Due to Giovanni's absence, Gael had to oversee the operations of The Manor clubs. In the meantime, he entrusted the operations of The Phantom to Ruth and his head of security. That, he could do to his own club since it was legitimate and the business there was much easier to handle—and he trusted his people. But he could not do the same with the family businesses.
He and Giovanni had to be hands-on with The Manor as much as possible. And only a few of their men were allowed to watch on their behalf. If Giovanni weren't available, he would entrust it to his right-hand man, Salvatore. But because he was sent to London, some of his men left with him too.
Apart from his duties at SVR Corp., Gael oversaw their businesses in New York. Underground gambling rings—like cards, sports, or fighting bets, restaurants, clubs, imported merchandise, and a few stores were just some of what he had to cover. The De Lucas still had protection money to collect all over Brooklyn to this day, but those were merely several thousands of dollars a week. It was nothing compared to what they got from their big businesses. He had done this when he was in Giovanni's position before, so it's not entirely new for him.
Gael and J entered the superclub through the front door. It was only nine in the evening and a Wednesday, yet the club in Brooklyn was full. They were usually packed on Fridays and Saturdays, while other days would be about half less than their peak days. One would think people would be too tired from working all day to be at a club in the evening. But no, they would always have a reason to come. Tonight, for example, was a hump day of the week. Two more days, and it would be the weekend again. That was enough reason to celebrate.
"We'll be at the office. Tell the kitchen to send dinner for us," Gael told Irene, the club's manager before he and J headed upstairs.
The office was at the far right corner of the second floor. There was always at least a guard stationed outside the door. They gave way as Gael and J approached and then the pair entered the room. The office was nothing fancy. It had a desk, a chair behind and two chairs in front of it, a sofa and a coffee table in the middle of the room, and a tall one-way mirror window to the left of the desk that's overlooking the whole dance floor.
Before Gael could take a seat at the desk, one soldier knocked on the door, and he came in after being given permission. The soldier was a few inches shorter than Gael, but he was all muscle—wide, large shoulders, and a thick neck. He carried a dark brown satchel across his body, and he removed it as he approached the desk.
"How much?" Gael asked as he received some papers from the other. It was a documentation of last night's earnings from The Manor Manhattan—a delay in tabulating the turnover because of Giovanni's absence.
"A little over forty-two thousand with receipts. The rest is in there."
As the soldier was saying this, he placed a canvas bag full of money on the desk, and Gael signaled J to count it. After J confirmed the total, Gael signed the paper, pulled a few hundreds from the stack, and gave it to the soldier before he dismissed him. Forty-two thousand dollars with receipts went into a big vault on the left side of the room—money to be taxed—while about eight thousand went straight to the smaller vault under the floorboard—under Gael's chair.
"Boss…" J hesitated as he sat down on the couch. Gael hadn't talked much to him since he picked him up, and the air was tense in the office.
Gael stood in front of the desk, leaned against the edge of it, and folded his arms across his chest as he stared at the other. "Why did you do it, J?"
J ran his fingers through his slick back hair as he let out a sigh. "I just wanted to help. I can't bear to see Gabby getting married to that…fucking wolf. And you… I doubt you want to get married to that Morelli bitch either."
"So you decided to take matters into your own hands and sacrifice yourself? How noble."
J rolled his eyes. "Look… I know I made a mistake. I should have listened and I should not have retaliated. But that's done, and I can't undo that. However, I want to make up for it. Let me do this. I can do this. I've already gone through the play-by-play with Rider. I'm ready."
Gael's jaw tightened. It appeared that his father had really thought this through. Rider was another strategist who worked directly under the Don and was assigned to more labor work. He didn't like him that much, but they worked together sometimes, and the man was good. Taking a deep breath, he briefly closed his eyes and nodded. He wanted to take his mind off Angela. He wasn't feeling the same without her. "Fine. Run me through it."
The corner of J's lips lifted into a grin. "Okay, so the plan is…" For the next hour, J animatedly explained how they would wait for an attack in a safe house after luring the enemies there and then they'd ambush them.
Gael needed a drink. He poured himself and J some as he listened. It wasn't a bad plan, but all Gael could think about was that using J as bait was a bad idea.
***
Mayne, Esmea
As soon as Angela's feet touched Esmea's ground, she felt a deep sense of emptiness. That was a lie; she had actually been feeling like a zombie ever since she left Gael's apartment a few hours ago. She badly needed some pills for her headache, and she regretted not asking the flight attendant.
Before she boarded the plane, she caught sight of Trigger inside the airport lounge. For a second, she thought Gael was also there, but he wasn't. She also thought Trigger would fly with her, but he said he only bought a ticket so he could get in and make sure she boarded the plane safely as per Gael's orders.
Her feet were heavy as she dragged herself out of the airport, rolling her suitcase next to her. Coming home to Mayne after a vacation always energized her. She'd be so exhausted from the trip, but once she came back home, she would be recharged like a mobile phone that got plugged in after its battery was depleted of power. But not this time. Tonight, she felt even more drained.
Angela was just about to call for an Uber until someone familiar approached her. She was sure he was one of Gael's guards. Santiago, he introduced himself. And then he told her about his boss's instruction. Her chest fluttered at the thought of Gael making sure she was safe. Even though she left, he didn't abandon her. And for that, it hurt even more. How could she deserve such a man?
"Shall I drive you home to your apartment or to Oakwood?" Santiago asked as they both settled in the car, and he began pulling away from the curb.
Angela had been thinking about that since she arrived at JFK airport in New York. She thought she wanted to be alone, but she didn't want to go home to her apartment where she would most definitely be alone—next to the neighbors who wanted to kill each other. No, thank you. She could go to her father's house, but she didn't want to face him yet before she got the chance to collect her thoughts and talk to her father about what she discovered about her mother. It was the same for Oliver.
"Can you drive me to Nina's house?" She gave him the address, and he programmed it into the navigation system on the dashboard.
Esmea was the same. She left for weeks, and it all looked the same. The city kept going while her life changed so much. The air was cooler now, but Esmea didn't have winters like New York. Even that, she missed.
The ride going to Nina's place wasn't long. Santiago walked her inside the building, but she insisted that he need not go up with her. He respectfully nodded and gave his phone number before leaving.
Angela didn't call Nina before coming over. She knew her best friend would be home on weekday nights. Nina must be in her PJs on the couch, watching a sitcom. She had a spare key to Nina's apartment, but she didn't have it with her right now. So she pressed the doorbell, hoping her best friend was still awake. She waited for half a minute, but no one answered, so she pushed it again. Was Nina not home?
Angela was just about to press the doorbell again when the door opened, and she came face to face with someone she totally did not expect to see.
He was shirtless, barefoot, and wearing unbuttoned suit pants. "Oh, shit. I thought you were the pizza guy." He smirked, leaning against the door frame and crossing his arms. "Hey, Nin…" he called over his shoulder, "You didn't tell me we were having a third."
Her mouth hung open, unsure what to think of this unexpected encounter. "William… What are you doing here?"
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