Page 23 of Vows of Power
The alliance only works if the three families trust Dominic enough to come to the table in the first place. The Robbertis and the Varones aren’t going to shake hands because Dominic asked nicely. They’re doing it because he’s convinced each of them that he’s worth the risk and that he’ll deliver.
And trust is a fragile thing. I should know.
“The whole thing only happens if those families believe they can trust Dominic completely,” I say. “We need to make them stop believing in him.”
Matteo tilts his head. “How?”
“We need to make them doubt him. A man like Robberti doesn’t sit down with the family he’s been feuding with for years, unless he’s absolutely sure Dominic can be trusted. If even a little doubt creeps in, he won’t show. And if Robberti doesn’t show, the whole thing will collapse, because D’Amico’s probably only there to see which way the wind blows. As for the Varones, they’ll be suspicious once someone else pulls out.”
“So we... What? Spread some rumors?” Matteo asks.
I nod. “Nothing they could trace back to us. It has to be something that makes them believe Dominic’s playing them. Maybe that he’s already cut a side deal with one of the others and they’re walking into a trap.”
Matteo gives me a long look, and a grin pulls at his mouth. “That would probably work.”
“Maybe we can say Dominic’s been skimming and lying to his own partners, and then they might actually find somethingwhen they go looking, because there’s something there to find.” I shrug.
“And if Dominic is smarter than that and has a plan in place?”
“Then we need to come up with something else.”
“We’d have to be careful who we use,” Matteo says. “Rumors are easy to start and impossible to control. If it gets back to Dominic that someone’s whispering about him right before the meeting, he’ll know it’s not random. He’ll start hunting for who said it.”
“We have to use people who already have reasons to talk. Find someone in Robberti’s circle who already distrusts Dominic. Let it look like it came from inside and one of his own has doubts.”
He nods, and I look down at the list of names again. “We’ve got time, but not a lot. If we can make a few people doubt the right things, Dominic’s big plan will fall apart before it ever happens, and he won’t even know why right away.”
“This is the most fun I’ve had planning to ruin someone’s life,” he says as he scribbles something down. “And believe me, I did many of those. Hopefully, this one will work out.”
I let out a laugh and shake my head at him. It’s crazy I’m here laughing with him when I thought I’d hate every second I spent around him. Even if this is all just a game to him, I don’t care as long as I get what I want, and that’s Dominic’s head.
Chapter 16
AMALIA
WHEN MARCO COMES INwithout knocking and tells me one of our people spotted Dominic’s men booking out a whole restaurant for tonight, I instantly get up from my chair. This meeting wasn’t mentioned anywhere, but that doesn’t mean anything. No one has their whole life perfectly planned out anyway.
“Who is he meeting?” I ask.
“Don’t know yet. But he uses places like that when he wants to talk somewhere neutral.”
A meeting with his allies? Or future ones? It’s hard to say, but I have an idea.
“Tell Matteo,” I say. “We’ll take the bike.”
Marco’s brow creases. “A bike? You won’t have any guards with you. If something goes wrong out there—”
“That’s the point of the bike. Two people on a motorcycle move through traffic easily. Cars full of my men are the first thing Dominic’s people will notice. I want to get close without raising any alarms.”
“At least let me put a car a few streets back or a guard on a bike too.”
“No.” I shake my head. “Just me and Matteo. No one else. A girl and a guy on a bike won’t catch anyone’s attention because no one will see it coming.”
“What if Matteo uses the opportunity to attack you?”
“He won’t. He knows you’d come after him with all my men, and he literally has nothing.”
Marco presses his lips into a tight line, but then he heads out because he knows better than to argue with me on this.
