Code of Silence: Cosa Nostra #2 (2 page)

Prodigal Son

The city street was crowded with people. Vincent weaved his way through the mob until he came to his motorcycle. He grabbed his helmet, and caught a glimpse of something on the shiny surface of the bike. Turning, he came face to face with a tall, dark-haired man he recognized. Clad in a very sleek, very expensive Armani suit, he looked suave and dangerous, with the cold-hearted gaze of an assassin.

“Rafe.” Vincent was stiff as he contemplated what would happen next. “I was wondering when I’d run into you.”

“I just had to see it for myself,” Rafe said, his voice thick with disapproval. “
You
… working for the enemy. For the
DeLucas
. But you’re not just working for them, are you? You’re sleeping with them, too.”

Vincent rolled his eyes. Everybody liked to get that little dig in. “What do you want?”

Ignoring him, Rafe looked down the street, to where Gio was holding the door of a Cadillac open for Bela to climb in the backseat. He gave a low whistle as Bela disappeared into the car. “Can’t say I blame you. I’d like five minutes alone with that hot little
troia
—”

He gave Rafe’s shoulder a shove to draw his attention away from Bela. “Watch it,” he warned. “You might be my big brother, but I
will
deck you for that.”

Rafe smirked.

“I’ll ask you one last time,” he said. “What do you want?”

“You don’t know?” Rafe’s eyes narrowed. “You don’t, do you?”

“Know what?”

“Dad’s put a price on your head,” he said. “First one to bring you in gets a 50k bonus.”

His stomach flipped a little and his body began to perspire. With so much cash involved, there were likely dozens of people making it their number one priority to find him.

“So…are you going to come with me of your own free will?” Rafe made a waving motion in the air. Suddenly, two more guys flanked him. Vincent didn’t even know where they’d come from—they seemed to step out of the crowded city street and appear out of thin air. “Or is this going to take some persuasion?”

“I vote for neither.” Vincent tossed his helmet and bounced it off Rafe’s face, stunning him a moment. When Rafe’s muscle moved in, Vincent ducked. It took some struggle, but he managed to jump on his motorcycle and escape without being captured. This time.

~~~

This time, when Trey turned in for the night, Mandi was waiting up for him. Sitting in a chair facing the door with her arms crossed.

Seeing her, he asked, “What’s wrong?” as the door closed behind him.

“I called the Strip Dive,” she said, and she could see a slight hesitation in his step. “And apparently I’ve been taken off the payroll…on your order.”

He shrugged out of his leather jacket. “Right. I meant to tell you about that.”

“We agreed I’d take some time off while the bruises healed and I got past what happened,” she said. “I never said I wanted to quit.”

“You don’t need that job anymore, Mandi,” he said. “It’s simple.”

“I wanted the job,” she snapped, standing up. “Trey, you know how important my independence is. If you don’t, then you
should
.”

He turned to her, his eyes brimming with impatience. “You’re pregnant,” he said, as if she was stupid and didn’t already know this. “You don’t need to be dancing around on some stage, taking your clothes off for guys who are too pathetic to get some real ass or aren’t satisfied with what they have.”

“Since when is this your decision to make?”

“Since you’re carrying my kid.”

Hot rage swamped over her. “We’ve been over this before,” she said. “You don’t own me!”

“I never said I did! This is just common sense, Mandi. You wouldn’t be able to work for much longer anyway. What’s the big deal?”

“What’s the big deal? You made this decision without even talking to me. Without even stopping to consider I still have bills to pay. That abandoned apartment of mine costs me $400 a month, you know.”

“I told you I’d take care of all of that.”

She sighed in exasperation. That wasn’t even the point. Why didn’t he understand she didn’t want to be one of those women who lived off of her man’s money? She didn’t want to depend on Trey for everything, and it seemed like that was exactly what he was trying to make happen.

Closing the space between them, he placed his hands on each of her shoulders, looking her in the eye. “Let me take care of you,” he said. “Let me treat you like the queen you are. You’ve worked hard long enough.”

“I’m not Cinderella,” she said. “I’m not just going to let you carry me off to your castle and…”

“Why not?” he asked.

“Because Happily Ever After doesn’t exist,” she snapped. After everything he’d seen while working on the streets, did he really believe it did? “Because sooner or later this relationship is going to implode or you’re going to wind up dead. What happens to me then? I’ll tell you. I have to start fresh, with nothing to my name. Again.”

He looked at her, studying her. “It doesn’t have to be this way.”

“Does that mean you’re going to quit your job?”

His eyes widened in surprise. “I can’t quit, Mandi. It’s
who
I am.”

“Then how can you tell me everything’s going to be okay?” she asked.

“Because I’m going to make sure it is.”

