Page 15 of Dangerous Liaisons

“Do you have proof it's the Kapulets?” I wonder.

“Not yet,” Mano says, filling his glass with the remaining liquor.

“Has the damage cost a lot?” I ask. I don't keep tabs on all the things my famiglia is into, but I do know that fortune is vast, and even if we walked away from crime tomorrow, we'd have nothing to worry about.

“It's not just about money, Leilani.” Bane turns to me. “It's a threat to our famiglia that needs to be extinguished because no one fucking messes with the Kalama’s!”

“I get that, I do, but I don't get the extent of your anger. You have soldiers that can easily be dispatched to take care of making life hell for any of our enemies. What's so different now?” I ask, honestly bewildered.

“Because if one threat gains too much advantage, that leaves us open for additional attacks from other factions. It's a slippery slope,” Mano says.

“Plus, a lot of this has hurt locals and theirfamiglialivelihood. We've always taken care of our people,” Kayl reminds me.

I sigh. “Is there anything I can do?”

“Stay out of trouble,” Bane warns me.

I roll my eyes and start to leave. “By the way, when did all this start?”

“About six weeks ago,” Kayl says, touching his forehead. I can see his headache from here.

Six weeks ago, I thought to myself. What the fuck? I ran to my room to check my phone. Sure enough, Simon told me he was going to Hawai’i on business. He should be back by now. I take my hair down and start disrobing. I'm going to shower and drive over to his place to get some answers.

Chapter 13

Simon

Leilani texted me she was on her way. I'm tidying up the place when I hear the knock.

“Did you bring your board?” I ask as I swing open my front door.

I'm staring at a Beretta, and the look on Leilani's face is menacing. I know this girl has a temper, and I know she's worked out why I was in Hawai’i.

I raise my hands and ask, “Where would you like to talk?”

“Inside now, and don't think I won't use this,” she warns.

“I have no doubt of that,” I say, walking to the living room and turning slowly to sit on the couch. Leilani sits across from me in the chair. Her hands are steady, and she continues pointing the gun at me.

“You can put that down now. I'll tell you what you want to know,” I promise.

“So, you have everything figured out, is that it?” Leilani glares at me.

“Yes, I've been involved in fucking with your familgia profits, but it's not for a reason, you might think.”

“Really? So, enlighten me,” she says, crossing her legs and putting the gun on her leg as she holds it steady.

“I need my father to trust me so I can blow up his world.”

Leilani quietly looks at me. I can see the indecision in her brown eyes. So, I continue, “I plan to start making life difficult for the Kapulet famiglia next.”

“Start talking,” Leilani says, putting the safety back on her gun and placing it in her bag resting by her feet.

“When I was young, I didn't understand my parent's dysfunctional relationship. I just knew my father was gone a lot, and they argued because of it. Though looking back, I think they argued way more than that, and I just never knew the difference. When I was ten, my father came home, and my mother confronted him about what he'd been up to. She was agitated. And the next thing I know, she's on the ground floor, unconscious from having fallen down a staircase. Our house was a manor, and there were thirty-two stairs,” I say, pausing to take a long breath.

Leilani's expression has changed to one of concern and likely pity too. I hate talking about that night, but I like this girl, and she deserves to know the truth. I know I'm taking a risk by talking to her about this, but I have to believe she’s not interested in telling her brothers about me. If she was, I'd be enduring a lot of unpleasantness right now from what I already helped do to her famiglia.

I begin again, “My mother wasn't dead, but she might as well have been. She was in the hospital for weeks, having injured her spine. She also had brain swelling. She came back home a ghost of the person she once was. She was in a wheelchair with no use of her legs. The swelling also caused brain damage, and she had to learn how to use her words again.”

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