Page 131 of King of Omen

‘Amore, I’m on my way.’

‘Hurry,’ she whispered.

‘Hang tight,’ I growled before she returned the phone to her rescuer, who hung up.

Saint made a call through his in-car system, instructing his crew on the other end to meet us at the motel.

‘I just told my team we’ve found Mia, gave them the address, and got reinforcements to help search for the couple,’ he reiterated.

Seconds later, we screeched into the parking lot of an unremarkable office building. ‘We’re here.’

I leapt from the vehicle before it even stopped, the Glock in hand.

In the mirrored panels of the building’s facade, I spotted Saint exiting in my wake, checking his weapon before tracking after me in a jog.

Without hesitation, I launched into a full sprint, aiming towards a small square that acted as a feeder into a series of buildings looming above it.

The bland, drab exterior and dim interior cast a foreboding aura over the entire setting.

I observed little of it, head swivelling as I ran, trying to figure out which structure corresponded to the number Mia’s helper provided.

Rounding a corner of one building, I sensed movement.

I double-palmed my weapon as a shadow appeared from between two pillars.

When they stepped into the light, I cursed and came to a complete stop, my gun aimed at him.

Tony.

He waved at me with one hand, the other gripping a semi-automatic trained on my heart.

Saint was still somewhere behind me, and I tagged the slide of his sneakers as he crept to cover, readying to come to my aid.

Still, this was my battle to fight.

‘Hey kid, we meet again,’ I drawled.

‘Just the man I’m after,’ he shot back. ‘Lorenzo Calibrese. Don of the Omertà Alliance.’

I raised a brow and kissed my lips with two fingers, giving him the Omertà sign. ‘In the flesh. Last time, you didn’t seem apprised of my full identity, or perhaps you chose to conceal the fact that you recognised me.’

He shrugged, eyes glinting with a long-held malevolence. ‘I played dumb to save my skin. I wasn’t ready to strike.’

‘Fascinating. So, I know you’re Ricco and Carlo’s nephew but where do you fit on the organisational chart? An Abrazzio capo?’

‘Si. I work outside Italy, tasked with any necessary wet work.’

I jerked my chin. ‘You’ve had many chances to take me out. Why now?’

‘Carlo hadn’t sent the kill order yet. I was to keep an eye on you to make sure you didn’t rat us out. But we had to act when you sold us down the river to our Cadaveri partners, which led to the shutdown of most of the Abrazzio’s operations in Naples. You had Ricco killed. You destroyed us! So I had to destroy you.’

‘Ricco’s blood is not on me.’

‘You got the ball rolling.’

‘Only because your uncles had no faith in us. Why Mia?’

‘It was an efficient way to keep an eye on you. She had no clue that Linda and I were using her as bait and a lure. I even let her run from my car today so you’d come for her, and I’d finish you off.’

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