~~~

Bela used her key to let herself into Vincent’s apartment, surprised to find him packing. He didn’t own much, but what few belongings he had, he was stuffing into a tattered duffel bag.

“What’s going on?” she asked.

He stopped moving long enough to look at her, then past her to the hallway. “How’d you get here?” he asked. “Where’s Gio?”

“Looking for me as we speak, no doubt.” She gave him a sly smile. “I gave him the slip. I thought we could spend some time alone.”

“Bela, you can’t do that.” He sighed, reaching into his pocket. He came out with a cell phone. “Not at a time like this.”

“A time like this?”

He didn’t respond. Instead, he said into the phone, “Gio, Bela’s at my place. When can you get here?”

“What are you doing?” Snatching the phone from his hand, she hung it up and then lifted her gaze to his in question. “Vince, you better tell me what the hell’s going on.”

“Listen to me,” he said, taking her hand. “I know you feel smothered, but it’s important you let Gio protect you. You can’t be running off without telling anybody.”

“Why not?” she asked.

“I ran into my brother today,” he said.

“Rafe?” A nervous feeling settling into her belly. She’d heard of him; the ruthless and arrogant Capo who owned most of the east side. He was the Marcano family’s equivalent of Trey—except he was a good five years older and ten times more brutal.

He nodded. “He threatened you.”

“Me?” she asked. “Why?”

“Why?” he snapped. “Because I love you. And hurting you would devastate both me and your family with one blow. You’ve got to be careful.”

“Okay,” she said, “I’ll be careful. But…is there more to it? You seem…shaken up.”

“Yeah, there’s more.” Turning away from her, he continued to pack. “My dad put a price on my head. Fifty thousand to whoever brings me to him. Meaning any guy looking to make a name for himself or a little extra cash is going to be hunting me.”

“Are you leaving town?” she asked.

“No. I just need to find somewhere safe to stay.”

“Come stay with me,” she said. “There’s plenty of room and no one will be able to get to you at my house.”

He shook his head. “No. No, that only puts you in danger. It’s better if you don’t even know where I’m staying.”

“Let me talk to Trey,” she said. “He’s good at this kind of thing. He can help.” 

“This is my problem,” he said. “I’ll handle it.”

“Dammit, Vincent,” she snapped. “You won’t let me help you, you won’t let me hide you. This is your life we’re talking about so stop being so stubborn!”

“
You
are my life,” he said. “So as long as you’re safe, I’ll be fine.”

She shook her head in disbelief.

Stepping up again, he did his best to speak in a soothing voice, but she could tell beneath his façade, he was rattled. “I’ll be okay, Bela. I’ve been hiding from them for a long time—I’ve got this part down. I’ll find a motel—one of those places that won’t ask for my name. I’ll pay cash, I’ll ditch my bike. When I’m sure it’s safe, I’ll come find you okay? Until then, we need to keep our distance. And you need to stop ditching your bodyguard.”

It seemed too hard. With something so high risk, she wanted to be at his side every step of the way. But if being there meant putting him in more danger somehow, then she’d have to do what he said and stay away. She managed to nod, but was too emotional to form words.

He gave her a kiss. Soft and deep and sweet, putting her at ease…for a moment. His kiss always had that affect on her. Before their lips could part, someone knocked on the door. They both went stiff and still, until a voice called out, “It’s Gio.”

Vincent looked out the peephole just to make sure and then opened the door.

“Gotta hand it to you,” Gio said as he leaned against the doorjamb. “Not many people can pull a fast one on me.”

The second he laid eyes on her, his amused smile faded. With a glance around the room—the duffel bags and cleaned out apartment—he sobered up. She gave Vincent one last look as she walked past both of them.

Once they were out in the hallway, Gio fell in step with her. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing,” she muttered, blinking back tears of worry.

“It’s
something
.”

“You think I don’t know what this is?” She scoffed and picked up her pace as she ranted, “You follow me around and then report back everything I do. I don’t know if you’re working for my dad or my brother, but you’re definitely a spy. And I’m not telling you a damn thing.”

