Smiling, I replied, “Well, if you would rather stay here instead of going home, I can make the arrangements.”
“I wanna go home,” she yawned, and I grinned, hearing the slight southern twang in her voice. It was adorable. She was adorable. Sitting up, she looked around and sighed. “There are so many people here. Are they all going home with us?”
“Your guards, Don Victor and Carmine, will be joining us. The rest will be staying here to prepare for our wedding.”
“And when is that?” She asked, looking at me.
“In two weeks.”
“And we have to fly back here for the wedding?”
“It is customary when merging two families that the wedding take place at the bride's home.”
She grinned suspiciously, then in full southern belle, she said. “Then maybe we should have the wedding in Tennessee. We can be real hospitable when the mood suits.”
Laughing, I gathered her in my arms. “Not a chancemia Amore. I’ve heard stories about what southerners do to men like me. I prefer having all my appendages when I claim you on our wedding night. Come. We need to take off soon, and your great-grandfather is already onboard. I am sure he would love the long visit with you.”
Layla and her great-grandfather talked a lot on the flight back to the States. Giving them privacy, I scoured all the emails I had been neglecting since our arrival in Italy. The family business was vast, and it took a lot of ingenuity to handle it all. My brothers and sister each had a part they played with the family business, and I was grateful for that. Yet, I still oversaw it all.
Sending off an email to my secretary, I received an email from Jonathan Savage. Opening it, I read.
Gio.
As requested, here is the information on Layla Diana Franks.
Born:August 24th, 1996, at Rhea County Hospital in Dayton, Tennessee.
Mother:Donna Franks.
Father:Angelo Sebastian Capribella, son of Giovanna Capribella (murdered by William Doherty May 13th, 1967, in Verona, Italy).
Layla was raised in the mountains of East Tennessee until she moved to San Francisco, California, at the age of nineteen when her mother Donna was murdered by the President of the Black Vultures on July 4th, 2016. Donna was only forty years old. Her body was never recovered.
Layla has one brother, Dylan Derrick Franks, born February 14th, 1995. Her brother, a former Marine, is now the club assassin for the Golden Skulls M.C. He was married to Kathryn Keller, who died three weeks ago in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. They have one daughter Hailey who is seven months old.
There wasn’t much on Layla in Tennessee when I looked, nor in California, other than her attending college for a degree in nursing, where she met Kathryn. She was kidnapped by the Black Vultures in 2019. From there, I lost her trail until she was recovered by her brother and the Golden Skulls M.C. two months ago.
I have attached a complete dossier on her birth father. He is a piece of work. As for her mother, I did find something interesting.
Donna Franks wasn’t born in Tennessee. In fact, she wasn’t born in the United States. Donna Franks didn’t exist until June of 1994 when she purchased a rental property from Lee Roy Franks, the President of the Golden Skulls M.C. Tennessee Chapter. She was eighteen and paid cash for the property. Where shortly after, she met James Doherty. They quickly had Dylan. There was a war going on between the Vultures and the Golden Skulls at the time, and Donna got caught in the crossfire when she was kidnapped and raped by Angelo Capribella, which resulted in the birth of Layla. When James Doherty found out that Layla wasn’t his daughter, he tried to kill Donna, Dylan, and Layla, but Lee Roy Franks helped them disappear. Why he went against his club President at the time is anyone’s guess, but I think he may have known the truth about Donna.
Here is where it gets interesting. Donna Franks is actually Dominika Milana Fedorov, the only sister to Maxim Fedorov, the head of the Fedorov Bratva Family. Maxim became head of the family when he killed his father at the age of eighteen. The man is calledKrovopuskatel’or the Bloodletter. There are rumors that the man drinks the blood of those he kills. He’s fucking crazy Gio. Maxim fled Russia five years ago and set up shop in New York City. There he quickly removed his competition. Everyone fears him, and my latest intel has found that he is in business with Angelo Capribella.
Boss, they have their hands in every nasty thing you can imagine. From human slavery to money laundering. Nothing is off-limits to them. I believe that neither know the truth about Donna or Layla and not that you will ask. I would make sure they never find out. If either one found out, it would cause a blood bath from coast to coast.
It will take me some time to find out why Donna separated herself from her family, but I'm not surprised she left from what I already found out about them.
Gio, Layla is connected to two highly influential and extremely dangerous families. She isn’t safe anywhere. You need to keep her hidden until I can learn more.
When I find something relevant, I will email you immediately.
In the meantime, watch your back- Jonathan.
Forwarding the email to Salvatore, I said nothing as I looked at Layla, who was curled up next to Don Victor sleeping, who himself had nodded off. She looked so peaceful and happy. If she knew who she indeed was, where she came from, everything would change.
Turning to Sal, I saw him staring at me in shock.
I knew what he was thinking. I was too.