Page 35 of King of Omen

Mauri unbuckled his seat belt and was by my side in an instant. He offered a steadying hand as we stepped off the plane and into the waiting SUV.

The consigliere collected our bags and discussed plans with our private flight manager on the ground to retrieve his cat, Lupo, from quarantine in a few weeks.

The familiar sights of Sydney passed by in a blur as we sped through the waking city, the early morning light painting everything in a soft, golden hue.

Bianca’s lawyers, Jones & Jones, now on retainer to me, had procured a stunning property in the beachside suburb of Manly, overlooking the water, that came furnished with high-end pieces I did not care a wit about.

The house purchase was in settlement, so we had to stay at a hotel in the city until then.

‘Where are we booked into again?’ I sighed.

‘The Park Hyatt.’

‘As long as I have a fuckin’ horizontal mattress and Wi-Fi, I’ll be fine.’

All I wanted now was to rest and regroup before making plans for how the balance of my freakin’ life was going to unfold.

Chapter 8

LORENZO

Years ago, Carlo Abrazzio, Don Ricco’s younger brother, emerged as a tyrant in a violent conflict between the Napoli’s Abrazzio and Santini crime syndicates.

He rose to power as Capo Mandamento, in charge of his clan’s assassinations through ruthless tactics.

The killings of rival leader Vincenzo Santini and his pregnant partner Raphaela Bessi were at his behest, and he was convicted in absentia for the kidnapping, torture, and murder of several Santini family friends.

To intimidate the judges, prosecutors and naysayers who came after him, Carlo commissioned a series of bombings that cemented his feared reputation. He declared war against the state, leading to the deaths of a slew of Neapolitan magistrates, barristers, and innocent civilians.

For many years, my relatives, including my aunt, had believed Carlo was responsible for bombing my parents and Uncle Costa for opposing his brutal murders of the innocent.

Despite our suspicions but with no proof, the Calibrese clan had kept to our Alliance oath and continued to provide our Omertà services to the Abrazzios.

However, five years ago, when the heat on him ratcheted, Carlo disappeared, went into hiding, and left control to his brother Ricco.

We’d been tasked with concealing him in multiple safe houses using secret bank accounts.

Now, it seemed that the rumours that we were walking away from the Omertà Alliance had sent fear coursing through Ricco and Carlo.

Terrified we’d reveal Carlo’s location or, worse still, hand him over to the authorities, the family was waging a war against us.

I was done with concealing the man and with his family’s unceasing paranoia.

However, I was no naive leader. The repercussions of withdrawing our services meant war with the Abrazzios.

I was playing the long game, waiting to see who’d sneeze next. It was a dangerous gambit, but I had my possible pawn in my pocket, my ultimate play, within reach.

If Ricco and Carlo Abrazzio dared to come after us or mine again, they’d get what was coming.

It’d been five weeks since I returned to Sydney, and my body was healing well.

My chest and flank discolouration was faded, but my shoulder was still in a brace to control pain while strengthening the muscles the bullet had ripped apart.

My doctors had ordered a slowdown, which meant I couldn’t work out as much as I had in the past, leaving me with an abundance of free time.

The days bled into each other, a monotonous routine of doctor’s checks and meetings with my lawyers.

Idle evenings were spent either dining with Mauri or alone, lost in my thoughts, in my hotel room, until the home I’d purchased settled.

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