Page 51 of Savage
The old man sighed heavily. “I cannot simply give you the go-ahead on this one. You understand that, Elio, don’t you?”
The old man pulled out a cigarette and lit it. He inhaled deeply, the cherry of the bud burning bright. My fingers itched to grab one.
“What do you think I should do?” the old man asked.
“I have no say. I simply kill who you send me to. If he is placing the family in danger and jeopardizing everything, then is it not the best course?”
“You hate him, don’t you, Elio? You and my boy have never gotten along.”
I blinked slowly. “I don’t hate him. He despises me for some reason.”
The old man let out a gruff laugh. “You forget so easily. Whereas Rocco still hasn’t forgiven you for killing them.”
“But it was your order.”
He shrugged. “But his supposed friends’ blood is on your hands.”
It never mattered to me. So many people’s blood was on my hands; they were forever stained. It used to keep me warm at night, but now I had something better than blood and death.
“You’re not wrapped too tightly, but maybe that’s why you can kill anyone, even people you grew up with. Without so much as a moment of hesitation.” The old man put out his cigarette and downed the remainder of his drink.
I didn’t care to stay there any longer than I had to. “If that is all—” I moved to stand up. I’d reported all that I needed to.
“Elio, a weakness is a weakness. Something that can be taken away, even if it’s not by me. Remember that.”
That ice-cold feeling came back. “Night.” I left out before I killed the old man. The images of a bullet fired from my gun between his eyes appeared before me, and I knew I needed to bury it deeply. If I killed the head of the Laureati family, there would be nowhere to hide. Nowhere I could keep my boys safe.
ChapterFourteen
SAYGE
I sippedat the tea Calvin had made, sighing as the sweet taste had a field day on my tongue. Elio had left earlier that morning, leaving Calvin a long list of things to do. I’d never seen my friend look so relaxed.
He moved around the warehouse with a smile on his face.
“Sayge, I need that shirt you’re wearing. I’m going to start the laundry,” Calvin said.
I unbuttoned it, passed it over, and sat back down stark naked in the kitchen. We really needed to get some clothes. It was great being semi-naked all the time, especially when Elio was around, but I missed getting dressed. Not to mention for our date outside the warehouse we would need clothes.
“Hey, where is the phone?” I asked, sipping more of the delicious tea.
“I have it. Here.” Dar said as he tossed it my way.
I barely caught it. He yawned as he made his way to the kitchen. His hands looked a lot better; they were pretty much healed up now. Still, the bruises on his ass were another story. I hid my smirk behind my cup.
“Dar…” Calvin moved closer to him and reached out toward him, only for his hand to drop.
I wanted to smash both of their heads together. They needed to get it together. They both had said stupid shit while upset.
Dar glanced over his shoulder, and I would punch him in the stomach if he kept giving Calvin the cold shoulder. He sighed.
“Can we be done with this?” Dar asked.
I sat my cup down, ready to intervene if need be. Calvin’s head jerked up.
“Done with what exactly?”
Dar gestured between them. “This.” He groaned as if he couldn’t come up with the right words. “This stiffness between us. I love you, Cal, and that night, we were hurting.”
