“It is.”
“I have to go to Livia now. You are right. She needs to hear it from me and I need some time to come to terms with the news too. You don’t have to bring me to the door. Take care of Leonas.” Giovanni stroked Leonas’ head with a pained smile before he hurried out of the room.
“Daddy! Grandpa, leave.”
“I know,” I said quietly. Leonas frowned then he rushed back to the chair.
Valentina appeared in the doorway, looking confused, her hair still damp and piled on top of her head. “I hurried so I could say hi to my father but he practically fled the house. What’s going on?”
I wasn’t sure how to tell her the horrible truth. My eyes darted to Leonas in my chair. He yawned and rubbed his eyes.
Val stiffened. “Dante, you’re scaring me… is this about Orazio?”
I moved closer. “Let’s bring Leonas into bed for his nap and then I’ll tell you.”
“Dante,” Val whispered.
I touched her shoulder. “Later.”
Val nodded mechanically and watched as I picked up Leonas who rested his cheek in the crook of my neck, a clear sign it was time for him to rest. “Come, Val.”
We walked in silence upstairs and I lowered Leonas into his bed. I brushed his hair out of his face then straightened. Without a word, I led Val into the corridor and stepped close to her, cradling her face. Her eyes swam with fear. I wished she didn’t have reason to feel that way.
“Our contacts in Famiglia territory informed us that Orazio showed up in New York where they took him in.”
Val’s lips parted but she didn’t say anything. Disbelief followed by horror flashed across her beautiful face.
“I’m sorry, Val.”
She shook her head slowly. “That means he’s a traitor…? I don’t understand why he’d join the Famiglia. Why not run away?”
“I think he might have been working with them for a while.”
Val pressed her forehead against my chest, shuddering. “Why couldn’t he just run?”
“His girlfriend is pregnant.”
Val peered up and realization settled on her features. “He wants to protect them. Being on the run with a child is impossible. He probably thought they’d be safest in the Famiglia.”
I kept my face neutral. Val needed to make sense of this and her reasoning certainly had merit. Orazio had probably acted with the goal to protect his pregnant girlfriend, but he was far from safe. He would be hunted. I couldn’t sit back when the son of a high-ranking Outfit member defected to our enemies. I needed to eliminate him as soon as possible to make an example out of him. This could spin out of control if I wasn’t careful.
Val searched my eyes. Even without saying a word, I knew what she was hoping to find, but not this time. Mercy wasn’t going to wait for Orazio once I got him. “You’re going to hunt him now, won’t you?”
“I have to.”
She shook her head. “You don’t. You are the Capo. You can determine what direction the Outfit takes in the future. Why plunge everyone into a bloody war that won’t lead us anywhere? Why can’t we just ignore each other? There doesn’t have to be peace between the Outfit and the Famiglia as long as we just don’t kill each other.”
“Because Luca made this personal. He killed one of my men, he kidnapped Rocco’s daughter, and now he took in my brother-in-law. I won’t ignore this, Val. My men expect me to show strength, and accepting when others disrespect me and the Outfit isn’t showing strength. They’ll be met with the full force of my brutality and vengeance.”
Val stepped back and slowly made her way into our bedroom where she sank down on the bed. “What did my father say?” Her voice was forced calm, and I hated that she brought up a barrier between us. I followed her. Her gaze was directed at her hands which fumbled with her sweater. She didn’t want me to read her.
“He’s going to tell your mother now. He understands the consequences of Orazio’s actions.”
Val huffed. “Consequences of his actions. Could you sound any more blasé?” Her eyes flashed up to mine, full of anger and anguish. “This is my brother, Dante. It’s not an enemy, not a traitor, not a name on a list that you can cross out as if it never meant anything. And no matter what Papa says, this hits him hard. And Mamma…” Val turned away from me once more, gripping the edge of the bed tightly, her shoulder shaking.
I forced down my own anger and frustration. Val had a lot to stomach, not to mention two small demanding children to take care of. She was exhausted and emotionally vulnerable. “I’m aware of that. What do you expect me to do, Val? I’m Capo. My men expect me to lead them through this crisis. A crisis, which I might add, might have been made worse by Orazio’s actions.”
She pushed up to her feet once more. “He did it for the woman he loves and his unborn child. What would you do to protect our children?”
I jerked her against my chest. “I’d do anything to protect you, Anna and Leonas. Absolutely anything, which is why I need to make sure the Outfit stays strong. Luca won’t hesitate to tear down everything I built. The Outfit is Leonas’ legacy. It’s our family’s legacy. I won’t go lenient on people who risk the safety of our family.”
“Maybe we’d be safer without a war…”
“Val,” I growled. “Luca began this war and I’ll end it eventually, on my terms and when the Outfit comes out on top. Don’t blame me for what your brother did. He knew the consequences of his actions and he accepted them. How do you know he didn’t pass on information about you, about Anna and Leonas to Luca? We don’t even know the extent of his betrayal yet.”
Val considered my words but I could see that she didn’t want to believe it. “Do you really think Orazio would have told Luca anything about Anna and Leonas?”
I cupped the back of her head until she looked at me again. “I don’t know and that’s the problem. Now that Orazio is in New York, you can be certain he gives Luca anything he knows. He needs to stay useful to warrant protection.”
Val sank against me and let out a shuddering sob. I wrapped my arms around her as she cried. I understood her sorrow and it pained me to see her like that, but I didn’t feel anything but anger for Orazio’s actions. He wouldn’t be met with mercy if I ever got my hands on him. He was no longer family. He was the enemy, even if Val couldn’t see it that way.
Valentina
My stomach tightened painfully when Enzo pulled up in front of my parents’ house. Anna bounced excitedly in her seat and even Leonas, who had been bawling the entire ride, looked delighted when he recognized the house. I’d only briefly talked to Mamma on the phone last night. Her voice had sounded hoarse from crying but she’d tried to sound composed.
I took Leonas out of his seat and Enzo helped Anna out of the car. The door of the house opened and Mamma stepped out, dressed in black as if she was already mourning Orazio’s death. Maybe this was her way of dealing with the situation, pretending he was dead so she wouldn’t have to worry about his fate anymore. If the Outfit ever caught him, death definitely wasn’t the worst option. Bile traveled up my throat considering Dante might torture my own brother.