12
Rafa
“How’s the girl?”
I grunted as I sat down at my desk, kicking my feet up. “She’s fine.”
“Where have you been all day?”
“Tailing her mostly. Staked out her place and watched over her.”
“Stalking her, you mean.”
I grinned at Vince. I felt tense as hell, but he could usually bring some lightness to a tough situation. He was a good boss, a quality capo in the mafia, one of the best by far. I wouldn’t have worked for any other fucking guy.
It was late, getting past one in the morning. I was exhausted, but I knew Ernesto was probably trying to convince Arturo to turn against the girl every second he could.
Vince stood up and brought over a glass of whisky. I took it gratefully and drank. He leaned up against the desk, sighing.
“Some shit,” he said.
“You’re not kidding. When do we get to see the old man?”
“Soon. I sent word out to Lucas. We’re going to take care of this.”
“You mean I’m going to.”
“Whatever. Just don’t do something stupid.”
“I do what I have to do.”
He shook his head. “That’s your problem, Rafa. You’re too headstrong, too fucking stubborn. You can’t just break everything you don’t like. Sometimes you have to be political.”
“I’m not the political type,” I said.
“You’re coming up in this organization, Rafa. We all know you’re next in line for a fucking territory of your own. So you better learn to be political, or else.”
I shook my head and shot back my drink. I could work guys over, make threats where threats were needed. Hell, I could outthink most mafia assholes. But when it came to kissing ass and playing the game, I just didn’t know how.
It wasn’t in my blood.
Just then, there was a knock at the door.
“Come in,” Vince called out, giving me a look.
Fat Jimmy poked his round head in. “Guys,” he said, “Arturo and Ernesto want to talk.”
“The fuck they send you for?” I asked him.
“I was just around, so I got sent. That’s all I got to say.”
“Fine,” Vince said, standing up. “Come on, Rafa.”
I followed them out of the room, annoyed. I knew this could be a pretty damn important moment, but I couldn’t help but feel pissed off about everything.
I had told them not to touch the girl. That should have been enough. But Ernesto was a fucking capo and a boss, and that meant he had the final say over me.
We headed up to the top level of the mansion, back toward Arturo’s office. Fat Jimmy stopped at the end of the hall and leaned up against the wall. We ignored him as we continued past and stopped outside the big oak door.
Vince knocked and then waited. After a second, Arturo called us inside.
He opened the door. We walked in, shutting the door behind us.
Arturo’s office was the biggest in the mansion. Richly furnished with leather and expensive wood pieces, it looked like a million dollars. Probably because the place cost a fucking million, at least.
Sitting at the big desk was Arturo himself. He was an old man, balding but still large, with intense eyes and a small smile. Ernesto sat in one chair, looking back at us.
Arturo didn’t look imposing, but he was. He had built the damn mob with his own hands. He was an old man, but he was a dangerous old man, and a violent one.
Vince nodded to the bosses. “Gentlemen.”
“Vincent,” Arturo said. “Take a seat.”
We sat down in the two remaining chairs. Ernesto stared daggers but said nothing.
“What’s this about?” Vince asked. “It’s late and I’m not drunk enough yet.”
Arturo laughed. “You two know what it’s about.”
“The girl,” I said.
“The fucking bitch,” Ernesto cut in.
I gave him a look. He turned his head away.
“She’s not a threat,” Vince said. “We don’t need to discuss this any further. She’s worthless.”
“She’s not,” Ernesto said.
“Enough,” Arturo cut him off, holding up a hand. He looked back at Vince. “Out of respect for you and Rafa, we haven’t done anything yet. We were discussing it, trying to figure out what was best. But something new happened.”
I felt surprised. I had told her to lie low and not do a damn thing, so I couldn’t imagine something new had happened. As far as I knew, she was sitting in her apartment, doing nothing but working on some shitty article.
“What happened?” I asked.
“The Spiders contacted her,” Ernesto growled.
That surprised the hell out of me. “I doubt it,” I said.