Page 54 of His to Hold

My mother, who’s sitting by the bedside, rises to her feet. She smiles at Gio and pats his hand. “I’ll give you and your brother a moment to talk.”

As she turns to me, her demeanor changes. There’s a distinct chill in her expression as she walks past me.

“Don’t leave the hospital.” My words come out more as a threat than a plea.

She nods stiffly. I hate her acting so cold. My mother is one of the warmest people I know, but I’ve hurt her and as much as it pains me, I’m going to have to make it right.

“What was that about?” Gio’s voice is raspy after having a tube down his throat for the last couple of days.

“Nothing for you to worry about.” Ignoring the skeptical arching of his eyebrow, I move closer to the bed. “How do you feel?”

“Like some asshole shot me three times. Do you know who did it?”

“Gino di Santo.”

Gio furrows his brow, obviously trying to work out who that is.

“The chef Leo fired from Roma.”

“Huh. What happened to him?”

“He ate a bullet. Left a note saying he was sorry he got the wrong brother.”

“That’s got to be embarrassing for you, right? The youngest brother of the great and powerful Antonio Volante, ambushed by a fucking chef and you don’t even get to dish out punishment.”

The snark in his tone tells me what happened hasn’t made him any less resentful of the family he’s been steadily distancing himself from.

“You still want out?” As hard as I try, I can’t keep the hurt out of my voice.

“Don’t take it personally, Tony.” Gio takes a deep breath and winces in pain that he quickly recovers from. “I love my family, but the life isn’t for me.”

“You still want to go to Scotland?”

He nods. “I won’t be climbing mountains anytime soon, but yeah, it’s what I want.”

“Then I won’t try to stop you. As soon as you’re able, you have my blessing to go do whatever you need to do.”

“Thanks, Tony.” He closes his eyes.

“I’ll let you get some rest.”

Reaching out, I squeeze his shoulder, then leave him in peace. I head for the waiting room, where I find a tense atmosphere. My mother is sitting at one side of the room while Leo and Alessandro occupy the wing-backed armchairs at the other.

“Where’s Matteo?”

“Meeting a supplier,” Alessandro says.

That’s right. Matteo is standing in for me at a meeting with one of our Irish contacts today. I guess it doesn’t matter that he’s not here. I know where he stands on the whole Boris Reznov issue. He’s ready to support our mother, no matter what she chooses.

“We need to talk,” I tell my mother as I go to sit next to her. Behind me, I hear my brothers getting to their feet. I turn to see them heading for the door. “All of us.”

My mother purses her lips. “Ganging up, Antonio?”

I shake my head. “No, but we need to sort things out.”

She nods curtly. Alessandro and Leo cross the room to sit with us.

“Tell us about Boris Reznov. What is this thing between you?”

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