Revenge (8 page)

Did she even know what her own husband did
for a living? The look on Kate’s face said she was mystified. She
must have no idea that Andretti was a Mafioso.

Kate looked from Vince to Enrico Lucchesi.
What the hell was going on
? Vince disliked Enrico, so why
had he encouraged her to work for him?

A sick feeling invaded her gut. If Vince was
in the Mafia, and if Carlo hated Enrico, perhaps Vince wasn’t
really here to see her? A few weeks ago he’d asked when she saw the
big boss, and she’d told him Enrico’s visiting schedule. At the
time, he’d seemed merely curious. But perhaps he had a darker
motive for asking. What had Vince said to Enrico?
I wouldn’t
think of it. Not with all these kids around.

She had to speak to Enrico privately, and it
was going to take more than a few minutes. More time than Vince
would spare her. And there was the little matter of the overnight
bag. Vince had taken it; it was sitting at his feet right now.

Except for the photos, she could replace
everything. If he thought taking the bag would stop her from
leaving, he was dead wrong.

All he’d done was make her more determined.
But first she had to get rid of him.
Fake an illness
. She
let out a little cough and rubbed her arms again.

Enrico touched her forearm. “Are you
unwell?”

While she was nodding at Enrico, Vince
stepped down, pulling her to him, his body curving around hers.
“Maybe I should take you home.”

No
! “You were right earlier. I’m not
feeling that great.” She pressed a hand against her stomach. “I
think I’m going to be sick.”

“Come on, I’ll take you home then.”

She shook her head. “What about the Ferrari?
The road is so twisty, I might throw up.”

“I don’t care about the car.”

Ooh
,
that was a lie
. But of
course he’d say that. He knew she wasn’t sick. “I’d like to stay
put for a while and see if this passes.”

“Come on.” His eyes cut into her. No doubt he
was thinking of the overnight bag.

“I can take her home when I leave,” Enrico
offered.

Vince stared at him. “I can take care of my
wife.”

“I did not imply otherwise. It is clear she
would like to stay here for a time. Since I have business here, I
can accommodate her. And you.”

“I don’t need no accommodating from you,
signore
. Just mind your own business. This is between a
husband and wife.”

Enrico looked at her cheek, then he said
dryly, “I can see that.”

Kate flushed and jerked away from Vince’s
hold. “Signor Lucchesi can bring me home.”

“Fine,” Vince said, though his tone indicated
the situation was anything but. He kissed her on the cheek. “Call
if you want me to come get you.” She nodded, and he leaned in
close, whispering in her ear. “Come home to me, Katie.” The
pleading note in his voice tightened her throat.

“I will,” she lied, then watched Vince head
to his car after picking up her bag and giving a curt nod to
Enrico. Part of her still didn’t want to believe that he’d hit
her.

Part of her still didn’t want to believe it
was blood on his jacket.

But maybe she’d get some answers about that.
If Enrico had been Carlo’s son-in-law, he knew the family well. He
would know who they really were. And she would find out how much
trouble she was in.

Then again
… Guards surrounded them.
Maybe Enrico has a secret of his own.
He looked down at her,
concern evident in his gaze. Could she trust him? Some instinct
said yes.

She took a deep breath to calm her nerves.
“May we speak?” She looked around at the guards. “Without your
entourage?”

Coloring slightly, Enrico studied his shoes
and nodded. He followed her inside and down the hallway, their
steps echoing on the marble floor. As always, Kate thought the
place was quite ritzy for an orphanage. Enrico spared no expense
when it came to the children. They had new clothes, sparkling
furnishings, an extensive library, excellent teachers. He even
sponsored private university educations for the children with top
marks. A man like that, a man who really cared—that was a man worth
trusting, right?

When they reached the door to her office,
Enrico’s hand brushed the small of her back as he leaned around
her, pushing the door open for her. He’d never touched her in such
a possessive way before. The heat of his hand branded her through
the thin blouse. He was a great deal taller than she was; in fact,
he positively loomed over her. Perhaps she should have felt
intimidated, but his height served only to highlight the contrast
between his masculinity and her femininity.

Her attraction to him had always lurked in
the background, but she’d done her best to ignore it, to keep
Enrico firmly in the friend category, despite that easy smile,
those deep brown eyes, that wavy black hair—she’d wondered more
than once what it would feel like, running through her fingers.
That strong, straight nose, that firm chin, that square jaw that
all conspired to make him fashion model handsome. That deep voice
with its upper-crust British accent and the liquid lilt of Italian
as an undercurrent running through it. But now, after what had
happened this morning, some traitorous part of her was thinking
otherwise….

Cool it
,
Kate
. She was not in
the market for a new husband. Rather, she was in the market for a
divorce.

She marched into the room and sat down behind
the desk, wanting the expanse of wood between them.
There
,
that was better. Much better
.

He closed the door, then took the chair
across from her. “You are not actually ill, yes?”

It was her turn to blush. “No. I needed to
speak to you. Alone.”

He leaned forward and gestured toward her
cheek. “May I ask what happened?”

So polite, this man. It brought tears to her
eyes. He was nothing like Vince. “I’d rather not talk about
it.”

“Kate,
per favore
, allow me to be
frank. There is trouble between you and your husband, yes?”

She kept her eyes glued to the pathetic
little plant on the corner of her desk. Her one attempt at making
the cluttered office more homey. She opened her mouth to speak and
found a lump in her throat that threatened to strangle her. Trying
to speak around it, she managed a hoarse whisper. “
Signore
,
I beg you not to mention it again.”

He sat back. “At least call me Enrico when
you dismiss me.” He put enough lightness in his tone to tell her he
wasn’t offended. “If you did not wish to talk about your husband,
why did you want to see me?”

