Corina charged up the New Jersey turnpike with ferocious determination. With Miles gripping the wheel, and Landon and Letty sitting quiet and nervous in the back seat, Corina catapulted them through Jersey City. The silhouette of the Manhattan skyline rose in the darkness, the skyscrapers lit up brilliantly in bright lights. Miles wasn’t in the least bit interested in the glitz and glamour of the Big Apple though. All he could think about was G. Miles was concerned for Juan, too, but knowing that they had taken Letty’s baby in an attempt to lure Miles out and kill him was absolutely the depth of human depravity in Miles’s mind. These men didn’t care about the consequences of their actions. These men didn’t care who got hurt. Miles knew walking into this that he would have to throw out his own humanity going up against them if he were to have a fighting chance. You can’t fight a fair fight with snakes, thieves and murderers. Miles was a man of principle. A man of integrity. But walking into this fight, he’d have to lay down everything that Andie Cormack had taught him and accept the lessons that Michael Capadonno had drilled into his head as a child. Strike first. Kill fast. Take no shit and make no promises. But Miles had already broken one of Michael’s rules. Miles had made a promise to himself. He would get Letty’s son back even if it killed him. As Corina dipped into the bright lights of the Lincoln Tunnel, Miles unleashed his temper and embraced the animal inside.
Knox Capadonno sat tense behind the wheel of his Mercedes as he trailed Miles to New York all the way from Carrion. Riding shotgun, Dustin sat beside Knox with an ill-favored look on his face.
“You seriously didn’t see this coming?” Dustin spat. “Of course he wanted to fucking kill the bastard! He set him up twice, tried to have him executed countless times. I’d be gunning for the fucker, too!”
“This puts us in a tight fucking corner, though, Dustin! We have to take care of this shit before people start questioning our loyalties!”
Dustin fumed with rage as he looked out the passenger window at the bright lights of Manhattan.
“Son of a bitch!” Dustin barked as he slapped his hand against his leg. “What the fuck now?”
“There’s only one thing to do. We gotta take Miles out of the equation.”
Corina rumbled over the Brooklyn Bridge as Miles’s eyes targeted a sign for the La Fortuna Night Club. The establishment was a local gem, a mobster hot spot. La Fortuna was well steeped in history, allure and urban legend. Notorious for being the birthplace of the Coalition, the La Fortuna Night Club also happened to be home base for the Rigatti crime family.
Miles felt like he was being watched as he weaved through the streets of Brooklyn. Men huddled in groups on street corners looked his way with prying gazes as Corina rolled past. The closer they got to the nightclub, the more on edge everyone was becoming. Letty tapped her leg nervously as she clutched onto Landon’s hand for support. Squeezing Letty’s hand back, Landon was relying on her for support just as much as she needed him. The only one not showing anxiety was Miles. His face was emotionless, but his eyes kept a keen watch around them, alert and ready to strike. It quickly became apparent that the Rigattis were expecting Miles’s arrival.
Pulling up to the corner of Riverside and Grove Streets, Miles waited at the red light just a half block from the night club. As he waited at the light, he saw something move in his peripheral view. A mob of men walked down Crescent Avenue with Corina clear in their sights. Under the dim lighting of the street lamp, Miles could see that the men were well armed. Some carried guns, others came prepared with other weapons. It appeared they carried whatever they could to inflict damage. One man carried a Louisville slugger, another a crowbar.
“Stay down,” Miles said to Landon and Letty. They ducked their heads, but that wasn’t enough for Miles. “No. Get down on the floor. Now!”
Hitting the gas pedal, Miles catapulted the car forward as another mob moved eastbound on Grove Street, turning right onto Hemlock Street, Miles caught his breath. As he slowed the car down in front of the La Fortuna night club, he came to the realization that he was completely surrounded. The mobs converged in front of the nightclub, surrounding Corina and shouting angrily at Miles. Directly behind him, Knox’s car pulled up.
“Don’t you get out of this car, Miles!” Letty yelled, fear rattling in her voice. “Don’t you do it!”