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Chapter 495 – Daggers Under The Sleeves

Gael had the entire perimeter in the club searched and the security tapes checked. The small packet that was the size of his hand was at the front desk. Many patrons came to the club, and it seemed as if it was placed there inconspicuously. They only noticed it was there a few minutes later.

After the security checked the CCTV, they saw a caucasian man in his 30s, slipping it on the desk before entering the club. They didn\'t find him inside anymore, and there was no record of him going out through the front, so he could\'ve left through the back door where only exit was allowed.

Gael made some calls, and by midnight, he learned that Alessandro and Giovanni had received a package too. Thinking that it was a bomb since it came in a box, their men checked it first. Inside the boxes were their father\'s shoes—one pair, one shoe on each of the boxes. They knew it was the shoes that Severino wore last before he died.

What kind of sick person would do this?

Years ago, they found Severino shot in the head with no clothes on. They stripped him naked, and his stuff was gone, making them all wonder what they did to them.

Gael\'s grandfather had somehow sensed that his time was near—the old man probably didn\'t know he was going to get murdered. Still, he could feel that he was about to face the god of death, making him write the first and only emotional letter he had ever written, addressed to his children and family.

Gael had read that letter. He resented it. He killed people despite what his grandfather wanted—not to seek revenge. One person was a Morelli accomplice that his men found and brought to him in one of his family\'s restaurants in Italy. He shot the man in the head…and his then-girlfriend, Becca, saw him.

Giovanni was a lost soul at that time. He didn\'t care much. He partied, drank a lot, and slept through half the female population, blaming himself for his father\'s death.

Alessandro was so angry that he nearly lost his mind, unable to do anything because of that letter. Back then, they hadn\'t known about his brother\'s cancer. And while he wanted to disregard the letter, find the Morellis and slaughter them all, his brother, Pietro, was his voice of reason.

~~~

"Father\'s right. What good would it do? They killed him. And then what? We kill one of them too? What happens next?" asked Pietro. "They\'ll come after one of us again. And then the cycle just repeats itself."

"So you don\'t want to do anything? Fuck!" Alessandro swiped everything on his desk, glass shattering on the floor. "You\'ll just let them win, is that it?"

"Winning? This isn\'t about winning. They lost family. We lost family. Both of us are losing."

"Oh, bullshit! Don\'t get smart with me now. They won\'t have the chance to retaliate if we finish all of them. All. Of. Them."

Pietro looked up to his brother, his expression looking weak as he took his time answering. "Even their women? Their children? Because the only way that the cycle ends would be to slaughter every single one of them, including all the bastards they cast away or hid. You knew what happened after Grandfather killed Mario\'s father. Mario was just a boy then. He made himself, and the cycle continued when he became powerful in his city. So are you willing to kill everyone? You\'re not that kind of person, Sandro. We\'re thieves…but we\'re not heartless."

~~~

Needless to say, conversations like that didn\'t happen just once. Although Alessandro wanted his revenge, he never acted on his own and without his brother. It wasn\'t until Pietro came forward and told Alessandro about his cancer that they finally agreed to honor their father\'s wish.

It was quiet for a while. The Morellis stayed away from the De Lucas for some time after that. And when the Morellis found out about the shift in power and how the De Lucas were trying to legitimize their businesses, they took advantage of it. They still wanted to take New York as their territory.

Gael\'s family might want to get out of their clandestine businesses, but it didn\'t mean they\'d allow the Morellis to take over New York. They\'d die protecting what was theirs.

The recent threats and taunting were like the eye of the storm. It was as if Perry or Filippo wanted to create chaos and disorganization to weaken the De Lucas.

Gael wasn\'t having any of it. He found it amusing that Filippo thought he could do what his father couldn\'t.

That night, Gael took Angela home, made sure her security was in place, and then he went out to meet his father and uncle. The three of them stayed locked in a room until the wee hours of the morning, laying out all the risks, plans, and contingencies.

This time, Alessandro wasn\'t going to hold back. Fuck the letter. 

This Morelli was an animal that got out of its cage—there was no redeeming on this one. Even his brother, Mariano, wanted him dead.

So if Filippo wants to take New York, he\'d have to come get it himself. And the De Lucas would wait for him with open arms…and daggers under their sleeves.

