The Mafia Contract Series

I don’t get nervous ever, but tonight is the exception to that rule. So much is riding on this, and it has to be a success, otherwise I will have failed my mission. There is still no word on the whereabouts of Massimo’s daughter even though Malik has been searching, using every resource he has. I just hope we get to her before Massimo does otherwise, we will have lost a vital weapon in our Arsenal.

The Capital Room is always Massimo’s preferred choice and every seat in the place will be filled with his men. Massimo likes to conduct his business there but under the close guard of his trusted soldiers.

As we enter the restaurant, I can tell that Louisa is nervous and I grip her hand hard, desperate to reassure her. Dimitri has equipped us with state-of-the-art listening devices and Pedro is standing by with his men to get us out of trouble if it starts going to shit.

The thing I’m most nervous about, though, is seeing Winter for the first time since college. I not sure how I’m going to control myself around her and physically ache for one hungry glance at her.

Winter is the catalyst driving this, but even without her, we would be treading this path. It’s just more urgent now.

The waiter shows us to the middle table, and I note the curious glances of the other diners.

Massimo’s men and their wives or girlfriends. I’m in no doubt about that and as we move through them, I sense their eyes burning a hole in my back. Louisa seems on edge, and I squeeze her hand reassuringly as we take our seats and stare at the menu.

We don’t speak out of fear of being overheard, and my thumping heart counts down to the bastard’s arrival.

Exactly on the dot of seven thirty, they arrive, and the air stills as pure evil enters the room. I stand out of respect and Louisa looks with interest at the woman beside a man old enough to be her father.

Nothing prepares me for the automaton that glides into the room beside her husband. It’s as if her soul is under lock and key because there is zero recognition or emotion in those dark eyes shrouded in mystery.

My first view of Winter in what is well over a year is not a good one. Gone is the happy, warm person she was and in its place is the cool, emotionless shell of the vivacious soul that once lived there. Her long black hair gleams as if waxed and hangs long down her back. She is wearing a red silk dress that outlines her slender frame and her perfectly made-up face accentuates a cold, hard beauty. She doesn’t even glance in our direction and glides rather than walks beside her aging husband.

Massimo himself rests a possessive arm on hers and I want to tear him apart with my bare hands for even touching the woman I have sworn to set free. Could I take him out now? I already know the answer to that which doesn’t make this situation any better. I wonder how Angelo held it together when he was in the same position as I am now and if anything, it hardens my resolve to end her nightmare and send her captor to hell, where he will fit in nicely.

I nod with respect as Massimo stares at me as if he wants to kill me outright, and I suppose he does. For all he knows, I am his son; the one who caused the death of the only woman he ever loved.

There are no pleasantries as Massimo says darkly, “Take a seat.”

He holds out Winter’s chair and I steal a look at possibly the kindest woman I have ever met and the most tragic. She barely reacts. It’s as if she is frozen and has no life left in her and my heart twists in agony at the suffering she must live through every day.

“Louisa, my darling niece.” Massimo has obviously decided she is the safer option here, and I sense her shiver with revulsion as he turns his attention to her.

“You are the image of your mother, such a terrible tragedy. You have my condolences, my dear.”

“Thank you.” Louisa can barely get the words out and as the waiter fills our glasses, the conversation stalls and is replaced by menace.

He moves away and Massimo says gruffly, “What’s the big secret you couldn’t wait to tell me?”

He directs his question to Louisa, but I’m guessing he is anticipating being told that I know he is my father. It’s almost amusing to string this out and then lay the killer blow, but I can’t stop staring at Winter, who gazes down at her plate as if she needs winding up.

“Well…” Louisa takes a deep breath. “Flynn came to visit us in Seattle because of something he was told.

He was after answers and it’s best if he tells the story.”

She leans back and I raise my guard and say in a dull voice, “My father’s consigliere was shot and with his last breath, he told me to find two people. Iris Young and Vivian Clark.”

Massimo nods but obviously doesn’t remember my mother and I say in a voice devoid of emotion.

“I discovered Vivian was married to your brother, Dimitri, and flew to Seattle to discover the truth.” I fix him with a dark stare which only makes him smile with a sick, twisted look of satisfaction on his face.

