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“That’s fine. I’ll be right there. Just hold on.”

“I take priority over little Ms. Paralegal, Rocco,”Sonny’s voice gets deep.

Tck! Tck! Tck!

The shadow of a gun bangs on the glass. Sonny sure has gotten reckless since his brother’s conviction. I’ll use that to my advantage. Emotion doesn’t trump tactics on hits. It only creates noise.

Both shadows pull away from the glass, and I can tell by their feet that they’re facing one another – likely trying to decide whether to bash the door in.

I whip out my pistol and motion for my father to follow with Rocco. “Stay here,” I tell Capri.

Sonny’s the type to play with his food, which is why he employs a beast like Groundhog in the first place. Throw a life sentence for his brother in the mix, and we have a fucking nutjob on our hands – one that should be blind to us coming here.

I roll my silencer onto my gun as we make way into the hallway, crouched, watching the shadows. “If even one unsilenced shot goes off, the watchers Sonny has outside come in blazing. Quick kills, Pop.”

When my father flashes his silenced pistol at me, it’s clear he’s on the same page. That’s why we work well together all these years. In some sick way, it makes me sad there won’t be many more jobs together. Something about the way he acted outside makes me soft. And this Capri woman in the other room… this isn’t the time tofeel.

“Time’s up, Rocco,” Sonny warns.

I motion with my hand for Rocco to respond, and when he does, I sprint quietly beside the door.

“Coming!”

Now that I’m where I want to be – in a curved nook big enough to hide when they barge in – I shove my gun into my pants and pull out my true weapon of choice – wire. That’s how I got my name, after all. Tristano – Knots – DeMatteo. And my father is the Glove.

My heart pounds as I hear whispers outside. The pulse flows through my arms, my legs. The kill is coming… I can taste it.

Chapter 5

Cipriana

Bam!

My front door breaks off its hinges, and I duck under my bed like a coward as Sonny and Groundhog surely just busted in.

Please be okay. Please be okay.

I beg God to spare my father’s life.

Even if in your eyes, Dad doesn’t deserve to be saved… have mercy.

I’ve never felt fear like this. My first time giving a dissertation in front of my peers, getting mugged when I was in twelfth grade, God… I had an easy life up to this point.

My heart hurts from the noises ahead of me. I’m not meant for this. Those sliding glass doors behind me look enticing as every cell inside my body tells me to run. But Dad…

Ftthmp! Ftthmp!

Two silenced gunshots go off – which I hope are Trino’s or Stanzo’s – then a bodythumpson the floor. A mix of hope and dread wash over me. I’m frozen, thinking the worst. Did Sonny somehow get the jump on our dark angels? That means a bullet has my name on it next.

I eye the glass doors again to a beautiful sunny day untouched by such senseless violence.

No. The shots fired quickly. Our guys had the jump on them.

My curious mind pushes my legs forward. I’m crawling toward the doorway of my room, arms shaking as images of Dad sprawled bloody on the floor plague my mind.

Please be okay…

When I peek into the living room, I spring to my feet in horror. Groundhog, the burly gardener with permanent dirtstains riding up his arms, has a red ring around his neck and a blue face. My hands cover my quivering lips, then I jump in place when Trino drops the body.