My first full day back in the real world and I’m already itching to get a one-way ticket back in. Years, two fucking years, I’d been behind bars like a fucking animal. I want the head of the bastard that put me inside with a burning passion so strong that I can’t think of anything else. I slam the glass down on the three-hundred-year-old wooden desk that had belonged to an Italian count before I purchased it at an auction right before I ended up with my freedom taken away. The sound reverberates through my ears.
Damn. I still remember the sound of the gavel hitting the wooden base and the prison bars slamming closed. That was what happened when a man stayed clean instead of giving in to the natural order of things. I’d been put away for a murder I didn’t commit. Even with the truth out, I’m certain that many will still believe that I’m a hitman for my father’s organization disguised as a wealthy businessman.
Time to go meet with my father and decide his fate along with everyone else in my family. I denied the life of crime only to let them suck me into a world where my name was dragged through the mud. I don’t know how many of them were involved and if it went all the way up to my father, but I know he resented my choice to leave the family to live on the legal side of the law enough to send me to prison.
A knock at the door drags my attention from the window.
“Come in,” I say, standing and gearing up to leave.
Martin, my oldest ally, enters and says, “Signor Marchetti, your car is ready.”
“Thank you, Martin.”
In a moment of solemnness, he says, “It is so good to have you back.” I nod and shake his hand. Martin has been one of the few who spent his time working to free me. He and my lawyer made quick work of getting me out, although people would see two years a long time; I sure as fuck did. However, when it came to the court system, that was just a blink of an eye. I slip on my sunglasses and walk out to the waiting car, a blacked-out black sedan, with Martin at my side.
“I don’t mean to push, but do you think you should go to see them alone?” Martin’s one of the few people I trust, and he’s one of the only people who know that the setup was an inside job.
“I’ll be fine. I’m not alone. Plus, they don’t know that I know the setup came from someone inside the family, and I doubt Diego would let slip that he ratted out Rafael.” I won’t be visiting again unless it’s to deliver my revenge.
“Okay, but remember that you’re to remain composed. Don’t let on that you know.” I smile because he’s serious, as if somehow I’m going to forget my plan. I’ve been waiting two years to strike down all those involved, and none of them know I’m coming for them.
“I won’t. I’m going to talk a little shop and see what’s going on. I do have a call with my board of directors tonight so two hours after my arrival, send a text to remind me.”
“I will. Be careful, please.” He’s afraid that my release was expedited so that they could time my death to their schedule.
I slide my tall frame into the back seat, popping the button on my suit jacket and adjusting it to get comfortable. It’s been two years since I’ve worn a nice suit. I loved a quality-cut suit. All of mine were custom made and thankfully, Martin came in and took my measurements when they learned I’d be getting out and had my tailor working overtime to get me two suits by my release day and a dozen within the next week.
I take off my sunglasses and lower the divider to talk to my driver and friend. Sitting in a sixty-thousand-dollar car with Italian leather seats should feel like heaven, but the burning rage in me made the world hard to enjoy.
“Joey, take me to my parents’ home.”
“Yes, sir.” I love being Italian and everything that it means, or at least what it used to mean, but nothing is better than loyalty, even if my right-hand muscle is Irish. He has his own code of ethics and family. I trust him with my life. Hiring Joey was an easy choice because I secured his loyalty after saving his ass, literally, from some boy-pussy-hungry inmates. They never fucked with him again.
Despite knowing Rafael and someone else in the family betrayed me, I refuse to be anyone else’s pawn. Big, hardened, and strong as fuck, I proved my street credit in prison while still remaining calm. My goal is still to return to my clean life, but I have a few bodies to drop and then it’s all clear from there. Finding those I can trust to take out the trash has been few and far between.
The drive from my home in Scarsdale, New York to Greenwich, Connecticut takes longer than I’d hoped, but I’m just in time to see my asshole brother drive away. Good. I don’t want them together. I want uncoached answers when I speak to them about my imprisonment.
We pull up to the gate after Rafael’s a good distance away. “We’re here to see Mr. and Mrs. Marchetti,” Joey says with his extremely thick Boston accent.
I roll down my window and smile at Anthony. My father’s main guard is completely surprised to see me, but he doesn’t let on whether it’s a good thing or not.
Gathering himself, he says, “Signor Marchetti, your father and mother will be so pleased to see you.” He opens the gate and lets me in. We take the quarter mile up the driveway quickly, hoping to keep him off kilter. Seconds after we put the car in park, my father comes to the
