Page 76 of Niccolo (Mafia Kings #7)

Niccolo

After an hour of driving, I called the house when we were five minutes out and told them to open the gate.

The taxi driver stared at the orchards and vineyards as we drove past them. His jaw nearly dropped as we approached the mansion.

Adriano met me at the front door.

“We could’ve sent somebody to get you,” he growled.

“I would’ve had to switch cars at the gate, then – perfect opportunity for a sniper to shoot me.”

“I meant we could’ve sent somebody to the airport.”

“Perfect opportunity for Fausto’s men to waylay the car and kill anybody inside. I figured it was better to come here under the cover of anonymity.”

“If I’d come to get you, we could’ve killed them instead.”

“Oooh, I didn’t know I’d get the capo of Florence as a chauffeur,” I teased.

“Fuck off,” he growled as he gestured for me to follow him. “Dario wants an update.”

“Any word from Massimo?” I asked.

“No.”

“Shit.”

“Yeah,” he said glumly.

“Any other developments?”

“None to speak of.”

Dario was in the safe room, sitting at a desk they’d moved in while I was gone. He looked up from some papers he was perusing.

“Good to see you’re taking the possibility of assassination seriously,” I said.

“Mrm,” he grunted dourly. “How was – ”

“We need to go talk somewhere else,” I interrupted.

Dario raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

“Just trust me. Adriano, can you come with us?”

“Sure.”

I led the way to the third floor, where we entered a hidden passageway and climbed dusty stairs to the attic.

I clicked on a single lightbulb, which illuminated dozens of storage boxes and furniture draped in sheets.

“What the fuck’re we doing up here?” Adriano growled.

“Dario and I are going to talk. You’re going to stand guard down on the third floor and make sure no one – and I mean no one – eavesdrops.”

Adriano frowned unhappily –

But Dario nodded at him, and he left without another word.

Dario turned to me. “Why the theatrics?”

“Because I’ve confirmed we either have a mole or a bug, and I doubt Fausto would have had the foresight to put a listening device up here.”

Dario stared. “You’re certain?”

“One hundred percent.”

“How do you know?”

“Because when I talked to his consigliere in Macau – ”

“She was actually there?” Dario asked in amazement.

“She was – but only because she knew Roberto and I were flying to Hong Kong.”

“What?!”

“Yeah. So we either have a bug or a mole.”

Dario frowned. “But – if she knew you were going to Hong Kong, why did she meet you in Macau?”

“She deduced that I thought she would be at the poker tournament.”

Dario looked even more confused.

I flapped a dismissive hand. “She’s smart. That’s all you need to know. The point is, she knew I was coming… which would’ve been impossible unless she and Fausto got some sort of intel.”

Dario looked absolutely furious.

I was right there with him. The idea of a traitor in our midst was beyond enraging.

“Do you know who it is?” he asked darkly.

“No. And it might not be a person. Like I said, Fausto could have bugged the place before he left. He’s obviously been planning this all along.”

“How do we find out for sure?”

“Have Lars sweep for bugs.”

“Why not our foot soldiers?”

“Because it could be both a bug and a mole, and we don’t know who we can trust. The wrong man might ‘accidentally’ overlook something.”

Dario cursed under his breath. “If it is one of our men, how do we find out?”

“I’m working on it. But there are some other things you should know.”

I told him my suspicions that Sofia had talked to Lau and convinced him to sabotage Roberto.

“Then we need to pull him out now,” Dario said in alarm.

“Not yet.”

“Why not?!”

“Because it’s a hunch – nothing more. I could be wrong, and there’s a strong counter-argument.”

“Which is?”

“If Lau were actually working with Fausto, Roberto would already be dead.”

“True…” Dario muttered.

Then came the question I’d been dreading.

“Did you turn Fausto’s consigliere?” Dario asked.

“I made her an offer, but I guess it was one she could refuse,” I joked.

Dario leveled his piercing gaze at me. “You didn’t lead with ‘she’s dead,’ so I’m assuming she’s still alive.”

“Yes. Unless her plane happened to crash on the way back to Italy.”

Dario frowned in confusion. “Did you…?”

“No, I didn’t magically make her plane crash,” I snapped.

“Did you get a chance to take her out?”

By take her out, he did NOT mean on a date.

“Sort of.”

