The holy trinity series, p.44
The Holy Trinity Series, page 44
Luca’s hand reached out and I took a deep breath before taking it in mine.
This was it.
My heeled boots and Luca’s polished Testonis echoed throughout the penthouse as we walked into the living room. My heart was racing, and I questioned if I was strong enough to face whatever was about to happen. Whatever this meeting was about, it was defining. It was…huge. And whatever self-confidence I was pretending to have vanished the second we entered the living room.
Holy. Mary. Mother. Of. God.
Four men, varying in height and size, stood in the living room, all dressed in dark suits, appearances perfect down to their shined shoes.
I’d never seen such a magnificent sight in all my life.
In another life, I would have snapped a picture and turned their photos into a calendar that I’d take with me everywhere. The picture they presented was enough to emotionally damage any woman with working eyes. They were beautiful. Every last freakin’ one of them.
However, this wasn’t another life.
The shock of such a sight must have been written all over my face because Ciro winked at me and Phoenix flashed me his dimples. And, without any introductions, I knew who the other two men were. How could I not? They looked just like Luca, except they didn’t. Where they both had black hair, their eyes were green instead of black. They also looked…softer in comparison to Luca.
Our feet stopped when we came to stand in front of them. Luca’s hand gave mine a little squeeze and I wondered if they could all tell I was a mess.
“Remy, you already know Ciro and Phoenix,” Luca said. “And, now, I’d like for you to meet my brothers, Salvatore and Leonardo.” He gestured to each man as he said their names and, when both men smiled at me, I died a little inside.
They had fucking dimples.
“It’s nice to finally meet you, Remy,” Leonardo said, his hand taking my free and turning it to kiss the back. He looked to be the youngest, but even looking young, he looked dangerous.
“It’s nice to meet you too,” I lied. It wasn’t nice to meet him. It’d be nice meeting them if we were at a family picnic or…it was Christmas or something but meeting right before being summoned by the head of the Benetti Family was not nice.
It looked over at Salvatore and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up.
Salvatore Benetti gave off sketchy vibes.
He grabbed my hand, very much as Leonardo had, but he cocked his head, a knowing smirk on his face. “We’ve met,” he said. “Though, unofficially.”
I glanced at Luca and the tick in his jaw told me he didn’t appreciate his brother playing with me. However, he wasn’t going to step in, and that’s when it dawned on me.
This was a test.
I was going to be tested at this meeting.
“Did we?” I asked, thankful my voice wasn’t shaky even though I was on the verge of a freakin’ panic attack with the realization that I was the focal point of all this.
Salvatore winked at me. “I was there the night you and Luca met,” he replied, then kissed the back of my hand before letting go. He knew I was a witness to a murder they all committed. I’m sure they all knew by now, but knowing Salvatore was actually there that night felt different.
“It’s nice to officially meet you,” I lied again.
They were all taking me in and when Luca let go of my hand and went to stand with them, the sight almost dropped me to my knees. You had Luca with his black hair and exotic black eyes, Ciro with his beautiful face and hypnotizing golden eyes, Phoenix with his stunning looks, knowing hazel eyes, and deep dimples, and Leonardo and Salvatore with faces that resembled the man I loved, but with green eyes and dimples. And all six-foot or taller and built like they were made for the streets.
Christ, they were a captivating group.
“What now?” I asked, forcing my mind to focus on the problem at hand and not their stunning looks.
Luca slipped his hands in his pockets. “Sal and Leo will head over separately from the rest of us,” he explained. “Ciro and Piero will head out together, while you and Phoenix will head over with Armando and Emilio. I’ll follow with Sensio.”
I wanted to panic.
I wanted to demand he explain why I was heading over with Phoenix and not him, but if learned anything yesterday, it was my place in this new world. I had to trust Luca and, even if I didn’t, I couldn’t show it in front of anyone else. Our issues had to remain private, visible to only Phoenix, Ciro, Luca, and Robbie. I knew in my gut that, brothers or not, Luca didn’t trust them the way he did the others.
