Ruthless Monarch

“Sorry, Boss,” he says. “But, I mean, c’mon.”

“It should be fun…” I trail off. That is the understatement of the year.

It should be fun. I can’t think of anything in the world that sounds worse. But the shit deserves it. Fuck, if only I knew where my cousin was hiding. I love to kill two birds with one stone.

However, he’ll find out soon enough. The moment the governor realizes I have him by the balls, he will call Salvatore. I’ll make sure of it. To think my cousin believes he can go around me to get port access by hitting up the governor of New Jersey.

“I need you to call Tobias,” I tell Lorenzo. “We need to reschedule the drugs.”

“That’s not going to be a problem. With the new guns, are we going to war again?”

“I prefer not to. I prefer we find my cousin's location and kill the son of a bitch before it escalates to that. But seeing as we have no leads . . .”

“That’s not necessarily true,” Lorenzo says.

“What do you mean?”

“We have her.”

“And you think my cousin genuinely likes her? My cousin doesn’t give a shit about anyone.”

“No, but your cousin cares about taking over New York. If he thinks he still has an in, it could work to flush him out.”

I cross my arms and think about what he says as I start to pace.

Back and forth. Back and forth.

He might be on to something.

It might be a good idea to use her as some sort of bait. But by the looks of her this morning in her bathroom, I’m not 100% sure she would willingly help.

I can ask her, or I can tell her. I didn’t find out exactly what her father was hanging over her head, but I can and then I can use that as a means to get her cooperation. I can even make it seem like she’s working with her father. That she is working to take me down and then by doing that she can maybe find out the location of my cousin.

“It’s a solid idea.” I nod my head.

“Will you tell her?”

“I’m not sure yet. I’m going to see what happens tonight. We need to find out about her past. Figure out what happened and why her family is paying a substantial amount of money to her ex-nanny.”

“I will get on it right away. I’ll get in touch with Jaxson Price again. If anyone can find out, it would be him.”

“Offer him double to expedite the request.”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea? Won’t he always expect it?”

“I don’t give a rat’s ass what he expects. He’s the best, and I want the information now. I have no problem paying if it’s worth it.”

That is the reason I am in charge. I don’t nickel and dime anyone. I pay what something is worth, and into that equation I allocate time too. What your time is worth. My time is priceless, but that’s a whole different story.

“Is there anything else you need?” Lorenzo stands up, ready to leave. He looks around, anxious to start working.

“No. Have most of the men stay here.”

“Are we not going back to the city?”

I shake my head. “I’ll keep a team there too. But I think with the shipment, it will be easier to transport it from here.”

He pulls out his phone and starts typing into it, sending a text. “Anything else I need to tell the men?”

“Nope. We are all set. I’m going to hit the gym, then get ready. If you need anything, I’ll be working out. When Giana and the stylist arrive, show them to Viviana’s room.”

“Do you think it’s a good idea to let them spend so much time together?

“It’s either that or let her talk to her friends.”

“True.”

I walk past him and out into the hallway. I take a few steps before looking over my shoulder. “Until we know what we are dealing with, she’s not to speak to anyone outside of the family.”

“I think that’s a good plan. How do you think she’ll take it?”

“I really don’t give a flying fuck.”

Hours later, I’m dressed and ready to go. I make my way to Viviana’s room. This time, I knock.

I don’t have to, but since I need her on her A game, I don’t want to get her frazzled. My knuckles bang on the door once, twice, and on the third knock, I hear her footsteps.

“Who is it?”

Silly question. As if I would let anyone near my wife’s room without my permission, as if they would even attempt.

“The fucking pope.”

“Sorry, I stopped believing in God when a mobster forced me into marriage.”

“You were always going to be forced into marriage with a mobster. So don’t act like this marriage is coming out of left field.”

Surprisingly, that makes her open the door. I expect her to give a little pushback, but she must realize she has no choice.