Mob Boss’ Curvy Hostage by Lisa Lovell
Chapter Eight
Ronnie
“Sergei isn’t one to keep his trap shut,” I say to Monty over the best pizza in the city. Forget all of that New York versus Deep Dish bullshit. They both suck. At Cucina Onesta, they use an authentic Italian recipe that dates back to the sixteenth century. I refuse to get my pizza from anywhere else.
“No kidding,” Monty sighs. “I bet he’s already told half the city he tricked the great and powerful Ronnie Valente with fake checks. Others are going to start getting ideas.”
“We need to shut that shit down. Hopefully, the boys will make a good statement at Sergei’s club tonight, but we need to have a backup plan.”
“I could whack him for you,” Monty offers with a shrug. “He punched Lucy, so it’s not like he doesn’t have it coming.”
“He can’t pay us if he’s dead,” I point out.
I’m not worried about speaking so openly in front of patrons here. They either work for the family or they benefit from the family. None of them will turn into little rats. They know what would happen to them if they did.
“So, how about that swiss account? Did they get the money across for you?”
“It’ll take a few days, Monty.”
“Sounds like a lot of time, boss.”
“Things aren’t as simple as they used to be,” I reply. “Nowadays, a paper trail is a safer bet than an electronic one. You know what happened to the Tripanis? It was the IRS that brought them down. Same with the Romanovas. Our money trail has to be perfectly clean. Above board. That takes time.”
“Is that why you booked a meeting with that swanky bank?”
“Yes.” The very mention of the bank makes me think of Sophie, but apprehension clouds my happy memories of her. I made the right call when I encouraged Amy to relocate. She couldn’t have handled working with my family any longer. It was only a matter of time before she became a target.
“And took the banker out to dinner?”
“I should’ve known you’d hear about that,” I grunt. “But yes, I took her to Katya’s. She’ll be more likely to see anything I do in a favorable light. Besides, Winston brought me some good info on her. We’ll want her on our side. She should be running that fuckin’ bank with her qualifications.”
“Are you going to make that happen for her?”
“That will turn many heads,” I sigh, “but if I do it gradually, I can get away with it.”
That is if she remains in ignorance about all of this. I shouldn’t have slept with her, but I don’t regret it. Just picturing her in my head makes me burn for her. As long as she stays in the dark, I won’t have to make any difficult calls.
What if she has my wallet? What if she knows who I am? I take so much shit in and out of that wallet every day, I can’t even remember what’s in it now. I have two dozen false names.
It shouldn’t be a big deal, I tell myself. The average person on the street doesn’t know shit about what my family really does. Even if Sophie knows my real name, she doesn’t have anything to turn into the Feds. So, what if I want to legally transfer a large sum?
“You okay, Ronnie?” Monty asks.
“I’m fine,” I snap. “I’m just pissed off about Sergei. Where does he get off trying to pull that crap with me? Me?”
“He might think you’re soft,” he replies. “No offense, but your father was ruthless. You’re not. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing. A lot of us prefer it that way. Only that son-of-a-bitch psycho Antonio misses the days of shootouts in the streets. I swear, he thinks he’s Al Capone reincarnated.”
“You know full well I can be ruthless when I need to be,” I glower. “I just don’t want half my family getting killed in blood feuds or territory scraps. That’s just stupid and expensive. And Sergei can’t pay us if he’s dead. If he fucks up one more time, I’ll be a different story. We’ll send him swimming and stick one of ours in his place.”
“That’s the spirit,” Monty claps me on the shoulder. “Watch out for Antonio, though. He’s fucking crazy. He thinks he should be running things.”
“I’m sure he does,” I snarl. “Let him try to take the family business from me. I dare him. It’s been a while since I’ve had some real action.”
My phone rings. It’s Sienna.
“Glad you called,” I say. “I have a job for you.”
“Later.” She sounds like she’s ready to kill someone. “We’ve got a problem.”
“If it’s about Sergei, the boys already have their assignment for the evening.”
“It’s not Sergei. Someone is here.”
“Who?” I run through the list of anyone who would waltz into our base of operations unannounced. No one is that stupid unless they were trying to get in and out undetected.
“Someone who calls herself Sophie.”
I nearly drop the phone.
“Does she have blonde hair?” I ask.
“Yes.” Siena sounds surprised. “You know her?”
“What is she doing now?”
“Antonio is talking to her.”
Oh, fuck. That’s not good. “No one speaks to her until I get there. Do you hear me?”
“What’s going on?” Sienna demands. “I like to be kept informed.”
“You know what you need to know,” I snap. “Do you understand me?”
Her voice hardens to steel. “I hear you.” She hangs up.
“What’s the matter?” Monty asks.
“I have to get back to home base. Now.” I toss a few hundreds on the table and hurry out, not bothering to wait for Monty.
“What about Sergei?” He hurries after me. “We need to round up the boys and make a plan for tonight.”
“You can do that on your own,” I say. “You know what to do and how to do it. You know our rules. You know the results we need. I trust you with this.”
Monty grins. “Thanks, boss. I won’t let you down.”
I hop in my car and speed away.
I just hope Sophie will be in one piece when I get there.