“She told me she had been raped and beaten and left for dead.”

I glance at Winter for any reaction, but she continues staring at her plate.

Massimo shrugs. “Why does that concern me?”

“Because Wesley V asquez told her it was you.”

I fix him with a searching look and to his credit, he looks shocked about that.

“He said it was me.” He says it slowly, as if confirming the details in his mind, and I nod.

“She became pregnant, and I was the result of that.” He still doesn’t react even though he believes differently, and I say roughly, “She was told the baby had died.”

There is no reaction from Winter, and I wonder if she’s even listening, and Massimo shrugs. “I still don’t understand what that has to do with me. Wesley was mistaken. Your visit is a futile one.”

He looks bored already and so I dive straight in. “So, I turned to the next name on the list for answers and searched for Iris Young.”

Massimo looks up with interest. “And did you find her?”

I watch a steely glint flash in his eyes as I nod. “I visited her with Louisa, and she told us a very interesting story.”

Massimo looks angry and I’m guessing he hates knowing we were granted access to her, and I wouldn’t want to be in the manager’s shoes when he goes looking for answers.

“What did she say?”

Again, Massimo merely looks interested, and I say roughly, “I introduced myself as your son and she denied it. She told me you never had a son.”

“She’s old and riddled with dementia. She was wrong.”

Massimo sighs heavily. “The truth is, Flynn, Wesley told your mother a lie. She isn’t your mother, but I am your father, as it happens.”

He grins, hoping I will be shocked, emotional even, so he can disown me all over again. Perhaps rant at me for killing his beloved wife, so I lean back in my chair and shake my head. “Actually, you’re wrong. She told me you had a baby, but it was a girl.”

For the first time, the blood drains from Massimo’s face and he appears speechless. So, I carry on relentlessly aiming blow upon well prepared blow.

“She told me the baby was born shortly before Imogen hemorrhaged and died. The doctor arrived too late to save her, and she called Wesley because you were out of town at the time. They agreed you were never to discover you had a girl. You would blame her for the death of your wife and the fact you wanted a son would guarantee her suffering.”

“Wesley said that?” I watch the anger flare in Massimo’s eyes as he curls his fist and Louisa interrupts. “Wesley told Iris that he heard about an abandoned baby. The mother didn’t want him, and they agreed on a swap. Flynn was that baby and apparently Wesley used him to protect himself by making you believe he was taking on your hated child, promising to make his life a living hell for causing the death of your wife, guaranteeing his own safety in the process. You would be indebted to him, and he would live under your protection. We now believe that Wesley was Flynn’s father and the man who raped Vivian Clark.”

We watch in fascination as Massimo’s rage spills out and his crazed expression should scare me right now, but all I can think of is delivering the final blow.

“So, I’ve come to you with a deal.”

Massimo looks up sharply. “Which is?”Belongs to (N)ôvel/Drama.Org.

“I deliver you Wesley to deal with as you wish, and I take over as the head of his family.”

Massimo leans forward and says darkly, “Does Wesley know this?”

“Wesley knows nothing.” I twist my mouth into an evil grin and growl, “I interrupted him raping another woman and he is currently shackled to the wall of his own torture chamber. I decided to offer him to you as a sign of my loyalty.”

“Your loyalty.” I glance casually at Winter and if anything, she looks even more stiff than before, and I swear I see her lower lip tremble before it freezes back into place.

“You want to replace Wesley as my trusted friend?”

Massimo laughs darkly. “An interesting situation. The man I thought was my hated son turns out to be an imposter who is offering up his own father to me as a sacrifice.” He shakes his head and laughs darkly. “I love it. It’s perfect. I almost wish you were my son.”

Then he slips the mask back in place and says roughly, “Why should I believe you?”

“You don’t have to believe me. You can hear it for yourself.”

Without another word, I pick up my phone and press play and the entire conversation we had with Iris Young plays out in glorious stereo. With every word, Massimo gets even angrier and as the conversation ends, he thumps his fist loudly on the table, causing the glasses to crash to the floor.

Still, Winter looks down and as he lifts the bottle of wine and hurls it through the window, we all stare in shock at the red liquid spilling against the clear glass like blood from a massacred body.

