Page 37 of Unspoken Ties

It was the first meeting the four families had held since the night I had announced my marriage to Liria. I hated to admit it, but I was feeling anxious. I would be reporting how the transition had been with Leone's businesses, and if the other three families thought things were going poorly…well, it wouldn’t be good.

The note had also been looming in my head. One of these men was probably a traitor, and not following the rules we had set for the families. The bigger question was, what had they done and what would they do in the future? Were they responsible for Leone’s death?

“Gentlemen,” Tomaso Coscia said.

I recalled how upset Tomaso was at our previous meeting. He was a likely suspect; he had been seething after finding out I was married to Liria. It was possible that he had killed Leone to get rid of the competition and then had plans to marry one of his sons to the Alto heir.

The three of us nodded our greetings in response. Tomaso adjusted the collar of his expensive suit, perhaps out of nervousness. I had spent the majority of my life navigating these dangerous waters, had become adept at reading people. A bead of sweat trickled down Antonio Tomasino’s temple, and I filed away that information. Was it a sign of guilt?

He was another suspect - always quiet, always watching. He was known for his patience and cunning, characteristics that served him well in this line of work. Could he be planning a coup?

The three older men began small talk about the recent changes in the city’s political landscape, but their words were nothing more than a thin veil over the tension that thickened the air.My gaze wandered to the fourth member present – Gianni Salvaggio.

An older man with thinning hair, he had been in the game the longest out of the four of us. He was the most levelheaded and known to be the peacemaker when tensions were high. Was the calm and collected act a facade, and he was our suspect?

I’d have to try not to think about it for now. It was time to report to the other three men how the new role was going. It was imperative I keep operations

my new business ventures were going. I decided to report on the cigar sales, which had seen the most impressive incline since I had taken over.

“I’m pleased to report everything is running a smooth, if not more so, than when Leone was in charge.” I wouldn’t offer numbers of course; although we were friends, we did still have some overlapping businesses.

“And you haven’t encroached on any of our territory?” Tomaso eyed me suspiciously.

“Not at all,” I responded coolly. “As per our agreement, I’ve ensured our interests don’t collide.”

After talking lightly about the new direction of the businesses, all three men seemed satisfied. I let out an internal sigh of relief as we switched the subject matter.

“What about this tension we have with the Bratva?” Antonio asked.

“It’s a delicate situation,” Gianni said, meeting his gaze thoughtfully. “We’ve been careful to avoid clashes with the Bratva until now, but they seem intent on pushing boundaries.”

The tensions between our organization and the Russian mob — the Bratva — had been rising lately, with small skirmishes on the borders of our territories. It was a delicate situation.

“The Bratva... they’re getting more aggressive,” I admitted, feeling the weight of their gazes on me. “They know our organization has been shaken and want to capitalize off of it. We’re doing our best to maintain our boundaries without escalating things further.”

“And just how long should we ‘maintain,’” Tomaso snapped, his voice laced with sarcasm. “I think we should strike first.”

“Ettore is right,” Gianni said. “Things are still settling back into place after Leone’s death. We don’t want to make any hasty decisions.”

“We will be staying on the defensive,” I stated firmly, locking eyes with Tomaso. “We don’t want to start a war, but we will not back down if they continue their provocations.”

Tomaso’s scowl deepened, and he fell into an angry silence. Antonio, however, nodded in agreement.

I didn’t think the Bratva would be a problem in the immediate future, but it was something I was going to keep my eye on. The three men and I covered a few more topics before finally bidding each other goodbye, each of us returning to our own territories, to our own separate worlds of power, influence, and danger.

Chapter nineteen

Liria

Bleary-eyed and disoriented, I awoke to find Ettore’s side of the bed empty. It was late, even by his standards. My bare feet shuffled down the hallway, guided by the soft light emanating from his office. The door was closed, but a beam of warm light spilled out from underneath, illuminating the dark hardwood floor. In my half asleep state, I didn’t bother knocking - I just opened the door.

“You’re still up?” I asked, peeking my head into Ettore’s office.

Ettore looked up from his cluttered desk, surprise flickering briefly across his face before it was replaced with a warm smile. “I am,” he admitted, his hand absent-mindedly running through his disheveled hair.

“Come to bed,” I whined, much like a small child asking for a toy. “It’s late.”

“I’ll be there soon,” Ettore promised, running a hand over a stack of papers strewn haphazardly across his desk.

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