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I stop walking and glare at him. “Marisol’s not going anywhere. Don’t even fucking suggest it.”

Nico holds up his hands. “I’m not, bro, but let’s think this through. What happens if you get forced out of the corridor?”

I dig my heel into the ground in frustration but he’s got a point. If that’s Ruben’s aim, then I have to game out how to survive it. “Carmine will be pissed,” I say, resuming my walk. Nico keeps pace. “But if Ruben realized he can simply work with Carmine directly, that might explain the sudden change of heart.”

“What happens to us?”

“Nothing good.” I risked a lot on this venture. Money, manpower, resources, and reputation. We can’t afford to lose any of it. “Frankly, that shit can’t happen.”

“Right, so if we lose our corridor access, that means we’ll lose our connection to the Scavo Famiglia and the Philadelphia money.”

“And the other Texas families will move against us. Maybe not all at once, but slowly. They’ll sense our weakness.”

“Which brings me back to the killing.”

I gaze at the ranch house. It has been my family’s home for generations. It’s not the same building it was a long time ago though. We’ve added to it, renovated, rebuilt, updated, modernized. There’s always a way for the Serafino to survive a changing world.

I can’t be the first Don to fail.

What will happen to my siblings if I do? Lia’s protected because of our powerful reputation. Vince and Nico are safe because nobody would dare move against them.

If all that’s gone? What will we be?

“We don’t get Carmine involved yet,” I say resolutely, squinting at the rising sun. “I’ll handle Ruben.”

“Sure you will.” Nico sighs. “All this because you fell for your arranged wife. Who would’ve figured?” He walks off toward the barn, probably heading over to start on the morning chores.

Gangster or not, the chickens need their feed.

Mari’s a nervous wreck all day. Mom tries to keep her calm and busy but that only gets so far. I spend the afternoon in my study talking strategy with Vince, and by the time I emerge hours later, it’s getting close to dinner and nothing’s been settled.

The problem is the corridor. It’s the heart of everything my family needs right now. Carmine will happily hand control over to Dallas if I can’t find a way to get Ruben back in line, but I don’t see how that’s going to happen. Not now that he’s involved in some bullshit coup and is holding Mari’s younger brother hostage.

I fucking hate it. If I press, I could lose my family, but if I don’t, Mari will never forgive me.

Vince wants to get Carmine in the loop, but that’s only going to backfire. The Philadelphia family has to stay in the dark until I have a solution and not before.

I pour myself a drink around five and start thinking about dinner. I want to find Mari and spend some time with her while I can too. I’m sure she’s suffering right now thinking about her brother. A part of me wishes I could have kept the truth about him away from her, but I’m not going to lie to Mari, not about something this important.

But before I can head out toward the barns, the side door opens and one of my guard captains comes hustling into the room. He’s a grizzled older man. “Boss, we caught someone.”

That sets me on alert. “Escalante?”

“Maybe, I’m not sure.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’d better come take a look, sir.”

I grunt and follow him into the evening. He takes me the long way around the fields and I look off toward the horse barn wishing I could go in and pull Mari down into the hay with me. Instead, the captain leads me to a shed we have near our small herd of goats. It smells musty and moldy and most people don’t go inside.

Which is why it’s perfect for intruders.

“He’s in there.” The captain nervously pushes the door open.

I step through. And stare at Javi.

He’s tied to a chair. His nose is bloody and his eyes are hard. His chin is up proudly and I get the feeling he didn’t come easy.