Reign Of Hope: Dark Reign, #13

Prologue

LOOKS CAN BE DECEIVING

Zano

Reno and Dante are toasting the good news of Raffaele’s and Ivo’s wives’ pregnancies. My parents believe babies are blessings and are patiently waiting for Dante and my sister, Elena, to have one of their own. Dante is the one who wants to wait. I think he likes the idea of having my sister all to himself. That doesn’t stop him from celebrating Raffaele and Ivo’s announcement.

I stand like a sentry by the booth. My job isn’t to partake, but to ensure that our capo, Reno, and Dante stay safe. I’ve been training under Sebastian and Reno for over a year, and they’ve started to give me more responsibilities.

People come in and out of the restaurant, but only one person catches my attention. A beautiful redhead with flawless, creamy skin, her nose dotted with tiny freckles. She can’t be more than eighteen years old, but she’s dressed more like a middle-aged woman, with sensible shoes and a dress from the 1990s. It’s something her mother might have worn.

She glances around the room and spots Raffaele. She swallows deeply, straightens her shoulders, and comes straight for the booth where Raffaele and the others are sitting. Before she can get too close, I step in front of her.

Sorry, this is a private meeting, I tell her. She looks over my shoulder and bites her lower lip.

I have to see Mr. Di Morte, please. Her eyes plead with me, and she grabs my arm. Please.

If you’d like to take a seat over there, he might see you when they’re done. As undeniably gorgeous as she is, I take my job seriously, and no one gets too close to Reno or Dante.

Allegra, what are you doing here? Francesco walks toward us. He knows this young woman’s name.

I-I need to see Mr. Di Morte. It’s imperative. Please! I don’t know where else to go, she says, her voice cracking.

He won’t change his mind. He’s already told your brother so, Francesco replies.

You can’t condemn him for defending his father. He’s just a boy, she begs. Dad’s gone, and Vic is running with a wild crowd. All his friends are gone, and I don’t know what I can do to stop it.

Allegra, go home. Raffaele’s busy. To his credit, Francesco looks guilty about sending her away. There’s more to this than meets the eye, but I’m not going to get anything out of Francesco. The woman turns around, totally dejected, and drags her feet as she leaves the place.

Suddenly, from behind us, Raffaele asks, What did she want?

The same as always, Francesco says with a sigh.

She doesn’t look dangerous, I say.

Maybe not, but her father was a traitor, Raffaele replies.

She says her brother’s in trouble, Francesco adds.

Ivo’s jaw tightens. The kid is out to prove himself, and he’s doing it in stupid ways. He’s going to get himself killed.

He’s a kid? I ask.

Looks can be deceiving, Raffaele replies, and proceeds out the door with Ivo, Reno, and Dante following. I go after them, my gaze catching sight of Allegra wiping her tears and trying to get past several young hoods who are taunting her.

I don’t know what comes over me, but I turn and stalk down the street toward the punks who are giving her trouble.

Shit! That’s the gang her brother has taken up with, I hear Ivo say with a heavy sigh.

ONE

A Glimmer of Hope

ALLEGRA

Iknew it was a risk to attempt to speak with Raffaele, but I had to try. Vic and I can’t go on this way. Every day, he’s getting more and more deeply entrenched with the Skulls, and I’m going to lose him. Vic is my baby brother, and I can’t let that happen. We’ve already lost everything and everyone else.

To this day, I don’t understand why my father did what he did. Skimming money from Ultimo Morte is suicide, yet he did it anyway. It doesn’t make any sense. It’s not like our family was living a lavish lifestyle. We were better off than most, but nowhere near what other family members had. We had a nice house and cars, but we didn’t go to private schools like many of the other Ultimo Morte kids. If anything, we led a modest life in comparison to most others in the family.

This makes me wonder, where did this money go? But when Dad was confronted, he confessed. He was a loyal soldier his entire life and then stole money knowing he was signing his death warrant. Raffaele was furious, but that didn’t stop my father from begging him to let his family live.

Raffaele had us dragged out of the room. My mother was a blubbering mess, wailing and begging for Dad’s life. Vic had just turned fourteen and was supposed to become a full member in a few months. He held on to Mom and waited for the end. Vic was convinced that we were all going to die that day.

I was stunned. Utterly and completely shocked. I remember turning to Ivo, who had his eyes glued to the closed door, waiting for Raffaele to appear.

Why would Dad do this? I whispered.

Damned if I know, kid. Fucking stupid. All he had to do was ask and Raffaele would have listened, Ivo said gruffly.

I remember sliding against the wall to sit on the floor, my knees to my chest. I wrapped my arms around them, making myself as small as possible. I kept waiting for a gunshot that would tell me Dad was gone, but it never came. I couldn’t even guess how long I was sitting on the floor, silent tears running down my face, when suddenly, the door opened, and Raffaele stepped through.

Oscar had a heart attack. Call the doctor to pronounce him dead, Raffaele said. He was as casual as could be, like he was asking for a glass of water. He turned to my mother. "I wouldn’t mourn him if I were you. He doesn’t deserve your tears. For his years of loyalty, I told him that his wife and kids would live, but as of this day, you are no longer part of Ultimo Morte."

From that moment on, we were ostracized from the family. Raffaele let Mom keep the house, which we promptly had to sell. We didn’t know that Dad had a massive mortgage on the house, and the cost of Dad’s funeral didn’t leave us with much.

I quit school and got a job in a hair salon. I started as a receptionist, but the salon owner, Melissa, encouraged me to go back to school and, with the help of a scholarship, get my certificate in cosmetology. After that, she was my mentor and taught me how to cut and style really well. Eventually, I worked my way up and now have my own clientele. Vic had to leave his school and has been attending the high school near our apartment. It’s not a great neighborhood, but it’s not the worst in the city either, or so I thought. When Vic began skipping classes and hanging out with a group of guys I didn’t approve of, he started acting out and becoming impossible to deal with.

