home to hold an unplanned meeting was just not how we operated. Especially without background checks on any of them.

I cleared my throat and rubbed my jaw as I stepped closer to him and spoke quietly. “I have always trusted you, my friend, but this makes me very nervous.”

“I know.” His eyes pleaded with mine.

“Fine.” I nodded once, unsure what else to say to him at this point. The whiplash from the last fifteen minutes had done a number on my head.

I eased behind the wheel and left Sienna to her thoughts while I slipped into a memory of my own.

“Ah!” I sent the ceramic sculpture across the room, bursting into a billion pieces as it hit the marble floor.

“Elio!” Aunt Noemi came racing in the room with her hands on her mouth. I saw my Nonna in the doorway behind her saying a silent prayer and grasping her rosary beads.

“It’s okay, Mama.” Niccola directed her out of the room before turning to face me.

A fierce storm whirled inside my chest. My heart fought to contain itself as hot blood coursed through it like the blast from a stick of dynamite.

“Cousin,” Niccola stepped further into the room, “I know you’re suffering, and I won’t even pretend to know what you’re going through, but this isn’t good for you. Your heart can only take so much.”

“I know that!” I shouted and whirled to face him. My fingers itched with the need to hurt someone as my anger raged. “I know my heart can’t take it.” I used my fist to bang on my chest, and tears stung my eyes, “I know this isn’t good for me. I never asked for any of this!”

“You didn’t, but sometimes it’s just not in the stars.”

“What about the moon?” I shouted louder. “What about the gods? Do they have no sympathy for love? No sympathy for the souls that walk this Earth?”

“Niccola.” Francesco had appeared and motioned for my cousin to leave. He approached my Nonna, who still stood near the door, and assured her everything would be all right. He quietly closed the door and turned to me.

“No.” I held up my hand, not needing anyone else inside my head. I breathed heavily and tugged at the top button of my dress shirt, needing more air. There wasn’t any.

I kept picturing what her face must have looked like when she discovered the house was empty and we had left her.

“Son,” he stood in place, knowing better than to approach me, “what happened that has you this upset?”

The room tilted, and I felt a sharp hit to the stomach as my anger surged again.

“Ah!” I swept the glass knickknacks off the table next to me. The sound was deafening. “I left her with those wolves! I left the only person I truly loved behind because I didn’t want to subject her to this life. What’s so bad about this life?”

“You were being selfless, Elio. It was noble of you.”

“Noble?” I gripped the edge of the table. I needed something to hang on to before I caved inward. “Tell me something, Francesco. Is it noble to knowingly rip the heart from the one you love and then leave her all alone to pick up the pieces, without even an explanation?”

“Love is a tricky thing.”

“Love is the root of all pain.” I felt my expression darken as I looked over at him, exposing my soul. “It embeds itself in you and lays dormant like cancer, and when you think everything is wonderful and just how it should be, it squeezes its tentacles around your heart and lets you bleed out a slow, miserable death.”

I closed my eyes and gave in to the anger, letting it smother me in a toxic cloud.

“What can I do for you, Elio?”

“Go get her for me,” I whispered.

“You know I can’t do that.”

“Can’t or won’t?” I slowly opened my eyes to see a pained expression on his face.

“The last I heard, she left the Di Vaio house, but then I lost track of her after a few days. I’m not sure if she went back or not.”

I stood at his news, shocked that he had not told me this yet.

“So, she could still be there?” I marched toward the door, but he stepped in my way and placed a hand on my shoulder.

“Leave if you must, Elio, but maybe get some rest and wait until morning. Take a breath and search your heart again. You made the decision against having her live in this kind of family, remember? Yes, we love all of those around us, but we also shed blood and take lives. All I ask is that you really think, once again, about what’s best for her. Your father just survived a hit. Who is next? It isn’t safe for any of us right now.”

I shifted my jacket on my hot skin and headed for the door. He was right. I should take the night to think.

With a glass of scotch in my hand, I sat in the dark in my new home just below my parents’ Hill House. The place still smelled of fresh paint. No matter how many times I went back and forth, I knew I couldn’t walk this Earth without Sienna by my side.

