“Why did he attack that man?”
“What do you think? Because he doesn’t want you to marry Basci,” Aria said softly. “He’s been trying to call you for the last hour but you didn’t pick up. He almost went crazy over here. He wants to talk to you.”
“He’s there with you?”
“Yes. I’ll hand him the phone now, okay?”
Fear corded up my throat. “Okay.”
“Lily,” Romero murmured into the phone. His voice was anything but detached now. I released a harsh breath and felt tears run down my face.
“Lily?”
I swallowed hard. “I thought you didn’t want anything to do with me anymore now that I’m promised to someone else.”
“No, never. I know I didn’t react the way I should have. I…I was so angry when you told me your fucking Father wants to sell you off to that old bastard. I wanted to fly over there and kill him. I didn’t want to let out my anger on you so I tried to push it back.”
“Okay,” I whispered.
“Do you still want to run away?”
Yes, more than anything else. “It would mean war. You said it yourself.”
“I don’t care. I would risk war for you.”
“Is Luca there to hear you say that?”
“No, he isn’t.”
“He would kill you if he could hear you.”
“Your sisters would risk war over you as well.”
I didn’t doubt it. Gianna, in particular, but even Aria who was the more reasonable would do anything to protect me, and that was what scared me so much. Fabiano would soon be in the midst of mob business. The war with the Russians had gotten worse in recent years, and I probably didn’t even know half of it. If New York and Chicago started fighting each other again, this could cost the lives of many people I cared about.
“I have to meet him tomorrow.”
“I don’t want you alone with him, Lily.”
“But what if he asks me and Father says ‘yes’?”
“You are a honorable Italian girl, play that card. If I have to worry that you’ll be alone with him I’ll book the next flight and be there tomorrow. Fuck. I want to do just that and kill him.”
I smiled slightly, wishing he could. I wanted nothing more than to have him with me, to feel his arms around me. “I’m not a honorable girl anymore. Maybe if I tell my father I can get out of this marriage.”
“He might kill you. Your father has been very volatile since that thing with Gianna.”
“Maybe that would be better than marrying that guy.”
“Don’t say something like that. We’ll figure something out.”
I nodded, even if he couldn’t see it. I wanted to believe him. “I know,” I said quietly.
“Aria is going to call your father tomorrow morning to get a feel for his resolve.”
“I don’t think she’ll be able to talk him out of it. Does Luca know everything about us?”
“Yes, at least everything he needs to know to assess the situation.”
My cheeks flamed, but Romero was right. We needed to tell Luca the truth if we wanted him to be able to do something. “Was he very angry?”
Romero was silent for a moment. “He wasn’t happy. I punched Matteo, that didn’t really help matters.”
“You hit Matteo? Why? I thought Aria said you’d attacked another soldier.”
“I did both,” Romero admitted. “I just really lost it.”
“Please don’t get in trouble because of me. I don’t want you to get hurt, promise me.” There was another moment of silence, before he said, “I promise.”
But I had a feeling it was a promise he wasn’t sure he could keep. If he’d already attacked Matteo, the Famiglia’s Consigliere, that wasn’t a good sign.
“Call me after your meeting with Brasci tomorrow. I’ll go crazy if I don’t hear from you. And don’t let him try anything. He’s got absolutely no right. I’ll fucking kill him if he puts a toe out of line, if he even looks at you the wrong way.”
“Didn’t you promise to stay out of trouble?” I joked half-heartedly.
“I’ll try, but I’ll be on edge tomorrow, that much is sure.”
We talked about a few unimportant things before we said good-bye and hung up. I clutched the phone against my chest. Slowly I lay back on the bed. I was relieved that Romero still wanted me but I was also scared that he’d do something that would get him killed. Luca liked Romero a lot, but he was also Capo and needed to keep his men in line. If Romero did something that publicly hurt the Famiglia, Luca might not have a choice but to punish him severely. I wouldn’t let that happen.
***
I barely slept more than two hours. I’d known that my first night in Chicago wouldn’t be easy but I hadn’t expected it to be this horrible.
There were dark shadows under my eyes and I didn’t bother covering them up. Maybe Benito would decide not to marry me if I looked like a corpse. I put on jeans and a shirt before I made my way downstairs. Fabi and Father were already sitting at the table, eating breakfast. I wondered if they’d done the same when I was gone. “Since when are you awake this early on a Saturday?” I asked Fabi as I took the chair across from him.
“Only because he doesn’t have school doesn’t mean he should laze around,” Father answered in Fabi’s stead. Fabi stabbed at his fruit with his fork, looking like he wished it was Father.
“Is he getting inducted soon?”
Father set his coffee down. “You know very well that that’s none of your business.”
I curled my hands into fists under the table. My throat tightened at my next words. “When are Benito Brasci and his daughter going to arrive?”
“Around six. I already told you we’d have dinner with them.” His eyes narrowed. “I hope you don’t intend to wear that tonight. Take one of your cocktail dresses and let your hair down. That’s how Benito prefers it.”
I blinked a few times, too stunned for words. Fabi dropped his fork with a clang.
“And you should eat. I don’t want you to faint again. Tonight is important,” Father continued unimpressed.