Page 79 of Tortured Hearts
“I don’t want to go home.”
“Good.” Anton catches my eye in the rearview mirror, his jaw tight. “Because as of now, you have a new one.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
GIANNI
Fifteen Minutes Ago
Lowering my gun, I stare at the three dead soldiers lying on the floor in rapidly spreading pools of blood. “Was that fucking necessary?”
“Yes.” Toscano barely gives them a passing glance before nodding to the Philly boss, who immediately begins herding the remaining stunned men downstairs. “They may have kneeled for you, Gianni, but it was only to pull guns from their ankle holsters.”
My gaze slides down to where—fuck me—three guns lay discarded a few inches away from their lifeless hands. Every muscle in my body stiffens as his low, patronizing laugh rings in my ears.
“As I told you earlier, your impulsiveness is your greatest weakness. You claim Marcello’s hubris was the catalyst to his downfall, but yours will be, too, if you don’t watch it.”He gestures to my father’s dead loyalists. “You were so caught up in your ‘gotcha’ moment you failed to see theirs.”
I bite my tongue so hard I taste blood. I didn’t miss those men because of my ego. I missed them because ofher. The moment I heard Becca scream my name, everything came to a standstill. I couldn’t do anything but stare as my biggest fear played out in front of my eyes.
Now that the Authority has seen her, we’re both fucked.
Keeping a death grip on my gun, I meet his stare. “Grazie.” I circle the carnage to follow Anton and Becca, when he steps in front of me, blocking my path. I tip my head back with a low curse. “You know, this micromanaging thing is getting a little old. I had Anton call you tonight as a courtesy, not an invitation.”
That same unhinged smile spreads across his face. “Then, perhaps you should ask your underboss why he extended one.” My chin snaps down in surprise, a reaction that fuels his gloat. However, in truecapo dei capifashion, the exalted superiority carved in his face quickly melts into a mask of rage. “But first, you and I need to discuss something.”
“Fine. I’ll meet you in an hour.”
He counters my attempt to go around him. “No,now, Gianni, and you know why.”
Fuck.
There’s no getting around this. All I can do is drag it out, giving Anton time to get Becca to Owen, and for him to get her the hell away from the estate. I gesture toward the empty bedroom across the hall when the sound of rapidly approaching footsteps diverts my attention to the stairs. Toscano and I both lift our guns just as Anton’s flushed face appears.
Immediately, his hands go up, his eyes widening as they swing from one gun to the other. “I, uh…” His gaze settles on Toscano. “I need to speak with Gianni for a moment. It’simportant.”
I expect the Authority king to either laugh in his face or shoot it off, but once again, he surprises me by tucking his gun into his holster. “You have two minutes. Make them count.” Turning, he purposely strides through all three puddles of blood before disappearing into Marcello’s office.
Anton and I stand in silence for a few beats before Toscano’s time crunch grabs me by the throat, and anger takes over. “Do you enjoy making my life hell, or is sabotaging me just an uncontrollable compulsion?”
To his credit, he holds my glare and doesn’t back down. “If you’re waiting for me to apologize for giving Toscano details and times, you’re wasting your breath. I’m not sorry. In fact, I’d do it all over again.”
“Choose your next words carefully, Anton.”
He steps closer. “Orwhat? You’re going to shoot me right here in front of men who just watched you murder the only boss they’ve ever known?” Another bold step brings us face-to-face. “You’re going to kill me for protecting you from yourself and four men who could take you out for reasons I don’t have enough fingers to list?”
“I’m the boss of this family now.”
The words bounce off him. “Yes, but you’re not invincible. You may be the heir to the throne, Gianni, but I’ve stood beside it for thirty years. I know more. I’ve seen more.” He swings a clenched fist to his chest. “I’velostmore. So, yeah, when I think you’re wrong—when I think your stubborn Marchesi pride is going to get you killed—I’m going to defy you every time. So, if you’ve got a problem with that”—he glances down at the gun in my hand before meeting my eyes—“you pull that trigger right now.”
I’m not going to shoot him, and not because his perfectly executed “put up or shut up” challenge imploded my whole argument. That’s the third time he’s mentioned loss. Somethingtells me there’s more to it than the typical bullets and blood that define a made man’s life. There’s a raw truth buried in the sea of pain he keeps hidden behind that steeled gaze. Water that’s too familiar to the one I’m drowning in. I’ll put a pin in it for now, but if we make it out of this alive, all bets are off.
I holster my gun and drag my hand through my hair. “How the hell did she get up here?”
“When Toscano and the others arrived, I had to unlock the door to the second level.”
I drag my palm across my forehead. “And you didn’t lock it back?”
Because that was the whole plan, or so I thought. Section off the house, leaving Becca with one way out and my father with none. Once I got the final signal from Owen, I was going to turn the whole fucking estate into a multi-million-dollar inferno.
