Her Mafia Daddy - Chapter 24: Chapter 24

Resolved, I sent word for Dimitri to dress and meet me in my office. I needed answers. Zia was unusually quiet when I arrived in the kitchen,
perhaps sensing my dark mood, so I didn't linger. Once I had coffee, I settled in my office and began to work. My son arrived an hour later.
"Come in," I told him and pointed to a chair. "I need to speak with you."
He held a cup and saucer, which he sat on my desk as he took a seat. "Is something wrong?"
I leaned back. "Is there something you'd like to tell me about the other night?"
He blinked, his body going still. "Which night?"
"The delivery. The one you oversaw." He seemed to relax as he picked up his espresso. "What about it?"
"It's light."
"That's impossible."
"Are you saying Gratteri is lying?" Gratteri was one of my most loyal men, which was why I had Dimitri learning under him.
"No, but there must be some mistake. I counted it myself before I left."
"And you were the last to leave." He shifted in his chair and suspicion prickled on my skin. "Were you the last to leave, Dimitri ?"
"Papà," he started, and I recognized the tone from when he was younger and trying to talk himself out of trouble. "I am not speaking to you as your father. I am speaking as the boss. Were you the last to leave, or did you shirk your duties?"
He exhaled slowly. "I was supposed to stay, but I left early. Sergio and Rocco finished up." I knew the two boys. They were Dimitri 's age and not very responsible.
Anger at my son's stupidity tightened the tendons in the back of my neck. "Why?"
"I had plans," he mumbled. "With who?"
"A friend. It's not important."
"It is important." I slapped the desk with my palm. "You have a job, you do it. You don't leave two idiots to do it instead so you can go get some pussy."
His cheeks flushed as defensiveness settled in the lines of his face. "It wasn't about pussy. It was a friend."
I smothered an aggravated sigh. He was clearly lying. No one would leave their responsibilities for a football match and beer with a friend. "You I have to set an example, Dimitri . As a Ravazzani, you have to be better than the rest. More loyal, more bloodthirsty, more accountable. One day, this will be yours and the men must both fear and respect you."
"I know, Papà. You've told me this since I was old enough to hear it."
"And yet I am missing four hundred grams of uncut cocaine."
"I will get it back."
"No, you won't. I will handle this with Gratteri. You will pretend nothing is amiss."
"What will you do to Sergio and Rocco?"
"I haven't decided. But stealing from the 'ndrina cannot be tolerated. You know this." A muscle jumped in his jaw but he didn't plead for the other two men. It wouldn't do any good anyway because I made the decisions in this family. If I decided to kill them for stealing from me, there was nothing Dimitri could do or say to stop it.
I couldn't help but ask about last night. "How was dinner?"
"Fine."
"Marco said you took her to a club after."
"Yes." One word answers? He knew how much I hated that. "Did the two of you get along?"
Did you fuck her after? "Of course. I like her a lot."
I tapped my pen on the desk and tried to resist stabbing myself in the thigh with it. "Good. She's choosing a wedding dress today, but I want your crew out making collections. We need to clean up the books before crimine."
"I heard. Are we done here? I haven't had breakfast yet and I need to get going." I nodded once and he left quickly, leaving me feeling unsettled.
Something about his "friend" bothered me. Who was this woman he was seeing, one who caused him to go against orders? I would need to find out and put a stop to it. Dimitri 's first and only priority needed to be this family.
Marco came in a few minutes later and I filled him in. My cousin appeared as confused as I felt. "That's not like Dimitri , to leave a job for
some random woman. He's never one to play with the girls at the clubs or the waitresses. He's always very respectful. Never even accept a blow job."
I hadn't ever worried about who Dimitri was fucking before, but now it had interfered with business. Which meant I had to get involved. "Let's find out who she is. Have him followed for a few nights. Discreetly."
"All right." I rubbed my eyes, exhausted and weighted down by responsibility. Some days this life threatened to drag me under, to steal the little slice of humanity I still possessed. But I knew nothing else. I'd been raised from birth to sit exactly in this chair and direct one of the biggest criminal empires in Europe. And I was fucking good at it. My gut told me something was off with Dimitri and I wouldn't rest until I found it.