Page 110 of Deadly Wrath

Her breath hitches, but she doesn’t look away. “I didn’t mean youtook it,” she says. “But you had a part in it.”

“You were never supposed to know,” I continue. “Phil made sure of that. He kept everything from you—what your mother really did, who your father really was.” Her father, Richie, was a real piece of shit.

Her lips press together. I can see she’s fighting the truth that’s clicking into place. She was only ten, but I’msure she saw things, not realizing what her dad was involved in.

“Phil put Tito behind bars,” I tell her. “Your mother made sure he would go down. She worked with Phil to build a case and bring it all down—his clubs, his men, his whole fucking empire. The only thing she couldn’t take down was Lucky Strikes, even though that place was a fucking brothel. But Leah knew what her involvement meant. She knew Tito would come for her.”

Liv’s hands tremble on her lap. She tries to hide it, but I see it. Alessio puts his large hand over her shaking small hands to comfort her.

Stella sits back, watching the two but not saying a word. She’s always been my observant one.

“Leah didn’t run for herself,” I say. “She ran so Tito couldn’t get his hands on you. And I made sure she didn’t die in vain.”

“Alessandro,” Phil snaps, warning me to shut it, I know damn well he didn’t want me saying that. He stands with a heavy sigh and walks over to the other couch, sitting beside Olivia, opposite Alessio.

Olivia’s eyes flick to him, then she lets go of Alessio’s hands and turns toward Phil.

Phil rubs the back of his neck before he continues. “Livy, your dad took your mom to Lucky Strikes onenight. He was a low-grade drug dealer at the time, working under his older brother, your uncle Tito.” He pauses for a second, trying to find the right words. “He was dealing in the back, and your mom wandered around, and she walked in at the wrong time.”

“What did she walk in on?” Olivia asks

Phil’s eyes close for half a second before he forces them open again. “It was an auction, and there were girls, barely teenagers. It was one of Tito’s trafficking nights.”

Olivia sucks in a sharp breath, like it physically knocks the air out of her lungs. Her whole body goes still.

“She freaked out and wanted to leave,” Phil continues, reaching out to holdOlivia’s hands. “Richie tried to smooth things over, playing both sides, but Tito wasn’t having it and told him to get her under control, or he’d do it for him. Tito even sent his men to your house to threaten her, almost daily. Your mom did everything she could to help me get evidence and make the case ironclad, but we ran out of time to get anything solid enough to put him away.

The last time Tito’s men came to your house, they didn’t just threaten her, Livy. They threatened you. They delivered a message from Tito, who said if she ever talked about what she saw, he’d sell you as payback.”

Liv’s fingers tighten around Phil’s.

“That’s when I came to get you and her,” Phil says. “I put you both in witness protection. But your mom—” He shakes his head. “She kept sneaking around, talking to your dad. That’s how he always found out where we were. I tried to stop her, but I couldn’t. Then one night, you both disappeared.”

He exhales sharply, closing his eyes. He still takes Leah’s death to heart. He promised he’d keep Olivia safe.

“Tito was a slimy fuck,” I say. “And any witnesses Phil had, they always disappeared. I knew he couldn’t have done it without someone on the inside.”

“Who was on the inside?” Alessio asks.

“Me,” I deadpan.

Alessio’s brows draw together. “You ratted him out?”

“Tito wanted to be part of the Commission more than anything. He even had a few of the Dons on his side trying to up ourdeadly seventoeight, but I saw through his bullshit. He couldn’t be trusted and was into some real dirty shit.” I shake my head, just the thought of him disgusts me.

“I’m no fucking saint, but the Commission has its limits, limits that fucker couldn’t abide by. He had a sick obsession with girls under fifteen.”

I glance at Olivia. “Aly was only fourteen, the age he was going after, and Stella was pregnant with Lexi. Scum like that doesn’t get to walk the streets.” I lift my head, I’m unapologetic for what I did, my daughters are my world, and I’d do it again, if I had to. “I don’t see it as ratting him out. I did what needed to be done.” I meet Alessio’s stare head-on. “I made a deal. A deal I don’t fucking regret.”

“What deal?” Olivia asks.

“I secured Phil the arrest of his career,” I tell her. “And in return, he kept you safe and away from this world. Clearly, he didn’t follow through on his end.” I shoot him a look.

Phil sighs. “I could’ve brought him down on my own, ya know.”

“Yeah? That’s how I knew exactly what rathole undercover op I’d find you in?” I turn to Olivia. “I’m sorry about the bag over your head, but I didn’t want you to see anything you didn’t have to.”

“Who wiped Liv’s information from Leah’s case?” Alessio asks. “It’s like she didn’t exist, but the case was kept open.”

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