With a resolve I didn’t know I possessed, I gave him a nod of acquiesce. “Do I need to get my purse?”
Luca’s chin lifted and I knew he was proud of me. He looked at me with the hunger of a predator and the pride of a god. “No,” he said. “There’s no need.”
I looked over at Phoenix and gave him, what I hoped, was a convincing smile. “Ready to go?”
I wasn’t expecting that same look of pride to come from his hazel eyes, but it turned my timid smile into a real one. He lifted his arm and pointed the elbow in my direction. “Allow me,” he said softly, and I curled my hand around his arm, linking us together.
I turned back to get one last look at Luca before we all left. I wasn’t sure if it was okay or not with an audience, but I knew I couldn’t walk out of here without doing the bravest thing I’ve ever done.
Put my feelings out there.
“I love you,” I told him, my voice strong and confident. No ounce of embarrassment or doubt.
His grin was slow, sexy, and assured. And in a voice just as strong and confident, he said, “I love you, too, mia regina.”
Salvatore and Leonardo went out the front door first, and when I went to step, Phoenix halted my movements. “We are exiting a different way, Remy,” he said. “We can’t all be seen together. It’s too dangerous for us to be seen traveling all at the same time.” With that, he led me to a hidden alcove located past the gym and library. A false wall parted, and another elevator emerged.
I looked up at Phoenix. “What is this?”
“An escape route,” he answered. “Only us six know about it. Not even the guards know it exists.”
Phoenix escorted me into the elevator and as it silently descended, I asked, “Why am I going with you and not Luca?”
“Because we’ve just discovered that Sensio is Giovanni’s snitch and Luca doesn’t trust him around you,” he said easily.
“Holy shit,” I whispered, shocked.
“Holy shit, indeed,” he agreed.
Chapter 23
Luca~
As much as I trusted Phoenix, letting him escort Remy to this fucking shitshow had been a great testament to my inner strength as a man. I knew exactly what we were all walking into, and it burned not being the man leading with Remy.
Fuck Gio.
When we’d all received the address of where the meeting was to take place, I knew Giovanni, his Consigliere, his guards, and all Benetti Capos would be in attendance. He was setting up the audience for a show he thought he was in charge of.
But he was wrong.
The second he had called me and told me to bring Remy to a meeting, I had called Francesca and told her I needed Ciro and Phoenix. Her security plans were going to have to be put on a hold for a few hours. As soon as Ciro and Phoenix had shown up, we’d gone over everything Francesca had overheard and Phoenix, immediately, got on my computer and started digging into everything he could, while I called Sal and Leo and told them to come over too.
For two hours, Sal pulled up everything he could find on Gio. Leo pulled up all his finances. Phoenix took the information Sal had brought on Sensio and focused his attentions on Sensio. And Ciro pulled up every female cop in Morgan City and combed through their lives. I spent my time going through Kratos’ security and kept checking the camera feed on seventh floor, making sure the girls were safe.
By the time everyone had gone home to shower and change, I had everything I needed to bring Giovanni Benetti to his knees.
When Sensio pulled out of the thicket of wooded forest, an old-fashioned barn stood in the middle of the clearing. It looks like it’s been abandoned for years, but it looked sturdy enough not to come crashing down on our heads. The field was littered with black sedans, SUVs, and a couple of Range Rovers.
I got out of the car and, fastening my suit jacket, I looked around and saw no less that fifty Benetti soldiers standing guard in a circle around the perimeter. All of them fashioned with semi-automatics and jackets for days. This meeting would be an enemy’s wet dream and no safety measures were spared.
Sensio walked behind me, and I knew I was the last one to arrive. It had been deliberate. I needed to make a statement tonight and all eyes needed to be on me when I walked in. Gio thought he was bringing Remy here to rattle me and embarrass her, but he was in for a rude awakening.
When I opened the doors and walked in, every head in the place turned my way. The tension in the room was palpable and everyone looked uncomfortable and like they would rather be anywhere else.
