Chapter 25 Calculated Moves
MARCO’S POV
Robert Vitale's office was suffocating with tension.
He stood at the head of the table, his face flushed with rage as he gripped the edge of the mahogany surface. The capos seated around him exchanged nervous glances, their eyes carefully averted from him.
"He's making a mockery of us," Robert snarled. "My daughter is in his house, and he's-" He paused, his jaw working. "He's announcing a wedding like we're supposed to be grateful for the insult."
"Maybe," one of the younger capos ventured, "we could use the marriage as an alliance. It could actually work in our-"
Robert's hand moved so fast I barely saw it. His fist connected with the capo's face with a sickening crack, and the man went flying backward, his chair clattering to the floor.
Blood spilled from his nose, and he lay there stunned, unable to do anything but stare up at the ceiling in shock.
The entire room went silent.
Robert wiped his hand on his pants, his expression was as cold as ice. "Does anyone else have similar feelings they'd like to share?"
Nobody moved. The silence was defeaning, broken only by the sound of the injured capo's ragged breathing.
"Good," Robert said, turning back to the table. "We need to destabilize him. We need to make him regret ever thinking he could take my daughter and parade her around like a prize."
My chest tightened on hearing about the wedding. The thought of Arya being forced into that, of Giovanni De Santis's hands on her, made something dangerous coil in my stomach.
She called, I thought suddenly, remembering the hushed conversation four days ago.
And she sounded so scared that it broke my heart.
I’d wanted to tell Robert immediately, but something had stopped him. Besides the old man would probably punish him for hearing from his daughter and not getting her location.
"We need a plan," Robert continued, pacing the room now, "Something that will make him understand that taking from Robert Vitale comes with a price."
I silently pondered on his statement. Strategy had always been my strength.
While others relied on brute force, I preferred to think several moves ahead. An idea began to form in my mind.
"There's a way," I said.
Robert's head snapped toward me. "Speak."
"The Delgado family," I said carefully. "They have a close relationship with Giovanni. If we could broker a trade, we could use them as intermediaries. Giovanni would listen to them in ways he'd never listen to us."
Robert's eyes narrowed, but the tension on his face had lessened. "Go on."
"If we approach them with the right offer, we could arrange a meeting. It would put Giovanni in a position where he'd have to engage with us." I leaned forward. "And more importantly, it would give us access. Once we're inside his world through the Delgado connection, we figure out what he really wants with Arya."
Robert was silent for a long moment, his expression unreadable. Then he spoke. "Why would the Delgado family help us?"
"Because we can give them something they want," I said. " If we offer them something valuable enough, they'll listen."
Robert looked like he was turning it over in his mind. "It's risky."
"All moves are risky," I replied. "But this one has potential. It's not a frontal assault, it’s trategy."
Another long silence then Robert nodded slowly. "Bring me a foolproof plan with details. I want to know exactly how we're going to use the Delgado family without them turning around and using us instead."
"I will," I agreed.
Robert dismissed me with a wave, already turning back to his other capos.
But as I left the office, I understood the truth that Robert was trying to hide beneath the rage.
This looked bad on him. His own daughter had been taken from his home; the one place that was supposed to be absolutely secure.
Not to mention, the De Luca family was already angry with us for reasons that had nothing to do with Arya, and this situation was only adding fuel to that fire.
Robert needed to prove that he was still in control. And I needed to make sure that when we moved against Giovanni, it was done right.
I stopped by the sitting room on my way to my quarters.
Laurie was there, sitting rigid on the sofa, her hands folded in her lap. Beside her, Christabel was curled into herself, her eyes red-rimmed and swollen from crying.
The sight of the girl made my chest ache.
"Hey," I said softly, approaching them. "How are you both doing?"
Laurie looked up at him, she suddenly looked older than her actual age. "As well as we can be, given the circumstances."
I sat down beside Christabel, and the girl immediately leaned into me, her small frame shaking slightly. I wrapped an arm around her, letting her rest her head against my shoulder.
"Your sister is strong," I said quietly. "Stronger than you might think. She's going to be okay."
I stayed with them for a while longer, before making my excuses and heading to my room.
The moment I was inside, I locked the door and shrugged off my jacket, sighing heavily. Because of Arya’s abduction, no one was allowed to live the perimeter on any account.
So I was back here in my room. I hadn’t used this space in years after I finally moved up from being the poor kid Robert saved on the streets to a respectable capo.
My eyes found the photograph on my dresser. It was me and Arya, taken a few months ago at some family gathering.
She was laughing, her head tilted back, and her eyes bright with genuine joy. It felt like a lifetime ago.
I picked up the frame, my thumb rubbing gently across her face.
"I hope you're good, Arya," I whispered to the photograph. "I hope you're holding on, because we're coming for you. I promise we're coming."
I set the frame back down carefully and moved to my desk, pulling out a notebook and beginning to sketch out the plan.
How to approach the Delgado without raising red flags and use them as a bridge into Giovanni's world without them realizing they were being used.
It would take time to orchestrate properly but I had time. Because somewhere in Giovanni De Santis's house, my best friend was trapped.
And I was going to burn the entire world down if that's what it took to get her back.