With her head held high and her vision blurred with unshed tears, she continued a brisk walk down the hallway, leaving him to catch up.

Pillow Talk

Trey couldn’t sleep. Even though Mandi was within arm’s reach, he felt like she was miles away. With her back turned toward him, she lay curled up on her side, keeping a good six inches of space between them. She was pretending to sleep. He could tell because her breathing was smooth and even—too calm. In her natural sleep state, Mandi’s breathing patterns were always fluxing and changing as whatever demons from her past came back to haunt her subconscious. He assumed that was what was happening, but he knew she’d never tell him.

But she sure hadn’t been shy about telling him how he’d overstepped his bounds earlier. She’d let him have it good. So he’d messed up…somehow. What was wrong with not wanting his pregnant girlfriend to work at a strip club? Absolutely nothing, in his opinion. Maybe he should’ve discussed the issue with Mandi first, but he hadn’t seen the point. He’d known the stubborn and independent beauty would just argue her case and win. Besides, it was his club. He could fire any one he wanted, whenever he wanted. That didn’t get him out of the doghouse tonight, though.

He rolled over on his side to face Mandi’s back. He could see the soft glow of her skin against the white straps of her silky nightgown. She was so beautiful, with her golden blond hair spread across her shoulders.

Looking at her a moment, he searched his mind for a way to break the ice. “Did I ever tell you I wanted to be a fireman when I was a kid?” he decided to say finally.

A slight hesitation in her breathing told him she’d heard him. After a moment, she rolled over and brought them face to face. “Really?”

“Yeah.” Smiling, he thought back on those simpler years. “I wanted to run into burning buildings and rescue people. Wear all the cool gear. The whole nine yards.”

“What did your dad say about it?”

“I never told him,” he said.

Something in her eyes softened. “Why not?”

He had to think on that one a minute. “I guess I knew it wasn’t an option. For as long as I can remember, he’s talked about teaching me the family trade. Grooming me. Telling him just would’ve gotten me another speech, and I didn’t want him to ruin the dream. Dreams are good for you.”

She gave a light scoff.

“You don’t think so?” he asked. “Come on, you must’ve had a dream at some point, right?”

“Nope.”

“Come on.” He flashed her a charming grin and gave her nose a playful tap with his forefinger. “Tell me what it was.”

She was fighting a smile, but she caved and it grew. “All right, all right. I wanted to be a ballerina.”

“You did?” he smiled, picturing her in a leotard and a tutu.

She nodded. “Or I wanted to teach ballet. Mostly, I just wanted to dance. I loved it. Still do.”

Reaching out, he took her hand and gave it a squeeze. “What about now? Do you have any new dreams?”

“Does being happy count?” she asked, her gaze turning distant.

“You’re not happy?” he asked, concerned. This should’ve been obvious to him, and in some ways, it was. He kept hoping something would happen and bring back that smiling blond that had captivated him.

“I don’t know why I said that. I didn’t mean it.” Avoiding his gaze, she turned over on her back and stared up at the ceiling.

“Yes, you did.”

Silence settled over them. After a few moments, Mandi said in a small, quiet voice. “It’s not like I’m depressed. I mean, I’m fine. I always have been, you know?
Fine, just fine
.” She sighed. “I’m tired of being
fine
. I want to be better than that.”

He let this sink in. “You will be happy someday, Mandi,” he said gently. As he made his vow, he intended to keep it. “I promise.”

~~~

Something inside him had changed. When Vincent returned to New York with the intention of bringing both mob families down, he’d been so set on his mission. Nothing else had mattered. Not only had he risked his life again and again to make a new name for himself, but he’d also shamelessly gone into hiding time and again to keep himself safe.

It was easy for him to fly under the radar, to disappear if he needed. At least, it used to be.

Loving Bela changed things. He no longer wanted to destroy the mob out of revenge, but out of the desire to free her from their control. Though justice was important to him, it didn’t matter as much as Bela and her dreams. Though he could easily run away with her, he knew they’d always be looking over their shoulder. How could they truly be happy together, knowing the past could catch up with them at any moment?

Because he loved Bela, running and hiding were no longer options. The only way to gain freedom was to take a stand.

That was why he decided not to hide from his father. For Bela, he did something he swore he’d never do.

He went home.