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1
LANA
This is fucking ridiculous. For the third time this week, I’m at one of my family’s business properties as police cars with their flashing lights surround the building.
Interesting that it’s the same week my brother Elio has decided to leave town on his honeymoon. It appears that Vincenzo Rinella didn’t get the hint when his smuggling boat mysteriously sank and he’s continuing his petty vendetta against my brother for not marrying his daughter. Men are fucking idiots.
Tonight, I stand in front of one of our warehouses with my phone to my ear giving Elio a piece of my mind. I don’t care that he’s on his honeymoon. This was his to fix, and it’s gotten worse. If I hadn’t been moving things around lately to stay ahead of Rinella’s games, we might be in jail.
“Guess where I am… or better yet, who I’m with?” I snap into the phone.
Elio sighs. “ Calm down, Lana?—”
"Calm down? There's an army of cops here, Elio. Someone tipped them off about 'suspicious activity' at our warehouse."
He’s quiet for a moment.
“You know who’s doing this, right? I thought you were going to take care of it.”
“I was… I did.”
“Yeah, well it didn’t work.” Admittedly, I’m a little surprised. Rinella is an asshole, but he’s not stupid. And now that my brother has married his high school sweetheart, he’s not marrying Ava Rinella. Vicenzo must know that. Plus, Elio has promised to make good on the broken marriage arrangement. Apparently, Rinella really wanted Elio to marry his daughter because these antics are nuts.
“I’ll take care of it when I get back.”
“And until then?—”
“Fucking hell, Lana. I’m on my honeymoon. And weren’t you the one who wanted more responsibility?”
My jaw tightens.
“That means dealing with the bullshit, unless it’s too hard for you. I’ll get Matteo?—”
“It’s not too hard.” Damn him. “It’s frustrating.”
“Welcome to leadership, little sister.”
“This is your fault,” I snap, not liking his patronizing tone. “This is about our family. The one you’re the head of.”
“Like I said, if you can’t handle the heat, you can let Matteo deal with it. I’ll be home shortly.”
“You’re way too cavalier about this, Elio. Rinella's out for blood. This raid? It's just the beginning. And your guys in PD aren’t any help."
“It’s a different district. I understand the gravity of the situation."
"Do you? Because from where I'm standing, it looks like you're more concerned with playing house with your new bride than protecting the family."
"That's not fair," he growls.
"Life isn't fair. We're at war, and you're the one who fired the first shot when you jilted Ava."
Elio sighs heavily. "I'll reach out to Don Rinella first thing tomorrow. We'll get this sorted out."
"Tomorrow might be too late?—"
"It won't be," he cuts me off. "I've got this under control."
I want to argue, to push for immediate action, but I know that tone. It's the same one our father used when his mind was made up. Sometimes, I think Elio is too soft, but he usually proves me wrong. Like the sinking of Rinella’s boat.