By six a.m. I had my bag packed and a flight to Sicily booked for nine. I tossed my belongings in the back of my car, and as I went to ease behind the wheel, I spotted a square envelope tucked under the windshield wiper. Plucking the contents free, I found a photo printed on a piece of card stock of Sienna in the city. The photo looked to be taken from a bit of a distance. The words at the bottom had my hand on my weapon while I scanned the property’s perimeter.

“If you go after her, we’ll kill her before you can ever reach her.”

At that moment, Francesco arrived and caught wind of my mood.

“What is it?”

I handed him the photo and watched his facial cues to see if he knew anything about it.

“I’ll make some calls.” He pulled his phone out, and I sank to the hood of my car while a sick realization hit me. She could get hurt because of me.

When we parked at my uncle’s, I shook my head to clear the memory and focus on the now. I glanced over at Sienna, who looked more annoyed than anything. Her fists had her skirt bunched up between her white knuckles.

“Hey,” I turned to face her and gently broke her hold on the fabric of her suffering skirt and twisted her to look at me, “whatever is going through your head right now, stop your thoughts. Don’t go there, at least until we know more, okay?”

She swallowed and took a deep breath and seemed to shake herself out of it. “I’m okay.” She flexed her fingers. “I’m just trying to follow what happened back there.”

“Me too.” I kissed her freezing hands and looked out the windshield at the greenery that covered about half of the stone manor in front of us. “Let’s go inside and wait for the others.”

“Okay.” She reached for the doorhandle.

Buttoning my jacket, I held out my hand and took hers, then we started up the huge marble staircase. I didn’t have to worry about hiding who we were to each other here; this was our safe place. A place to conduct business. Anyone who might be a threat to us wouldn’t be leaving the property in one piece, anyway.

“Where are we?” She eyed the electric fences and the giant maze I had recently used with Stefano Coppola’s men. That reminded me, I should pay my new informant, Samuele, a visit soon.

“A place of business,” was all I offered.

She raised a skeptical eyebrow but didn’t press the issue.

“Elio,” my aunt caught us in the doorway, “what are you doing here?”

“Aunt Noemi, this is Sienna Giovanna, a friend of mine.” My aunt glanced quickly at me. I could see she was wondering if Sienna really was just a friend, or perhaps something more. The mere fact that I had brought her here would have raised her curiosity. I just smiled warmly and let the topic be.

“It’s lovely to meet you.” She held out her hand and welcomed Sienna to the house. My aunt had never met Sienna and knew nothing about our past. I tended to be very private, and I knew Aunt Noemi would welcome anyone I brought to meet her with open arms. If only because it didn’t happen often.

“We’re meeting some people here.”

“Oh? I didn’t get a call.” That would be strange to her; we always called in our visits. My Nonna, Greta, lived here full-time, and my aunt and uncle would often come and go between our two properties. It was our number one rule to call ahead. I filled her in as best as I could as we drew further inside.

“Will Vinni be joining you?” She motioned for us to follow her out to the patio as she asked about her youngest son. I loved it here. The view over the stables and their vineyard went on for miles. Turned out, funneling money through wineries was easier than we expected. We now owned six.

“Yes, he should be arriving any moment.”

“Good, I need to speak with him.” She handed Sienna a bubbly water, and I shook my head, opting for a plain bottle of water instead. “So,” she took a seat across from us, “do you ride, Sienna? We have a stable just over there.”

“I have, a bit. Yes.”

“Wonderful. Maybe we could ride sometime.”

“I’d like that.”

My aunt smiled at me. She seemed excited to find someone who was interested in riding too. “Tell me more about yourself, Sienna.”

Sienna blinked a few times and cleared her throat, looking up at me for help.

“Aunt Noemi.” I pointed to the door, thankful Vinni had just walked in at the perfect time.

Vinni looked fit to kill, with Wyatt trailing behind him, his face as white as a ghost. As soon as Wyatt spotted Sienna, he rushed to her side and began to sputter an apology. She just nodded at him and stroked his arm.

