Page 7 of Saint Of Envy
After hanging up with Vincent, I glance over at Valentina, who is sitting at the bar of the casino, talking with Alonzo. To his credit, the underboss isn’t freaking out yet, which is contrary to his usual impatient and overly aggressive demeanor.
“You know she can’t stay here, right?” Alonzo asks when I walk over to them. “You may be in hot water with Vincent, but I intend to stay out of this debacle. You are both nothing more than lovesick puppies.”
He rolls his eyes and walks away, but he is right about not staying here. A casino club isn’t really a hospitable environment for Valentina to stay in, even if it’s heavily fortified.
“Come on,” I say as I reach out to give her my hand. “I’m going to take you to the hotel for the time being. Guards protect the entire building.”
She smiles, looking nervous as some of the adrenaline that we had rushing through us in the immediate aftermath of her escape is now being replaced by the thought of looming consequences. But as soon as she takes my hand and stands up, my phone rings. I take one look at it and know who it is.
“Excuse me for one more moment,” I say, not giving her any sign of who it is because I don’t want her to worry. “I have to take this, but I’ll be right back.”
I motion for Gabriel to pour Valentina a drink at the bar if she wants anything and to keep an eye on her while I take this call. Hopefully, he won’t talk her ear off with a bunch of bartenders’ gossip that he’s amassed. When I’m out of earshot, I answer the phone and wait, saying nothing until I hear Leonardo’s painstakingly controlled voice. From Leonardo Coni’s first few words, I knew Vincent was right—he is enraged.
“Hello Luciano,” he says. His words sound like they’re being pushed through gritted teeth with supreme effort. “I’d like to keep this call professional, but I am calling with a demand, not a negotiation.”
“A demand? Seems a bit off-putting to start a call that way.”
“You little prick,” he snarls, letting his fury uncork itself. “You speak to me as if you think you and I are equals. We are most certainly not. You’re nothing but a weaselly little consigliere with no actual power over anything at all—not even your own cock. I suppose that’s why you coveted my bride.”
“She’s not your anything,” I hiss back at him. “Valentina has her own agency. She isn’t your possession. You don’t own her.”
“To the contrary, I do. And you’ve stolen something that belongs to me. So, I’m going to give you one chance to give it back.”
My skin crawls when I hear him refer to Valentina as “it” instead of a living, breathing human being. I don’t care if Leonardo is a Don or not—he’s human garbage, as far as I’m concerned. Still, he’s human garbage with power.
“I’m not handing her back over to you,” I say defiantly. “She doesn’t want to marry you, and she’s under my protection now. So, you can take your sick fantasies about power over women and find another target. Valentina Ricci is off the table.”
There’s a moment of heavy silence that hangs in the air between us. I’d be a fool to think that he was using the time to think. Instead, he’s using the time to rein in his temper enough to formulate words. If we were talking in person, I know that he would have already tried to blow my head off.
“I’m going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you already know what a perilous situation it is that you have placed yourself in the middle of by getting involved in my family’s business. And I’m also going to assume that you know my reputation of being a cunning and ruthless man with a propensity for enjoying violence,” Leonardo says slowly. “So let me make this all very clear and easy for you to understand that you have no options here, Luciano. Either give me back my bride, or others will pay for your transgression.”
“What others?” I ask as I try to navigate this conversation carefully, showing no weakness.
“Oh, Valentina didn’t tell you?” Leonardo’s voice is thick and sly. “Her hand in marriage was the only thing keeping her father out of the crosshairs. You see, Giovanni Ricci has gotten himself into a bit of an entanglement that he can’t get out of. I did my best to help the old fool, with payment expected, of course. But now you’ve gone and soured things. If you don’t return the woman to my possession, things will go badly for him.”
I don’t know what kind of mess Valentina’s father has gotten himself into, but I intend to find out. Still, that has no bearing on my commitment to keeping Valentina safe and with me. No one will hold her responsible for her father’s mistakes, whatever they may be.
“Valentina isn’t responsible for her father’s sins,” I say to him.
“Spoken like a true Saint,” Leonardo laughs. “But I don’t think you’re taking this seriously enough, Luciano. I’m not the only enemy that your family has.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I ask angrily. I’m getting sick of dealing with this guy and his thinly veiled threats. “If you have something to say, just come out and say it, Leonardo. Stop playing games like a child.”
I’ve insulted his pride, and so he lashes out.
“Do you know why you’re not the leader of the Moretti family, and Vincent is?” he snarls. “Because you let your emotions run you, Luciano. You’re weaker than your cousin, and you shouldn’t have poked your nose into the business of proper leaders. Does Vincent even know you keep trying to play at being the alpha male? I’m betting not. He’ll find out soon enough though, when the wolves come knocking at the door of the Moretti house. You’re a fool to think that you’re dealing with just one man. My reach stretches much further than you can even imagine. The Barones, for starters, would be more than pleased to collect their pound of flesh from your family. Angelo Barone and I have some business together, which makes him an amicable partner of mine. You’d be wise to rethink my demand and hand Valentina Ricci back over to me before you dig a grave for not only yourself but everyone else that you care about as well.”
Without thinking first, I abruptly hung up the call. I don’t want to hear anymore of Leonardo’s bullshit demands.
I’m usually level-headed, cool-tempered, and pragmatic. But right now, I can feel my blood racing through my veins like a thousand small rivers inside of me. No one will bully me, and I won’t surrender Valentina. And if Leonardo Conti coaxes AngeloBarone out from hiding in order to combine forces with him, then they’ll have to get through me first.
CHAPTER 5
VALENTINA
Ican’t help but notice that Luc seems more on edge now that we’ve gotten up into the hotel suite than he was down at the casino bar. When he returned from taking his phone call, his demeanor, although he tried to hide it, seemed different and more worried than before.
“Is everything alright?” I ask as he pours himself a scotch from the minibar and takes a seat on the long couch in the living room of the suite.
