“Ask the asshole,” Dwayne growled, walking over to the bar, grabbing a bottle of whiskey and then downing half of it.
“Well?” Antonio asked, looking at Sal.
“I can’t. I can’t even look at him right now,” Sal muttered, walking into another room and slamming the door behind him.
“Gio?”
“I told them everything,” I said, breathing heavily as I tried to slow my beating heart. Reaching up, I wiped the blood from my lip as Antonio handed me a handkerchief. I placed it at my nose, which was more than likely broken thanks to one of them. Sitting back in my chair, I leaned my head back, trying to stem the flow of blood.
“Well, whatever it is, this contract isn’t legal. Father’s signature has been forged onto this contract. I don’t know how Bianchi got away with this, but this is not the original contract. I have that in the safe in my office at the firm. This...” Antonio said, waving the papers in the air, “Is not legal.”
“I don’t understand,” I said, looking at him.
“According to the original contract, the death of our father ended the contract. This piece of trash is nothing more than words on paper. Whoever drafted this knows nothing about the legalities of the law. In fact, there are so many damn loopholes in here it’s impossible to enforce.”
“Tony,” I sighed. “Marko and I have gone over that contract several times. There are no loopholes.”
Antonio grinned. “And that’s why I went to law school, and you didn’t. Right here in paragraph three, section two, it clearly states that any party not forthcoming of said contract is in violation.”
“And that means?”
“It means since the asshole violated the original contract and forged our father’s signature, the original contract and this piece of crap is void. You’ve got him by the balls, Gio. Look, Gio,” Antonio said, taking a seat next to me. “You said Bianchi called the day after father’s funeral, right?”
When I nodded, he continued, “You were grieving. He knew that. He knew you wouldn’t really look at the contract. He knew it was the perfect time to pounce. And you said that you knew nothing about the original deal. He knew there was no way you would start a war. Not so soon after father died. So, like he suspected, you played right into his hands. Had you come to me right away, I could have helped you stop this.”
“We all would have,” Sal said, walking back into the room. “You have to stop taking everything on by yourself. That is what we are all here for. Father did that his whole life, and look where that got him. He’s dead, and he didn’t lean on his brother, which got him killed too. Look, Gio, I don’t know where your head is, but you must let us in. This is our family too.”
“Sal’s right,” Dwyane said, then shivered. “I think I just threw up in my mouth.”
I chuckled as Sal flipped him the one-finger salute. Dwayne air-kissed him, then added, “Anyway, he’s right. We are family. With the Golden Skulls backing you, the family just got a lot bigger. When you marry Layla, Reaper will consider you family. Unlike you, he takes family very seriously. So, get the broom out of your ass and include us all from now on because Reaper doesn’t forgive easily.”
Dwayne was right.
They all were.
It was time for me to lead this family, not carry them all on my shoulders. I had four brothers and several cousins who could help bring this family back to the forefront of greatness. We were once. I would love to see that again, not only in the United States but also in Italy.
“Okay,” I said, looking at all of them. “What do you suggest I do next?”
Antonio looked at Salvatore, who only grinned, punching his fist into his hand. “You do nothing, big brother. Now, it’s my turn to play.”
Dwayne cleared his throat, and Sal moaned. “Fine. You can play too.” And just like that, Dwayne grinned right before Sal continued, “You need to finalize the alliance with Don Capribella and prepare for a wedding. That is the most important thing right now. When that is done, call mother and Aunt Daniella. They will know best how to proceed when the agreement is made. Then contact Illyria. She will take care of everything in the States and Italy with the paparazzi, papers, and news channels. I will call my boys, and we will take care of the warehouse. They’ve been itching for some action.”
Antonio nodded. “I will get with Marko and let him know his legal prowess is over. He can help me go over all the documents with Bianchi, and then I will notify Bianchi that the deal is over.”
“I will contact Reaper and have him send some of my brothers from the Skulls. They would love to help clean this shit up. Plus, they can take the weapons to our safe house. We will inventory them and get them ready for shipment.”
Agreeing, I said, “Lorenzo can stay in Chicago and look after the family, and Luciano will stay in California to help Reggie. We are going to be spread thin.”
“Yes, but we will get it done,” Sal stated, and I believed him.
We would.
We didn’t have any other choice.
32
Layla