Page 9 of Bound By Sin
“Yes, the actress and supermodel. I want medical records, financial records, school records. Every fucking thing you can find on them. I want every fucking rock upturned, Charlie.”
“Might take me awhile,” he said, the sound of clicking filtering over the line. “Someone did some good work encrypting some of these files.”
“Can you do it or not?” I asked, running my hand through my hair.
He chuckled. “Of course I can,” he responded like I was a dipshit for asking.
Charlie Rossi, my nephew and godson, was my go-to guy for anything computer related because I didn’t know shit about any of it. He was a fucking genius at finding anyone who didn’t want to be found, and he could find everything anyone didn’t want found.
When he was younger, my sister, her husband, and I tried to keep him away from the life, but the harder we pushed him away, the more he was drawn to it. For his safety and his parents’ peace of mind, I welcomed him into the fold. He’d had a target on his back anyway, not only from criminals but also from the government because of his mind; he was a child prodigy with a photographic memory and considered one of the best hackers in the country.
At the age of thirteen, he was arrested for breaking into the FBI and CIA federal databases. Because of my connections, he didn’t have a record, but it put him on the government’s radar. They would have done anything to have him work for them, which neither me nor his parents wanted. At least, now, he had the protection of the Cavallaro Family.
“Get me what you can as quick as you can.”
“Yes, Don.”
“And kid?
“Yeah?”
“Someone gave a reporter my personal cell number. Find them, and make sure you keep this between you and me.”
“You got it, Don Cavallaro.”
I didn’t correct him. I had stopped trying to get him to stop calling me Don when he officially joined the Family. He wanted me to treat him like every other soldier, even if he was family. Which, at first, was hard to do. He’d always be my nephew and godson. The son I never had. But I eventually learned to separate the love for him as family from being a Cavallaro soldier. Without the bloodshed, he’d earned his place and my respect as his Don.
I ended the call, rubbed the tension at my temples, and laid my head against the headrest of the car, again. I was ready for this day to be over with. I wasn’t expecting to have this kind of day, but Fate, the bitch that she was, never let me have any fucking peace.
Maybe I deserve to have no peace for all the horrible shit I’ve done.
“Where to, Don?” Aurelio asked from the front passenger seat, pulling me away from the stupid ass conversation I was having in my head.
Peace wasn’t for men like me. There was only chaos. Only hell.
Aurelio Messina was one of my best and most loyal soldiers. He was almost fifteen years younger than me, in his early thirties, and had risen fast in the family ranks. His and Luca’s father, Adrianu, had been one of my father’s most competent and loyal Capos. Aurelio’s father trained both very well. Since I didn’t have a son for an heir, Aurelio was my choice to take over the Family. As long as he remained loyal to me until I died or retired, everyone would answer to him.
I trusted him and Luca with what they obviously overheard. Because, if it was true, and I had a daughter, they’d be the ones I would trust implicitly to make sure she was protected.
Shit! I didn’t fucking realize we were still parked in front of the church. “The cemetery,” I sighed, “then to the Rizzo estate.”
Damn it, I just wanted answers, but my duty came first. It always had. It always will. I didn’t want to start an unnecessary war because I’d disrespected the new Don of the Rizzo Family by not paying the proper respects to his father. I’d get answers to all my questions tonight one way or the other. Then I’d claim the woman I loved and my child.
I’d claim my family.
Chapter three
TARA
I walked to the receptionist desk of Club Desire as unknown anticipation wracked my body. Clammy hands and an erratically beating heart had been plaguing me nonstop since I decided to come tonight.
Bethany James, my brother-in-law’s cousin, stood behind the desk, animatedly talking on the phone. Tonight, her long, ombre hair was piled on top of her head in a cute, chic messy bun. Her beautiful handmade jewelry draped around her slender neck and fingers, and her pale skin was tinted red. She held up her finger, mouthing, “Give me a minute.”
I nodded, then she returned to her conversation, facing away from me. I walked to the four chairs situated in front of the receptionist area and sat, giving her some privacy, and waited for her to finish her phone call.
I hadn’t planned to come to the club tonight, but Nia was at Rosie’s, Laila and Elijah would swing by later tonight, and Brian wasn’t answering the phone. I needed to let off some steam.
Exposé, and that bitch reporter, Amy Moreno, were still trying to confirm Valentino was Nia’s father. I didn’t know how many phone calls I’d declined or numbers I blocked today, just from her alone. Some friends from the industry had been contacted to see if they knew anything as well, and the paparazzi were hanging around the neighborhood. Thankfully, Nia hadn’t heard the questions yet, and Nathan had kept her away from them as much as possible.
