in. He must be one helluva brute or been through his fair share of pain to not be the least bit intimidated. Perhaps the name he’s made for himself is truly legit.
“Color me shocked that the Devil himself is let out of New York, away from family, and you’re sent here, alone? Do you have a death wish?” I ponder as the door behind us opens and four Italians file in. They aren’t ours—I’d know.
“You were saying? I’m rappresentante of the Vendetti famiglia, fourth in line of succession. You think I don’t have my own crew wherever I go? I have company when I fuck, and shit, even when I scout. You take me out, there’ll be a mob come running, thirsty for blood and vengeance.”
My grin is a bit maniacal as I glance over his men and then back at Dante. I could kill those four before they could get a shot off. Uppity fuckers. “I never doubted, only wanted a bit of confirmation we weren’t alone. Enough of wasting everyone’s time. We have the locations of the final three. Perhaps we can come to a proper agreement of sorts and help each other clean up this mess.”
“Hm,” he grumbles, fists clenching at his sides. The man is a bloody beast, one of the largest I’ve had a run-in with. I’m still not intimidated. Call me crazy, but it’s true. “What do you want for them?” He must be sick of rooting the tossers out to even ask. The Five Families are headed up by a sneaky lot. I’m not surprised he’s not located them all already.
I gesture toward the sizeable, modern-style black boardroom table. “Shall we sit and discuss?”
He tips his chin, agreeing, and we all move without letting our guards down. He’s on one side with his men fanned out behind his seat, and the rest of us are all sitting directly across from him. I’m not worried about his hounds doing anything; we have plenty of backup waiting for something to pop off and come running should we require them.
I begin. “From my understanding, you’ve come to Chicago to take over for the last family, the Bottaros. Since then you’ve been silently hunting down the Five Families that head the syndicate. The Vendettis want Chicago territory, and you’re in the position to make that happen. Am I correct?”
Dante’s expression doesn’t crack. The bloke is hard, an unemotional cement block. Our side of the table remains stony as well, waiting to see how this goes down. “You seem to have it all figured out,” he responds, sarcasm present in his tone. “What concern is it of yours what I’m doing?” His penetrating stare snaps to T. “Why should I share any of my plans? Your leader doesn’t have the respect to address me himself?” The Vendetti prince is miffed, used to being treated as royalty wherever he steps foot.
Joker breaks his silence at being baited. “This is Maximillian’s idea to help each other reach a mutual agreement and keep the peace. I’d have just killed you, had you gotten in the way of what I want.”
Dante’s lips snarl before settling into a smirk. I bet he’s thinking of all the ways he can murder Joker right now, but that’ll only lead to me killing him in return. This fella is used to being top of the food chain; however, here in Chicago, things aren’t as black and white. “That so? Mio fratello Capi dei capi Ruthless will be amused to hear this. I’ll be sure to pass along your message,” he threatens, keeping his voice low and even.
I interrupt the useless cock measuring currently going on between these two. At this rate, I may as well whip mine out and prove them all wrong so we can move along. “We’re not here to make threats or start a war. We came because you want these five and their families dead. We do too…well, with exceptions. We can help put the pressure on where it needs to be.”
“What sort of exceptions,” he grinds out. The Italian is testier than Thaddaeus is when our favorite restaurant is full. Fuck.
With an exhale, attempting to remain calm, I say, “Number one being that you don’t attempt to kill Joker, of course. The other being you leave my fiancée’s immediate family alone as well. Her father will be voting Joker’s uncle from the table, which in return will drive him out of hiding and right into your awaiting bullets. He’s already agreed