Page 134 of Where the Wicked Reign

I downed the rest of my drink, then grabbed the bottle, rising to my feet.

“It was a pleasure doing business with you.”

He nodded. “You too.”

“Until next time, Levi.”

“Right back at you, Nico.”

I flashed him a sardonic smile. “Arrivederci.”

With that, I turned and stalked out of the bar.

Mission accomplished.

25

~Caterina~

I closed the door behind me and stepped into one of the smaller conference rooms at the Opulent Grand Hotel, one that was located in the heart of the city and one which did the best out of the entire chain of Julian’s.

I took in the lingerie, stilettos, bold costumes, a whole lot of glitter, and other random clothes strewn all over the place.

I’d discovered—perhaps from briefly accessing the hotel’s surveillance system—that this particular conference room was being used as a dressing room for the entertainment tonight, said entertainment that was already performing and wouldn’t need the space again for a good couple of hours. All right, I might have done a little more than briefly breaching the security system. Well, I’d needed to know what I was going to be walking into, and I’d also needed to determine the most optimal way to approach so that I wouldn’t be seen by the attendees of the big, over-the-top bachelor party.

A party for Nico.

Aside from Julian and Milo, the rest of the attendees were all political. His soldiers, Leone soldiers, Capos across both families. Even that shithead, Leo Marchetti, was in attendance.Friendsof the families were also here. It was all show and about the alliance.

All a high-stakes game for them all.

Little did they know that they were playingourgame now.

It just killed me that we had to settle for making smaller, strategic moves currently so they didn’t know that we were to be feared, that we were to become their fucking downfall.

It was a whole lot of acting and kissing the ring.

Well, worse than that for me.

I just had to keep my eye on the prize and not let being thrust into all of that again during the nearing wedding day nightmare impact me like it had the last time I’d been in the presence of my father—and Angelo.

And, somehow, I also had to contain my rage at something else.

Nico had lied to me.

During the time that the guys had been giving me space, at the tail end of that, I’d received a text from my old friend.

Levi:I know you’re not going to receive this well and I’m sorry. It needs to be done, though, Rina. I finally have a clear path to destroying Lynch. That path involves intel that Nico Marchetti has on a deal Lynch is trying to broker with the Marchetti Syndicate. I need to use that intel and make a deal with Nico. Just wanted to give you a heads-up so you’re not blindsided. Love and respect, Lev.

That had explained why the intel Nico had given me on those deals had been sorely lacking. He’d withheld the truthandthe fact that Malcolm Lynch was the person Marco Marchetti had been dealing with.

I’d thought Nico would come clean and tell me the truth, giving me the whole deal, the morning after the four of us had been together when we were set to begin our strategizing session.

Instead, he’d gone the other way. He’d lied.

As if that hadn’t been bad enough, I now knew that he’d snuck out of this bachelor party to actually meet with Levi behind my back.

Levi’s text a half hour ago had said it all.

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