There was no furniture in the place, and the barn was empty, apart from a few old, rusted machinery scattered throughout. Everyone was on their feet with Giovanni commanding the room at the head of the human half circle.
I looked to my right and Sal, Leo, Phoenix, Ciro, and Remy were standing off to the side. None of them men took their place in the formation and that was enough to cause the tension in the room. However, it wasn’t until Gio boomed my name that I realized the reason for the tension in the room.
“Luca!” he greeted, loud and unnecessarily jovial. “Glad you’re finally here.” Taking a step to the left, he reached behind him and, with his arm casually draped over her shoulders, Beverly stepped forward. “I called this meeting because we just needed a few things cleared up, Son,” he continued. He made a big show of glancing around the room. “There’s been talk about the next steps in running the organization, and well…you can understand our confusion when you’ve had this beautiful, elegant, intelligent woman warming your bed for the past few years, but then there’s a rumor that you have a fiancé, but it’s not her. It’s understood we need a family man at the helm of all we’ve built, but who do you plan on making a family with?”
I was vibrating with rage.
I was vibrating with rage for both Remy and Beverly. Neither woman deserved this staged humiliation. I also knew that if Beverly was here, she was here under false pretenses. Gio lured her here somehow, but it wasn’t for this. Beverly wasn’t a cruel person. She also knew she’d never be my wife. Even if I had developed a fondness for her over our years together, she couldn’t have children. Beverly knew I needed them to continue my legacy, but more importantly, I wanted them. Our arrangement had been mutually beneficial and, no matter her feelings on the matter, she would never come here and pull a stunt like this. She would never risk being on my bad side. Gio convinced her to come here, and I was sure he had used me as the bait somehow.
“In the spirit to end all speculation, I thought it’d be best to have both women here so you could explain to everyone exactly what was going on,” he lied. “Remy, why don’t you come forward, dear.”
I didn’t look her way, but I put my hand up to stop her. I walked further into the circle until I was practically in the center of it. It wasn’t until then that Ciro, Phoenix, Sal, Leo, and Remy came up from behind to complete the circle. Everyone seemed to be holding their breaths, and all that could be heard was the rustle of leaves and dead grass the wind was playing with.
I wanted to kill this man and everyone in the room knew it.
My voice was so cold, I didn’t even recognize it myself. “You dare to parade another woman, one who I’ve been in a relationship with, in front of the woman I plan on marrying?”
“Ah, so you do plan on marrying one of them,” he replied, a brow lifted in arrogance.
I looked at Beverly and she looked terrified. “Beverly, are you okay?” I asked because I wouldn’t put it past Gio to have harmed her in some way.
She stepped out from under Gio’s arm and nodded. “Luca…I…” Beverly’s voice cracked, and she had to compose herself before continuing. “He said you asked for me.” Her explanation was offered on a tortured whisper and I knew she thought I was going to kill her.
I gave her a curt nod but didn’t bother to alleviate her fears. We were two seasoned lions facing off, and I was not going to show an ounce of weakness in this room. I would handle Beverly afterwards.
“Well, Son,” Gio said, “we’re just all wondering on which direction you plan on taking this organization. I mean…to be fair, if you can’t choose between two women, how can we count on you to make the hard decisions?”
I didn’t take my eyes off Gio when I said, “Beverly, can you tell everyone why you’re confused about being here, please?”
“Be…because…I don’t belong here,” she said. “It’s a…a family meeting. I have no business here because I’m not…a part of all this.” Gio’s eyes narrowed and I could tell his composure was slipping. His grandstanding was backfiring. “And…well, I hadn’t seen you in a couple of months before you called me last week to…uh…Luca?”
Still not looking at her, because I didn’t want anyone in the room to think I was intimidating her, I said, “It’s okay, Beverly. Continue and tell them everything.”
“You called me to meet you…so…well, you ended things with me,” she finally finished. “I…I didn’t ask why because it was none of my business.”
