Page 94 of Roberto

I found that the more risks we took, the more enthralled with her I became…

And that being on the edge of losing control only increased my obsession with her.

As a result, though, I barely checked in with Lau.

All I could think of was Mei-ling.

A week passed by in a passionate blur…

Until I got a call from Niccolo.

39

Iwas at Mei-ling’s apartment. It was mid-afternoon, and I was waiting for her to return from a business errand.

When I saw Niccolo’s name on my cell phone screen, I felt a pang of guilt. I’d been texting him daily with a simpleNo change in the situation,but I’d been too preoccupied with Mei-ling to call and find out what was going on back home.

I answered immediately. “Hello.”

“Are you alright?”he asked.

I could hear the stress in his voice and immediately grew concerned.

“Yes – what’s wrong?”

“I haven’t heard from you in a week.”

“I texted you every day.” I didn’t feel like now was the best time to bring up Mei-ling, so I simply said, “Nothing’s changed, unfortunately.”

“Well, things have changed here. We still can’t reach Massimo, and now Lars has gone missing.”

“What?!”

Niccolo told me how Lars had gone to London to meet the woman from his past, the one who had tried to kill Dario. Larshad contacted her under a false name, posing as a customer who needed her services as an assassin.

Ever since the night he was supposed to meet her, Lars hadn’t answered any of Niccolo’s calls…

And Massimo hadn’t contacted Niccolo, either.

Dread filled my stomach. “Do you think they’re…”

I couldn’t bring myself to say the word ‘dead.’

“I’m not going down that road until I have to. But the fact remains that two of us are out of commission. Valentino’s in Sicily – ”

“Wait – what?!”

Niccolo sighed.“You remember the Vicaris?”

For those who don’t speak Italian, the name is pronouncedvi-CAR-ee.

“Of course,” I replied.

The Vicaris were the most powerful family in Sicily – the island that was the literal birthplace of theCosa Nostrahundreds of years ago.

Don Vicari was known for being a brutalmafiosoand a fearsome leader. Several families had territories on the island, but Vicari served as Sicily’s representative on the Council – the group ofCosa Nostrafamilies that controlled the major cities and regions throughout Italy.

“We arranged for Valentino to marry Don Vicari’s daughter.”

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