Page 76 of The Mafia King's Reign
“Sometimes I prefer to get my hands dirty.”
“Sometimes?” Elio laughs.
I see the shift in her expression, a flicker of something that might be discomfort, quickly masked. She’s not ready for the violence this world demands. But she will be. The fact that she doesn’t flinch, doesn’t look away, tells me more than any words could.
She moves past it smoothly, turning her attention back to the table.
“Okay, so I’m guessing it was your idea to put cameras everywhere?” she asks.
“Just common areas,” Raffaele says. “A few of the rooms have cameras in case we need to watch someone, but those are temporary setups. Nothing major.”
Valentina leans back in her chair. “Maybe not major to you, but the person you’re spying on is probably pretty pissed off about it.”
Raffaele shrugs. “It’s as easy as pulling them off the wall or disabling the red cord. Unlike the main security system, the ones we put in the rooms are temporary. But we hide them well, in curtains, curtain rods, behind paintings. They blend right in.”
I catch the glint in her eyes, the way she files away every detail Raffaele shared. I know exactly what she’s doing. But I say nothing. Let her play her game. I’ll enjoy watching.
When she’s finished extracting information about the cameras, she pivots to Matteo, asking about some of the businesses she knows we own—particularly an old laundromat that never seems to have a single customer.
“Yeah, we launder money through there,” Matteo says casually. “Mostly for the mayor’s office.”
Valentina freezes, her wine glass halfway to her lips. “What?”
She’s shocked. She didn’t know her best friend’s daddy had dirty hands. She’d be surprised what most people would do for a few hundred grand.
“Don’t look so shocked,” Elio says with a smirk. “You do know we’re a crime family, right?”
“Oh, I got that when your brother kidnapped me,” she replies dryly. “I guess I just didn’t have the full picture,” she continues in a lower tone, looking away from the table. Elio chuckles.
The room shifts, and I realize something unexpected is happening. My brothers don’t mind her; you might even say they like her.
“It’s not ideal,” Raffaele says, “but we do things differently here.”
“I see,” Valentina says, eyes wide.
Matteo leans forward, swirling his wine. “If it’s any consolation, he’s never kidnapped anyone and forced them to be his bride before.” He glances at me with a knowing smirk. “As a matter of fact, I remember him saying he didn’t plan to marry at all. Said it would be a vulnerability. A weakness.”
“Well, how did I get so lucky then?” Valentina asks sarcastically.
“He saw you.” Matteo raises his glass in my direction. “And, well… here we are.”
Valentina looks at me, and her expression changes. I can see something softening behind those guarded eyes. I hold her gaze, daring her to look away first. She doesn’t. Not immediately. But slowly, her cheeks flush a deep pink, and she drops her eyes to her plate, blushing.
Valentina, Valentina, Valentina, I can stare at her beautiful all day long. When dinner ends, she says goodnight and heads to her room.
“Let me walk you to your room,” I offer.
“No, I don’t want to rush you. Feel free to talk to your brothers.”
She gets a head start, but the moment I get to bed, I turn on the feed to her room. The screen flickers to life, and I find her standing on a chair, searching through the window curtains with determined focus.
I text her: “What are you doing?”
I watch her glance at her phone, read my message, and deliberately ignore it. She knows I’m watching. That’s the point.
She searches everywhere, running her hands along the curtain rods, behind the drapes. And then—a smile. “Gotcha!” she says triumphantly as she yanks the first camera from it’s hiding spot behind the curtain.
Then another one, hidden behind an old painting.