“Dottor Laurio is ill. And I need my paycheck
for the month.”

“Ah.” He reached inside his jacket pocket and
withdrew a fine leather wallet. “I assume cash will be
preferable?”

“If you have that much on you.”

He smiled. “How much do I owe you?” She named
the amount and watched as he counted out the bills and handed them
to her. A thick stack of euros remained in his wallet. Who the hell
carried that much cash around?

“Is there anything else I can do for you?” he
asked.

Kate hesitated. How did she go about asking
whether her husband was in the Mafia? Could she just come out with
it, or should she hint at the subject? It was difficult to tell
with Italians sometimes. They could be so oblique.

Clasping her hands together on the desk, she
decided to go with the indirect approach. But first she’d put him
in the hot seat. “Why do you have all the guards with you? Usually
it’s just you and your driver. Antonio, isn’t it?”

“Actually, Antonio is my personal bodyguard.
I have two. Ruggero is the other.”

Kate raised an eyebrow. “You have two
bodyguards?”

“Well, four today, but Claudio and Santino
aren’t always with me.”

“Okay, but why are they here
now
?”

When he rubbed his chin, she heard the faint
scrape of stubble against his fingertips. “Unfortunately, Italy is
not as civilized as you might think. The Mafia has a bad habit of
kidnapping well-to-do businessmen. I received information today
that suggests I am in imminent danger. Therefore, I must have
protection. More than usual.” He let out a brief chuckle. “My
insurer would lock me up without it. It is a bit of a nuisance,
really. But there is a cost to having money.”

“But four guards? Really?”

“The ‘Ndrangheta has infiltrated all aspects
of society here in recent years. It is worst around Milan, but they
are here at the lake now too.”

“N-drang-ayta? What’s that?” Kate asked, her
stomach tightening.
Is this what Vince had gotten himself mixed
up in
?

“The ‘Ndrangheta is the Calabrian Mafia. The
name means ‘The Honored Society.’”

“So they’re not part of the Sicilian Mafia?
That’s the only one I’ve ever heard of.”

“Yes, the ‘Ndranghetisti are separate from
Cosa Nostra. And they are much trickier for the law to stop.”

“Why?”

“Because the ‘Ndrangheta is organized along
family lines—blood family. Any man who is caught will not easily
turn on his father, his brothers, his cousins.”

Interesting
. Vince worked for his
uncle. It fit the profile. “How many ‘Ndrangheta families are
there?”

“About one hundred and fifty. And each family
has a boss who has no boss.”

Kate whistled. “A hundred and fifty
bosses?”

“So you see the problem.”

“These are the men you have to watch out
for?”

“Yes.” Apparently seeing the alarm on her
face, he hastened to add, “Do not worry. You are probably not in
any danger. They typically kidnap only the very wealthy. And they
usually do not kill the people they kidnap. There is no money in
that. They are, fortunately, a practical people.”

“Then why all the guards? It doesn’t sound so
bad.”

“Their victims often do not go home in one
piece.” He wiggled his fingers.

Kate felt faint.
Oh God
. “They cut off
fingers?”
What if Vince had done that
?

“Proof of life. Or a threat of its opposite.
It tends to motivate payment.”

“But wouldn’t they get paid anyway?”

“If the family can afford it. The ransom
demands are often… exorbitant.” He smiled ruefully. “Millions of
euros, usually.”

“I had no idea it was so lawless here.”

“Lawless? No. But certainly this is not
America.” He paused and looked at her closely for a moment. “You
did not ask me here to talk about my troubles.”

“It’s interesting though.” Kate wanted to
keep him talking; she wasn’t quite ready to ask her question. “I
want to learn more about Italy, and certainly the Mafia is a big
part of this country.”

“Yes and no. The Mafia organizations are more
pervasive in the south. In some towns in Calabria, every man is a
member of the ‘Ndrangheta. That is hardly true here in the north.
Still, they do have influence.”

“Only to the extent that criminals everywhere
have influence.”

“That is where you are wrong. The Mafia
controls much of the Italian state as well, from the Prime Minister
down to the local chief of police.” He paused. “Even now, the
Italian government is rewriting laws to avoid having to prosecute
our Prime Minister, Italo Baldassare, on various Mafia-related
charges.”

“Why don’t the people fight it? Why don’t
they try to stop the Mafia?”

“The situation is complicated. Cosa Nostra
and the ‘Ndrangheta date back over a hundred years. Originally,
they protected villagers from bandits, and later they helped defeat
the French. The Bourbons did not care about the Italian people.
They just saw us as a source of revenue.” His smile was wry. “The
Mafia had noble origins, noble intentions. And they still do in
some cases. They help people who cannot find justice any other way.
And they do help the less fortunate.”

Kate snorted. “You make it sound rather
romantic. They kill people, Enrico. They would kidnap you and cut
off your fingers if they could.”

“I do not disagree. But one cannot be Italian
and not understand why they exist, what purpose they serve.”

“You can’t be noble and terrorize people at
the same time.”

“You do not understand Italians, do you?”
Enrico smiled at her.

“They’re just like other people.”

Shaking his head, he leaned forward. “Every
Italian male thinks he is a prince. One must be a bigger, badder
prince to get him to obey. Intimidation is all most Italian men
understand.”

Kate smiled with her lips pursed. “You’re
kidding me.”

“I am not.” He shook his head again,
laughing.

“So what did you do to impress the men who
work for you? What did you do to stop your competitors?”

Enrico’s smile faded and he sat up straight.
“I did what I had to do. I put on a big, swaggering show. I dressed
better, I thought better, and I was ruthless in my business
dealings. I crushed some other companies. It was necessary.”