Chapter 25: Chapter 25

My answer was never going to be a no. I needed to get used to Stefano’s life and my role as his fiancée. Though this wasn’t how I’d planned my life to go, I was committed to it now, and I couldn’t shy away from it.

The car door slammed behind us as Stefano and I approached the side of the road where the bodies, now covered by sheets, had been moved. There were four of them, and my breath caught in my throat at the sight.

Men milled around a van parked to the side, like they were waiting for instructions on how to proceed. A man I hadn’t met before spotted us immediately and made his way to us, stopping us before we got too close to the bodies.

When his eyes met mine, he smiled. “Catalina, welcome to the scene of the crime. I’m Jackson, Stefano’s left-hand man.”

I smiled and shook his hand. “Pleasure.”

“Give me a deep dive,” Stefano interjected, cutting the introductions short.

Jackson handed us gloves as he led us to one of the bodies. “It’s bad. The new shipment of Tonic X went out last night. We made sure to keep it on the down-low, so word couldn’t have gotten out.”

“Well, it did,” Stefano muttered, his eyes surveying the area.

My eyes were glued to the white lumps on the ground. The men were setting up to move the bodies, and my stomach curled just thinking about what lay underneath the sheets.

I gulped down my saliva and brought my attention back to Jackson and Stefano.

“The truck wasn’t only transporting the drugs; it also had the South Sea pearls that the madame ordered.”

“My mother?”

~Christina?~

Jackson nodded. “Yeah. Enough for an entire necklace, double strand. That’s a fuck ton of money to steal.”

“How much exactly?” I asked curiously. Were those pearls special or something?

Jackson turned to me. “Hundreds of thousands. If you ask me, that was the most expensive thing in that truck.”

“Jesus.” I sucked in a sharp breath.

“I know. If you auction them and make up some bullshit sob story, a rich idiot might just buy them for a million.” His eyes gleamed as if the idea was something he’d like to try out.

“Jackson,” Stefano warned.

Jackson shook his head. “Don’t worry, boss. I didn’t steal them. I wouldn’t do that to madame.”

“Focus.”

“Yes, sir. Whoever did this was well prepared. They left no trace and were in and out before our men could call for backup. They were professionals, which is making me lean more toward the Perez family. They’re the only ones this meticulous.”

Stefano bent down next to one of the bodies and folded back the sheet to uncover the man’s face.

I quickly glanced away and swallowed my disgust.

“Was he important?” Stefano asked with no feeling, seemingly accustomed to seeing dead bodies.

Even though the pictures of Stacy were worse than what was in front of me now, I still couldn’t bring myself to look too hard. That was a person. They deserved respect, and I couldn’t help but pity whatever circumstance led them to this dead end.

Jackson shook his head. “Just someone we hired to pay off his debts. They all were.”

A car pulled up, drawing our attention away from the bodies, and Andrei got out. Dirt crunched beneath his feet as he approached. “What idiot chose to steal from the Roscottos?”

“You’re here.” Jackson greeted him and clasped his shoulder. “Bets are on Perez. Could be Volkov as well, but I doubt it.”

As Jackson caught Andrei up on everything, I forced my eyes back to the dead man and looked at his swollen face. There was no blood, which probably meant that the gunshot wound was beneath the sheet. That calmed me down a bit, but I was still on edge knowing that I was standing next to a dead body.

The man appeared to be in his thirties, with a shaved head and piercings in his lobes.

I forced myself to scan his face, committing it to memory so I always remembered the possible consequences of this life, when something on his neck caught my eye. “What’s that?”

The men turned to follow where I was pointing. Stefano turned the man’s head to the side to expose a mark.

It wasn’t a tattoo, but it looked fresh. There was still redness around the area.

“Well, look at this,” Stefano murmured, gesturing for Andrei and Jackson to take a closer look.

“I didn’t see this before,” Jackson murmured in surprise.

“What is it?” I asked.

“The wings of a crow. A brand,” Stefano clarified. “It’s the symbol our reapers use when they complete an assassination for the family.”

