Page 7 of Cassio (Belles & Mobsters 3)

Our father tainted Luca’s and my last name. Good men looked down on us when they learned who our father was, so did the crooks. No matter though; we had good friends. The kind that endured similar experiences and hardship. They were our friends for life.

The women thought us heroes for saving them and killing the men that held them prisoners since they were captured. We weren’t heroes, just a slightly different caliber of criminals than human traffickers. The women didn’t want to go back to their homes, claiming the Santos would hunt them down and find them. They’d be right back enroute to whorehouses. There was no guarantee that Raphael would get a heads up again.

“I could have Sasha take him out,” Alexei said. In unison, all of us turned to look at him.

“Can you be more specific?” I asked him. “There is a list of people we want to take out.”

He flipped his blade back and forth, his whole body stoic besides the blade and his one hand. Alexei could be unnerving. He wore his ruthlessness on his sleeve. Like a badge of honor. Combine that with ink on his face and Artic cold eyes, he gave off psychopath vibes. It didn’t bother me, because he was loyal. To his family and to his friends.

“The old Santos,” he answered. “Raphael hates the bastard.” He flicked his knife.

Alexei hated him too. It was his story to tell, but it was the old Santos who failed his birth mother. It was the old Nikolaev witch, Vasili’s and Sasha’s mother, who destroyed Alexei’s life as a boy, and, as if that wasn’t enough, she ensured Alexei was handed to a fucking monster.

“Won’t Vasili lose his shit?” I questioned him. I hadn’t met Alexei’s newfound brother yet, but I heard plenty about him. Nico had a run in with him while his sister attended Georgetown. Vasili Nikolaev wasn’t a man I wanted as my enemy. I’d rather form an alliance with him. He ruled New Orleans and the surrounding area and was quite powerful. Having him on our side would prove helpful. But he preferred to run his own show, which was fine. At least he ensured no smuggling of women happened on his territory.

Alexei shrugged. “Vasili won’t know.” I raised my eyebrow. “Sasha has wanted to take him out for a while. It won’t take much to nudge him and get it done.”

“Shouldn’t we at least give a heads up to Raphael?” Luciano muttered. Raphael deserved that much, though I wasn’t sure if he despised his father as much as I hated mine.

“No, you shouldn’t,” Alexei retorted dryly. “Let’s see first if Sasha even bites. He’s on the crazy side, so you never know which way he’ll go.”

I shook my head. The crazy was up for debate here. We all had some of that shit in us. But the moment we started keeping major secrets from each other, we’d break the alliance.

“If Vasili gets wind of this, it’ll be a strike against us,” Nico chimed in. “We can’t have him as our enemy, and if he gets on Benito’s side-”

“He won’t.” Alexei sounded very certain about that.

“What makes you so sure?” Alexei wasn’t the type of guy to screw someone over.

“Because he can’t stand the bastard,” he muttered. “He’d rather cut his dick off than ever side with Benito.” I could tell by Alexei’s expression he was telling the truth. With his big, tall frame and those tattoos on his face, people feared him without even knowing what he had done in life to survive. I didn’t give a shit about any of it. My past crimes were right up there with his. But as long as we did it with some kind of scruples, maybe there was a shred of a soul left in us that wasn’t completely black.

“If we do this, we do it the right way,” I told Alexei.

“Agreed. Let me feel out Sasha’s state of mind, and I’ll get back to you. No need to ruffle feathers if he’ll follow Vasili’s law.”

Nico shook his head. “How about we put a wager that the crazy motherfucker jumps and kills him the same week?”

“I’m game,” Luca spoke for the first time. “I also want to make a wager that Raphael will kill Sasha and possibly Cassio if he finds out we started this shit. That’ll be fun. Gummy bears, popcorn, soda, and a fight to the death.”

Nico snorted immediately. “More like a gundown. Can we add root beer floats to the snacks?”

“Fuck you two.” I flipped them both the bird. My younger brother was a fucking pain in my ass sometimes, and Nico was too smart for his own good.

Luca grinned, like the damn maniac he was, flipping me the middle finger right back. “Raphael will fuck you up.”

“Okay, you two fuckers,” Luciano broke up our sibling arguing. “We have to figure out what to do with these women.” He was right. They were more important now.

Nico shoved his hands into his pockets. “I can have ten of them situated with Gia’s shelter. There isn’t enough space for more than ten.”

Nico’s housekeeper, Gia, was a victim of trafficking. Nico saved her quite a few years back. But she endured years of some serious shit, and the only way she was finally able to heal was by helping other women that went through similar experiences.

“Shit, it would be good if we could put them all with her,” I muttered. “Keep them together.”

With a pensive look in his eyes, I could practically see him working it out.

“Maybe we can double them in rooms for a week or so until we can expand the building,” Nico responded.

He was typing vigorously on his phone.

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