Page 86 of Sins of the Son

Enzo leaned against the doorframe to his closet as he watched me rummage through his shirts. “Papà says he was persuasive when he asked her, so I would say yes. I got the impression Amara was concerned as well, so I tend to agree with him.”

I grabbed a dark gray, oval neck sweater from a drawer and shook it out before pulling it over my head.

Enzo held up his mobile and asked, “Papà wants to know if you want the helicopter made ready?”

I thought for a moment, then nodded. “Tell him yeah.”

Enzo nodded. “It will take an hour.” He motioned with his head. “Come down to the dining room for a coffee, then I’ll drive you out to the west field to meet it.”

As I followed him down to the main level, I took in the massive mural on the far wall which stretched two stories up over the entrance to the dining room. My eyes widened. “Buon Dio!”

Enzo didn’t even look up. “After a while, you learn to tune it out.”

I grimaced. “How? By gouging your eyes out?”

The subject of the mural was Sandro Botticelli’s Birth of Venus, except Renata had had the artist depict her, instead of Venus. A naked Renata. A two-story tall, naked Renata.

We moved into the equally garish dining room. Instead of following the beautiful historic aesthetic of the room, Renata had insisted on filling it with contemporary furniture that looked like it had been purchased from the movie set of Scarface. Everything was black leather, clear acrylic, and gold.

Enzo motioned toward a chair. “Grab a seat.”

I eyed it speculatively. The plastic abomination didn’t look like it would hold the weight of a bambino, let alone a tall, muscular, full-grown man. “I’m afraid to.”

Enzo smirked. “Shut up and sit down.” He motioned to a staff member who brought over espresso and brioche rolls.

I reached for an espresso but couldn’t eat a bite. As I looked around at the disgusting display of excess and wealth, I thought of the small box of meager possessions that belonged to Milana. A box of framed personal pictures, some makeup, a figurine or two, and a small bud vase. That was all.

I thought of her lying on the bed beneath me. For the first time, I realized she hadn’t been wearing that tarnished old Gemini charm necklace that was always around her neck. In fact, I hadn’t seen it since the train. It must have gotten torn off. By me. The thought soured the espresso in my stomach. If this had been a day earlier, I wouldn’t have thought twice about it. I would have gone to a jewelry store and ordered her another one, a better one, made of solid gold.

After all, hers was just a cheap, gold-plated charm on a thin, crappy chain. Right?

Fuck, what an arrogant ass I was.

That charm necklace was hers. Hers. She had worn it since we were teenagers. Hell, I was there the day she found it in the market and bought it. I remembered casually digging into my pocket for the crumpled, loose bills to pay for it, completely missing the hurt expression in her eyes as she pulled the carefully folded and cherished bills she had earned and saved out of her purse to be able to afford and pay for such a luxury herself.

She loved that charm.

My stubborn little Gemini.

Enzo brought me back to the present. “So what’s the plan?”

I leaned back and rubbed my hand over my eyes. “I’m going after Milana, of course, but hell if I know how to move forward with finding out who's responsible for hurting her. Romolo was our best lead.”

Enzo slowly spread jam on a piece of brioche as we sat in silence. Then he looked up and smiled.

My brow furrowed. “What are you thinking?”

“You’re heading to Rome… and who’s the one man in Italy who could find out everything you’d need to know about Romolo and his associates, past and present?”

I matched his smile. “Sebastian Diamanti.”

Enzo raised his espresso cup in a salute. “When in Rome, brother.”

I reached into my back pocket before remembering Milana had taken my mobile. I nodded toward Enzo. “Do me a favor and text him that I’m coming and need a meeting.”

Enzo nodded as he took out his phone. “Done. I’ll also have an assistant from our offices in Rome meet the helicopter with a new phone for you.” He looked up and winked. “Just in case Milana got creative with yours.”

The moment he set his phone aside, he had to pick it up again when it pinged. He raised an eyebrow. “Well, this is interesting.”

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