Chapter 78 Chapter 78

Chapter 78 Chapter 78
\[ SALVATORE’S POV \]

The door swung open, and Mira stepped in. She wasn't smiling her usual predatory smile; she looked focused, holding a tablet out toward me.

"Brother, you need to see this," she said, handing the device over.

I took it, my eyes scanning the screen. It was a video from a club. I watched Sofia and Sandy together in a VIP room. It wasn't just a meeting that I know. I watched the exchange, the cards, the look on Sofia's face. After a few moments, I set the tablet down on the mahogany table with a click.

"So?" I said, my voice perfectly calm.

"I think they’re onto something, brother," Mira said, pacing the length of my rug. "Because as far as I know, they’re not friends. They’re both snakes, but they usually play in different pits."

I leaned back, my eyes boring into hers. "How did you know about their meeting, Mira?"

She paused, her expression flickering for a microsecond. "I... I have been keeping tabs on Sofia. So I just happened to get a hand in this."

"Hmmm," I hummed softly. I didn't believe in coincidences, but I let it slide for now. "Michael?" I asked, looking around the room for my right hand.

"Oh, that one," Mira said, waving a hand dismissively. "I’m sure he’ll be with one of his bitches. He’s been distracted lately."

I kept my face blank. Michael wasn't distracted, he was efficient. If Mira didn't know where he was, it was because Michael didn't want her to know.

"But brother," Mira continued, her eyes bright with a sudden thought. "How about I go to Iris? I’m sure she would need company. She must be lonely out there in the sticks."

I looked at her for a long time without saying a word. My fingers began to drum softly on the table, thump, thump, thump—a sound that usually made men in this city start to sweat. Mira wanted to be near Iris. Mira, who was far too quick to pull a trigger. Mira, who hated anything she couldn't control.

"Brother?" she prompted, her voice tilting with a bit of impatience.

"Fine," I said, the drumming stopping abruptly. "You can go. And you do that now."

"Yes!" she jumped happily, a genuine spark of excitement on her face. "I will be heading out now, brother."

I watched her turn on her heels and stride out of the office, the door clicking shut behind her. I stared at the wood of the door for a long minute, the silence of the room rushing back in.

"Mira, Mira, Mira," I whispered to the empty air.

"Send a word to Mario, Anton. Let him know Mira is coming," I said, my voice cutting through the heavy silence of the room.

Anton stepped out from behind the heavy velvet curtain. He had vanished the moment he sensed Mira’s presence at the door, he knew better than to be caught in the middle of a conversation between Moretti siblings.

"Ok boss," he said, pulling out his phone and his thumbs flying across the screen. "Message sent. Mario will be ready for her."

"And..." I trailed off, watching the smoke from my cigar curl toward the ceiling.

"And what, boss?" Anton asked, looking up.

"What I asked of you... is it in motion?"

I didn't need to say the words. Anton knew exactly what I was talking about. The real play. The one that didn't involve just watching Iris or tracking Sofia. The move that would settle the debt once and for all.

"Yes boss," Anton replied, his face turning grim. "Mario is on it. The pieces are moving.” 

"Good," I said, a slow, dark smirk spreading across my face.

I looked back at the screen where Iris was still walking with Caleb. She looked so peaceful, so unaware that the monsters of her past were all converging on that tiny, quiet town. Her sister was coming for her, Mario was waiting in the shadows, and Caleb was holding the line.

"Things are about to get more interesting," I whispered.

I picked up the tablet Mira had left behind and looked at the image of Sofia and Sandy. Everyone thought they were the ones playing the game. They had no idea I was the one who had written the rules.

"Let them all go to the nest," I muttered. "I want to see who survives the fall."

\~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

\[ SOFIA’S POV \]

I stood in the corner, quiet as a shadow, just watching the exchange between my dad and Sandy.

Sandy was sitting right opposite him, acting like she was in a cheap movie. She leaned forward so much that her breasts were on full display, wiggling every time she moved. She kept winking at him, her eyes trailing over his face like she was already imagining what he could do for her.

My dad’s face was blank, the way he always looked when he was working but I knew him better than that. I could see the full lust in his eyes. He was staring at her like a hungry man staring at a meal, completely forgetting that I was even in the room.

It was disgusting, but it was also perfect.

A man driven by lust is a man who is easy to move. If Sandy could keep him distracted, she could get him to sign whatever we needed. I watched the way he followed the movement of her body, his glass of whiskey frozen halfway to his lips.

I leaned back against the wall, crossing my arms. Sandy thought she was the one in control because she had him panting like a dog, and my dad thought he was in control because he was the boss of the Russo house.

