Page 77 of The Mafia's Surprise Gift

“In a town full of the elderly and children too young for teeth? No. Not with your conscience, at least.”

He was right. Too many times in the past, my conscience got the better of me and I had accidentally fucked up a few deals for my father. Now that I was in charge, those decisions and consequences rested solely on my shoulders.

“Right now, my priority is Mae and my son. Nothing else matters to me, do you understand?” I turned my back on the garden. “They’re the only thing I care about right now. In fact, they’re the only thing I have cared about since I met Mae again. I’m just not hiding it this time.”

“You’re just like your father,” Vito grumbled, “choosing a woman over responsibility.”

“How does that make me like him?” I snapped lightly. “He took me away from here, forced me to stay away from here.”

“Because he knew from experience that it would make things harder for you. You should ask your mother about it one day, but when he was younger, he was just as reckless, chasing after her. People died. Good people. As he got older, he wanted to stop you from making the same mistake.”

I frowned deeply and picked up the phone, taking the call off speaker. “But he loved her. How can he regret that?”

“He didn’t regret your mother, merely the guilt he had to live with after chasing after what he wanted. That was partly why maintaining peace was so important to him.”

“You tell me this now? Do you really think a little family history will stop me from trying to fix my family, from protecting my son?”

“Rocco… I am not the bad guy here. I am not trying to be. I merely need you to fully understand your choice here. Focusing on one thing takes your eyes off the rest of the Family, off the business and our enemies.”

“Vito, I am perfectly capable of doing both. Mae and Zack are my family as much as you and Mom are. I’m not taking my eye off the ball, but for fuck’s sake, you have to understand that I’m not changing my mind. I am not leaving the people I care about unprotected.”

“If you say so.” Vito abruptly hung up, and I tightened my grip on my phone with a grumble. I knew what he wanted. He wanted me back in the city with an envoy of guards here to protect Mae. That was all he cared about. The Family. Not my family.

“Boss?” Jian knocked quickly on the door and stuck his head through the gap. I waved him in with one hand and dropped into the thick leather chair behind the desk.

“Everything okay?”

“We completed the sweep of the town. If there are other Russians here, they’re doing a damn good job of avoiding us. I haven’t seen anyone, and no one has checked into any of the local motels. Unless they’re camping out in the damn forest.”

“Can you call the ranger? Ask him if he’s had to sign any hooking permits later.”

“You think Russians would care about paperwork?” Jian snorted dryly.

“Fuck knows. What about the asshole at the park?” As I spoke, I spotted a few dots of blood on the lapel of Jian’s shirt.

“He’s not talking,” Jian replied stiffly. “But I’m working on it.”

“Thanks. Keep me updated.”

“Will do.” Jian bowed his head slightly and stepped out of the room, leaving me to my thoughts.

Was that asshole just a stray man acting on old orders? Or had my carefully navigated peace and ceasefire agreement with the Russians all been some kind of ruse to let my guard down?

The more I mulled it over, the more I knew I needed to keep Mae safe. With Dino watching her, she was protected, but something in the back of my mind told me it wasn’t enough.

I spent the next half hour organizing a handful of extra security to come down from the city and increase her protection. She was likely going to be pissed that she would be followed directly, but as far as I was concerned, all discreteness was out the window. At least until I found out what the hell was going on.

The clock struck ten when my phone rang next.

“Hello?” I answered, stifling a yawn.

“Rocco.” It was my grandfather, and the sharp tone in his voice had me sitting up straight immediately.

“What is it? What’s happened?” I pulled the phone away from my ear to glimpse the screen and make sure I hadn’t missed any texts, then listened in.

“I owe you an apology.”

“What?” I don’t think I had ever heard my grandfather say sorry.

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