“What do you mean, ‘sort of’?”

“I, uh… I slept with her.”

Dario stared at me. “What?!”

I put up my hands to stave him off. “It’s not what you think! I’m playing the long game.”

Dario scowled. “Are you sure you’re not just acting like Valentino?”

“Don’t insult me like that,” I joked.

“What the fuck were you thinking?!” he snarled – then frowned even more. “What the fuck was she thinking?! You could have killed her! In fact, why DIDN’T you kill her?!”

I winced. “Because I swore on your lives and everyone else’s that I wouldn’t.”

Dario was astounded –

And then looked like he might throttle me.

“But only in Hong Kong and Macau!” I added.

“What – so you can kill her here, but not over there?!” he asked in astonishment.

“Exactly!”

“What the fuck were you THINKING?!”

“I told you, I’m playing the long game.”

“Which is what, exactly?! Betray the family so you can get your dick wet?!”

I fixed him with a steely gaze of my own. “When you took Alessandra in and fell in love with her, did I give you shit about it?”

“CONSTANTLY.”

“At first, yes,” I admitted. “But then, as you’ll recall, I gave you shit for kicking her out. Remember?”

Dario shifted from fury to horror. “Are you saying you’re in love with this woman?!”

“NO! But I’m getting her to fall in love with me.”

“WHAT?!”

“I said – ”

“I heard what you said! WHY?!”

“Because we could use her,” I insisted. “You have to trust me on this one. She’s magnificent – an unparalleled strategist. She would be an invaluable asset to the family if I can turn her.”

“IF?!”

“Look, I’m not infallible – ”

“Are you sure you know that?!” Dario snapped.

I ignored him. “So yes, there is the possibility I might not succeed… in which case we will get rid of her. But there’s still time, and I think I have an excellent shot at turning her.”

“What, exactly, makes you think you can turn her?” Dario asked belligerently.

“Because she’s in way over her head.”

“What are you basing that on?” Dario asked. “Seeing as she’s nearly killed us twice?”

“Well, for one… she was a virgin until last night.”

Dario stared at me in utter shock. “…what?!”

“I know.”

“… how?!”

“You mean, how does a woman who’s plotting the deaths of a bunch of mafiosos never – ”

“YES,” Dario interrupted impatiently.

“I don’t know. I didn’t ask.”

“Is she religious?!”

“OH no.”

Dario frowned as he mused aloud, “Alessandra was a virgin, but she was religious.”

“Yes, but Alessandra wasn’t plotting murder and general mayhem.”

“So – a criminal mastermind who’s a virgin – ”

“Was a virgin,” I interrupted.

“And you think you can convince her to turn against Fausto – with your dick,” Dario snarled.

I knew he meant it as an insult, but I didn’t give him the satisfaction.

I just shrugged. “Basically.”

“This is a fool’s errand,” he barked.

“Well, then, I guess I’m just the fool for the job,” I said cheerfully.

Dario shook his head in disbelief. “Is this what I sounded like when I brought Alessandra here?”

“What – utterly insane?”

“Yes.”

“Pretty much.”

He growled angrily. “Don’t fuck me on this, Niccolo.”

“I won’t,” I promised.

I wanted to say something along the lines of I already fucked HER, but I knew now wasn’t the time for jokes.

Dario glared at me. “Is there anything more? PLEASE tell me there isn’t anything more.”

“There isn’t.”

“Thank God.”

“Although we probably shouldn’t tell the others about Sofia just yet.”

“Oh, really?” he snarled. “You don’t think we should tell them you could have killed Fausto’s consigliere but decided to fuck her instead?”

“That’s a bit harsh,” I said wryly –

Though in truth, it wasn’t.

My brother was letting me off easy.

Dario sighed wearily. “Seriously… it’s like I sent Valentino.”

“You really have to stop insulting me like that,” I said, trying to lighten the mood.

He glared at me as he headed for the stairs. “Come on. We need to either find a bug or catch a mole.”

That night and the next day, Lars did a sweep of the entire house – but he didn’t find any listening devices.

Meaning we most likely had a mole.

I asked Dario for time to formulate a plan.

It had to be brilliant, with no margin for error. After all, I didn’t want the mole to get spooked and go underground. Then we would never discover his identity.

I began to consider how I might lay a trap…

But I had absolutely no idea how to do it.