A snide smile came to Luciano’s thin lips. “I was hoping this would be the year we could forget that part of the contract.”
“Maybe we should forget about the whole contract, then.” Lucca knocked his cigarette ashes onto the floor. “I think time is making you forget how close to extinction the Luciano name is. It was the Carusos who wanted to end the war and decided to give the option of the contract so the Luciano name wouldn’t die out. Tell me, how many of you are there now?”
Two of Luciano’s men moved to stand behind him, while the only one to move behind the Carusos was Drago. The empowering man was bigger than the two Lucianos combined.
Luciano slightly flexed his jaw. “Me and my three sons will continue the Luciano name.”
Lucca smiled as he inhaled deeply from his cigarette. “Yes, and thanks to the generosity of the Caruso family, you can continue to do so on the agreed-upon territory.”
The air in the spacious warehouse seemed to be sucked away. Not until Luciano nodded his head did the air return.
Dante then nodded, standing up as he buttoned his suit jacket and bringing the meeting to a close. Luciano also stood, and the two men came out from behind their tables to shake each other’s hand.
“Glad we could have another successful meeting. I’ll see you next year, Luciano.”
“Till next year, Dante.”
The two men dropped each other’s hand, and then Dante led the Caruso family out first. However, Lucca continued to sit there, watching his men and the Lucianos leave the warehouse one by one until only himself and one other remained.
Finally, he stood up, stepping on the little bud that was still smoking from where he had dropped it. Picking up his cigarettes and lighter, he put them back in his pocket while grabbing the heavy ring that weighed on him.
The cold man looked him up and down. “Next to your father, you looked like you were sitting at the wrong table. You could almost pass for a Luciano.”
“Almost.” He rolled the ring between his fingers, walking toward the only other man in the warehouse.
“Yes, well, we both know what you look like when you clean yourself up.”
As Luciano’s voice turned dark, Lucca’s turned darker. “Yes, we do.” Holding the ring out for him to view, Lucca continued, “Have you seen this ring before?”
Picking up the ring, Luciano’s face began to match his voice. “No, I haven’t. Why do you ask?”
Lucca flashed a cryptic smile. “I’m trying to find the owner of my new dog.”
Understanding his innuendo, he gave the ring back. “I’m surprised you didn’t put the dog down.”
“I like dogs.” He put the ring back in his pocket.
Luciano seemed amused by his choice of words. “Good-bye, Lucca.”
Lucca stared into the soulless black eyes of the man before him. “I’ll be seeing you, Lucifer.”
He had wanted—needed—to call him by the name to show there wasn’t one man Lucca was afraid of, not even the Devil himself.
Soon.
Sixteen
From the Worst to the Best Types of People
Even though Sal was Lucca’s friend, she expected him to hurt her at any second. She couldn’t help it; it had become ingrained in her.
Sal raised an eyebrow. “I take it you decided not to turn in the assignment.”
Huh? “Y-You’re the o-one through the c-computer, r-right?”
Laughing, he took a seat next to her after pushing the chair far enough away from her to give her plenty of room. “Yes. Do I not look like a guy who could program your computer?”
“N-no. Yes. I m-mean … I don’t know. I just thought you worked with Lucca, Drago, Nero, and the rest of them. They don’t r-really seem to be the c-computer type.”
“I do work with them.” He looked at her in confusion. “Lucca hasn’t told you what line of work we’re in yet?”
Now she was the one who stared at him confusion. “Elle told me everyone worked for Lucca and Nero’s father at the casino. Do you all not?”
An amused look came across his face. “Well, yes, I run the security there. I make sure everything runs properly, and I set up any new equipment.”
“So, the rest of them work in security, too?”
“Uh, yes, in a way.”
Chloe could tell by the look on his face that she seemed to be missing something. Don’t ask. You probably don’t want to know.
“W-What does Lucca do, exactly?”
“I think this is a question you should ask Lucca.”
Looking down at her hands in her lap, she squeezed them. “I’ve been kinda afraid to ask him. I know he will tell me the truth, but I’m not sure if I want the full truth. I just wanted a gist of what he does to see if I should ask.”
“Okay, well …” Scratching his head, he seemed to be thinking of the best way to put it. “His father is the president of the casino, and Lucca is the vice president.”
Really? “I had no idea he was that high up. He doesn’t wear suits like the rest of you.”
Sal snickered. “Oh, yes, he is about as high as you could fucking go in the fam—I mean, at the casino.”
She found herself smiling at the thought that Lucca wasn’t as bad as she thought he was. “Well, that’s not bad at all. I thought he might be into something illegal.”
“Well, I wouldn—”
“What about Drago? He looks scary enough, like he’s in security.”
Another silence of thinking. “Yes, he’s Dante’s personal bodyguard.”
She looked back down at her hands. “What about Amo?”
“He definitely works security.” Sal’s snickering had begun again, seeming to find Amo’s job the most amusing.
“He is?” It was starting to make sense to her. He does look like a younger version of Drago.
“Yep, he works on the lowest level of the casino with Nero and Vincent.” Continuing, he wore an even bigger smile on his face, “Amo specifically loves his job. Nero and Vincent have actually requested a position change from the basement.”
Biting her lip, she felt confused. The three were almost inseparable, so she couldn’t imagine why Nero and Vincent would want to leave when Amo didn’t.
“How come Nero and Vincent don’t like their jobs?”
Again, the wheels seemed to turn in Sal’s head as he tried to figure out the best way to place his words. “Nero and Vincent don’t like the view from the basement, but Amo doesn’t seem to mind.”
Hmm … must be too gloomy for them. “I can see that. Amo isn’t picky and is much easier to please over Nero and especially Vincent. Those two always have to get their way when we pick where to eat.”
“Yeah … Like I said, you should really ask Lucca about this stuff. I probably told you too much.”
“I don’t think Lucca would mind.” Or, she didn’t see why he would. She knew he would tell her if she was brave enough to ask.
“Well, if you tell him what we talked about, be sure to tell him that I told you Amo loves his job.” He winked. “Lucca’s the one who placed them there and would like to know at least one of them likes it.”
“I-I will.” By the way Sal was acting, something told her she might want to hold off asking Lucca about his job anytime soon.