My stomach plummeted and the blood drained down to my toes, leaving me uneasy.
“What?”
“She told me Oscar killed my father.” His humor faded away just as fast as it arrived. “Francesco, this is the time where you need to fill in the blanks for me. The time to prove you’ll be honest with me.”
“She did kill him, yes.” He held up a hand to stop my reaction. “Your father wasn’t a good man, and it was her or him. If I’d been in her shoes, I’d have done the same.”
“Her last words to me were a lie.” I leaned back in the chair and realized she had managed to get in one last blow before she died. “What kind of person would do that? What vengeful, vindictivemotherwould do that?”
“It’s the mafia life, Sienna. You take your secrets to the grave.”
Once Niccola was stable and I was assured Mama was fine after her fall, I found Papa in his office looking over some footage that had been taken earlier. I stepped inside and quietly closed the door. He removed his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose as he blew out a puff of air.
“I’ve no idea who they were.” He looked worn out, and I knew the constant battle we all had to fight to keep our family name at the top of the syndicate list was exhausting. “Vinni is running prints, but that will take a bit. Your mama is sore but all right, and Niccola,” he shook his head, carrying the guilt of what could have happened on his shoulders, “he’s going to be out for a few weeks.”
“He’ll be fine,” I assured him.
“Then this whole Elenora thing.” He shook his head slowly. “How’s Sienna holding up?”
“I haven’t spoken to her yet, but Francesco assures me she’s fine. I think she’s angrier and more betrayed that her mother pointed a gun at us than about her actual death.”
“Yes, well, wait until things settle and she has time to think about it. It will more than likely hit her then.”
“Perhaps, yes.” I leaned over the back of the chair as I thought. “I spoke to Nonna, and for once, I believe she had nothing to do with what happened.”
“Let’s hope,” he grunted. “I make no excuses for my mother. She’s a product of her generation and sadly can no longer be trusted.”
I nodded and took a moment to try to put myself in Papa’s place. I knew it must be hard on him.
“What are those?” I pointed to the spreadsheets he was going over.
“These are the reports the guys were combing through.”
“And?”
“And it turns out the Coppolas are broke.”
“What?” I took the papers from him and scanned the transactions. “But they were bringing in massive amounts of cash. Where’d it all go?”
“That’s why I’m here, trying to figure it out.”
“Maybe that Mikey person is funneling money elsewhere and not into the family’s accounts.”
“That ran through my mind, too.” Papa nodded as he thought. “Problem is the paper trail falls off from there. The account is untraceable, and there’s nothing left to follow.”
“I’ll see what I can dig up.” I handed the papers back and pulled out my phone as it vibrated in my pocket.
It was Gain. After a few moments, I put the phone back in my jacket pocket and turned to Papa.
“I need to go deal with something. Let me know when the soldiers are finished clearing the area. I’ll go get Sienna myself.”
“Yes, go. I’ll be in touch.”
“All right. I’ll check in later.”
I got changed into jeans, a long-sleeved shirt, and a ball hat, something I’d normally never be caught dead wearing, but I needed to play a part. I needed to be unrecognizable. I left the house and jumped in my car and headed to the place where we’d stayed that morning. Gain was back there now with Harris and a few other soldiers. They’d been told to stay there to keep the house looking active. They were to watch for any more visitors, and one had just been spotted.
The sun was almost down, and the advantage was now in my favor. I knew the layout of all our properties; it was something Papa had taught me from an early age. “Draw your enemy into familiar territory and take the lead,” he’d said.