Page 99 of Joey

He sucks his lips into his mouth and draws a breath through his nose. “They came for me because Sal was dead. I’d have thought that was pretty obvious.”

My brow furrows. “Why is that obvious? You and Sal hated each other.”

Licking his lips, he flicks another glance at Dante and Lorenzo.

“Ignore them and answer my question,” I demand.

“I knew about it all. Everything he and the Russians were into. That was why Sal turned you against me and your mom. Because I threatened to expose him. So as soon as he was gone, those sick Russian fucks came after me.”

“He didn’t turn me against either of you. You both betrayed my father, and my mother walked out on me when shit got hard,” I remind him.

Dante puts a hand on my forearm and squeezes, reminding me that we have other priorities at the moment. “You knew about the trafficking?”

“All of it.” Vito scoffs. “I tried to tell your father, but he wouldn’t even listen to me. Sal had him brainwashed. Goddamn Moretti empire! Built on the sale of women and children. Sick fucks.”

“Not on our watch,” Lorenzo snaps. “That has never been our business, Vito.”

Vito shakes his head.

“It’s true,” I assure him, but his eyes remain clouded with suspicion and anger. “But why would Sal’s death make them come for you? Why didn’t Sal just kill you himself if you knew?”

“Oh, he wanted to. Threatened your mom and Kristin too, but I had something on him, didn’t I?”

“The trafficking?” I ask.

“No. I saw him kill that girl. I recorded it on my cell phone too,” Vito says with a flicker of a smile.

“The video recording you have? It was Sal killing someone? A girl?”

“The Delgado girl. He killed her. I know everyone thought she disappeared with that drug dealer she used to hang out with, but he killed her.”

The name hits me like a fist to the gut. Bile burns my throat, and I rock back on my heels. He knew too?

“You knew about that?” Dante asks.

“Yeah, I saw him.”

“But how?” I ask, my head spinning.

Dante squeezes my shoulder and steps in to take over. “What exactly did you see, Vito?”

“You expect me to believe you don’t know what happened? What he did to that girl?” Vito says with a sneer. “You two are just the same as he was.”

“No, we don’t fucking know. Now fucking tell me what you saw,” Dante says, his tone low and menacing.

“He was in his office. The Delgado girl —”

I cut in. “Her name was Fiona.” Her name has been burned into my brain for twelve long years.

“Fiona.” Vito nods. “She was in his office. He strangled her.”

Now Lorenzo gets involved. “And you saw this? You saw him kill her?”

“Yes.”

“You’re sure that’s what you saw?” I ask.

Vito frowns at me. “Yes. He killed her, Maximo. I saw him. I have it all on video. That girl was dead. He strangled her.”