***

Saturday — March 16

"You have to finish that before your wedding!" Nina excitedly barked in Angela\'s ear through her phone, talking about her new book: Black Heart.

Angela had sent the plot to her this morning after she had visualized the whole thing in her head. And she, herself, thought it was pretty good and even planned it to be a series—another installation under Galatea K.S.\'s dark romance theme.

The cutesy, sweet, and steamy works she wrote for Samantha\'s app were fun to write, and she would probably write one again in the future, but at the moment, this was what occupied her head. How could she not? She was surrounded by men that gave her inspiration every day. Heck—she was sleeping with one.

"It\'s pretty exciting, isn\'t it? I don\'t want to rush it, though. So I\'ll take my time on this one. I don\'t want to ruin it and be careless…" Angela said.

"Okay, but don\'t take too much time. Oh, and by the way, have you guys decided on a date yet?"

Angela brought her knees up on the couch and hugged them to her chest. She was alone in the living room with the TV on while Gael was a few meters down in his office. He had been there since after dinner, going over his plan on a future project in KMH—one that he would immediately realize after they\'d taken Perry out.

She shook her head even though her best friend couldn\'t see her. "Not yet. Now\'s not the time for that. They\'re…very busy."

"When are they not?"

Nina was right about that. Gael always had some things to do. But that didn\'t discourage Angela. Besides, they were always together, so it already felt like they were married, and the wedding would only be like a formality.

She wasn\'t NOT doing anything. In fact, when she wasn\'t writing her book, Angela would browse wedding gowns on the Internet. Perhaps she could invite Nina over one of these days so they could shop around.

A bang on the door made Angela turn her head towards it. Gael\'s men had already left the apartment. Some were still around the area just in case, but only the two of them were inside, and no one was guarding the door. They weren\'t expecting anyone, too, so she wondered who it might be.

After ending her call with Nina, Angela strolled towards the door and looked through the peephole just as Giovanni banged on it again.

She let out a sigh as she opened it to let him in.

Giovanni was drunk. Again. He\'d been drinking a lot lately.

Smiling down at her, he hooked his arm around her neck, and she struggled to bring him over to the couch, dumping him on there because he was too heavy for her.

"I\'ll get you some water," she said as she was about to turn.

She hadn\'t taken a step away as he grabbed her by the wrist, pulling her down the couch next to him. "I\'m not thirsty, just…ssstay here for a sec," he slurred.

Resigning, she let him tuck her under his arm while he complained about human rights. Angela had absolutely no idea what the heck he was talking about.

She quickly shot Gael a text to tell him his drunk Uncle was there.

"You think I want to fulfill my fucking promise?" Giovanni bit out, the smell of alcohol strong on his breath. She had to stop breathing. My god. What was wrong with him now?

"I want to fucking end her. But I also NOT want to end her. How does that make sense?" He sighed.

Gael came out, his brows deeply knitted as he took in the scene at the couch, frustration written all over his face.

"There he is! My favorite nephew! God, I love you! You know that?" Giovanni smiled wide, sitting straight and pointing at Gael. He turned to Angela, holding her face and squeezing it between his hands, her lips puckering. "And you, you adorable little Angela, you are…lucky!" And then he planted a big kiss right smack on her lips.

Angela\'s eyes went wide, caught off-guard. She pulled back and placed her hands on his chest to push him, but then he leaned away with a big, goofy smile on his stupid face and said, "I\'m so happy you\'re marrying my nephew."

"Alright, that\'s it," Gael grunted in his deep, stern voice as he grabbed Giovanni\'s collar, pulling him up to his feet and dragging him towards the guest room. "Get the fuck off my woman and get in bed, or I\'ll throw your ass on the street."

Giovanni laughed, patting Gael\'s cheek while they reeled away. "Don\'t be a jealous dick. You\'ll have her forever."

"What the fuck is happening to you?" Gael hissed.

Angela trailed behind them, watching as Gael dropped Giovanni\'s dead weight on the bed, the latter\'s face falling on the pillow. She walked over and removed his shoes while Gael grumbled under his breath and savagely threw a blanket over the idiot on the bed.

"Her…" Giovanni mumbled in his sleep. "She…happened to me…."