“I feel like these tattoos have meanings… do they?” I looked at him while expecting an answer.
“Dante Adriano Sol Di Angelo.” He uttered his name slowly. He was stroking his fingers while describing its meanings. “These two are angel wings. Di Angelo. My uncle used to call me Sol. He said the nickname suited me since I will be the head of the family in the future. It means sun. I assume you know how the sun works in the universe.” He jokes.
I chuckle. “Yes, the one that has the biggest head and messy hair.”
He laughs, one that came from the heart. It was the first time that I heard him laugh genuinely. He always just chuckles or that famous playboy smirk of his. I think his laugh will be my second favorite next to his eyes.
“What about that crescent moon?”
“That, amore, is my sorella, my cugina, my twin.”
My head involuntary tilted to the side, not understanding the words.
“Sorella, my sister. Cugina, my cousin. She’s not entirely my real sister but in a lot of ways, she is. She’s my blood. You already know that Stefano and I are cousins but he’s not my first cousin. My sorella and I are. Both of our fathers are brothers.”
“She’s the moon here?” I stroke the tattoo on his ring finger.
“Yes. You know her father was the original leader of the mafia. He’s the boss of all bosses, thanks to his hard work and his loyalty to his family. Because of him, I’m practically the king of all mafia. Following his legacy and all.” He shrugs at the last statement.
“What about your parents?” I asked suddenly curious of his family.
“My parents died when I was young. I don't have any siblings either.” I frowned. So he did understand my feelings after all. “My uncle took care of me after. When he lost his life, I immediately became the don.”
“I’m sorry.”
“What are you apologizing for? We are pretty much the same, amore. We lost someone we care about and love. This mafia is my family. The people you grew up with are your family.”
A small smile escaped from my lips. “You’re right.”
I looked at our entwined hands. I didn’t know when that happened but among the things he did that was slightly tolerable, I must admit, this was by far the most comfortable. I noticed him leaning a bit towards me. His mouth moved and he whispered.
“Am I eligible now to fuck you?”
“Oh mon dieu.”
---
Dante
“Leo.” I answered as soon as I picked up the phone. “Any good news for me?”
“We just saw Demario entering a bar. Franco and the others are already tailing him.” He said in our mother tongue.
“Good. Update me if you caught him.”
“Of course.” He paused before continuing. “We’ve gone past the borders, Angelo. We’ve gone too far. Demario is always moving. He must’ve thought his strategy would work on us.”
“I guess you’ll be taking care of him then. I’m heading towards Stefano’s office right now. As much as I want to behead that puttana.”
“It’s better if I do this myself, fratello. No one must see your face, especially now that you’re not in Italy.”
I chuckled. “You always have my back, fratello mio.”
He returned a chuckle. “Sempre. I gotta go. Send my regards to Stefano for me.”
“Of course. You do what you do best, Leo. Don’t hold back.” I reminded him sternly.
“Not for this bastard, Angelo. I’ll make sure I go back with the money and his head.” We then hung up. It was at the same time when I reached the Ranallo building. It was one of the tallest structures all over New York. Probably the tallest, expected from the biggest business empire.
After parking the car, I take my time walking towards the entrance while musing about the recent events that had happen when I came here. I trust that my right hand and my best man would take care of Demario for me. That’s minus one among many problems I have.
As much as I want to go on a hunt for those fools, I didn’t want my face waving like a flag here in America. I already made a mistake without considering any proper plans. Driven by rage and impulsivity, I flew here right away when my sources reported that Alfonso will attend a charity event. Coincidentally, my cousin-in-law’s charity event. His partner, Demario, was lucky enough to hear the news about my visit. He fucking had the chance to flee. Although I came here without Leo at first, he immediately followed me here and suggested that he take over the search. With no second thoughts, I let him.
Leo and I are not related by blood but we treat each other as brothers. We didn’t grow up together like those normal childhood friends but we did train together. The occasional nods and meetings made us very close. He’s my best friend even if we don’t often show it. We always know our place and respected our ranks. He knows that I value our friendship and brotherhood and that there’s no need for it to elaborate in words.
That’s why I was more than happy that he followed me here. He drags my common sense back when I tend to lose it. If a girl happened to witness my murdering someone, I don’t know if it won’t happen again. I was fortunate enough that she’s Avery's friend. I could say we were both lucky since that sassy painter is under my cousin’s protection.
“Excuse me. Excuse me. Excuse me!”
My cousin’s secretary finally screamed at the third call while I continued to ignore her.
“Excuse me, sir.” I looked down at the woman who suddenly blocked my way. She was breathing heavily, probably from wasting her energy to stop me from going further to her boss’ office. "Do you have an appointment with Mr. Ranallo today, sir? Correct me if I'm wrong but I was not aware of any meeting today."
I sighed. “No worries, ragazza. I’m just visiting my cousin. I’m sure he’d be happy to see his family.”
“Oh. My apologies. Let me inform him of your arrival. May I know what I should call you, sir?”
I grinned. “Tell him il suo fratello, Angelo, is here.”
The lovely secretary emitted a frown, confused at the foreign words. Either way she nodded and walked back towards her desk. I didn’t wait for her. I proceeded towards Stefano’s office.
“Ciao, fratello mio!” I hollered as soon I barged in through the door. Of course, I didn’t knock. I don’t have to.
The door opened with a loud bang. I grinned when Stefano rolled his eyes. His eyebrows knitted together like a bride in his forehead.
“Thank you, Miss Wilson.” He said through the intercom. I welcomed myself by sitting on the chair in front of his desk which I know would irk him.
He scowled even more when I put my leg over the other and propped my elbow on his table. Even marriage doesn’t get rid of his scowl. I chuckled at the thought.
“What are you doing here, Angelo? Why in the world are you still here in New York?” Stefano always has this stern and cold tone in his voice. Even if he’s trying to be nice, the tone is always there. Dio, to this day he’s still worse than Uncle Marco.
I shrugged. “Still chasing some idiot, cugino. I will remain here until Leo and the others capture him.”
“And you’re here because?”