Regazza scowls but doesn’t sit. “You think you’re so much better than me, don’t you?”
Romeo smiles. “I don’t think it, Luigi.”
A vein pulses in Regazza’s temple and he twitches. The man has more nervous habits than a dealer, tapping his foot, yanking down his sleeves. Waiting for his next hit?
I step over to him, casually tap the back of his knee with my foot, and he collapses on the couch behind him. “Have a seat,” I say amiably. Angelina’s eyes dance. This man has been someone she’s feared likely her entire life.
Not anymore.
Romeo speaks as pleasantly as if we were having lunch in the garden. “Why don’t we chat like friends, Luigi?”
The door to the Great Hall opens, and Mama walks in in stilettos, as poised and majestic as ever. She smiles, but it’s the type of smile that doesn’t quite reach her eyes. “Luigi, how are you? How is Anna?”
Regazza scowls. “She’s fine,” he lies. We all know they live on separate continents for reasons we don’t care to know.
“Now, back to business,” Romeo says. “Stay seated, Regazza, or the next words out of your mouth will find you restrained. And we don’t want that, now, do we?”
As Don of the Regazza family mob, Luigi Regazza isn’t used to not getting his way. He’s got a reputation for being savage, ruling like the tyrant that he is. I wonder how he’s plotting his revenge for Romeo for taking control and putting him in his place. And he will get his revenge, but only after we’ve bargained for exactly what we want.
“Of course not,” Luigi says with mock repentance. “But you understand that Angelina’s life is under my control now. I’m sure we can agree to that. Children or pregnancies or no, she betrayed my family by negating the agreement we had.”
“Actually,” Tavi says coolly, pausing to take a sip of wine, “I believe it was your daughter who did that.” His merciless gaze lingers on Angelina for a fraction of a second before swinging back to Regazza’s. “And we have a proposal involving your daughter and me.”
Regazza sits back in his chair, white with fury. “I have no daughter.” He contorts his face as if to spit, but Mama speaks up.
“Oh, Luigi, I wouldn’t do that if I were you. These rugs were a gift, and if you spoil my home, my sons will not look kindly upon you.” She yawns as if bored and inspects her cuticles. “In fact, if my husband were here, I think he’d agree with me that they’ve already granted you far more grace than you actually deserve.”
Luigi opens his mouth as if to say something scathing to Mama. I have a vague recollection that the man Mama had an affair with was an archrival to Regazza, but I haven’t bothered with the details. Mario, however, casually shifts his suit coat to reveal his gun, which he lovingly strokes in front of Regazza. Disrespect to any female member of my household would earn swift and severe punishment or death, and Regazza knows this. He chooses instead to continue the façade of pleasantries.
“And for that I’m so grateful, Tosca. We’ve all been granted grace we don’t deserve, haven’t we?”
Her gaze grows cold.
“As I was saying,” Tavi continues, as if Mama and Regazza haven’t been hurling sugarcoated insults at each other. “Romeo and I are willing to excuse your betrayal and allow Angelina to live, seeing as she’s taken vows to my brother and carries his child, under one condition.”
“Oh?” Regazza says, but his eyes gleam with keen interest. He knows his life is forfeit to us and we’re granting him a second chance at life. I watch as he shifts restlessly in his seat and tugs down his suit coat jacket. Odd.
“Give us your daughter. Your actual daughter this time.”
Angelina gasps and raises her hand to her mouth, her eyes meeting mine. I nod at her, encouraging her to trust Romeo, to trust Tavi. To trust me. My brothers would lay down their lives for each other, any of them, and I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that they would do anything for me.
“I don’t even know where she is,” Regazza begins, his beady, watery eyes pleading for mercy where he’ll get none.
“Under normal circumstances, that would be a problem,” Tavi says with a frown. “But fortunately for you, I know exactly where she is.”
I reach for Angelina’s hand and give her a gentle squeeze. Regazza stares at me, then her, and shakes his head. “I was set up. You set me up to play me for a fool so you’d gain two women instead of one.”
Romeo casually nods to our guards to come closer. Silently, they obey. Mario removes his gun and holds it by his side. Killing the Don of another family without starting a war of massive proportions will be excused only under certain conditions. He has to raise a weapon to us first or issue a threat against one of the inner circle or their loved ones.