Page 53 of Surprise Twins for the Mafia Heir

“I’m following behind you,” he adds.

“We’re following behind you,” Vinny says as he comes out of the bathroom with half of his beard shaved. “I’m not taking any chances.”

I groan. “Fine! Tell Jodie the plan and we’ll head there.” I may act tough, but in just three short hours, my faith will be put to the test.

My dad is waiting for me in the back alley. He looks both shocked and relieved it’s just me.

“No, Nick?” he asks, peering behind me.

I move closer and hug him. “Just me, like it’s always been.”

When I pull away, my dad looks me up and down. “Did he get squirmy about me being here? It’s just a regular plan.”

I draw in a quick breath. “Dad, if there’s something you’re planning, I want in.”

He smirks. “Bullshit. You’re with that Montoya kid.”

I step closer. “But you’remydad.” He laughs again, shoving his hands in his pockets. “I want us to be a family again, no matter the cost.” He’s quiet, this time his eyes have softened.

Got him.

“You really mean that, Rosa?” he asks.

Amazingly, fake tears roll down my face. “I really do, Pops.” I’m not prepared for the tight hug he gives me. A few tears roll down my dad’s face as he staggers back.

“God, Rosa. You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to hear that. You, me, your mom — all in business together to claim what’s ours,” he says. “I've been trying to take down the Montoyas for years. The only way to do it is to show their money laundering,” he says. “Everyone knows they deal drugs and murder folks. We all do. But for some reason, money laundering is the ticket.”

I hold back my gasp. “Dad, you don’t do that stuff, right?”

He gestures for me to follow him. “Why do you think I needed you two here? The only way to afford our moves and cover our tracks is through washing our money.” We walk through the back where a dimly lit hall has several files on the floor.

“I need our names destroyed, but keep the Montoyas,” he explains. “Then we turn them into the cops and we walk away free and take over what those bastards had.” I feel sick. He knew I was with Vinny. That we married and had kids. Yet, he already planned to destroy him.

I kneel down and sift through the papers. “Isn't that what everyone’s been talking about?”

Heshakes his head. “No, they’re on about the dealing. The money washing is another layer. Luckily for me, I work with masterminds. I already have most of the Montoyas forged signatures.”

Forged signatures?

“I don't know Dad. Doesn’t that seem extreme? What if it gets back to us?” I say as I look up at him.

He’s unfazed. “Not even. Unlike Nick, I trust you. It took balls for you to come back here when you can potentially be seen as an accomplice,” my dad says. I pretend to be shocked.

My dad kneels beside me, patting my head. “I'm not going to let anything bad happen to our family, Rosa.”

I force a smile. “Did you give the cops the information? ” My dad sighs and shakes his head. “Not just yet. We just have to get these documents out and then we can take action.”

“Where’s the stuff we need for the cops, Poppa?” I ask, knowing the added ‘poppa’ will trip him up.

He points at the large blue box closer to the door. “Those. The rest is all us, pumpkin cakes. If you wanna take a stab at getting ours trashed first, I’ll grab some pho from around the corner.”

“Okie dokes, Pops!” I say. He plops a kiss on my forehead. Once he’s out the door and I hear his car start, I begin my plan. I take everything I can and stuff it in my pants. I then check the coast and dart across the parking lot where Nick and Vinny are staked out. They open the door and I throw the files in.

“What the hell are these?” Nick roars.

“Shut up and trust me!” I snap as I rush back inside. It would take six trips just to get everything in the car. Then, I would shred the Montoyas files.

“What now? This creep was planning on taking us out this whole time?” Vinny fumes.

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