Page 123 of Dark Alliance
Fueled by the love of two wonderful parents whose lives were cut short and a loyal team I trust will become my new family, I rise.
My men follow suit. Frankie and Carlo help Charlie into the aisle, protecting him.
With me at the helm, we march toward the altar in formation.
“Nino!” I hold my arms out wide. “Ta-da! I must be a zombie, because I’ve risen from the dead.”
The rumble goes eerily silent as two hundred-plus heads swivel toward the back of the church.
The clomping of our boots takes on a fast and furious rhythm as I storm the altar with Frankie and Carlo and Charlie in tow while Danny, the four capos, and six more enforcers line up center stage like the Tabernacle Choir.
Nino stares, his eyes wide and his face pale.
“Miss Ricci!” Marlene’s voice cries out over the crowd, jubilant and relieved. “You’re alive!”
I push Nino aside to grab the mic. When his fists ball, part of me wills him to swing at me in the church, in front of all our men and two-hundred-plus attendees.
I cover the mic with my hand. “I dare you.”
His fingers twitch, but he remains still.
I present him with my back and address the pews.
“I’m sorry to disrupt my father’s funeral. Thank you all for coming, by the way. I would have been here sooner, but I waslocked in my room at the Ricci estate while the executor of my father’s will was being tortured in our basement.”
“Ourfather.” Nino shoves his mouth closer to the mic. “And she’s lying. Delusional!”
It feels good to push him aside.
“Myfather,” I repeat the words for all to hear, “would have been destroyed by my brother’s actions, were he here to witness this. I apologize for this most untimely announcement and hope thatmyfather and each of you will forgive me for this interruption, but I had no other choice.” I meet Nino’s eyes. “My brother left me no options.”
The church remains so quiet that I could hear a pin drop.
I suck in a breath and continue. “Eduardo Ricci did not leave the family to Nino. In an amendment to his will, created on the night of his untimely death,” I flash Nino another glance, “he left the family to me, Caterina Lucia Ricci, his oldest daughter and the only child who loved him.”
“She’s a liar!” Nino fishes some papers out of his vest. “I have the will right here!”
“It’s a forgery!” Charles Mori does his best to speak clearly, but he’s exhausted, dehydrated, and probably scared shitless.
I assist Charlie by pointing to him. “That man is the executor my brother had locked in a cell and tormented for days.”
Nino yanks the mic from my hand. “She’s lost her mind! That’s why she was locked up too. I’ve been leading this family for months. No woman has ever been named boss!”
That’s not true. We’ve actually had a few female leaders in our history, referred to as La Madrina or La Dama de la Mafia.
The history lesson doesn’t matter now.
I can see some people in the crowd siding with me, while others visibly agree with Nino. Naming a woman crime boss is an unlikely, progressive play, particularly from a man as reserved and traditional as Eduardo Ricci.
Shit, they have me nearly convinced it’s a ludicrous notion.
Nino whispers in my ear. “I should’ve killed you myself, you fucking bitch.” He chuckles under his breath. “Doesn’t matter. This is your funeral too.” Nino gazes out into the crowd. “We need my sister removed! Immed?—”
A mob of angry men—no, angry Irishmen—burst through the cathedral doors, stifling Nino mid-sentence.
Well, Father, at least we’re giving you a funeral no one’s ever going to forget.
“I have the authentic document with Eduardo’s signature right here.”
