“Tex?” Mo whispered, her fingers grasped mine lightly. I led her to the bed and sat, patting the spot next to me.
“Yeah?”
“I have an idea.”
I glanced sideways and frowned. “Okay.”
“Shoot me.”
My face froze in shock. “You want me to… shoot you?”
“Yeah.” She nodded, her eyebrows pinching together like she was thinking too hard. “You have to make an example, right?”
I wasn’t comfortable with where this was going. “Mo, I can make an example without shooting you.”
“Well you don’t have to kill me!” Her words rushed out. “Just hurt me a little, I mean you were planning on slapping me, which is fine and all.”
I groaned, officially the worst conversation in the world.
“But—” She licked her lips. “—I just think, it would make a bigger impact if you shot me, make it a shoulder shot, or even in the leg, I mean it didn’t hurt that bad, and it’s not like I died, right?”
My eyes closed tightly until they burned. “Mo, you’re asking me to shoot you.”
“I’m your enemy.”
“Until the end,” I whispered.
“Right.” She gripped my hand. “Just… think about it, but don’t tell me if you’re going to do it, just do it… I don’t want to know it’s coming. My reaction has to be real, but Tex, you can’t take on five heads, you can’t take on that many men and survive, I think you should tell Nixon and Chase.”
“Can’t,” I said hoarsely. “If anything gets back to them… it’s their heads that roll. I can’t handle that, Mo. It’s bad enough that Phoenix, Luca, Frank, and even Sergio will be in trouble if it gets out. The plan was to keep The Abandonato family clean. The one family powerful enough to keep everything together if things get… bad.”
Mo swallowed. “You should shoot Nixon too.”
I groaned. “Are you insane?”
“Think about it!” She hit me in the shoulder. “You can huff and puff all you want, but in the end, if you don’t harm the powerful ones closest to you—all you are is a murderer. A boss who cleansed out the bad, but nobody will fear you. They may take you seriously but you have to actually hurt people.”
“That was the original plan.” I exhaled. “But I told Phoenix I couldn’t do it.”
“I never thought I’d utter these words.” Mo sighed heavily. “But Phoenix is right.”
“Damn him.” I fell back against the bed and sighed. Mo followed, resting her hand on my chest.
We laid there in silence for a few minutes before she moved closer and kissed my neck. “Try to live.”
Her voice was shaky with emotion. I tried to ignore the pang in my heart but it was impossible.
“Mo.” I swallowed a few times, my throat clogging with tears, “If I had a choice—”
“I know—”
“No!” I pulled away abruptly. “You don’t.”
“Tex, it’s okay you don’t have to do this.” Her eyes blinked rapidly like she was holding back tears. “We already said goodbye, remember?”
“If I didn’t have a sister.” I whispered.
Mo leaned her head against mine. “If you weren’t son to a dead Cappo di Cappo.”
“If his legacy wasn’t still alive.” My voice trailed.
“If you didn’t need the help of the Nicolasi family.”
I cursed then crushed my mouth against hers. She moaned as I flipped her on her back and deepened the kiss.
“Mo.” I pulled back and gripped her hand placing it on my chest. “Know this… my heart will always beat for you and you alone, my friend, my lover, my enemy, my soul.”
Tears dripped down her face as she nodded and tugged my head to hers, her mouth meeting mine in a frenzy. “I’m proud of you.”
“Don’t be.”
“Can’t help it.” She sighed, her lips lingering across mine, brushing feather light kisses across my skin.
We kissed for a while, not talking, memorizing, saying goodbye for the second time in two weeks. I glanced up at the clock and it was nearing midnight.
“Mo—”
“You don’t have to say it.” She moved from underneath me and stood to her feet. “Keep the fox.”
I chuckled. “A one eyed fox for good luck? What could go wrong?”
“Don’t be an ass,” Mo taunted. “He protected me from monsters, maybe he’ll protect you from yours.”
“Mo.” I shook my head. “Tomorrow I become that monster.”
“No.” She licked her lips and pressed a kiss to my cheek. “Tomorrow, you become our savior.”
CHAPTER SIXTY-FIVE
Sleeping is for the dead.
Phoenix
I SLEPT LIKE CRAP.
So many lives hung in the balance, mine included, but I didn’t really value my own life, especially when measured against theirs.
In an hour we would leave for The Commission. My stomach was in knots. I closed my eyes and brushed my fingers across the tree where the guys and I had etched in our names… the names of the Elect. The place where we swore we wouldn’t become our fathers.
Damn, but I’d become him without even knowing it.
I felt for Tex, I really did, because I knew better than anyone else what it was like to have ugliness as a legacy. I understood it because I lived with it every damn day, no escape, nothing.