Page 41 of Angelo's Vengeance

The Cardonifamigliawas cautious and intelligent. Valentino’s father, as well as his brother during his brief tenure, adhered to a modest plan that kept their mafia close to power without overreaching. I respected that. They weren’t spoken of with fear, but they didn’t shy away from eliminating people either. The Cardonis stuck to their business and left ours alone.

Rubbing the edge of the crystal glass with the side of his thumb, he watched me. “You want to talk about Renzetti? That what this is about? Or you just wanted to have drinks?”

Nodding, I pushed my drink over and leaned forward. Bacco and I had discussed how forthcoming to be. My consigliere didn’t agree with me about divulging information, but there was a line, and I was going to walk it as close as I could. It didn’t make sense not to try to bring in everyone we could. “You’re up to date on what happened with Oliveto?”

“Yes. I think I have the story straight. Cosimo was constantly searching for his brother’s killer. He just couldn’t let it go, but he also couldn’t accept that Fausto was a pig.” He gave me a considering look. “Too bad they both ended up dead.”

Bacco gave a harsh guffaw. “Sounds like you’re sorry.”

The sarcasm wasn’t lost, nor unappreciated. It was how I’d hoped that Valentino would lean.

“As for Renzetti, word on the street is that he’s some kind of lost cousin, but sounds fishy to me.”

Well, well, well. He was smart. Adjustingslightly in the booth, I relaxed a little. “You’re right to be suspicious.” Sliding my eyes to Bacco, I ignored the way his shoulders tensed. He definitely didn’t want me to share this next piece of information, but nothing ventured, nothing gained. “We’ve discovered that the man masquerading as Salvatore Renzetti isn’t who he claims to be. At one time, there was a Salvatore Renzetti who was very loosely connected to Cosimo Oliveto, but it isn’t the man who is parading around today. We aren’t sure who he is.”

Valentino draped an arm along the back of the banquette, his eyes narrowing. “And … I sense something else there.”

“And … Carlotta Santelli,” I couldn’t bring myself to call her my mother, “has been working with Renzetti in the flesh trade. We are committed to stopping both of them at whatever cost.”

Finally, his eyes showed surprise, as if I had given him information he hadn’t had. “So you’ll kill her then if you can?”

“Definitely. She was instrumental in the kidnapping of my fiancée. She’s also definitely involved somehow. We’ve struggled to figure it out, or find where she’s at — orRenzetti. There has been motion along the periphery of our territories, but not the man himself.” Bacco made a slight choking sound. That was definitely too much information, but I could sense the genuine interest in Cardoni.

He looked at me with consideration, and then after a moment, he seemed to come to a decision. “Well, we’re a smallfamiglia, as you know. There are some ways we could help.” He ran his hands over the rim of his glass while I waited for him to make the fucking point. “Carlotta knew my father.”

I didn’t say I was surprised, but still, my eyes slid over to Bacco. I wanted to swear out loud or kick something.

Valentino continued, “She stayed sometimes at our summer home. There has been activity there recently, but I haven’t been too worried since we have staff there sometimes. It might be worth a look.” He watched me consideringly.

“We have been wondering if there are places she might stay,” I said thoughtfully as if this was earthshaking news. Inside, I was jumping up and down.

“There are a few other locations that I can check, which might be more likely. She stayedwith us when I was growing up.” His mouth tightened as if the memory of Carlotta stained his adolescence.

“Thank you. That would be very helpful,” Bacco interjected. “We had no idea that Carlotta had been around Don Cardoni after she’d left the Santellis.”

Valentino reddened, “It was even before that, and after.”

“I see. Did you know that Vallone is my sister’s father?” I threw the last out lazily on instinct. I didn’t think that Valentino liked Carlotta much either. “Carlotta liked to whore herself out.”

Valentino’s eyes slid to the side away from me as rage pooled deep inside my belly at the thought of the woman jumping from don to don looking for power grabs.

A flush rose on Valentino’s cheeks before he added, “My father kept diaries.”

Very interesting.“Did he talk about Carlotta?”

“He did.” Valentino looked over towards the door for a moment, and I wondered if he’d end the meeting right then. He didn’t really owe me anything, least of all a detailed description of what was in his father’s privatediaries. Then, he said, “She wanted a seat at the table with the Five Families, and he had been inclined to help her get it. My father frequently wrote about how Carlotta wanted to control the mafia herself. How she wouldn’t be satisfied until she could do that, but she didn’t think she would be able to get the men of the Santelli mafia to fight for her. He’d speculated that she’d be back when you were older and that she would try again.” He paused. “My father wasn’t stupid about her. I think he used her, too. Carlotta would stay with us or at our properties, but she was never allowed near our meetings or men. My father was well aware of her dealings with the other dons and the power struggles. At the same time,” Valentino smiled softly, “My father was lonely, and Carlotta amused him with her machinations.”

Taking a swallow of my drink, I considered what he’d told me. It provided information I hadn’t had and was immensely valuable. Hidey holes that we didn’t know about could lead to another location where she might be staying. Not to mention, we could also check properties associated with other mafia dons or past dons she could be linked to.“I appreciatethe insight you’ve shared. It’ll be helpful to us.”

There was an imperceptible incline to his head, but he held up a hand. “Just so we’re clear. I’m not on anyone’s side but my family’s. Renzetti has blood in his eyes, and Carlotta? That woman has always been crazy.”

Bacco’s eyes sharpened at the slight hint of dissent, but I understood Valentino’s perspective. His mafia was small, and the last thing he wanted was to become involved in a war that could spread beyond what they were prepared for. Even though we were still trying to navigate the undercurrents of what we were facing, Cardoni was smart enough to realize that he needed to proceed cautiously. No one could fault someone for not wanting to get too deeply involved.

“Of course, we understand where you’re coming from. You need to think of yourfamigliafirst. Any help or information you provide is appreciated, but most of all, any help youdon’tprovide them is also important.” I made sure my point was clear.

Val sneered. “You can be sure that won’t be happening.” There was a consideringpause. “That woman will get no help and no quarter from me.”

“Good to hear. She deserves none.”

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