“Nixon!” Trace half pleaded. While Mil stared at the hardwood beneath her feet, Mo had moved around the kitchen and was standing by the girls.
Tex seemed to be weighing his options as he looked around the kitchen and then a smile curved his lips as his gaze met Nixon’s cold stare. With swift movements he walked until his nose was almost touching Nixon’s. The tension was so thick I wasn’t sure if I should intervene or just let things play out. I glanced at Phoenix out of the corner of my eye, his fists were clenched tightly at his sides, if there was going to be a fight… I’d have to save Tex, damn but that felt wrong. I had to keep him alive, at all costs.
Nixon’s breathing was ragged as his eyes narrowed into tiny slits.
Tex grinned smugly then whispered, “Volpe.”
Not what I was expecting.
Nixon’s eyes went wild as they darted back and forth and then with a cruel smile he reared back and punched Tex in the face.
Tex staggered backwards, blood streaming down his chin. He nodded his head once and sauntered down the hall cursing the Abandonato family the entire way.
I scratched my head in confusion. “Did he just call you a fox?”
Chase met Nixon’s stare, they both turned to look at Phoenix who had gone completely still.
“What the hell am I missing?” I asked calmly.
Nixon sighed and then turned around. “Nothing worth discussing. The Commission is tomorrow, I suggest everyone get some sleep.”
Too confused and tired to even prod further I threw my hands in the air and walked down the hall to my guest room. The minute the door closed I pulled out my cell and texted Luca:
Me: Tomorrow’s the day we find out what Tex is made of… Phoenix too.
Luca: Trust the plan.
Me: That’s the problem, I don’t trust anyone.
Luca: Maybe, it’s time, you start. Have a good night’s sleep, things will work out, they always do.
Scowling, I typed back: Absolute power corrupts, absolutely.
Luca: Absolute power corrupts, absolutely, only when we allow it. There is always a choice, Sergio. Never forget that.
Too frustrated to respond I threw my phone against the bed and sunk low into the mattress, my head in my hands. I went through every strategy, every outcome, every plan I’d help Phoenix, Luca, and Frank formulate since the beginning. I’d done the best I could. I’d come out of hiding in order to make sure that the Family was secure, the only issue was, I felt like I had lost my humanity in the process.
I guess that was what happened when you’re a death dealer.
With a grunt I lie back down on the pillow and tried to concentrate on a simpler time, when we were all kids, when war games were something we heard the adults discuss in hushed tones. When battles between families meant nothing to us, when power and greed were abominable.
That time was long gone.
And now, I was tired.
Nothing. I had nothing left.
I tugged out the piece of paper in my pocket and stared at it. My last will and testament. I sealed the paper in the envelope waiting for me on my desk. The most pathetic part was, I had no family to address it to. My own father didn’t want me living, most my uncles were in prison, and I was stuck between wanting to keep the law, and having to break it. I had no name to put on that blank envelope, and it killed me inside that that was most likely my future. Lonely and blank. Never to be remembered. Some legacy.
CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR
Risk… is always worth it. Or is it?
Tex
I HAD TO HAND it to Mo, she’d done a hell of a job. I only hoped it was enough for the guys. I was stuck between needing them to react tomorrow and also needing them to keep me alive.
It was a tug of war of sorts, treat them like absolute shit but drop the hint that there was a reason behind it.
A very solid, life altering reason.
Phoenix had said to make it real and I knew now, I knew why. I needed every reaction from them to be real, I was already risking too much with Mo knowing, but I hadn’t been able to do it. Lie to her face again and again and again. It didn’t help that I was absolute crap at hiding my feelings from her, each time she kissed me I reacted like she’d just set my body on fire. So it was impossible.
Funny, it had been her idea to drop the volpe hint. Damn, that woman was brilliant. My stomach clenched… now if only there was a way out of that contract with Nicolasi. Mo knew I couldn’t back out, just like she knew I was going to have to hurt her in order to prove to the men I meant business.
A knock sounded at the window. I jumped out of bed and grabbed my gun.
Mo was grinning from the other side of the glass.
When I rolled my eyes, she held up a stuffed fox and pouted, her lower lip sticking out.
My smile grew and grew and grew, finally I opened the window and leaned out. “What up, Romeo you trying to romance me?”
“Yeah but you didn’t have a balcony.”
“So you brought a fox?” I nodded towards the stuffed animal. “A stuffed fox that’s missing an eye?”
“Tragic washing machine accident.”
“Ah.” I took the animal. “I see.”
“Can I come in?” Mo shivered and pulled her leather jacket closer to her body.
I stepped back and licked my lips. “They say keep your friends close and your enemies closer, so yeah, hop on in.” I backed away more so she could pull herself up and into my room. She landed with a thud, turned and closed the window, followed by the blinds.
“Planning on killing me or something?” I pointed to the blinds and tossed the fox onto the bed. My bones ached, my heart ached. Every damn thing ached when I thought about it. There was no way I was going to get any sleep.