Page 113 of When She Unravels
“That depends on how this conversation goes.” I look at Vale. When she mouthsGemma, I nod and ask, “What are you going to do with Gemma?”
“That’s none of your business.”
“Papà, please don’t punish her,” Vale begs.
“Enough of that Papà crap,” he snaps. “You’ve lost your right to call me that after you abandoned your family. Now, let’s cut right to it. What do you want, De Rossi?”
My eyes beg Vale to trust me. I can see she’s on the verge of freaking out. Once I have a deal with Garzolo, we’ll be able to do more for Gemma. Finally, she gives a barely perceptible nod.
“I want to give you an opportunity to right the wrongs leveled against my family,” I say. “Sal will never work with you again after your failure, but I might.”
“You’re a capo on an island. Rich but isolated. You don’t have anything I want besides my daughter,” Garzolo says, his voice harsher than before.
“I won’t be on this island for much longer,” I tell him. This is where I need to bluff. “Everything’s already in motion.”
“You want to take over.”
“Iwilltake over. It’s my birthright, and my duty. Sal’s running the clan into the ground, and people are noticing. They see me as the natural contender, which is why he wanted to take Martina to keep me in line. The money I make on Ibiza makes up more than fifty percent of the clan’s revenue. Without me, he’s nothing.”
The implication is clear. Once I’m the don, I’ll be able to make whatever counterfeit deal he was interested in from Sal.
“How do I know this isn’t just some fantasy?” he demands. “What makes you think you’ll succeed?”
I’ll succeed if Garzolo agrees to give me his cocaine, but I can’t tell him that. He can’t know how much leverage he has. “Sal’s made a lot of enemies in the last few years. The families are unhappy and ready for a change. You know as well as me that all great empires fall from within. Let me be clear, I don’t need you, Garzolo. Once I become the don, I’ll be even less forgiving. We have a debt between us. One way or another, it will be paid.”
He exhales a sigh. “What kind of payment are you looking for?”
I brace my elbows on my knees. “A short-term supply of cocaine. I’ll pay you a fifteen percent markup if you can get the product to Ibiza.”
There’s a lengthy pause. Vale places her hand on my back while her father thinks.
Come on.
“Done, but under the condition that we sign the deal the Messeros and I were negotiating with Sal.”
Relief cascades through me. “I’ll have to look at it, unless you want to bring me up to speed now.”
“The Riccis have grown too powerful here in New York. The Messeros and I have partnered together to take them down a notch and reestablish our dominance. The Riccis’ main supplier of counterfeits in China is no longer operational. It’s been taken over by the Triad. So they went to Sal.”
Ah, it’s all starting to become clear. “And you tried to get Sal to agree to work with you instead.”
“We almost had our deal signed. Sal’s last condition was the business with your sister. When we didn’t deliver, he was furious. He exposed our plans to the Riccis. The tensions are high. It’s urgent we get it done.”
“Understood. It will be my top priority after the dust settles.”
“Good. When are you sending back my daughter?”
I meet Vale’s gaze. “She’s staying with me.”
“Excuse me?”
“You heard me. Valentina is mine.”
“She’s a married woman. Her husband wants her back.”
“Her husband is never going to see her again.”
The silence stretches.
