hoping I found out he did still have family connections because that would give me an excuse to make sure I never had to work with him again. But I knew better than to start trouble when there was no need. Once a guy started going out looking for trouble, more of it came to him. I’d seen more than one family lose their footing because they thought they had to start a fight over everything. That’s how you got yourself overextended.
“Let me repeat this for you once more and maybe this time listen and act like you got a brain cell left in your head. I’m running this show. You work for me. You do what I say. If you’ve got concrete intel you want to share or if you’ve got reason to believe your family’s making a move, then I expect you to bring that to the table, but if all you’ve got are opinions, that’s no good. The only opinion that counts here is mine.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll get you the intel you need.” I could tell he was working hard to keep his expression neutral.
“See that you do and that no one finds out what you’re up to.”
“I know how to keep secrets, sir.” The last word came out through gritted teeth.
“I hope to hell you do.” I turned to Six and Muffin.
“We’re on it, boss.”
“Excellent.”
“Don’t they get questioned?” Marco asked, looking toward Angelo and Devil.
“Are you suggesting my brother and my cousin aren’t loyal to me?”
Devil slapped his hands on the table and stood. “You don’t want to go there, Marco. I don’t fucking care what anybody says about me, but you talk shit about Angel, and I’ll be up in your face. You got that?”
Marco held up his hands. “Fine. I just thought we should all check in.”
“What did I tell you about thinking?” I asked.
“You want me to remind him, Luce?” Devil asked. I saw the spark of excitement in his eyes. It had been too long since he’d gotten himself in trouble, and he was spoiling for a fight.
I held Marco’s gaze. It took a few seconds, but he dropped his eyes to the table and said, “Forgive me, sir. I don’t do good with having my loyalty questioned.”
“This is your last chance, Ricci.”
“Yes, sir.”
I surveyed all the men in the room. “Does anyone else have any questions?”
No one said anything. “Then I’m done here. I’ve got a client coming in soon. Angelo will give you each a set of targets and talk through the rest of the details.”
I needed to meet with the contractor who was finishing up the final touches on DiGiulio’s, the restaurant I was opening soon. It was the first project I’d taken on that was solely for me, and I was determined to have everything perfect. Leaving the meeting early also gave me the chance to give Angelo more responsibility. I’d always known I’d be the one who took over for our father, but I wanted Angelo to feel like our empire was his too. He needed to know I trusted him with the serious stuff.
As I walked out, I laid a hand on Devil’s shoulder. He turned and glanced at me. I didn’t need to say anything. I just gave him a look he knew meant that I was counting on him to keep himself in check so I didn’t have to manage him while I was managing the rest of this.
He lifted his chin toward me. “You got it, boss.”
I smiled at him, shaking my head as I walked out of the room.
I had more time than I’d let on before my next meeting, but I had business to attend to that I didn’t want to mention to anyone yet.
“In my office,” I said as I passed Carla’s desk.
“So you’re talking to me now?”
I didn’t bother to respond to that. She closed the door to my office behind her and took a seat in front of my desk. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. I have some things I need you to do. This is top priority.”
“First, about Peter—”
I’d known she’d want to interrogate me. “We’re not talking about him.”
“He’s shaken, but he’s doing an excellent job. I showed him the appointment calendar and how to work the phone system. Then I gave him a few things to do for me. I thought it would be better for him to be busy.”
I closed my eyes and drew in a breath. I trusted Carla implicitly, but I hated