“You’re the best dad I know, Tony, but you’re also a controlling, manipulative asshole,” she added. “I have a right to know.”
Her scolding seemed to surprise him. All of a sudden, it was as if all his strength left him. Tony slumped onto the sofa, his face haggard, worry clouding his eyes. Anna put her hand on his arm and gave it a little squeeze before kneeling next to him.
“Let me help you, Tony. We’re family.”
“You can’t help me, little sister,” he said, blinking back tears, all trace of anger gone.
“What happened out there? Where are the men?”
He sighed. “We’re under attack, Anna. I’ve ordered the men to patrol the property.”
Tony’s property was huge. His house was nestled on a two-and-a-half-acre lot at the end of a cul-de-sac in the prestigious gated community of Journey’s End. In addition to the eight-thousand-square-foot house, the exterior included a large separate guesthouse, a five-car garage, staff quarters, and a grand private driveway surrounded by lush tropical trees. His security system was the best money could buy, but it didn’t mean a clever kill team couldn’t breach it.
“By the Black Tosca? Why?” Anna pressed him.
“Because Father was about to testify against her.”
She stared at Tony blankly. “What?”
His words had left a sickening sensation in the pit of her stomach.
“Don’t look so shocked, Anna. With Dad in prison, someone had to lead the family. Under my leadership, we became the de facto organization for anyone wanting to move product in and out of Miami and along the Florida coast.”
Anna didn’t know all the operational details, but she knew the family money came from the drug trade. She understood this and was a willing participant in the family business. Nonetheless, her father and brother had always been the ones making the hard decisions. Her job was to keep the books straight and to perform computer-generated trend analysis. Tony had developed some legitimate businesses—mostly in construction—but most of the family’s activities revolved around the illegal drug trade. She hadn’t chosen any of this, but it was her family, and loyalty to her clan was central to her identity. Family first.
Always.
“Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t Father have an arrangement with the Black Tosca?”
Tony chuckled derisively. “She’s the Black Tosca, Anna. Valentina Mieles does what she wants, when she wants.”
Anna didn’t respond, so her brother continued. “She approached me some time ago. In fact, she sent her cousin Hector to make me an offer to buy out the business. I refused. The terms weren’t satisfactory.”
“And?”
“Hector left, and I thought that was it.”
“But it wasn’t it.”
“No,” Tony admitted. “A couple weeks later, our shipments started to get confiscated at the port, and one of our eighteen-wheelers was stopped on the highway. We lost a lot of money, and six of our men are now in jail.”
“You think the Black Tosca is responsible?”
“I know so, and Father did too.”
“That’s why he decided to go against her?”
Tony nodded. “But someone betrayed him, and the only explanation I can come up with is that the Black Tosca had someone inside the DEA feeding her intel.”
“Why the hit on Sophia, then?”
Tony hesitated. “I don’t know, Anna. To show me we’re all vulnerable?” He seemed as though he wanted to add something else but didn’t.
“What is it that you’re not telling me, Tony?”
Her brother didn’t reply. His face had turned pale, and there was a wild grief in his eyes. She could only imagine the agony he was in and how guilty he must feel that his actions had gotten his daughter kidnapped. But she couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something else. Whatever it was, her brother wasn’t ready to share it with her.
“What do we do next?” she asked.
Tony pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. He bowed his head and closed his eyes. “She called me,” he said.
“Who? The Black Tosca?”
“She wants my head, Anna. She literally wants my head,” he said, his voice cracking. “If my severed head isn’t in her possession in forty-eight hours, she’ll burn Sophia alive. And she’ll stream it live.”
Tears flooded Anna’s eyes. This isn’t happening. “And what about the other girl, Leila?”
“They’ll burn her too,” he whispered. “I can’t allow this to happen.”
Her brain went into overdrive, dark images crowding out her thoughts. She tried to push them away, but they became more insistent.
“What will you do?”
“Do I really have a choice? I’ll cut my own head off if it means—”
Anna slapped him so hard the crack of her palm against his cheek echoed in the living room. “Shut up!” she yelled. “Don’t say shit like that, Tony.”
Tony looked stunned, but his voice was flat. “What do you want me to do, Anna? The Black Tosca has my balls in a vise, and she’s tightening the fucking screws.”
Anna knew he was right. The family had taken painful hits from their enemies. But they had to fight back. Somehow, they needed to turn the tables and go on the offensive.