Page 64 of Shadowed Loyalty

“Mm.” He turned his eyes to the distance, his smile small and a little sad. “He is that. Though very little of it is to my credit. Had he turned out as I raised him, he would be working with Tony and Val, preparing to take over your father’s operations.”

“Take over?” She stopped a few steps away from the door. Keeping the frown from furrowing her brow took monumental effort. “Since when are they taking over?”

Vanni cleared his throat. “Well, your father and uncle and I are all getting old, Bina. And Little G told your father last week that he wants to pursue printing with your cousin instead. Of course, if he were to change his mind—”

“I didn’t mean to imply you’re muscling out my brother. I’m the one who encouraged him to talk to Papa.” She had stood outside the study door through the whole conversation, her ear pressed to the wood, ready to charge in and defend his right to choose if needed. But G had held his own, presenting his desires calmly and clearly. Her heart had swollen with pride as he made his case. And she’d nearly sagged in relief as their father gave G his blessing to pursue whatever brought him joy.

She hadn’t paused to think about what that meant for the Family. “I just didn’t realize Tony and Val…knowing how Enzo feels, I mean, I always thought…”

“They love and respect his choices. But his choices aren’t theirs.” Vanni drew his arm away, though he still smiled. “They either step up, or we bring in someone new to groom. No one wanted that.”

“Does Enzo know?”

Vanni shrugged. His discomfort shone in his hazel eyes. “He’s a smart boy. I’m sure he’s picked up on it.”

He hadn’t said anything to her…but maybe he was still piecing it together. Gathering the evidence, saying nothing until he could convince both judge and jury. Or maybe it just hurt too much for him to know how to put it into words. Sabina sighed and, when Vanni opened the door for her, walked inside. She lifted a hand in farewell before turning to the stairs, wondering how to get Enzo to talk about this. She didn’t want to ruin the fun they’d been having—but he shouldn’t have to carry that burden alone.

She walked slowly and silently down the hall to Papa’s office. As she neared his partially opened door, she shifted the case to her other hand so she could better reach for the knob.

She froze a step away when she heard a feminine voice. Peering in, she saw a woman pacing before Papa’s window. At first, with the glare of the midday sun behind her, Sabina could see nothing but the outline of an expensive dress and the curvy form it accentuated. Then she saw the hair—auburn with a single streak of gray—and caught a glimpse of a familiar face.

The woman from the park, from church. What was she doing here?

Sabina eased back a step. It was a dangerous question. People from all over Little Italy sought out Papa—he was their protection, the one who provided jobs for their sons. He was the one who loaned them money…and who then came to collect. Did she really want to hear this woman begging for a favor or an extension?

Before she could decide, the woman came to a halt and sagged to a perch on the corner of Papa’s desk. The pose looked so comfortable and familiar, it made Sabina’s brows knit. “I don’t know what else she should tell him, Manny,” the woman said. “He won’t back off. Sally says he’s still digging elsewhere and apparently finding enough to keep him going.”

Her father sighed, the sound coming from the area of his desk, though he wasn’t within her line of vision. “Perhaps you shouldn’t have trusted this Sally. She’s one of Torrio’s girls, after all, and he’ll benefit greatly if I get put away.”

The woman craned her head back to look at the ceiling, her frustration obvious. “She’s a good girl.”

“She’s a whore.”

The woman’s head snapped back down, and she glared in Papa’s direction with more fire than most acquaintances would ever dare send his way.

Suspicion crept up Sabina’s spine, twisted around her heart.

Not a woman asking for a favor for her son. Not a woman come to beg for a little more time on her loan. This woman knew him.

Sabina heard the squeak of Papa’s chair, signifying that he was getting up. “Well I’m sorry, Ava, but you know as well as I that most of them can’t be trusted.”

“Torrio’s got her in a hole in the wall. I promised her Daisy’s room if she helps us out, which will be a big step up for her. If being my friend isn’t enough to make you willing to trust her, you can at least trust her because it’s in her best interest to be truthful with me.”

Torrio. Rooms. Whores.

Sabina’s stomach turned. This woman—this kind woman who always smiled at her, always greeted her, always asked after Mama and Little G and lit candles for them at Holy Guardian Angel—she was a…a…what? A madame at a bordello? One of Papa’s bordellos?

Papa stepped into view, moving over to Ava and cupping her shoulders with gentle hands. “All right, cara.” His voice took on the placating tones that Sabina knew well. Though she tried to dismiss the endearment as perfunctory, she didn’t quite succeed. Not given the way his fingers rubbed over her shoulder, or the way she leaned into his touch. “We’ll assume Sally can be trusted, and that she’s telling the truth. But you still don’t need to worry.”

Ava breathed a laugh and crossed her arms over her chest. “He saw me with Eddie the night he was killed, Manny. What if he’s spoken to the police and knows that it was my necklace found with the body?”

“The man was twice your size and killed by a broken neck. No one is going to blame you for that, even if you were there.”

“No.” She slid back to her feet, pulling away from his touch, but then reached out and grabbed his hands, her eyes imploring. “They’ll blame you. We both know it. That’s why we have to stop this investigation, me amari. If they charge you with his murder, it will be because they have a lot of evidence, and you might not be able to get out of it. And then where will we be?”

Papa lifted her hands and kissed each of them in turn. “You know you’ll be taken care of, cara, no matter what happens to me. I’ve made provisions.”

“That’s not my only concern!” Ava blinked back tears that were nevertheless audible in her words. “What about Rosa? Giorgio Jr.? Sabina? None of us just need your money, Manny, your provision. We need you!”

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