Page 44 of Scar

I pace the length of my study, the weight of the world pressing down on my shoulders. Allegra is gone, whisked away to safety in the dead of night. There would be several checkpoints where her car would be swapped out and she would move in the shadows until she was in the safehouse. A safehouse that no-one knows about. No-one, not even my brothers; that’s how far I was going to keep her safe. The plans I have laid out gnaw at me; they’re dangerous at best, but it's time for my brothers to get onboard.

Brando, Lucky, and Rafi enter the room, each with their own brand of anger etched into their eyes. I stop pacing and face them, my expression serious. They’re angry, and it’s been a while since I’ve seen them this way. A long while.

“What the fuck, Scar?” Brando asks, his voice filled with venom. “Sending Allegra away like that...what were you thinking?”

Brando is the surprise I hadn’t expected. Out of all my brothers, he’s the one that’s taken Allegra’s exile the worst. For all his stoicism, he’s the one that grew most attached to her presence, even if only from afar. I take a deep breath, gathering my thoughts.

“I sent Allegra away to keep her safe,” I remind him.

“Who better to keep her safe than her own family, brother?”

Lucky takes a shot, looking at me resentfully. My eyes soften toward my brothers. They all had, in one way or another, taken to Allegra and viewed her as a sister. There was no underplaying her significance in their lives.

“There's more to it than that,” I admit. “But I can’t have her here when the war starts. I can’t have her in the crosshairs.”

Lucky leans against the wall, arms crossed. “We’re listening.”

I nod, appreciating their faith in me. To even hear me out with all the testosterone floating around the room.

I meet my brothers’ gazes, my voice steady and determined.

“The union between Allegra and I is the merger of two of the most powerful families. But it also opens the doors to more threats; if they topple one of our families, we both fall by association. I believe that’s what our enemies are banking on; one stone, two birds.”

“We’ve never had a shortage of rival families trying to stage a takeover,” Brando reminds the room.

“No,” I admit. “But if what I have in mind works, it will cement our families once and for all. We will prove that this Alliance is the best option, and the hyenas will heel.”

“You’re talking about some serious muscle here, brother.” This from Rafi, who has proven to be nothing but insightful and our best source of information throughout the recent attacks on us. “The Luciani family, the Scarfones.”

“You left out our mother,” Brando spits, his eyes narrowing toward Rafi. There’s no way he believes she doesn’t have a hidden agenda.

“Negri. Johnny Tarantula,” Lucky adds.

“I’m sure there’s no shortage of enemies out there conspiring to topple us even as we meet,” I tell them. “That’s why I gathered you all here today; I have a plan, but it’s a risky one.”

The burden of responsibility weighs heavily on my shoulders. I would never want to be responsible for my brothers’ downfall. And the thought of leaving this world and everything in it – namely Allegra – scratches at the surface layer of my heart. To know she’s here, and I’m there. Gone. The invisible thread binding us together refuses to face the possibility of losing her.

Brando frowns, his concern evident. “And what about Allegra? She’s going to be furious when she finds out.”

Rafi scoffs. “That’s what you’re worried about? We may not even be here for her to kill us after all is said and done.”

“Brother, if you go dying on her, that woman is going to drive a stake through your heart,” Lucky mutters as he turns to me.

My expression softens momentarily. “Eventually, she'll understand why I did it. If I’m to have any sort of future with her, this war needs to end. And I mean to end it. Now.”

Lucky uncrosses his arms, stepping forward. “Alright, so what do you have in mind?”

I lay out my plan for them. It’s an ambitious one. It’s complex and extensive. And it could very well result in our downfall. But it’s our only chance.

“We'll strike their operations first,” I tell them, my voice cold and deliberate. They need to understand the severity of what we’re doing. And there needs to be no doubt that this is an all or nothing winner takes all war. “Sever their income streams—drugs, weapons, all of it. We'll dismantle their empire piece by piece, leaving nothing intact. And then,” my eyes darken with a fierce determination, “we’ll hunt down their key players, one by one. It's going to be merciless, but it's the only way to make sure we cut off the head of the snake for good.”

Rafi whistles low. “That’s a tall order, brother. I’m all in.”

The one who I wanted to take a step backward is the first one to step forward. Followed immediately by Lucky and Brando. They’re all in.

Brando nods once in agreement. “Just tell us what you need.”

I feel a surge of gratitude towards my brothers. Even as head of the family, it’s good to have their constant, unwavering support. We may agree to disagree at times, but I thought I’d receive some pushback on this, but obviously I’d underestimated their thirst for blood.

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