Page 3 of Ruthless King

Beatrice huffs, shaking her head. “Giovanni kept you sheltered. Innocent to the ways of the world. Your father was part of the Mafia, Aurora.”

“What?” I stumble back, unable to even feel my feet.

“You heard me. The Mafia. In fact, he had a lot of power here in LA. But he was no competition to the Mafia in New York.”

“So, you’re saying the … Mafia killed him?”

She looks me straight in the eye as she answers. “Yes. That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

“But why? What did he do?”

“He got involved with a man named Nico Mancini. He’s the head of the Italian Mafia in New York. He practically runs that entire city.”

“I’ve never heard of him,” I whisper.

Beatrice gives me an indulgent look. “No, you wouldn’t have, girl. Because he’s a man who knows when to be in the spotlight and when to be in the shadows. Your father wanted to expand. I advised him not to, but did he listen to me? No. He wanted to make a deal with Nico Mancini, and now, he’s dead.”

“What happened?”

For the first time since arriving, Beatrice looks unsure. “I don’t know everything. I wasn’t included. I wouldn’t be surprised if the deal went wrong, and he was killed for it.”

My head is spinning so fast, I’m getting dizzy. I sit back down on the couch, but when Beatrice turns her withering gaze onto me, I hurriedly pop back up. “What was this deal, exactly?”

“To expand the Italian Mafia’s empire. Guns and drugs—the usual shit. I know Giovanni was offering more of his territory to Mancini to smuggle guns through if he received part of the money. That was the last I heard of it, and now, my brother is dead.”

“So, what are we going to do?”

“We? There is no ‘we,’ Aurora. You’re just a little girl in over her head. I’m going to get rid of the body.”

“Wait. The body? That’s my father. He needs to be buried. You can’t just put him in some unmarked grave. How will he get into Heaven?”

Beatrice snorts. “He was still teaching you all that religious shit?” She grabs my arms and shakes me. “There is no Heaven, little girl. There’s just you and me and this dangerous world we’re living in. And right now, I need to bury your father’s body before the police come sniffing around. It would be bad for us.”

I jerk away from her. “Bad for us? Or bad for you?”

There’s a twitch in her jaw. “Bad for us. You’re in this now, too. You know a lot more than a lot of other people do. So, I’m going to get rid of his body, and there’s nothing you can do to stop me.”

“I can call the police.”

“And bring them all down on our heads? God, you’re fucking stupid! Your father was involved in the Mafia. If they suspect you were, too, you’re going to jail. Do you understand that?”

“But I didn’t know a thing.”

“And you’re innocent enough they’ll believe you. But what about me? They’ll come after me and throw me in jail. Do you want that?”

Do I want that? Beatrice, for better or for worse, is the only family I have left. I can’t lose her, too.

I slowly lower my phone. “Fine. But can we please bury him properly? Give him a funeral at least?”

Beatrice’s eyes turn just the tiniest bit soft. “Fine. Jack?” she calls out. He enters the room. I notice he doesn’t even look at my father’s body. “Get a shovel.”

Without question, Jack listens to her command.

I watch Jack shovel dirt onto my father’s body. We’re in the backyard, where Jack has dug a grave for my father. The backyard is acres and acres of land. It will be practically impossible for anyone to find my father’s body. The only way would be if someone knew where to look.

“You’re in this now,” Beatrice says, keeping her eyes glued to my father.

It’s then I realize—this is leverage. She has something on me now. I’m helping to cover up the death of my father even thoughI wasn’t part of it. If I go to the police, I’ll definitely get arrested for helping to bury my father. Beatrice owns me now.

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