Page 14 of The Silence Lies

“It’s not me I’m worried about,” she mutters. Her words are soft and filled with angst. They rub at the wound not yet healed over in my chest, like the guilt is eating away at it. There’s a part of me that wants to reassure her, the good part of me that still exists despite what happened.

But the darker, more bitter part of my existence won’t allow me to. Until I see the coldness of Don Verdi’s eyes, and the rest of his vile family, I won’t be reassuring anyone of their safety.

“So, we agree on this? We need to get the Greco family on our side for this to work.” I raise a brow, glancing between the pair.

“If we get them on our side. They’ll be able to get us more intel, for sure.” Levi nods in agreement.

“And how do we do that?” Serafina asks.

“I have something on them,” I say. I’m not proud of what I know, or how I got that intel. But it’s dangerous territory to use it against the family.

Serafina shakes her head, “I don’t like this.”

“Sera, if we can get them on our side—”

“And what if we can’t?” she snaps. “What if they go against us, too? Blackmailing a family is just as bad as forcing them into this war!”

“Sera, you do know who you are, right?” It’s not even a question. It comes out more of an insult but it has the exact effect I want it to.

She rolls her shoulders back, and puffs out her delicious chest that I find myself staring at far longer than I should. “I know exactly who the fuck I am, Fontana.”

I bite back a smirk, nodding at her instead. “Good. Then fucking remember it when you walk into that ceremony because wedding or not, all eyes will be on you.”

Her jaw ticks over with irritation that I’m calling her out. Normally, I wouldn’t, but Bianchi is still new to this role and some structured guidance might help her.

“And if you can’t remember, then focus on who you’re doing this for.”

“I don’t need a damn reminder!”

“Clearly you do!”

“Alright, guys!” Levi steps in, hands motioning for us to step back.

In our heated argument, I hadn’t realized how close we had gotten. Sera is practically heaving with anger, her nostrils flaring. Maybe it was a good thing Levi stepped in because I’m almost certain any longer and we would have drawn out our guns.

I don’t say another word after that. The tension in the room is far too volatile to talk my way out of. So I do the next best thing.

I grab my jacket from the chair, give Sera one last look of warning, then leave.

Giovanni

I’ve spent three days watching my new mark—Serafina Bianchi, the newly appointed leader of La Cosa Nostra.

It’s a first for me. I’ve always guarded men too afraid of their own shadows or paranoid for their own safety. It’s a welcomed change that this time, my client is the first female leader of the Mafia. I didn’t really know what to expect, but a five foot five brunette with an undousable fire wasn’t it.

She’s in her element, whether she believes it or not. She commands a room—or maybe it’s just me. She’s got beautiful brown eyes that you could get lost in, high cheekbones and plump lips that any warm-blooded male would be blind to ignore. And that’s before I mention how well she wears suits like she’s the big bad boss. She wears the leadership role well, and even though she didn’t personally hire me, she doesn’t seem to have a problem with my company.

I check my watch. I’m standing outside the conference room where Bianchi is having a meeting. Loud voices charge at one another. Normally, I would step in if I wasn’t already in the room, but the battle playing out beyond the doors behind me isn’t for my ears.

After another minute of sharp barbs, Luca all but storms past me. I can practically feel the anger rolling off of him, and when Serafina and Levi appear, they’re wearing less than happy expressions on their faces. I don’t know what happened in there—I wasn’t privy to the meeting—but I’m almost certain it didn’t go the way any of them wanted.

“Sera, wait!” Levi calls as she slams the door. He doesn’t go after her like I expect him to. Instead, he sighs, slumping down onto the couch and burying his fingers in his hair. “Cazzo!”

I edge towards the door, ready to follow Serafina, as I’m tasked to do.

“Give her a minute,” Levi orders me.

I pause, hoping he’ll reconsider.

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