“I won’t be a party to that,” he finally said. “I’ve always been on your side, Sergio. I’ve fought quite a few battles and wars with you. We’ve built up all of this and managed to make it legal. I understood that we needed to get some people out of the way every now and then. But if you order the assassination of the mayor, then it will have far broader implications than we’ll be able to handle. His death would drag all of us into the abyss!”
Sergio stared in surprise at his oldest and most loyal companion. He wasn’t used to hearing such explicit opposition from him.
“I know you’re not afraid of anything,” Nelson implored “but we can also solve this problem. Right now it’s important to come to an agreement with Ortega. Everything else will turn out all right.”
“Kostidis is destroying everything I’ve built,” Sergio said in a sinister tone. “He ’s tasted blood and won’t let go anymore. You know that as well as I do!”
“If you plan on killing him, I want no part of it,” Nelson repeated in a low voice as he looked away. Sergio raised himself up with difficulty, but he hadn’t lost all of his strength.
“Nelson,” he said softly, “you’re my oldest friend. You’re the only person on this planet I would call a friend. However, you know that I can’t afford this. You understand that Kostidis has turned into an incalculable risk, don’t you?”
“Yes,” Nelson nodded, “but that doesn’t mean you need to kill him!”
Sergio stared straight through him for a long time. After a while, Nelson bowed his head.
“If you’ll excuse me now,” he said, “I need to go to the medical examiner’s office. The results of the autopsy should be available at one o’clock. I also need to post bail for Silvio.”
Sergio sat down again after Nelson left the room. He looked around aimlessly, looking gloomy.
“Luca,” he said eventually, “please prepare a plan for how we can silence Kostidis once and for all. I don’t care how you do it. The most important thing is that it happens fast.”
Luca nodded.
“And pick two of your best men. They should keep an eye on Nelson around the clock.”
“Okay, boss.” Luca bowed slightly and left.
“Papa,” Massimo said, turning to his father after silently following this scene, “do you think that Nelson will betray us?”
“No,” Sergio replied, sounding tired. “Nelson’s sick. He’s getting old. His nerves aren’t the best anymore. He was different back in the day, but he’s forgotten what it means to wage a war.”
“But Ortega—” Massimo started to say.
“I’m not talking about Ortega,” Sergio said. “I’m talking about Kostidis. His weapons are much more subtle than Ortega’s, but no less effective. He takes advantage of every sign of weakness. He’s clever, too.”
When Alex arrived at Sergio’s apartment, she had to admit that he seemed to be in control of his situation, although he was clearly still unwell. His face was leaner than usual, and his expression was more pronounced and colder. He looked like a general—proud, aware of his power. The apartment, which was usually deserted, was crowded with his men. Alex even had to put up with them searching her purse.
“I’m very sorry about your son,” Alex said, stopping a few feet shy of him. She made no attempt to kiss him. She had not forgotten that he’d knowingly put her life at risk.
“Thank you,” he replied, “it’s hard for his mother.”
“And for you?”
His eyes narrowed for a split second, and then he raised his shoulders.
“Cesare was a weak person,” he said. “He was a drug addict, a frail man.”
“But he was your son!” Alex was shocked by his indifference.
“And still, he didn’t mean more to me than anyone else,” Sergio countered. “Are you shocked now? Why should I pretend to be the grieving father if I’m not?”
Alex remained silent. If she thought that he needed comfort after all that had happened, then she was wrong. Sergio was miles away from any kind of human feelings.
“How are you, cara?” he asked.
Alex didn’t respond to his question. “How are you?”
“Getting better. They removed the bullet.”
Alex couldn’t believe it. He acted as if this were all as trivial as an appendectomy.
“I’m wondering why you’re keeping half an army of bodyguards in your apartment,” she said coolly. “The television said that they arrested the shooter.”
Sergio sat down on the sofa.
“Well, you never know.” His expression was inscrutable.
“Maybe you vaguely remember that I was standing right next to you when you were shot,” Alex countered harshly, “and without a bulletproof vest at that! It wasn’t this guy. So who was it then?”
“I know who it was,” countered Sergio, “but that doesn’t matter. It wasn’t meant personally.”
“It wasn’t meant personally?” Alex laughed in disbelief. “I think I’d take it personally if someone was trying to kill me!”
“I stepped on someone’s toes.” Sergio sipped his whiskey to numb the pain in his shoulder, at least a little bit. “And that was his response.”
Alex stared at Sergio. He felt more like a stranger than ever before. The presence of the armed men triggered the same uneasy feeling she had at the warehouse in Brooklyn.
“Come, sit down next to me!” Sergio asked her. Alex hesitated. She complied with his request but sat at the far end of the couch.
“Why did you want to see me?” she asked stiffly. “I dropped everything because your son said it was urgent.”
“I thought about our conversation,” Sergio said. “You mentioned that you wanted to end our relationship.”
Alex kept silent and waited for him to keep talking.
“I understand that you’re angry with me,” he continued in an unusually reasonable manner. “I’ve made some mistakes. But I don’t want to lose you, and that’s why I’d like to suggest something to you.”
Alex didn’t want to hear his suggestion. He leaned forward and grabbed her hand before she could get up.
“You don’t have to give me an answer right away. Take your time and think about it.” He didn’t smile. His eyes were inscrutable. He looked at her for a while and then let go of her hand. He stood up.
“I’m divorcing Constanzia,” he said to Alex’s complete astonishment, “and I want you to be my wife.”
Alex didn’t think she had heard right. Marry Sergio? Just a year ago she would have thought about it, but she’d seen far too much of Sergio’s world. The things that she’d witnessed had revolted her. Sergio turned toward her.
“So what do you think?”
Alex struggled to keep her composure. He had her cornered. She searched desperately for the right words.
“That…comes as quite a surprise.”
“You could keep working or not. You could do whatever you want.” His voice was rough. “I’ll buy you a house and we could have children. Isn’t that what you want?”
Alex cringed at the thought of her life married to Sergio and completely at his mercy. People died by his order, and the memory of the dark warehouse in Brooklyn made her wince.
“Promise me that you’ll think about it?” He squatted down in front of her and grabbed her hands. The look in his blue eyes was serious, and something deep inside them alarmed Alex. Sergio was a man with many faces. There was a reason for everything he did. But why did he want to marry her all of a sudden? What had happened?
“I’ll think about it,” she replied to put him off. “I promise.”
“Good.” There was an irritating hint of triumph in his smile. She felt quite sure that this was part of a larger plan that she didn’t understand. She was glad that he didn’t try to kiss or sleep with her. Alex rejected his offer to be driven downtown. She just wanted to get out of this apartment, away from this man she couldn’t figure out and who terrified her so much.