“Haven’t they arrived yet?” Vinni looked around.

“Not yet.”

“What the hell?” Vinni pulled out his phone, and I did the same. I dialed Francesco.

“I’m here.” Francesco rushed inside holding up his ringing phone. Sienna jumped to her feet. “Just,” he held up his hands as we both took a step forward, “give me a second to take a breath.”

“Where are they?” I looked past him, not liking the idea of them being unsupervised in the house.

“They’re not coming.”

“What?” Sienna called out at the same time Vinni did.

“They’re not comfortable meeting here.” Francesco shrugged.

I squinted at him, catching his lie. I knew his every expression.

“A word?” I motioned for him to follow me into the hallway, out of earshot of the others.

“So, coming here was just a way for you to be alone with her and to draw us away from them?” He closed his eyes for a moment, and I knew I was right. “You’ve known me since I was born, and yet you lie to my face.”

We both turned our attention to the girl we had saved from the dockyard. She mindlessly roamed from room to room. She reminded me of one of those vacuum robots that bumped into pieces of furniture or walls with no real purpose but to move the dust around. I needed to figure out what to do with her. I shook my head and got my thoughts back on track.

“Elio,” he placed a hand on my shoulder, “there’s much that needs to be revealed, but it has to be done delicately. The time was not right then, nor is it now.”

“You can’t expect Sienna to accept that. She just met her mother after years of searching for her, and her reunion was met with guns drawn and hateful words spoken.”

“I know.” He closed his eyes as though my words hurt him. “I’m not expecting her to.”

“Where are they now?”

“Staying at a hotel.”

“All right, now what?” I tossed my hands in the air.

“Elenora wants to meet with Sienna, alone.”

“No way.” He must be out of his mind. “Over my dead body.”

“Elio, I promise you she’ll be fine.”

“How?” I nearly shouted but stopped myself. “How do you even know her mother?”

He covered his mouth and let out a long sigh, and I knew I wasn’t going to like the answer.

“That’s a long story, and there are many layers to it.”

“Meaning?” I was getting tired of these cryptic conversations.

“Meaning this whole thing has roots that date back well beyond your years, that can and will affect us all if not treated carefully. I can’t just come out with it. It’s as if Pandora’s Box is about to explode and reveal all its secrets at once. Secrets as important as these need to be revealed in a much more controlled setting. Elio, please, I beg you to be patient and trust me.”

I cursed and paced, unsure how to navigate something so obviously big without knowing what the hell it was all about. I was used to being in control, but I was out of my depth.

“So, what am I supposed to do? Let you take her there?”

“Yes.”

“No.” My jaw nearly hit the ground with what he was asking of me. “I won’t allow it.”

“There’s no other choice here. Elenora won’t step foot on Capri land!” he shouted. “You must let Sienna go to her, because once this unravels, Elio, you better hang on because it’s going to get messy.”

A sound sent both of us spinning around to find Sienna staring at us. Her face looked white, but her stance told me she was not going to back down.

“Which hotel?”

Dammit.

“No.” I shook my head.

She looked from me to Francesco. “What hotel?”

“Il Giglio.”

“Will you take me?” She tugged on the bag that hung from her shoulder.

“Yes.”

She gave a tight nod before addressing my fuming anger.

“Piero trusts Francesco, you trust him, and so do I.” Her voice was barely a whisper. “I don’t know what’s going on here, but if going there alone is how I will get some answers on my past, then so be it.”

“Not without me, you’re not.”

She reached up and placed her hand on my chest but paused when the sound of clinking stones reached our ears. It was a very familiar sound to me, so I shook my head and waved at her to continue.

“Elio,” she went on, “I’ve faced a lot of things without you. I can handle this.” She waited a beat before she let her hand slip away then headed down the hallway.

When the door closed, I took a deep breath and felt him behind me.

“We’re not really letting her go there without us, right?” Vinni half laughed.

“Of course not.” I motioned for him to get Wyatt, and we headed out.