Page 40 of Dangerous Contract: Part 2

“Me either. And uncle must know that. I need to be at that meeting.”

“I’m coming with you.”

“You can barely walk.”

“I’m already feeling better. I took some of Rome’s miracle drugs.”

“This could go bad, Cas. Very bad.”

“I know, which is why you need me. I may not be able to walk without limping at the moment. But I can still shoot.”

Cas’s last sentence rocked Raz to the core. This was family they were talking about. Sure, their uncle was a dick. But he wasstill their uncle. If they had to, would they be able to hurt him? Would they be able to hurt Bryce’s father?

“If uncle Patrick can’t be talked to,” Raz started. “We may have to use extreme means to shut him up. We may have to do what father never had it in him to do.”

Cas nodded. “I know. He’s gotten worse over the years. We all always knew this day would come. Dad just tried to ignore it. It can no longer be ignored. What happened because of him this time can never happen again.”

Raz knew Cas was referring to Monique and her friends more than the Tatum issue. What happened to Monique was also what was fueling Raz to take these drastic measures. He was letting emotions rule him, something a don should never do. Yet, he couldn’t allow what happened to Monique to go unpunished.

“If it has to be done, do you think Bryce will be okay with it?” Raz asked.

“Fuck yeah. Bryce may even be willing to pull the trigger for you. Bryce lost all love and respect for his dad after that shit his father pulled in Italy all those years ago. Leaving Bryce for dead like that changed their relationship forever. And their relationship had already been rocky before then. Uncle Patrick only cares about himself. He runs around talking about family this, family that. In the end, he’s only looking out for himself. This can’t continue.”

Cas was right. This wasn’t just about what happened to Monique. His uncle was a wild card, a loose cannon, a problem. And it was time for that problem to be handled.

“Let’s go,” he told Cas, turning on his heel to leave the hospital. “Call Rome to let him know where to meet us.”

Raz rattled off the name of the restaurant as he and Cas strode down the hall. Cas’s limping was less noticeable now. Those pain meds of Rome’s must’ve been kicking in. Razstopped in front of Monique’s door. Should he go in to check on her before leaving?

“Raz, we need to go,” Cas rushed him.

He couldn’t go in. If he saw her, he wouldn’t be able to leave her. And this had to be handled right now.I’ll be right back, love,he thought, wishing she was awake so he could say those words to her.

Tearing his gaze from Monique’s hospital door, Raz told Cas, “Tell Rome to put extra guards at the hospital. I want one right outside of Monique’s room. No, I want two outside her room.”

“On it,” Cas replied. “And I’ll call Leo after my call with Rome. Now, let’s hurry the hell up before uncle convinces them to do some crazy shit.”

Sighing, Raz continued down the hall with his brother, leaving Monique behind, hoping he’d be able to return before she awakened. What Orazio didn’t know was that when he finally saw his Rosa again, both of them would be different.

Chapter Twelve

ORAZIO

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The city lights blurred past the tinted windows of the black SUV as Raz pressed on the gas in a hurry to get to the restaurant. He and Cas were already running late, considering they’d only just heard about this emergency meeting a few minutes ago.

A damn meeting that shouldn’t have been called in the first place. Whatever their uncle was planning, they knew they wouldn’t be there in time to catch the beginning of his twisted scheme. But they hoped to get there in time to end it. Both Raz and Cas’s phone rang at the same time.

“Hello,” Raz answered.

“My informant had it wrong. He just updated me. My dad isn’t meeting with the organization,” Bryce told him. “He’s holding a meeting for the Board of Cattaneo Corporation.”

Raz closed his eyes and inhaled deeply before releasing the breath slowly.Uncle. Fucking. Patrick.Instead of going through the family and proper channels, this motherfucker was going straight to the money. Control the money, control the family.

“Thanks, Bryce. We’re on our way. I’ll deal with the Board.”

“They’re only going to want to deal with uncle, the Don.”

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