Page 141 of Married With Malice

Daisy and Sabrina burst into the room at the same time and they both start exclaiming and sobbing as they surround me. Luca backs off briefly to give us space for our reunion.

Seconds later, Big Man Bowie strolls in with an extremely bewildered expression. This has been an exceptionally strange day even for someone as perpetually good natured as him. He’s not even grinning.

Daisy holds my hand with severe worry pinching her lovely face despite my repeated assurances that I’ll be fine. Sabrina remains distraught. She lays her head on my uninjured shoulder and sniffs through her tears.

Our mother stands at the foot of the bed and gazes lovingly at her three daughters.

When our eyes meet, she gives me a gentle smile. And even though it hurts my face, I smile back at her.

32

LUCA

The doctor confirms that Anni’s injuries will all heal, but this doesn’t stop me from wishing to resurrect Albie Barone so I can kill him again.

After I call Cale with a terse rundown of recent history and caution him to remain on high alert for now, I hand my phone to Monte and ask him to field incoming calls for a little while.

“You got it,” he says, glancing at his shirtless brother sitting in a dining room chair and being examined by the doctor who finished setting Anni’s shoulder moments ago.

Her sisters are upstairs with her now, fussing over her and helping her dress in comfortable clothes as we await the arrival of Vittorio Messina.

“Told you the freaking bullet barely clipped me,” Nico grumbles but he’s still looking a bit peaked as the doctor finishes a series of stitches.

“Do you need a bucket, little brother?” Monte says. “You don’t want to puke on Mrs. Barone’s pricy throw rug.”

Nico flips him off. Monte laughs.

“Hey.” I knock a hand into Monte’s chest. “Hate to interrupt all this brotherly affection, but I need to thank you both. I owe you more than I can say.”

When Monte and Nico heard that I planned to charge straight into the lion’s den for Annalisa, they absolutely refused to be left behind. Every step of the way, they’ve had my back. Indeed, there are no words sufficient for that kind of friendship and loyalty.

Monte chooses a somber handshake to mark the moment. “It was an easy choice, Luca.”

“Wouldn’t hesitate to do it again,” Nico says, grimacing as the doctor snips off the final stitch.

Every few minutes my thoughts darken with the reminder that Albie Barone’s body is stiffening on the floor of Anni’s old bedroom. I’m not sure whether word has leaked that he’s dead. Right now we’re all still waiting in limbo. With Richie’s life still hanging in the balance, there will be a power vacuum in both families. At the moment, Giulia Barone seems to be in charge around here and she plans to wait for her formidable brother to show up before making additional plans.

Big Man Bowie jogs into the room and is thrilled to find us here. He’s wearing a pink and white striped apron that’s about eight sizes too small and likely belongs to our mother-in-law. I suppose it was all he could find.

“Hey guys, I just cooked up a pile of hamburgers with seasoned wedge fries. Come to the kitchen and grab some.”

Bless his heart for being eager to make a contribution. Monte snorts laughter through his nose but Nico is more pragmatic.

“I could eat,” he says, climbing off the chair, still shirtless but with his battle wound now treated and wrapped. “Lead the way.”

“Wait.” The doctor chases Nico down the hall while waving a piece of paper. “Here’s your prescription for antibiotics.”

Monte turns to me and claps a hand on my shoulder. “I’ll keep you updated. Go take care of your lady. She needs you.”

It’s difficult not to feel a tad restless when I remember that outside the house there are an unknown number of Barone loyalists who wouldn’t mind seeing me dead.

However, they’re standing down until they figure out where Vittorio Messina fits into the equation. Among Albie’scaposand underbosses, not a single one springs to mind who can easily assume control of the empire. That was always a flaw of his, promoting men who were callous yet stupid.

In the foyer, I run into Sonny again. He’s standing guard at the door and the nervous sweat shining on his face indicates he’s unsure of his status in light of the new realities.

He has good reason to be nervous. He’s not exactly my favorite person today. Anni swears he didn’t mistreat her and asked me not to hurt him but I’m not cutting the guy any additional slack.

Sonny didn’t draw his gun or put up a fight when he saw us coming and I could swear he looked relieved. However, I’ll never trust a man who abducted my wife in her bathrobe on the orders of her maniac father. The only grace Sonny gets from me is a curt nod.

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