Page 110 of Dominance

“She is really hot.” Ero chimes in and all four of us look at him suddenly. “What? I like pretty girls too.”

“At least we know he’s actually human…”

“Anyway, that’s not a bad idea, to just ask her what’s going on. She’s said a few times that she’s just playing Dom’s games. Doing what is necessary. That just always seemed like such a cop-out for any and all behavior in our line of work, you know?”

“It’s an easy trap to fall into, justification. Just remember, it’s usually because the person is trying to find a way to live with what they’ve done, what they’re doing.”

Alessandro swinging in with the wisdom.

That’s what’s missing from my decisions.

I’m all logic, or I used to be. Now I’m getting muddled up with emotions.

We worked so well together before, balancing my logistics with his heart and philosophy, Ciro’s positivity, and Ero’s…well. He gets things done when we won’t make up our minds, one way or another.

“Sometimes, you have to take a risk to find an ally. And it looks like she’s the only one you have.”

“Yeah. I don’t see how there’s any way around going back and seeing the wedding through, or at least biding my time leading up to it. It may provide us with an opening. Or, I’ll go further, and become Dom’s son-in-law. Dangle the bait of a grandchild in front of his face and pry out every detail about his secret dealings and dirt.”

“Dom can’t be fooled, not easily. But he is cocky. Arrogant. When he thinks he’s won, he might slip up.”

“And then you take that fucker down.” Ciro claps his hands loudly.

The four of us nod, but it feels like a pep talk more than a plan. Circling around what we know we want to accomplish, saying the right things. Big talk. No substance.

Isabella’s lost in thought through it all, tapping her chin with one finger.

“I know that look,” Aless mutters, raising his eyebrows at me expectantly.

“So…” Isabella starts, and somehow even the twins snap to attention at her tone, the way she instantly commands the room is so indicative of the tenacity that led her to Alessandro.

“…have you thought about the alternative?”

“To what?”

“To killing Dom.”

It clicks one by one in our expressions. Me, Aless, Ero, then Ciro.

“Diamantes donotwork with the police,” Ero snaps.

“He’s right. Historically, every time we’ve dealt with the feds, it’s burned our family. Giancarlo distanced himself from some of the old ways in that regard. He rarely supported buying the cops to cover for us. He opted for lawyers, cleaners, and such.” I clarify for Isa, who hasn’t been privy to our organization for long.

“Not to mention, what if Dom is still working for the feds? Gathering intel to sell us out to them?” Ciro offers in a moment of rare strategic inspiration. No one ever said he wasn’t sharp, but…

“I won’t rule it out. But enough about all of that for now…” I smile, forcing the worries out of my head and rising. “We’ve got a bit of time together. Let’s not waste it!”

We eat, we drink. We laugh. Jibes turn to arm wrestling and challenges, pool games, darts, long into the night. Isabella excuses herself at some point and lets us cut loose. When the sun comes up, we’re passed out all over the game room downstairs.

After another day and night pass in the same way. Reveling in the mountain views, the fresh air, with my family, my brothers.

Sure enough, it is too short.

But it’s exactly what I need to recharge. To remember why we are still fighting, still looking for a way through the storm. To another day where we can live and thrive. And just maybe get what belonged to us back.

I’d settle for much less. But I have to keep trying.

Standing in in the driveway, none of us wants to be the first one to say goodbye.

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