“That obviously never happened,” Nico said. “What did you do?”
“I found out about it,” he replied. “So, one night, I took some of my best men and we went to the Galante estate. The Galante family ceased to exist. We ripped them out root and stem.”
Nico ran a hand over his face and processed what his father was telling him. He carried out an unsanctioned raid and destroyed an entire family. If he had done something like that, his father would have blown his top. Nico never would have dared pull a stunt like that.
“Your father couldn’t have been happy,” Nico said.
A wry grin curled his lips. “He wasn’t. Not even close,” he said. “Our family was already powerful but wiping a family as strong as the Galantes only strengthened our position. Nobody dared challenge us after that so. And their wealth was added to our coffers, improving our financial position. So, he may have been mad, but it wasn’t like he could complain.”
Nico shook his head. It was like he was looking at a stranger. The one bit of credit he’d always given his father was that he’d loved his mother deeply and fiercely until the day she’d died. Now he knew why… he’d had to fight hard for her. He’d risked his life and his family’s position for love. Something else he never would have imagined his father would do.
Nico never knew any of this about his father. He’d always assumed his dad popped out of the womb a straight arrow, always toeing the line. He never imagined his father was the sort who’d do something like that. It made Nico see him in a whole new light.
“Wow. Dad. I had no idea you had that kind of rebellious streak in you.”
He grinned. “I had my moments,” he said. “But it was also stupid. I put everything our family worked so hard for so long for in jeopardy. It’s why I’ve been so hard on you, son. I never wanted you to make the same sort of stupid mistakes I made growing up.”
“But you did it for love. How can that ever be a mistake?” Nico asked.
A faint smile touched the older man’s lips. “I never said that was a mistake. I don’t regret what I did to the Galante family for an instant,” he said. “But before that, I was a wild child. Like you. I was unfocused energy. And I got myself into some trouble. I’ve been hard on you because I wanted to keep you from the difficulties I brought on myself.”
“Why didn’t you ever tell me any of this?”
“Because those are my stories. Those are my mistakes. I’ve made peace with them, buried them, and left them in the past. I had no desire to relive them,” he said.
Nico’s cell phone rang, and he slipped it out of his pocket, hoping it was one of his men telling them they had eyes on Emiliano. He frowned though, when he saw it was a video call coming from a restricted number. Curious, but with a growing sense of trepidation, he connected the call and when Emiliano’s face materialized, a scowl crossed his lips.
“I’ve been looking for you,” Nico growled.
“So, I’ve heard,” Emiliano replied with a chuckle.
“Where are you?”
“Not so fast. We need a little foreplay before we fuck, Nico,” he said with a grin.
“What do you want?”
“It’s what I have that you want that I thought we should talk about,” Emiliano said. “Or rather, who I have that you want.”
A numbing ball of ice formed in Nico’s belly and spread outward. His entire body grew cold, and he trembled with a barely controlled rage as the camera panned around to show him that Emiliano had River tied to a chair. She looked a little battered and bruised, but she glared at him with fury in her eyes. Nico nodded approvingly. That was his girl. The camera turned back around to show Emiliano.
“Here’s what’s going to happen,” the younger Vittore said. “You and your father are out of time. You are both going to pack up and get the fuck out of Venice. Once we have confirmation that you are gone, I’ll turn the girl loose.”
“Like I trust you to do that,” Nico growled. “Send her to me now—”
“You have no leverage, Nico. You have nothing to bargain with,” Emiliano cut him off. “You’re going to do what I say or I’m going to cut off her pretty head and make you watch.”
Emiliano handed the phone to somebody Nico couldn't see then walked over to stand behind River. He smiled at the camera and then drew a long dagger from a sheath on his belt. He ran the flat of it along the side of her neck, never taking his eyes off the camera. River struggled and cursed, which earned her a cuff upside the ear. Emiliano gently ran the point of his dagger along her cheek, opening a short, shallow wound. Nico flinched, his lips pulling back in a sneer as he watched thin rivulets of blood spill down her pale cheek.
“Stop,” Nico said. “Leave her alone.”
Emiliano chuckled and took the blade away from River’s face but didn’t move. He remained behind her, tapping the flat of his blade against his thigh. Nico’s mind raced and he called on every bit of his logic as he searched for a solution to the problem. He looked at his father who shook his head. He had no idea how to get out of this either. Nico’s eyes were drawn back to Emiliano’s dagger, which gleamed dully in the overhead lights.
“I’m waiting, Nico,” Emiliano said. “I didn’t expect that this decision would be this difficult for you. Perhaps I overestimated your feelings for her.”
Nico looked at River again. Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes wide and shimmering. He could see she was fighting to keep the tears from falling but a pair of them squeezed out of the corners of her eyes anyway and he felt a powerful jolt in his heart. He hadn’t killed anybody in his life but in that moment, he would have gladly taken Emiliano apart piece by piece for scaring her, for hurting her, and for making her cry. Nico had never hated anybody as much as he hated Emiliano Vittore.
His eyes darted back to the dagger Emiliano was holding and the idea popped into his mind so suddenly, he flinched. It was risky. It was fraught with peril of every kind, and it took only one thing to go wrong for the whole house of cards to come tumbling down. Nico looked to his father and knew that just as he had so many years ago, he was going to be putting his family’s entire standing and position at risk. For love.