Page 27 of Assassin Daddy

‘Thank you for looking after me,’ Kyan said, his voice almost heartbreakingly sweet.

‘Thank you for letting me,’ Matteo answered, his heart thumping inside his chest.

From being sent to kill Kyan, Matteo was now plotting to kill to keep the boy safe – and with each passing second, his need to protect this fine young man was getting stronger and stronger.

Matteo was just about to continue the kiss when he saw a message on his phone. It was one of Alphonso’s men. The boss wanted a meeting at Fendi House, and he expected Matteo there in two hours.

‘Who is it, Daddy?’ Kyan asked.

‘Just business,’ Matteo answered, smiling and walking back to the breakfast table with Kyan. ‘It’s nothing your Daddy can’t handle.’

But beneath his calm exterior, Matteo’s mind was racing. He hadn’t been expecting another meeting with Alphonso so soon. The only question was whether Matteo was going to be given hisnext target – or whether it was Matteo himself who would be in the firing line…

The drive to the Fendi family mansion was one that Matteo had always enjoyed in the past. It was a great opportunity to take the Porsche out of the city limits and truly open the engine up to see just how much fire the old German speedster was able to produce.

This time however, the mood was different.

Matteo felt the tension in his hands as he gripped the 911’s steering wheel. With his eyes focused on the road ahead, it even crossed Matteo’s mind that he might be ambushed at one of the blind corners or red lights.

Indeed, the further into the backroads and country roads that Matteo got, the more his paranoia increased. Typically he would stop at one of his favorite roadside diners for a coffee… but not this time.

‘Keep driving,’ Matteo muttered to himself. ‘If I’m getting whacked, I’m getting whacked. But not on some backroad like a common hustler or rat. If Alphonso wants me dead, he can do it face to face.’

Of course, all of this was speculation on Matteo’s part.

The reality was that Alphonso’s assistants never stated the reason for Alphonso requesting a visit. After all, Alphonso was the king of the Fendi family – a mere invite was all that was required from him and any man who valued his life would attend without question.

With the war brewing between the Fendi family and the Pirlo clan, there was every chance that there could be a new hit on the cards for Matteo. And while this was hardly convenient given the deception he was running with Kyan, Matteo would at least know that Alphonso was none the wiser.

I need to stay calm.

Give nothing away.

Show up, be polite, act normal…

As he got closer to the mansion, Matteo had just about got himself into the kind of frame of mind that would be needed for when he came face to face with Alphonso. And to seal the deal, Matteo thought back to the times when his father would take him on a long walk in the forest and explain the ways of the family to him…

“A neutral face, a ruthless heart, and lethal brain…”

‘I think you were on to something, old man,’ Matteo smiled wryly as he replayed his father’s words in his head. ‘Salut.’

Matteo decided that he would toast his father for real later that evening once he was home again. But for now, it was all about keeping his mind totally concentrated on the task at hand.

And as he pulled up to Fendi House and parked his car, Matteo felt a surge of steely resolve coursing through his veins. This was a dangerous moment for him, Matteo wasn’t going to pretend otherwise. But if there was one man equipped for it, it was Matteo Fendi…

‘I’m here to see the boss,’ Matteo said, addressing the security guard as he walked into the house. ‘Have a good day.’

‘You too, sir,’ the security guard replied.

Matteo walked into the main lobby and was about to take a seat when he was approached by Jackson, one of Alphonso’s lieutenants.

‘I’m here for my appointment,’ Matteo said, noting a somewhat frazzled look to the lieutenant’s face.

‘Um. Yeah. About that,’ the man replied, a bead of sweat on his forehead. ‘The boss has had to make an unplanned trip out of the city. You just missed him. He sends his apologies.’

Matteo wasn’t sure whether to reach for his gun or burst out laughing.

Evidently, this wasn’t a hit – but at the same time it made very little sense that no one had informed him sooner about this change of plans. Clearly, something was up. But fortunately for Matteo, it didn’t involve any of Alphonso’s men attempting to take his life – well, not today anyway.

---