Page 10 of Righteous Enforcer
"Dmitri claims she’s in New Jersey."
"Eva?" My brother leans back, studying me with eyes that rarely miss anything. "You believe this prisoner? A man who would say anything to postpone his death?"
I shrug. "I need to find out. If there's even a chance?—"
"The Bratva is moving against us in three territories," Alessandro cuts in. "Ivan's consolidating power faster than we anticipated. We've lost two shipments this week alone."
"I understand the situation."
"Do you?" His voice, a moment ago calm, shows signs of irritation. "Because it sounds like you're prepared to chase ghosts while we're looking down the barrel of our enemy's gun."
The old Adriano would have accepted this.
The man I became after Eva died would have prioritized family business above all else.
But the possibility that she lives has shifted my world.
“Dmitri knows about her because Ivan is hunting her. That’s got to mean something.”
“Or it’s a purposeful distraction. We need you focused."
“Why is he after her? It has to be related to me or us as a family.”
Alessandro's gaze hardens. "I need your head in this, Adriano. Not chasing after a woman who's been dead for years."
My jaw tightens.
"Men like Dmitri research their marks. They find weaknesses," my brother continues. "And Eva has always been yours."
I've spent years turning myself to stone after losing her, becoming the family's perfect weapon.
The man who feels nothing, fears nothing.
I see a flash of my brother, over my Don, as he rises from his desk, rounding it and sitting on the edge. “Have you considered that if she isn’t dead, she wants you to think so?”
Of course I have. But why?
“If she’s in Jersey, she’s not far. All this time, she’s been close?—”
“I don’t know that.”
“If she’s alive, she left you, Adriano. Why chase a woman who doesn’t want you?”
My fist clenches.
He notices it, but he’s not afraid of my using them against him.
“I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings?—”
“Fuck you.” I step back because I do want to hit him.
Alessandro rises again and returns to his chair. It’s a sign that he’s done with this conversation. "As your Don, I'm ordering you to drop this. We can't afford distractions with Ivan circling."
I stare at my brother, the man I've followed since we were children.
Family comes first.
The Don's word is law.