Massimo appears unhinged as he thumps the table in a steady beat and mutters under his breath.

His men appear nervous around us, and the atmosphere is so tense anything could happen.

A slight movement opposite diverts my attention, and I watch in fascination as Winter raises her hand and rests it calmly on Massimo’s arm. Just that one gesture confuses me. She is in there, but why offer him comfort? What the fuck is going on and why won’t she look at me?

It appears to do the trick as Massimo gets his breathing under control and looks at his wife with an expression that almost makes me believe he loves her. “I’m sorry, my darling, you are right to check me.”

He lifts her hand and kisses it in a public show of affection, and I’m horrified when she looks at him and smiles lovingly.

“I love you darling.”

She smiles sweetly and just hearing her soft voice again drives a knife through my heart. Massimo visibly relaxes and twists her long black hair in his fingers and sighs with pleasure.

“I am such a lucky man. My wife is an angel sent to me from God. She is the only one who can calm my temper and…” He breaks off. “Oh, I forgot that you two have already met.”

I don’t miss the cunning gleam in his eyes he says to her, “Isn’t Flynn one of your brother’s friends, darling? I’m certain you all shared a house at Rockwell Academy. Well, this is nice? Two friends meeting up at last.”

As I stare in shock, Winter turns her attention to me, and I’m not even sure she is looking at me at all as she says in a stilted voice. “Flynn was my brother’s friend. We rarely spoke.”

For some reason, I can tell it’s important that I back her up and I nod. “It’s true. I kept my distance because Angelo told us to. Winter lived with her friend Emma at the top of the house, and we never mixed.”

Massimo’s eyes flash as he stares between us and then snarls, “That aside. Where is your… well, where is Wesley now?”

“I told you, chained up and awaiting his fate. Either by your hand or mine.”

Massimo looks at me with approval for the first time and nods. Then he looks across at Louisa and smiles. “You did well, my dear, bringing this to my attention and have no fear, I won’t be telling your father of your visit. In fact, I doubt I’ll ever speak to him again.” He sighs heavily. “It’s such a shame when families are torn apart, isn’t that right, Winter?”

If he is looking for a reaction, he doesn’t get one as she merely nods, saying in her perfectly controlled voice. “Such a shame.”

Massimo sighs loudly. “My own wife can’t bear to be around her brother. I have tried so many times to bring them together, but she is so reliant on me she can’t bear to be away from me for a second. Isn’t that right, my darling?”

“Yes, my darling.” Winter looks at Massimo as if he is her one true love and I feel sick to my stomach. Something isn’t right and then Massimo says in a voice laced with pure evil.

“I will take delivery of Wesley later tonight. I thank you for bringing this matter to my attention and before we bring this to a conclusion, I would like to know just one thing.”

“Of course.” I already know what’s coming, and I was right, as he says with a slight break to his voice.

“Have you discovered my daughter’s whereabouts?”

I almost laugh out loud because as if I would tell him if I did.

Instead, I shake my head and pretend to be upset.

“I’m sorry, I don’t. Perhaps Iris Young will be more forthcoming to you. I’m afraid our conversation was interrupted before she could reveal where she went.”

Massimo nods and I’m guessing Iris is about to get a visit outside of normal hours and I’m not surprised when he stands and helps Winter to her feet before saying, “Please forgive my rudeness, but we have much to arrange. I would be honored if you enjoyed your meal at my expense and I will enjoy many years of loyal service from you, Flynn. You did the right thing in bringing this to my attention and Louisa…” He turns and fixes her with a soft smile. “You can always come to me if you need anything. I am your humble servant.”

Louisa says gruffly, “Thank you, um, uncle.”

As they head from the room, I’m not surprised when the other diners stand and follow them, revealing I was right about their identity. As we sit alone in the emptied restaurant, Louisa breathes a huge sigh of relief.

“What the fuck? I’ve never been so scared in my life, and someone has got to help that poor woman. There’s something seriously wrong there.”

I nod, my heart twisting in pain as I witnessed first-hand Winter’s suffering. I’m not sure if we can wait for the plan to work out because something is telling me she doesn’t have long.