Page 121 of Cartel Devil

Allegra’s Sylvia’s older sister, Serafina’s mom, and the Mala del Brenta madrina—godmother. Allegra and Sylvia are two of the most powerful women in the Mafia. Fortunately for all of us, their husbands are wise enough to listen to their advice.

“What happened?” I can ask even though I know I won’t get an answer.

“That’s neither here nor there beyond my belief that Francesco was definitely involved.”

“Does he want to break ties with you, and he’s just looking for an excuse?”

“Possibly.”

Most definitely.

This conversation will only scratch the surface of whatever’s going on. The best I can hope for is enough to point my family in the right direction. Maybe even enough crumbs to lure the Vizzinis out. I want to know why Salvatore isn’t letting my future in-laws handle this.

“Why aren’t you having the Vizzinis solve this if they’re the ones in the middle? Why aren’t they showing their loyalty to the motherland?”

“Clearly, they’re already overinvolved considering what’s happened to Tricia. They don’t need to be in the middle of this.”

There he is. The almighty Godfather.

“You’d rather remove them altogether. You don’t trust Tommaso.”

“I do for some things. For all our bravado and machismo, you and I both know our life is a whole fucking humble pie. Tommaso doesn’t think he should eat even a crumb. Bastardo arrogante.” Arrogant bastard.

Please, tell us how you really feel.

“That may be true, but you also don’t want to owe Tommaso anything. It’s one thing when he’s dealing with the mess that’s dropped in his backyard. It’s another when you ask him to help clean yours.”

“Astute for once. If one of Francesco’s men showed up in Boston or New York, it wouldn’t go unnoticed. Between Vittoria and Elodie, a mercenary wouldn’t last long either.”

I ignore his insult before I continue.

“You believe he has someone in the States who’s carrying out his orders. That he didn’t make empty threats.”

We’ve been going around the hedges to finally get to this. It’s like any business negotiations. A lot of buttering each other up while tossing in some misdirection before getting to the actual bargaining.

“Exactly. He knew Tricia wouldn’t learn anything. He ordered that mission as a flex. Tommaso knew it from the start, but he also knew Francesco is batshit crazy enough to follow through. It’s why he asked me to ask Sera to offer Tricia a job. If I didn’t know better, I’d think he was trying to drive me into Tommaso’s arms.”

“Is it someone from within the Vizzinis?” I ask because it would surprise me if it were true.

“Possibly.”

No wonder he doesn’t trust Tommaso to deal with this. If he has a mole, then he should’ve ferreted it out by now. If he has a mole, can he be trusted to deal with the guy in a way that will satisfy Salvatore and me? He’s not soft by any stretch, but I don’t trust him not to hide the guy away and save him for a rainy day. A day when he has a job bad enough that he values everyone else’s life too much to send them.

“Any thoughts on who?” It’s like pulling fucking teeth.

“Not yet. We’re following the breadcrumbs back to Francesco, but you have other enemies in Boston.”

“The Volkovs.”

“You have a lot of digging to do, Joaquin. Jorge will help you, but he’s not a hacker. Let Carmine help.”

Everyone but Tío Enrique has been silent until now. We howl with laughter so loudly we sound like a pack of hyenas.

“Thanks, but Carmine can stick to his decorative blankets and throw pillows.”

The guy has a degree in structural engineering from Stanford. You’d never imagine he was studious enough to get in, let alone graduate. I concede he did it on merit, not his family’s name and money. He opened an interior design firm right out of college. I know the difference between interior decorating and design, but I still give him shit. I’m sure he’s listening.

“Don’t be pompous, Joaquin. It’s not like he’s jumping to make the offer himself, but Tricia’s important to Sera. That makes her well-being a priority to him. If you have to dig through the Torettas and the Vizzinis, you can use the help. I know you’ve been poking around for weeks now, and I’m sure you’ve made progress. But you haven’t cracked the case. Another set of eyes wouldn’t go amiss.”