“Gio, there’s more,” Ghost said, stopping me in my tracks.
“What? What more can there be?” I barked.
Ghost looked at Reaper, who nodded. Ghost sighed and began, “It’s about Layla. We need you to ensure her safety.”
“I already said she was safe. I gave my word to Reaper. What more do you need from me? What aren’t you telling me?”
“Layla is Dylan’s sister. They share the same mother. However, they have different fathers. Layla isn’t a Doherty. We’ve just recently learned that her mother Donna was raped, resulting in the birth of Layla.”
“Okay?” I questioned loudly, needing them to get to the point fast. This conversation was seriously starting to anger me. Why couldn’t they just come right out and tell me what I needed to know? There was no need to set the backstory. The truth worked best in my line of work.
“The man who raped Donna was Diablo, the Collector, also known as Angelo Capribella,” Reaper carefully said, looking up at me as I stopped dead in my tracks.
NO!
She couldn’t be?
My brother Sal jumped to his feet, cursing as he grabbed the chair he was sitting in and threw it across the room. Reggie looked down at the table, letting me know he already knew this, and yet, he still kept it from me. He knew that once I gave my word, I would never take it back, no matter the consequences.
My own cousin set me up!
This whole mess was nothing more than that.
A damn family feud, and now I was caught in the middle of it.
“You knew!” I shouted at Reggie, who flinched at my outburst. “You knew and said nothing knowing how our family felt about the Capribella’s. And you still brought her to me, knowing I would give my word, not caring how I would feel or what it would mean to the family. Why? Why did you do it, Reginald? Why!”
“I didn’t have a choice. Reaper wanted her protected. He asked me to make sure she stayed safe. I knew you would help. I’m sorry Gio. I am so very sorry. I had no choice.”
“Yes, you did! You always have a choice.”
“No, he didn’t,” Reaper said, slowly getting to his feet as he faced me dead on. The man may look like a dead man walking, but he was hard as steel in this instant. I could clearly see the resolve in his eyes. What he was about to say, he meant, and he didn’t give a damn what I thought. “I ordered him to take her away. If you want to blame someone, blame me. I couldn’t let Diablo get his hands on Layla, not after just finding her. Dylan is my blood, which makes Layla mine too. If I lose Layla, I will lose Dylan, and I can’t let that happen. And Player, you may think I didn’t know about your relationship with Gio, but I knew. Just like I know, Axel is also related to your family. I said nothing and let you all believe I was ignorant because I knew someday I would need to cash in on that relationship. You want to know why I’ve been holding off on an alliance Giovanni. It’s because of this very thing. I knew when I took over the club that shit was bad. I just didn’t know how bad until Kitty came along. My Vault is dead. Now, I don’t know who to trust or where to turn. That’s why you are still here. You say you protect your family, well so do I, and this is me protecting what belongs to me. You are here because I need you here. Do you still want an alliance? Well, you’ve got one. I will sign whatever contract you have. Just help me keep my family safe. Keep Layla safe. I can’t lose Dylan. This club has lost too much already and I refuse to lose anyone else.”
There it was.
He said the words I’ve wanted to hear for years. Yet this was different. There was no way I could allow my family to get involved with a family feud. That was what made my family flee Italy all those years ago. I just couldn’t do it.
And I couldn’t go back on my word.
I was stuck.
I was damned if I did and damned if I didn’t.
Somehow, I was orchestrated and manipulated into this very spot, not only by my own desires but also by a member of my own family, one I trusted above all others.
“Mr. Valentinetti,” the young kid said through the phone. I didn’t even realize he was still listening. God help me, I was losing my touch.
If word ever got out, I would be eviscerated.
Everything I’ve worked for would all be gone.
I needed to think.
I needed time to talk with my brothers.
“I know you must be angry and confused right now, so maybe this will help you decide. The woman that was guarding Matrix’s son. She offered to help us, but she had a request. She never gave us her name, so we didn’t know anything about her. However, after we rescued her, she kept repeating one name over and over again.”
Never taking my eyes from Reaper’s, I asked, “I don’t see how that helps me, kid.”