Neither of them realized that I was the one who brought them together. I was the one who let Sandy into this room.

"The things men do for a pretty face," I thought to myself, a small, cold smile touching my lips.

While they played their little game of flirtation and greed, I was looking at the bigger picture. My father was getting old and weak. He couldn't even see a trap when it was wearing a low-cut dress and sitting right in front of him.

I didn't care who Sandy slept with, and I didn't care how many times my dad betrayed my mother’s memory. As long as the power ended up in my hands, they could do whatever they wanted.

I cleared my throat, loud enough to break the spell. My dad blinked, finally looking away from Sandy’s chest, and Sandy sat up straight, smoothing out her hair with a fake, sweet smile.

"So," I said, my voice cutting through the thick tension in the room. "Are we here to talk about business, or am I just here to watch the two of you waste my time?"

"Is everything ready?" my father asked, his eyes still glued to Sandy. He didn't even look at me when he spoke.

"Yes, father. The rope you requested is ready and our men are ready as well," I said, trying to keep the annoyance out of my voice. "I think we should be on the move now."

"Go wait outside for a second," he said.

"What?" I asked. I couldn't believe this man. We were in the middle of a war, and he wanted a private moment with a woman who probably had a knife hidden in her garter.

His face shifted. I could see the anger bubbling up, and I quickly shut my mouth. I didn't want him to lose his temper, not yet. I still needed him for this game. Without him, I didn't have the "legal" Russo authority to take back what was mine.

"Ok, fine, fine," I sighed, raising my hands in surrender. "I will wait outside for a moment, but please be out in a second. We know what is at risk if we wait any longer."

"This is my call, Sofia," he snapped. "I’m the one who knows where Iris is. So I know when it’s the best time to move."

"Fine," I said, turning and walking to the door.

I closed it behind me with a quiet click and leaned against it. I reached into my suit pocket and pulled out my phone. My father thought he was the only one with secrets, but he was getting sloppy.

I had planted a camera in his office last week, and it was about to come in handy.

I opened the app, the live feed popping up in grainy color. I watched as Sandy moved, swaying her hips in that slow, annoying way of hers. She walked right up to my father and sat on the table directly in front of him. Her skirt was rolled up high, showing off everything.

My father leaned back in his chair, looking completely pathetic, while Sandy slowly removed her panties. She didn't stop there. She took them and pressed the fabric right against his nose, and I watched him close his eyes and sniff them like he was some kind of animal.

Then his hand moved, disappearing right between her legs.

the way she moved, the way he reacted, it was doing something to me. I felt a heat spreading through my body that I couldn't ignore.

My breath hitched as I watched his hand move. I shifted my weight, feeling the friction of my suit trousers against my skin. Slowly, I let my own hand slide down, my fingers ghosting over the fabric. It felt like a spark of electricity. I closed my eyes for a second, my heart hammering against my ribs, as I touched myself through the cloth. I was getting wet, the sensation sharp and distracting, making my head spin.

I was enjoying this way too much.

I watched through the screen as my father stood up and moved right in between Sandy’s legs. He looked at her, his face showing a side of him I hated to see, vulnerable and desperate.

"I need you to clear out the noise in my head. Can you do that, Sandy?" he mouthed to her.

"Shut up, Lorenzo, and just fuck me," she snapped back. She didn't care about his feelings or his noise She was just enjoying the power trip. "I want to know what it feels like to get fucked by one of the most powerful underworld bosses."

Then my father slid inside of her.

I felt a sharp, strange jolt go through me as I watched him. That was the same pussy I had been eating out just this week. Seeing him in the same spot where I had been was a twisted feeling I couldn't even describe.

I stood there in the hallway, leaning against the door with my hand still moving between my legs. I was getting wetter by the second, the image of them on the screen mixing with the memory of Sandy's taste in my mouth. I was happy watching it—it was sick, it was wrong, but it was fueling me.

I watched every thrust, my eyes wide and my breathing heavy. My father thought he was the boss, but here he was, working for her pleasure while I watched it all like a movie.

I kept going until I was on the edge, my heart racing so fast I thought it would burst out of my suit. Just as he groaned on the screen, I squeezed my eyes shut and let out a quiet breath, feeling the release hit me hard.

I stayed like that for a moment, head resting against the wood of the door, before I finally opened my eyes and looked at the phone again.

I didn't want to hear any more. I didn't want to see him finish. I reached down and switched the screen off, the room going dark. I pulled my hand away, fixed my clothes, and stood up straight. The heat was still there, but my head was clear now.

I had my fun. Now it was time to get back to work.