Total pages in book: 40
Estimated words: 36839 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 184(@200wpm)___ 147(@250wpm)___ 123(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 36839 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 184(@200wpm)___ 147(@250wpm)___ 123(@300wpm)
Bianchi might have kissed his ass, but Bianchi couldn't have talked the DA's office down to ten years with his criminal history. He's lucky Valentino found him moderately useful, and the DA likes me, or he'd be spending the next twenty-five to life in prison for attempted murder.
Donato finishes signing the agreement and shoves it across the desk toward me, knocking over a stack of files in the process. "Are we done now?" he demands, looking at the Rolex on his wrist. "I have things to do."
"For the moment." I meet his gaze. "Don't try to run. If I have to hunt you down because you failed to show up for court, ten years will look like a cake walk."
"You know, I never put much stock into what people said about you, but maybe there is some truth to all those rumors." He flicks a contemptuous gaze at me.
I don't have to ask what rumors. I already know. They've been saying the same shit for the last year.
Diego Butera is a rat.
I heard he was a rat.
Rumor is, he's a fucking rat.
"I don't waste my time listening to small men talk."
Burciaga snorts. "For someone who took the oath, you help send a helluva lot of us to prison, Butera. It's not a good look for you."
"Like I said, I don't listen to small men talk, Burciaga," I return, smiling coldly. "But I find it curious that those smart enough to cover their tracks don't have the same complaints. It's always those who think the rules don't apply to them who point the fingers. You should be looking in the mirror instead to find where the fault really lies. I'm not the one who got myself caught and pissed off the Capo in the process. You did that all by your little ole self."
His eyes narrow to slits at the reminder.
"We're done. Enjoy what's left of your freedom." I push the intercom button on my phone to let Ricci Morano know we're finished in here, making it clear to Donato that he's been dismissed. If he's mad that he's going to prison, he can sulk somewhere other than my damn office. I've got more important shit to do.
He stomps out, brushing past Ricci, who simply quirks a brow at me as if to ask what the fuck his problem is. I shake my head, silently telling him not to ask. He jerks his dark head, nodding, and quietly closes the door behind Donato.
As soon as I'm alone, I rise to pace across my office, seething in silent fury. Donato didn't outright call me a rat, but he came close enough. The rumors about me refuse to die.
Perhaps because they're partially true.
Until a year ago, I was slipping info to the FBI in a bid to make Valentino's life as complicated as possible. I had been for a while. It blew up in my face when Tommaso Genovese found out. He used the knowledge to try to push Rafe into a war, just so he could name himself Capo.
He nearly succeeded. But he overplayed his hand when he kidnapped Amalia, intending to use the Cerrito fortune to help cement his place at the top. All he managed to do was unite me and Rafe in a common mission instead. We killed him and brought Amalia home. Cleaning up the mess, avoiding the war he wanted, and keeping ourselves out of prison wasn't as easy. But we managed it.
The FBI has been breathing down my neck ever since, trying to find out what the fuck happened. They know the bullshit intel they've managed to scrape together isn't remotely close to the full story.
I'm not inclined to fill in the blanks. If Valentino goes down now, chaos will erupt in the city, and we won't be able to stop it this time. There will be a bloodbath for the crown, and we'll all lose.
I have no intention of letting that happen when it puts my sister at risk. She's the last Cerrito heir, and she's carrying Rafe's baby. The only way she's safe is with him in charge. And we'll both go down if the truth comes out.
Like Burciaga suggested, I've helped put too many motherfuckers in the system to want to spend time in a cell myself. I've been juggling two competing oaths since the minute I finished law school. Omertà demands I put the mafia above all else. My degree demands I support the Constitution and the Rule of Law. The two rarely agree.
I've been balancing a house of cards for a long fucking time…and the FBI is ready to blow it over. They're worse than the mafia. Once they have you, they don't let go easily.
Blood in, blood out.
Unfortunately for them, I'm smarter than I look. And unfortunately for them, Valentino has every reason to ensure they don't hook me again. I've done my fair share of dirty shit in my life. But I've done double that since he married Amalia.