Page 14 of Unrestricted
"My brother wants you to be the point of contact on our end," Gabriele continues. "Moving forward he'd like you to take a bigger role in the family."
Up until now I've mainly worked independently, forging deals and kicking a percentage of the profits up to Damiano. He never seemed to mind.
"He's clipping my wings?" I ask.
Gabriele shakes his head. "He's bringing you into the fold. With Lorenzo focused on the vineyard, he wants you at the top table."
"Why not Benito? He's in Florence."
"Because you understand the business side of things. Benito's strengths lie elsewhere."
My half-brother has worked as an enforcer for the family since he came of age and he's damned good at it but he's not just a blunt instrument. He's got a decent brain in his head when he's allowed to use it. He's one of the few people in my family whose words can cut me to the bone. Benito sees things others don't.
"You might be surprised what else Benito can do."
"I admire you wanting to champion him, Adriano, but you know some of our men cling to tradition. They're not ready for Benito to take a leadership role."
What he's trying to say is that some of the older men won't take orders from a bastard. The mafia hasn't made it all the way into the twenty-first century yet, not as far as bloodlines and shit like that go. It pisses me off but arguing won't change it.
"Okay. I'll reach out to Timofey Lenkov and find out what's happening in Marseilles then."
"Good."
I sip my coffee and look out over the gardens. There was nothing here a few months ago. Now under Katya's influence there are flowers, plants and even a water feature. She had saplings planted at the far end of the garden that will one day grow into an orchard. If that's not a sign she's in this marriage for the long term, I don't know what is.
It looks good and I can't help wondering what it would be like if I let a woman loose in my house. Would it end up becoming more of a home than the museum it currently feels like thanks to my interior designer? I don't allow myself to imagine that the woman making my home more liveable is Eliza.
"How was Gio?" Gabriele asks, pivoting from business to personal matters.
"Good."
"I haven't seen him since he was thirteen, maybe. Remember that summer they all came over?"
"Vividly." Our American cousins are a lot to handle all at once. "He's happy."
Gabriele nods. "Married life will do that to you." He picks up his coffee cup, drains the contents and sets it down again. "It makes you see things differently."
"Like what?"
"Well, I look at Katya, the way her life could have gone and I realize our world isn't kind to women."
I shrug. "We've always known that."
Closing his eyes, he taps his finger on the arm of the chair. It's a habit he's had since we were boys, a sign he's mulling something over. One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four. He does this several times. Then he opens his eyes and looks at me, his mind made up.
"Killing women doesn't sit right with me," he says.
"Nobody's asking you to pull the trigger." At this point I'm not sure what would happen if he asked me to. I've never shied away from killing anyone, male or female, who deserved death. The trouble is, I don't yet know that Eliza has earned a bullet. My gut tells me she hasn't.
"No, but I don't like the idea of anyone hurting her."
"You still have feelings for her?" That would really fucking complicate matters.
Gabriele laughs sardonically. "I doubt I ever did."
"You told me you planned to marry her."
"Because she seemed to fit." He picks up his empty cup and runs his finger around the rim. "You know, I never even fucked her."
