Chapter 5 - The War Inside the Family
Vincent Rizzo was arrested before noon.
That did not make the problem disappear.
It made it bigger.
The ledger contained names.
Judges.
Police captains.
Business owners.
Politicians.
And several men connected to the Valenti family.
Damian read the first pages in silence.
Then he closed it.
“This is bad.”
I sat across from him inside his townhouse.
“How bad?”
“My uncle is in here.”
“Which uncle?”
“Enzo.”
Marco swore.
Father Matteo sighed.
I looked at Damian.
“What did he do?”
“Payments from Rizzo.”
“For what?”
Damian’s face turned cold.
“Information.”
I understood.
“He helped them ambush you.”
“Yes.”
The shooting that had brought Damian into my laundry room had come from inside his own family.
Damian stood.
Marco said, “We should move now.”
“To where?”
“Enzo’s club.”
I stood too.
Damian immediately said, “No.”
“Here we go again.”
“Nora.”
“My grandmother left me that evidence.”
“This part is internal.”
“This part almost killed you.”
His jaw tightened.
“I don’t want you there.”
“That’s not your decision.”
Marco rubbed his face.
“You two argue like you’ve been married ten years.”
We both looked at him.
“Not helping,” Damian said.
An hour later, we entered Enzo’s private club in Manhattan.
Damian had finally agreed I could come if I stayed with Marco.
I did not agree to stay with Marco.
Enzo Valenti waited upstairs.
Older than Damian.
Heavyset.
Perfect suit.
He smiled when we entered.
“Nephew.”
Damian threw photocopies from the ledger onto the table.
Enzo’s smile vanished.
“What is this?”
“You tell me.”
Enzo looked at the pages.
Then at me.
“Who is she?”
“Nora Hayes.”
No reaction.
Damian added, “Teresa’s granddaughter.”
Enzo went pale.
That told me everything.
“You knew her.”
Enzo sat.
“I knew of her.”
“You knew she lived.”
He said nothing.
I stepped closer.
“You knew?”
Enzo looked at me.
“Your grandmother was supposed to disappear forever.”
“According to who?”
“My father.”
Damian’s eyes narrowed.
“Our grandfather?”
“Yes.”
Father Matteo had stayed behind with federal agents, so this was new information.
Damian said, “Explain.”
Enzo exhaled.
“After Daniel Hayes was murdered, Teresa blamed the family. Father tried to find her.”
“To kill her?”
“No.”
Enzo looked at me.
“To bring her home.”
I didn’t know what to believe.
Damian pointed toward the ledger.
“Then why were you helping Rizzo?”
Enzo’s expression hardened.
“Because Vincent had something.”
“What?”
“Records proving your father ordered a hit in 1998.”
Damian went still.
“My father?”
“Yes.”
“On who?”
Enzo looked at me.
“Teresa.”
Silence.
My chest tightened.
Damian shook his head.
“No.”
“I intercepted it,” Enzo said. “I warned Teresa. She moved Nora immediately.”
I stared at him.
“You knew where we were?”
“No. Only Father Matteo did.”
Damian’s anger rose.
“And you helped Rizzo for twenty-eight years because of blackmail?”
“I protected this family.”
“You sold me out.”
“I gave Vincent your route because he promised he would scare you into negotiation.”
“He shot me.”
“I didn’t order that.”
“You gave him the opportunity.”
Enzo stood.
“I made mistakes.”
Damian’s voice dropped.
“You betrayed me.”
Enzo looked at him.
“You think leadership is clean? It isn’t. You choose which disaster you can survive.”
Damian stared at him for a long moment.
Then he said, “You’re done.”
Enzo laughed bitterly.
“You can’t remove me.”
“I just did.”
“You need the captains.”
“I am the boss.”
Enzo looked around.
Nobody moved to defend him.
His face changed.
Damian continued.
“You will surrender control of every Valenti company you oversee. You will cooperate with the investigation. If you refuse, I turn everything over myself.”
Enzo stared at him.
“You’d destroy your own family?”
Damian looked at me.
“No.”
Then back at Enzo.
“I’m trying to stop us from destroying anyone else’s.”
Enzo left under guard.
Outside, I found Damian alone on the balcony.
Rain had stopped.
“You okay?”
“No.”
“Good answer.”
He glanced at me.
“I thought you hated emotional conversations.”
“I do.”
“Then why are you here?”
“Because you look like you’re about to throw someone off a roof.”
“Tempting.”
I leaned against the railing.
“You did the right thing.”
“My family won’t think so.”
“My grandmother wrote something.”
He looked at me.
“Blood doesn’t decide who your family is. Loyalty does.”
His expression softened.
“She sounds smarter than most Valentis.”
“She raised me.”
“Obviously.”
I smiled.
Then his face grew serious.
“What happens now?”
“With what?”
“You.”
I looked at the skyline.
“I go back to work.”
“No.”
I turned.
“What?”
“You can’t go back to Bellweather.”
“Why?”
“Because everyone knows where you work.”
“I need money.”
“I can help.”
“No.”
“Nora.”
“No.”
“I haven’t even said how.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
His jaw tightened.
“You saved my life.”
“So?”
“I owe you.”
“You don’t.”
“Yes, I do.”
I stepped closer.
“If you really want to repay me, stop treating me like something you own.”
His expression changed instantly.
“I don’t.”
“Then let me choose what happens next.”
He nodded slowly.
“Fine.”
“Fine.”
We stood there silently.
Then he asked, “Would you consider a different job?”
“What job?”
“One where nobody asks you to wash six hundred sheets before sunrise.”
I laughed.
“Maybe.”
“For me?”
“No.”
He almost smiled.
“For someone connected to me?”
“Still suspicious.”
“What do you actually want?”
That question caught me off guard.
Nobody had asked me that in years.
I thought about it.
“I wanted to study hotel management.”
“Why didn’t you?”
“Money.”
He nodded.
“Then finish.”
“With what money?”
Damian looked at me.
“You said I couldn’t give you anything.”
“I said don’t own me.”
“Scholarship.”
I narrowed my eyes.
“What scholarship?”
“The Teresa Morello Foundation.”
“That does not exist.”
“It will tomorrow.”
I stared at him.
May you like
“You’re impossible.”
“So I’ve been told.”
