His own voice seemed to come from far away. “What… What are you…”
“We’re doing this my way.” Salvatore turned to one of his men. “Have the cars waiting for us. We’re leaving.” He narrowed his eyes at Carmine. “All of us.”
Carmine made a placating gesture. “How about we settle this like businessmen?”
“Like businessmen?” Salvatore laughed. “Listen, Venetian. It stopped being about business when your boy killed my brother. This is personal, and it’s between me, that Mick who murdered Ricky, and the half-breed who hired him.” He gestured at one of his men. “Tie him.” He paused, looking past Carmine. “Grab the priest too.”
His men balked. “The priest? But sir, that’s—”
“I said grab the priest!”
They all exchanged uneasy glances, then did as they were told, quietly binding James and Carmine’s hands behind their backs. Neither put up a fight; there was no point unless they wanted their bodies to join the bloody mess at their feet.
“Get them out of here,” Salvatore ordered. “And someone find that rum runner! Find his family and grab—”
“Leave his family alone!” Carmine demanded. “They have no part in—” A fist to his gut shut him up and doubled him over. Strong arms kept him from dropping to the floor.
“Find his family and his crew,” Salvatore repeated coolly. “Give them a message: the Irishman has until midnight to hand himself over to me, or I will break every bone in both of their bodies.” He gestured at Carmine and James.
Several of his men were clearly uneasy, glancing at James with wide eyes.
“Did I not make myself clear?” Salvatore snarled. “Get it done!”
There were some murmurs of “Y-yeah, boss,” and then Carmine and James were marched upstairs and across the empty lounge. A couple of bartenders noticed, but quickly didn’t notice and instead concentrated on wiping down tables or cleaning glasses.
Carmine thought he heard James murmuring a prayer. He realized after a moment he was doing the same thing. God Himself was probably the only one who could get the two of them out of this.
As they stepped out of the bakery that served as a front for the speakeasy, Carmine caught Giulia’s eye through the window of the café across the street. Her lips parted and her back straightened. He held her gaze for a second before he was shoved into the back of a car, and he didn’t dare look at her again. He had no idea if any of Salvatore’s men—or the man himself—would recognize Giulia, and he wasn’t about to draw any attention to her.
He just prayed, as the cars pulled out onto the street, that Giulia sounded the alarm in time.
And he hoped that when Danny got Salvatore’s ultimatum, he didn’t take the bait.
But deep down, he knew he would.
Let it burn, Danny. Don’t get yourself killed to save us.
Just let it burn.
Chapter 39
Though it hadn’t been far from Tompkins Square Park to Carmine’s stoop, Danny felt like he’d dragged himself from Manhattan to the end of Long Island and back. His legs were exhausted. His head throbbed. Grief made him want to lie down in a gutter and die, but the need to protect his family drove him on, and he gripped the railing as he trudged up the steps toward Carmine’s front door.
He was three steps shy when the door swung open.
“Danny!” Giulia burst out and threw her arms around him. “Oh, thank God. Are you all right?” She stepped back and looked him up and down. “You’re bleeding! Are you—”
“It’s not mine.” The sound of his own fatigue-slurred voice made him want to drop right there and sleep for a week. “I need to see Carmine. We need—”
An abrupt shift in Giulia’s demeanor brought him up short. The way she tensed. Looked away. Bit her lip.
Danny’s heart dropped. “What? What’s—”
“There’s a lot to explain. We—”
“Danny?” Bernard rushed outside with Tommy, Liam, and Peter on his heels. “We thought you was dead!”
“No, no, I’m fine.” He embraced each of his friends in turn. “But James… Father Carroll…” He winced. “When they took me, they killed him.”
“No, they didn’t.” Giulia looped her arm into his elbow and herded him inside. “He’s alive, but they’ve taken him. And Carmine.”
Danny was instantly rooted to the spot. “What?”
“I don’t know for sure what happened.” She shook her head. “But Salvatore…” She grimaced. “It was like a massacre. He and his men killed everyone except for Carmine and the priest, and they took them.”
“They took…” Danny blinked. He’d just started coming to terms with James