Total pages in book: 137
Estimated words: 126060 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 630(@200wpm)___ 504(@250wpm)___ 420(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 126060 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 630(@200wpm)___ 504(@250wpm)___ 420(@300wpm)
That was another thing, Emmanuelle didn’t swear. She was really pissed. Or scared. Geno tucked Amaranthe’s hand into the crook of his arm as they entered the room. Valentino and Elie stood to one side of the fireplace, neither interfering in the drama being played out across the room from them.
The two men she was dressing down towered over her. Both looked stoic, their faces masks, their eyes cold. Neither flinched under her declaration, but it was obvious she meant what she said. Ignoring Dario, she turned back to them.
“You may think Dario is the boss, but he isn’t when it comes to his security. I am. What I say goes. You can be his friends. You can hang out with him as much as you want at that kink club of his and share women with him. Whatever floats your boat. What you can’t do is let him get away from you. You don’t get to neglect his security. Just because he wants to kill himself doesn’t mean he gets to do it. You hear what I’m saying?”
Both men nodded. That surprised Geno. Neither spoke much. They clearly were still uneasy around the Ferraro family. Like Dario, they were used to ordering women around and having the women do whatever they were told. As a rule, Emmanuelle played things low-key. She didn’t throw her weight around as Valentino’s wife, or as head of security.
Dario would never talk about shadow riding to anyone, Geno was absolutely certain, not even to the two men he trusted with his life. Dario was many things, but he was loyal to a fault—and he was loyal to the Ferraro family.
“Babe, you’re head of Valentino’s security, not mine,” Dario said.
“Don’t you ‘babe’ me, Dario,” Emmanuelle hissed, the sound deadly. She pushed past the two towering bodyguards as if they weren’t there and got right into Dario’s personal space.
“Don’t you ever patronize me like that. I am head of your security whether you like it, or they like it. I don’t give a damn whether you want a woman calling the shots. I’m the best at keeping you alive, and you’re getting the best. When it comes to your safety, you are going to follow my orders, and if your men don’t follow my orders, they’re gone. As in permanently. If you think I’m kidding, you fucking try me.”
She whirled around and stormed out of the room. There was complete silence following Emmanuelle’s threat. The two bodyguards, Marcu and Vicenzu, clearly thought she meant she’d fire them. Geno knew she just told Dario she was willing to assassinate them if that was the only way to get rid of them. A declaration like that from Emmanuelle was unheard-of.
It was obvious to Geno that Emmanuelle knew Dario was pushing closer to the edge, and she was moving to counter him. Emmanuelle loved Dario like a sibling. She wasn’t about to lose him, and she’d just told him so.
Valentino made a move simultaneously with Stefano to go after her.
Dario shook his head. “I’ll go.”
“You know Emme,” Valentino said. “She needs time when she’s really upset.”
“I know Emme,” Dario assured. “She’ll be in good hands, Val.” He walked out without looking back.
There was another silence. It was Marcu who broke it. “We’re going to have to learn the dynamic here, Valentino. Clearly, your wife is head of security for Dario.”
“Yes, she is,” Valentino said. “Dario should have made that clear to you. She means what she says. Dario’s safety must come first before friendship.”
“She’s risking her life talking to him that way.”
“Don’t ever make the mistake of underestimating her,” Valentino said. His voice was still very low, but it had gone hard. “She’s lethal as hell. And never make the mistake of thinking she’s not protected. Anyone touches her and not only would I retaliate, but Dario would also. And then there’s her family. Emmanuelle on her own is enough to contend with, but she isn’t alone, never forget that.”
Geno walked with Amaranthe across the room to the small bar where the espresso machine was located. “Whatever is in the report Dario brought must be good or he wouldn’t have been so eager for all of us to read it.”
“My wife is thorough,” Elie assured. “She has trouble stopping once she’s onto something. She starts out in one direction with some faint clue, and the next thing I know she’ll be at the keyboard for days without eating or sleeping, following a trail that no one else can see. It’s a thing of beauty.”
Stefano sighed. “Damn Dario and Valentino for stealing her right out from under us. Brielle’s brilliant at what she does. Clearly, she has a gift. I’ve asked Renato and Romano, two of my investigators, to send me their report encoded.”
“Beniamino, one of our investigators, is on his way with our report. He should be here any minute,” Lucca said, glancing at his watch.