Mafia's Redemption: Terzo - Chapter 33: Chapter 33

TERZO
“What did you just say?”
“You heard me right, T. Humphries is still looking for Tomas. He thinks the dead guy ran away with his money. Apparently, your brother-in-law owed him a hundred grand.”
“What the fuck, Katie?” So the info that Osmium gathered was true. “You must be joking. Dani didn’t mention money to me. How sure are you about your information?”
“Maybe you did more in bed than pillow talk.”
“I’m serious about this. What else do you have for me?”
I heard a groan in the background. “Pretty sure, T. I got the info from the man I tied up in bed. Maybe you should ask your wife, because I have a feeling she knows a lot about her family secret more than she lets on.”
“Thanks, Katie.” I hung up the call with a lot of things on my head.
I went back to the dinner. Everyone seemed to have enjoyed the food, nobody even noticed I was gone for a few minutes. Except Papa.
I suddenly lost my appetite even though the secondo piatto consisted of meat was delicious. I started toying with my food while watching my wife and Papa in a light conversation.
“Eat, Terzo. You still have to share your first dance with your wife.” He noticed my uneasiness, but did not demand an explanation.
“Oh, we’re gonna dance?” Dani loosened up a bit, or she was just good at acting, which reminded me of what Katie told me earlier.
“He’s messing with you.” I smiled at her and gripped her thigh.
She might have noticed the forced smile on her face. “Is everything okay with the call you received?”
“Yup. Don’t worry about it.”
When the dinner was over, I pulled Dani away from my family as we greeted the guests, since we weren’t able to do it together earlier. I introduced her to my father’s associates.
I could feel the tension in her body language, especially when she shook hands with the last two men, Danilo and Enrico, with their stoic expressions.
My father left the table and went inside the main house. Enrico and Danilo followed. Then, Abramo, my father’s consigliere. Enrico’s wife remained at the table and started a conversation with her sister and the other guests.
“Come with me.” I dragged Dani out of them since she’d been guarded all the time. I brought her inside the house. Before we got to my office door, she pulled her hand out of my grip.
“I’m not coming inside with you.”
I chuckled and smiled at her. “You can’t put two words together without me thinking of something sexual.”
Her eyes narrowed. “I’m not having sex with you in your office.”
“I know, Dani. We can do it all day and night in the bedroom.”
She glared further. “That’s not what I meant.”
“I know. I was just kidding. You’re so tense the entire dinner. I know you feel out of place, but just give it a chance.” I unlocked the door and gestured for her to get in. “Please?”
She didn’t hide her hesitation but got inside anyway. “Why are we here? Is this about that phone call?”
“Yes. I didn’t want people to hear us talking.” I sat at my desk while she chose the chair.
“What about it?” She looked at me, confused, but curious.
“Did your ex know about your relationship with your brother?” I watched her intently.
She looked away and shook her head.
“Why? Do you think he would break up with you if he knew you were Tomas’ sister?”
She shifted her gaze up at me and glared. “No. First, why would you want to know something that is long over? Second, is this some kind of interrogation? Lastly, it doesn’t matter.”
I sighed and sat across her. I reached out for her hands, but she pulled them away. “This is not an interrogation, Dani. I’m merely asking because I just received a call—”
“From your ex?”
I smiled. “Katie is not my ex. You know that. Believe me, you have nothing to worry about her. She’s not a threat.”
“Oh, I’m not worried. What if I refuse to have sex with you, and men have needs? So are you going back to her?”
I frowned. I was offended that she thought our marriage was just an arrangement for my freedom. “You’ve got to be kidding me. Do you think I married you for sex?”
“No.” Her eyes narrowed to slits. “That’s one thing clear to me. You did not marry me for sex, but you used me anyway. You owned me, right?”
I drew a deep breath and rose to my feet, and faced the wall. Clearly, I wasn’t good at conversations and confrontations with women. I didn’t do relationships to begin with, other than casual sex. I didn’t even want to talk about our issues if this marriage wasn’t important to me.
Frankly, I wanted this work between us. So, I’d like to try my best to save if there was something to save.
I cursed myself for being incompetent and lacking experience. I pulled myself together and turned to face Dani. She was going to the door.
“Dani, your ex has been looking for your brother.” My statement made her stop.
She turned to me and finally figured out why I asked her questions. “Why?”
“I was asking the same question myself. Why? Then I realized Humphries doesn’t know your relationship with your brother, otherwise, he would come to you and ask you where your brother is. Was it intentional?”
“I met Deck months before my brother started coming to the nightclub. Of course, Tomas knew about Deck and me. I didn’t tell Deck because I didn’t want him to know who my father was or Tomas.” She went back to sit on the chair. “Why is he looking for a dead man?”
“Tomas owed him a hundred grand.”
“What?” She was genuinely shocked. “How? That’s impossible.”
“I don’t know how. I didn’t get that info, Dani. I was hoping you could help me.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know either. What I knew was that they were fighting in Deck’s office at the nightclub. I was about to knock when Tomas almost bumped into me. I already heard yelling from inside. I knew something went wrong.”
“He never told you after that incident?”
She shook her head. “No. He texted me to meet the next day. We met at the cafe. He said he’d be gone for a while, but told me to call him if I needed him. I asked him about the confrontation. He said to stay away from it. It didn’t involve me. It was just a business misunderstanding. So I didn’t push. I never saw him again.”
“Did you notice something different from Humphries?”
She stared at me for seconds, but didn’t reply.
“Dani, I’m trying to put pieces of information together. I wanna help you fix things with your father since he’s looking for something you don’t have. Maybe this is your only way out to end this misunderstanding with your father. Please?”
“I wish I knew more, but that’s all I can tell you.”
I nodded. I didn’t want to push. Maybe she would remember something later. “I have a feeling your father would send me a message sooner or later.”
“About what?”
“Betrayal, Dani. And it’s not just about what I did before. This dinner wasn’t just about us getting married.”
“Oh, my God. Is this about provoking my father?”
“No. I know Papa very well. The dinner, the announcement of our marriage, is for him to find out who will betray him or who has done it already. If this dinner reaches your father and he will send a message to us tomorrow—”
“Then there is a traitor in the ring.”
“Exactly.” I took my phone and started typing.
T: Plan B
I hit send.
“What are you doing?” She sounded alarmed.
“It’s only a matter of time before your ex figures out about you and Tomas.”
She was on her feet in an instant, staring at me. “Is he gonna come after me?”
“If he’s a real standup man, he may ask you Where’s your brother? But knowing what he did to you.” My jaw clenched. “I don’t trust him to be in the same block with you.”