Page 127 of When She Tempts (The Fallen)
I take a glass from him and take a sip. “You need me, De Rossi. Things aren’t going the way you thought they would. Sal’s managing to hang onto his support because you haven’t been a presence in Casal for many years. Sal’s got a lot of flaws, but at least everyone knows what those flaws are. You, on the other hand, are a mystery. No one likes the unknown.”
“That’s why I’m negotiating with all of these people in person,” he argues.
“Yes, but building a relationship takes time, and you’re running out of it. You can’t afford to play the diplomat any longer. This situation calls for a dictator.”
He sits down across from me and scratches his chin, appearing to think it over. “Bend the knee or else… I didn’t want to involve mercenaries in internal clan business, but I don’t have enough firepower without them to make do on that kind of threat.”
“You don’t need to threaten their lives, just their money.”
His eyes flash with intrigue. “What are you proposing?”
Something I told myself I’d never do.
I can reveal to him all of the secret stashes I’ve put in place for the families.
If I do this, my reputation is done.
No one will ever trust me again, but… Fuck. It’s worth it. If I was willing to give Mari away for this, what’s another sacrifice?
“Most of the families keep a large portion of their personal cash and valuables in secured storage facilities I designed. I know where they’re located, and I’ve built backdoors into the security systems.”
The slackening in De Rossi’s expression tells me he understands the implications of this. “So you have access to the clan’s riches,” De Rossi mutters.
“Not everything, but a lot of it. Say the word, and I can lock it all down. There’ll be panic, and it will be enough to turn the tide in your favor.”
He sinks backward into his chair. “And all you want in exchange is…”
“To be the one to kill Sal.”
He swirls his whiskey inside his glass, and then looks up and meets my eyes.
“Deal.”
CHAPTER32
MARTINA
Vale comesout of the kitchen with two steaming cups of tea and hands me one. “You look pale, Mari. Are you sure you don’t want to lie down? It might be the pain meds kicking in.”
I bite down on my tongue. No, I don’t want to lie down. I didn’t even want the pain meds, but my sister-in-law insisted on me taking them after she saw me wince when she touched my wrist. Polo left a few bruises, but they’re nothing that won’t fade in a few days.
What I really want to do is storm into my brother’s office and demand an explanation from Giorgio.
Yes, I expected him to act differently when he arrived, but I wasn’t prepared for that perfect mask of indifference. Last night, Giorgio spent at least two hours with his mouth between my legs, and ten minutes ago, he looked at me like he didn’t evenknowme.
Is this how it’s going to be while he’s here?
I nearly died, but clearly, his concern extends only so far. If the roles were reversed, I wouldn’t care about anything other than being there for him. But he seems to care far more about what my brother thinks than giving me the support that I need.
Maybe it’s the pain meds or the fact that I’ve had far too much adrenaline in my system in the past few hours, but the thought sets alight a blaze of fury inside my belly.
“I’m fine,” I say, holding the tea tightly in my palms even though the cup is too hot. “I’ll go to sleep soon.”
Vale brushes a lock of hair out of my face, her gaze soft but concerned. “Now that Giorgio’s talking to Dem, want to tell me what really happened? You’ve been scarce on the details.”
Yeah, because I was trying to be loyal to Giorgio. I’m not sure how much my brother knows about Giorgio’s family history, and I didn’t want to be the one spilling his secrets.
Now, that loyalty leaves a sour taste inside my mouth.
