Page 36 of Roberto

“Like I mentioned, I can’t tell you how I know. And I’m not absolutely certain.”

“How certainareyou, would you say? If you had to put a number on it?”

“At least 80%. Maybe more.”

My stomach felt even worse, and not just from the alcohol.

Niccolo could be histrionic and over-the-top with others; when he was, it was almost always an act.

But with me, he was fairly down-to-earth… so when he said he was 80% sure, I took it very seriously.

“Like I said, be careful,”Niccolo continued.“This thing with the Syndicate… if it starts to go sideways, get OUT.”

“I’m coming back with the money, Niccolo,” I said quietly.

My brother’s voice was earnest and affectionate – a rarity in most of our conversations.“You’re a million times more important than any amount of money, Roberto.”

I was sincerely touched by the kindness in his voice. “Thank you… but I’m still coming back with it.”

“Alright. Just be careful.”

“I will.”

“By the way, I need the names of the bank managers who authorized the wire transfers.”

I knew exactly why he wanted them.

Anybody who helped Fausto steal from us was going to get whacked – if for no other reason than to dissuade other people from doing similar things in the future.

“Do you have a piece of paper?”

This was one piece of information I wasn’t about to send in a text or email, in case the cops should ever get a warrant to check our phone records.

“Yes, hold on.”

Once he was ready, I listed the banks and the managers who had been involved with the fraudulent wire transfers.

After the trauma of seeing all our money gone, that information was seared in my brain.

“Good,”Niccolo said after he had all the information.“Talk to you soon, little brother.”

I’d been born 10 minutes after Niccolo, so he’d called me ‘little brother’ since we were kids.

As children, he’d done it to annoy me – and it had worked. I’d hated it.

But now it was a term of endearment.

“Talk to you soon.”

19

After I hung up with Niccolo, I considered what I should do next.

I couldn’t call Lau yet. I felt like a truck had run over me, and I didn’t want the old man to hear it in my voice.

Instead, I plugged my phone into a charger and prepared for my day.

Exercise was out of the question. I would probably vomit if I tried.

---