Mom retreated into herself and rarely left the apartment. I was doing my best to keep it all together, and I was failing miserably. Then, one day, I came home, and the ambulance and police were already there, wheeling my mother out on a gurney. I think that’s the day Vic gave up trying. He figured that the best he could do was survive, and his horrible friends led him into a horrible gang.

Today was going to be my final chance to plead for help. I was praying Raffaele would take pity on us and give Vic a shot at proving himself. The Mafia life is all we’ve known, and from what I’ve seen of Vic’s new friends, they’re going to get him killed.

Fine! If Raffaele doesn’t want to help us, I’ll find a way to get Vic and myself away from here. I’ve got a little money put away, and I can send Vic to Melissa’s sister in Florida. Then, as soon as I make enough, I’ll join him.

I take a couple of deep breaths and head home to set my plan in motion, only to find three Skull members waiting for me outside the restaurant. I recognize the tallest and oldest one, Spike. The other two I’ve seen around, but haven’t had the displeasure of meeting them until now. Unfortunately, they’re standing between me and my car. I could turn around and take the bus home, but they’ve seen me and would probably come after me. And I need my car to get to work.

I square my shoulders and lift my chin, walking toward my car. I don’t make it ten feet before Spike blocks my path.

Drake isn’t going to like hearing that you’re groveling for mercy at the fucker’s feet. Don’t you have any pride, bitch? You’d pick the Mafia family that killed your father over Drake and the Skulls? You wanna live the good life, all you gotta do is spread your legs for Drake. He wants a taste, Spike says with a sneer as he reaches out to touch my arm. I take a step back to avoid his touch.

Step aside, please. I keep my voice firm and steady, but my stomach is doing flips, and I feel like puking.

Aren’t you polite? Spike scoffs, then gives me a salacious smile, like a crocodile waiting to tear apart his prey. Maybe you wanna take a ride with Spike, he says, talking about himself like he’s some kind of prize.

Thank you for the invitation, but I have someplace to be. I notice Spike’s two friends flanking his sides and getting too close for comfort. Maybe I should have turned back. My eyes move from one Skull member to the other. From the expressions on their faces, their intention is to cause me harm.

Maybe you’re not hearing me. Drake wants to see you. I extended his invitation nice, and he’s not going to like it if I show up without you, Spike states.

I’ve seen Drake several times on our block. He even had the audacity to show up at our apartment to see Vic. Vic wasn’t home, and Drake knew this because Vic was out with a couple of Drake’s low-life flunkies. Drake pushed right past me and sat at my kitchen table, took out a wad of bills, and dumped them on the counter, then asked me to sit on his lap. I handed him back his money and asked him to leave.

I thought for sure that he was going to hit me, but instead, he looked at me like he was seeing me for the first time. It was weird, and I got this eerie feeling, a shiver running down my spine. He gave me the creepiest smile, and despite his tall, dark, and ruggedly handsome good looks, that stare made me feel like I needed to shower for a month. Surprisingly enough, he left, saying, Till we meet again.

Since that day, the Skulls have been cozying up to Vic more than usual. I know it’s just a matter of time before Vic is lost to me.

I reach into my bag and wrap my hand around the pepper spray, ready to pull it out and make a run for it.

Listen, I don’t want any trouble. I’ve had a long day and I want to go home, I tell Spike, but I watch the other two guys as they move around to box me in.

No can do. Drake gave an order, and he’s the boss, Spike says.

It all happens so fast. The shorter and bulkier guy on my right grabs my arm. I quickly pull out the pepper spray and aim for his face. He drops to the ground howling, but this only aggravates the other two as I back up.

Spike reaches into his back pocket and my instinct is to run, fast and far. I turn to do just that and slam into a wall, or at least I think it’s a wall, until two large arms are holding me steady to stop me from falling. My gaze moves upward to see the same man who denied me access to Raffaele. Behind him stand all the men who sat at the table in the restaurant, including Raffaele. Do I dare pray for a glimmer of hope?

TWO

Sacrifice

ZANO

T ime for you to go, I say through clenched teeth as I move Allegra firmly behind me, putting myself between her and the punk holding the gun.

This isn’t your fight, asshole. This is between me and the bitch behind you, the snarky hood responds, but I can see his hand shaking.

Since your gun is aimed at me, I’d say this was between you and me. Then I look behind me to see that Reno and Dante are at my back, with Raffaele and his men right by their sides. Take a look around you. Not sure I like your odds, bud.

I’d still kill you, he spits out.

Spike, man. We’ll get her later, says one of the other punk-ass fuckers in his crew.

Spike looks around and slowly lowers his gun. He looks around to catch Allegra’s eyes. This is gonna cost you, Spike threatens, his tone menacing. He backs away until he gets to his car, with his buddies, and pulls out, his tires squealing as he races down the street.

Once Spike’s gone, I turn and face Allegra. She trembling as she pulls her cell phone out of her purse. Vic, don’t go home. Please. Don’t go home. Call me as soon as you get this message, she pleads. She then looks up at me. Thank you. I know you have no reason to help me, but I am grateful. I’ll get out of your way.

Before she can take a step, Raffaele’s low, deep voice growls, Don’t fucking move, Allegra. All eyes face Raffaele, and he steps forward, closer to Allegra. You brought a problem right to my door.

I didn’t mean to, Allegra replies, her voice a mere whisper.

Quiet! Raffaele barks. Without taking his eyes off Allegra, he calls out to his best friend and most trusted second. Ivo, find Victorio. Now!

You got it, Ivo replies and gets on his phone.

What do I do with you, Allegra? Raffaele asks. He’s not looking for an answer, but he shakes