Page 5 of Weaponized

I give Rowan my most winning smile. I see no reason to keep him in the dark when he should be helping me. “You are too fun to mess with, big brother. Actually, I’m not sure. I have a few prospects, and yes, Liam is one of them. Da has lots of potential alliances that would benefit him, so I havegenerouslybeen given some options.” All of this is true, but my brother looks skeptical.

“Who are the others?” he asks warily.

I pop open the lid on the chest I’m using as a coffee table, and fish out the file. “Take a look.” I toss the stack of photos and research his way.

Rowan sits back down and takes a few minutes, thumbing through it. He sees the images, the notes from my father’s surveillance expert. It’s hard to read his expression; he seems to cycle through a series of emotions pretty quickly.

“So,” he says finally, placing the file on the chest, “you think he wants you to marry Matteo. The edges of his photos are worn. You’ve been studying.”

“Da said he prefers the Larozzi boy,” I share, because again, it’s the truth. “But he did give me choices.” Technically.

He hums and leans back on my couch, feet back up on the chest. He pinches the bridge of his nose and says nothing for several moments. Then he begins, “Matteo is the heir apparent. He’s cold. Unfeeling. He doesn’t have a single fuck to give. He fights underground because I think he likes the pain. His dad has been bringing him more into the fold with their business. He’s never had a girlfriend that I’ve seen, hangs out with the dumbfucks you saw this morning plus the other moron who is apparently in jail.” He takes a breath.

I listen with rapt attention as he continues, “Luca, the brother, is just the muscle, as you can probably tell. Doesn’t talk much. Just wears that,” he pauses and smirks, “resting bitch face permanently. Everyone expects he will be the key enforcer, but given the way he’s always whispering in his brother’s ear, I’m thinking consigliere. He’s beaten a few people to a bloody pulp over the last few years, so who knows. Everyone thinks he’s an honest-to-God psychopath, and he doesn’t do much to dispel that notion. He’s definitely not stable.”

As I take this in, my brother continues, “What most people don’t know is that Luca is four minutes older than Matteo. That puts him as the eldest son,” he continues. “Do you understand what that means?”

I gasp. “So,Lucawill take over as don one day?” The thought of another psycho at the head of a family makes me sick.

My brother shrugs. “Maybe. That’s just it. No one knows. Technically, that’s how itshouldgo. But, theyaretwins. By all appearances, it would seem Matteo is being groomed for the job. They run guns and brothels. Matt’s got a calmer demeanor, much less likely to sporadically kill someone. I mean, youdon’twant to see Luca when he goes off.But, even the guys in the Family aren’t sure.”

I consider this as I play with the hem of my shorts. “Is Da aware?”

“The hospital birth records weren’t altered to hide anything, so I have to think so. I was able to track down the information easily enough. Luca’s definitely the oldest, but Matteo seems to fit the role. I don’t have any inside information on what Victor is thinking. I can’t imagine Da does either. That’s probably why you haveoptions.” He says the word like it tastes bad. “Theo,” my brother continues, “has a real drug problem. At some point, his father is going to find out how deeply his son is into his supply and it won’t be pretty. He’ll either kill him or send him to rehab, and I honestly think it’s a coin flip as to which it’ll be. Coke is his drug of choice. In addition to drugs and weapons, the Greeks are in the flesh business.”

Thoughts of the “flesh business” turn my stomach. Nonetheless, I keep listening as my brother moves to the last on my list. “Liam would be the best-case scenario for you. He’s a really nice guy. A little arrogant maybe, but honest and fair. I’m sure you know he sleeps around a fair bit, but his family is like ours. You’d understand each other. It would help to unite the Irish.”

“I’m not marrying a man like Da,” I tell my brother, pretending I have a choice.

My brother sighs. “I don’t want that for you or Maeve either. In fact, I want the exact opposite, and I am doing everything I can to protect you both from the sick son of a bitch. But you have to understand: while not all of these guys are like Da in every way, they are exactly like him in others. Do you hear what I’m telling you?”

I shrug. I understand the life we were born into. I’ve worked hard to accept the hand I’ve been dealt. I’ve closed off my heart, been self-centered, manipulative, cold. It’s been about survival. I don’t expect to fall in love and get a house with a white picket fence. I know exactly what the rest of my life will look like—wife to a mafia don, doing whatever it takes to ensure my father’s plans are realized. No more. No less. What I want is so irrelevant that I don’t waste time pondering other options. This is who I am destined to be. It’s why I’ve chosen to be the best at what I do.

“I’m going to find a way to get us out from under Da, but I won’t be able to get us out of the life. That’s just not possible.”

I’m awestruck. I must not have heard him correctly. Get us out from under Da? There’s only one way that’s happening, and I have no idea how my brother will pull it off. Underestimating my father is plain stupid. I am almost convinced he’s invincible. Yet, Rowan sounds so confident.

“You have a plan.” I state this rather than ask.

“I have a plan.”

“What do you need me to do?” My mind is spinning. If our father were gone… Dear God. I have no idea what my future would be. I’d be free to set my own goals. Have my own purpose. A chill runs down my spine. And how would Maeve’s life change? She happily rambled on about a new boy in her math class when we FaceTimed before breakfast. She’s so sweet and innocent. I don’t think Da’s sunk his claws into her yet, but I know it’s only a matter of time. Ineedto help Rowan. My sister deserves more.

“Well, for starters, don’t piss off the Larozzis because I need Victor as an ally, as much as I hate that. And, if you happen to like Liam, it couldn’t hurt to shore up the rest of the Irish. Keep the Greeks out of this. I know the Russians aren’t on your list, but especially stay the fuck away from them, too. Both of them deal in trading women, and I don’t want you on their radar.”

I’m gaping at my brother. “You can’t cut me out of whatever plan you have.”

He sighs. “I know I haven’t been able to completely protect you from Da, G. I need you to trust me to make things right.”

“We’re a team, Row. You don’t have to protect me. My assignments haven’t been that bad. A few dates here and there. Some translations because they never know I speak the language.”

Rowan knows my pretty face is used to get me inside enemy territory. He hates some of the dangerous situations I’ve been placed in. He’s even attempted to thwart some of my past assignments when he’s deemed them too risky, which is why I’ve never told him how far I’ve gone to secure information for our father. I can’t imagine what he’d do if he knew exactly how intimate I’ve been with some of my targets. I couldn’t look Rowan in the eye if he ever found out. It’s the one part of my missions that I hate.

“I’ll have no issue getting one of these guys to propose. I can be more useful than that. I can help.” I’m pleading with my eyes.

He looks at his hands for a minute, considering. The quiet is heavy in the room until he finally breaks it. “While I have no doubt you could be more useful,” he agrees, “I don’t want to do that.Useyou. Mainly, I just need to buy some time.”

I hate his dismissal. “How long do you need?”

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