I furrowed my brow in confusion. “So, this was done by one of your own?”

“An internal conflict?” Jackson asked.

“It could be, but for some reason, I don’t believe it’s that simple,” Stefano said.

I tuned out as the men sank into discussion, continuing to gaze at the mark.

~The wings of a crow? Where had I seen that before?~

I frowned. I felt like I had, but it wasn’t coming to me.

“Is it only a brand? Or can it be a tattoo?” I asked.

Jackson stood and crossed his arms. “It’s a known fact that the mark belongs to the Roscotto family, so most people wouldn’t dare get it as a tattoo, and most tattoo artists in the area will deny you service if you try.”

“Why?” Stefano looked up at me. “Do you know something?”

I shrugged. There was something about the mark that seemed familiar, but at the same time, I could’ve just seen it in passing.

“Check the other bodies,” Stefano ordered. Sure enough, all the bodies were found with the same mark on their necks.

“It’s a statement,” Stefano deduced.

We all looked at him in unison.

“A statement?” I echoed.

He nodded and pulled out his phone. “Whoever did this, they’re trying to make a statement.”

“What statement?” Jackson asked.

“That’s what we need to find out. When are the cops getting here?”

“I just notified Stevie. He should be sending some over now,” Andrei said.

Stefano nodded. “Good. Let them return the bodies to their families. Jackson, contact all of our distribution channels and let them know that unless we directly supply goods to them, don’t take any from anyone else. And to contact us immediately if our products appear on the market.”

I straightened up as Stefano barked orders to the men around us. This authoritative side of him was admirable…and a bit attractive. My eyes didn’t leave his figure as he commanded his men on the next steps.

“Whoever did this wants to provoke us. We must not let that happen. I want them found, and I want them found now. I don’t care how you do it. This was an attack on our family. They’re not looking for friendship; they’re calling us to war.”

Stefano ran a hand through his hair, and I could tell that something was bothering him. Once his men were out of earshot, I walked over and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

He released a heavy breath. “I don’t like the fact that we can’t see who our enemies are. It’s unnerving.”

“You don’t have any leads?”

He frowned. “The only one that comes to mind is Perez. It’s been two years since they made their presence known, but we’ve yet to find their base or discover who their leader is. This could be them trying to shake us up, or it could be someone else. I’m going to be busy in the upcoming weeks, so don’t wait up for me.”

I nodded and squeezed his shoulder. “I understand.”

This was a serious matter for the family, and I really hoped that he could get it resolved. I hated seeing him this on edge.

He grabbed my hand and intertwined our fingers. “How are you feeling now that you’re experiencing a day in the life of your mafia fiancé?”

I could only muster three words.

“Shit is real.”

He laughed and tugged me toward the car. “Let’s go and get lunch. I know you must be starving.”

“Please.”

Before we could get into the car, Andrei called my name. I turned to look at him in confusion as he jogged to catch up to us.

“Before you go, I wanted to ask for your number. Gabriella’s been interested in getting to know you better.”

Gabriella?

“It would be nice for Catalina to have a close friend. Is she safe?” Stefano asked him.

Andrei nodded confidently. “One hundred percent. I did a background check and ticked all the boxes. She also doesn’t see Catalina as competition, so it would be good for them to get close.”

Stefano turned to look at me. “What do you think?”

There was no reason for me to refuse. I also liked Gabriella. I wouldn’t mind turning her into an ally that I could confide in during the games. It wasn’t like Stefano could relate to what I was experiencing.

“I don’t mind.” I took out my phone and had Andrei give me her number. Once that was done, Stefano and I drove off.

In the car, I fiddled with my phone, wondering how to start the conversation with Gabriella. I was really curious about what was going on in her mind right now. The next game was fast approaching, and we had no idea what it was.

This morning was a break from the games, but now my anxiety was back.

I needed to talk to someone about it.

I took a deep breath and finally settled for something simple.

~Do you want to meet up? It’s Catalina.~

I pressed the send button.