Page 62 of Kings of Cruelty

One of his Russian mob friends. Some family member, also mob connected. One of my father’s old allies. Victor Corvi, for all I know.

I don’t expect a young man in his early thirties with light brown hair, dressed in a nice suit. Next to him is a woman who is the same height as him. Her features are rounder, and her dress is surprisingly modest. I’m jealous, actually, because while I look fabulous in my dress, it’s also cut low enough that my brand peeks out.

I don’t think for a second that it wasn’t an intentional choice on Konstantin’s part.

“Yo! Konstantin!” the man greets. “Can I call you that? I was thinking about it, and Voronkov is so formal, and isn’t your dad in the game too?”

Konstantin tenses, but he answers, “That’s fine… Giulio.”

Giulio. The name nags at me, but I can’t place it. It’s not all that common, and I’m positive I’ve heard it. I stare at him, hoping to recognize something.

All I notice is that he’s wearing leather sandals, which are so out of place with that suit.

Giulio smiles brightly. “Great! And this is my wife, Vanessa.” He turns his attention to me. “And who’s this?”

“Sierra,” I say, purposely leaving out my last name. Chances are, he already knows if he knows anything about Konstantin, but there’s no sense in dropping the information to someone who, as Giulio had said, is in thegame.

Vanessa smiles warmly at me. “Hi, Sierra. It’s nice to meet you.”

She seems sincere, which is strange. The only other woman I’ve met in this world is Lucia Bellini, and she’d been hard and cold. I can’t imagine a smile like this on Lucia’s face.

“Did you know it takes like two years to get a reservation to this place?” Giulio asks. “It better be worth it. If the shrimp is barely defrosted, I’m going to have to riot.”

“Please don’t,” Vanessa says.

Konstantin looks confused though. “Two years? How did you manage to get a reservation, then?”

“Oh, Damien already had it booked. It was going to be a whole celebratory dinner, blah blah blah, but what’s the point of going out to celebrate if you could be stayinginto celebrate?—”

Vanessa blushes and shakes her head. “Please stop, Giulio.” She glances toward the host. “I think our table is ready.”

The host smiles at us. “Right this way,” he says, leading us through the restaurant.

It’s every bit as beautiful and ostentatious as I’d thought it would be. Light shimmers through the chandeliers, casting reflections on the dark wood paneling of the walls and the bar. I follow along, feeling more awkward because of the mark of ownership on my chest and the double date with another mobster than the surroundings.

The host brings us to an intimate table for four, and I can’t help but cynically think that for the cost of the place, they could’ve made it a little bigger.

I find myself sitting across from Vanessa, and I don’t miss the way her gaze briefly flits to the brand on my chest before she looks back to my face and offers another warm, sympathetic smile.

I wonder what kind of marks she has.

I open the menu and realize there’s barely a point. It’s a prix-fixe five course meal, and I have two choices for each course.

Giulio lets out a laugh. “Oh, man. We should have brought everybody after all. Mama, look, not a single dish is meat and potatoes.”

Vanessa smiles indulgently at him. “Just because you enjoy torturing Sl— Ryan doesn’t mean you should bring him to places like this. You know how uncomfortable he’d be.”

I wonder about the near-slip, about who they’re talking about. I wish I’d eavesdropped more on my father in his dealings so I wouldn’t be so woefully ignorant going into this.

Why does the name Giulio sound so familiar, though?

Konstantin lets out a soft huff. “It looks good.” He sets the menu down and glances at Giulio. “I’ve heard you like food.”

Giulio bursts out laughing. “Who told you that? It’s true. I’m one of the low, low percentage of humans who enjoys food.”

Vanessa elbows Giulio in the side, but he doesn’t stop laughing.

“So you’re a foodie?” I ask, hoping to distract from Konstantin’s awkward question.

---