In a desperate bid to cover up his folly, Giovanni tsk’ed. “Really, Luca?” He dramatically shook his head. “She’s been doing the job of being your woman for years and you go and give the position permanently to someone else? A bit insensitive, don’t you think?”
I took a few steps forward for purpose. I glance around the room and everyone saw a smirk on my face rather than the rage or embarrassment they were expecting. “Well, if I’m expected to set the example, then I guess all Benetti men will be expected to marry their mistresses, yeah?” All around me, males straightened and bristled at the very idea. “And since it’s apparently appropriate to parade my former paramour in front of my fiancé…” I looked over at the first elder to catch my eye. “…then I suppose it’s okay for Joseph to invite Minnie to Christmas dinner this year. I’m sure Angelica wouldn’t mind entertaining her husband’s mistress for the holidays. After all, Joseph’s been keeping Minnie for years now. Surely, Minnie deserves some recognition just as Beverly, no?”
Grumbles and protests were like a rumbling thunder downing out the silence. The older men didn’t see anything with being unfaithful, but they still had their own code of ethics and respect and would never shame their wives like that. It was the only way to convince themselves that they were still good husbands even though they weren’t.
Gio straightened and I could see anger coming alive in the black eyes that were the same as mine own. And since he couldn’t rattle me, he switched tactics. “Well, why don’t we ask your lovely fiancé what she thinks about all this? After all, you’ve yet to introduce her to us. To your family.”
I raised a brow. “She’s met Salvatore and Leonardo,” I replied coolly, but then motioned for Remy to come up. When she stopped next to me, she reached over and took my hand in hers.
I almost kissed her right then and there.
She inclined her head and showed my father the respect he didn’t deserve. “Mr. Benetti.”
His eyes hovered quickly over our joined hands. “Cute,” he chuckled, then sobered up. “Since my son is so tight-lipped, why don’t you tell us what you think about all this?”
I could feel her trembling, but when she looked up at me, I didn’t see anything but strength and confidence. “Do I have permission to speak freely?” she asked, and I fell in love with her all over again.
“Shouldn’t you be asking me that, young lady?” Gio spat, the cracks in his equanimity showing.
Remy turned to look at the head of the Benetti Family and said, “You may be the head of the Benetti Family and the Boss of the Benetti Empire, but Luca is the head of our family and the boss of our empire. I answer to him, and only him.”
On Monday, May 27th, 2019, in an abandoned barn in the middle of fucking nowhere, surrounded by one of the deadliest Mob families in history, a queen was born.
My queen.
Gio’s face was red with unadulterated rage. “And who do you think Luca answers to?” he spat. “Me!”
“Not anymore,” I said, ready to end this shit and get Remy and Beverly out of here.
“You think you can challenge me?” he spewed out viciously. “You think you and your friends are powerful enough to move out me and mine?” Gio was so incensed, spittle was flying out of his mouth. “Boy, you have no idea what you’re up against.”
I let go of Remy’s hand and moved her behind me. “Neither do you,” I tossed back. “But you will.”
I needed Remy and Beverly safely out of the line of fire. “Ciro. Phoenix.” My gaze never left my father’s as Ciro went to collect Beverly and Phoenix came and got Remy. At the same time as the guys were securing the women, Sal and Leo came to stand behind me. That simple show of loyalty turned the tension in the barn into a dread that permeated everyone in the room.
“Since we’re on the subject of mistresses, Gio,” I began as Sal slapped a folder in my outstretched hand. “Why don’t we talk about Marjorie Conti?” His eyes widened and his face paled. “You’re not the only one with resources, Gio.”
“You’re bluffing!”
I glanced around the room and mimicked Gio’s earlier display of showmanship. “Would any of you like to know who Marjorie Conti is?”
“Luca!”
I turned back towards my father. “You step the fuck down, Giovanni. You step down and hand over every-fucking-thing to me and I might let you live. You want to do down fighting, I got you. But your death will be one for the ages.”
