NICO

'Are you all right?" Charles moved his face in front of mine and studied my eyes.


I nodded and winced, but I couldn't stop searching Broadway for any sign of Geneva. Those cocksucking Navaros took her before I could stop them.

'You don't look so good, man," Charles told me. 'Let's get you under cover, and we'll clean you up."

I didn't feel so good. I couldn't move my left arm, and I was pretty damn sure I rebroke the ribs Ryder and his brothers cracked that first day at the estate.


Charles moved over to Levi who looked almost as bad as I did. He had taken at least one bullet through his shoulder, but at least his vest held.

Charles's father, uncle, and two of his brothers surrounded him talking fast. The Navaros left a carpet of destruction across Broadway with at least four limos destroyed. Now the Navaros had Geneva.


I didn't want to get under cover or get cleaned up. I wanted to go after her right this minute, but that would only get me killed.

The Levine and Terranova security forces searched the area and even held the intersection under guard to make sure none of the Navaros stuck around.

They didn't. That was the problem. They grabbed Geneva and vanished into the night. They didn't need to stick around to fight the war. They got what they came for.

Charles touched my elbow. I didn't want to go—not now—but he wouldn't leave me alone.

He steered me over to Levi, and the security guys surrounded our party. I couldn't stand that. I should have been the one to guard Levi, Charles, and Don Vincenzo. I couldn't be the one under guard.

I ejected the clip from my sidearm, but I had to use one hand to put a fresh clip into the gun. I kept scanning the area, but the security forces already had every angle covered.

We walked the last few blocks to the Met and rolled into the opera house. The whole gala was in full swing in the lobby with the patrons milling around and moving toward their seats.

The Terranovas guided us to a private room off to one side. Medical teams appeared out of nowhere and started buzzing around me. They insisted on cutting my jacket off, and then the agony hit when they unfastened the Velcro on my vest.

Levi migrated to my side, but he couldn't get very close with the medical crew working on him too. 'Don't worry, man. We'll get her back."

'Why didn't they strike at the place Ryder told you?" Don Vincenzo asked. 'He must have sold us out."

'He didn't sell us out," I growled. 'It's obvious. Don Marco set him up to feed us wrong information. He did it to prove Ryder was disloyal to his own family. Now, not only do they have Geneva, they'll probably kill Ryder to punish him for being a traitor."

'Forget Ryder," Charles countered. 'We need a plan to get Geneva back."

I started to say something and roared in agony when one of the medics tried to pat down my ribs. 'Get the fuck away from me!"

'Easy, man," Levi told me. 'Let them take care of you. You're in bad shape."

I bared my teeth at him, but before I could say anything else, a hush fell over the room. The security guys parted, and three older men in immaculate suits strolled in.

I bit my lip and submitted to the medics as the top Italian dons entered. They only gazed at all the chaos going on. They didn't act like this was at all out of the ordinary. Of course, it wasn't. They saw plenty of this in Italy.

They halted in front of Levi and Don Vincenzo. 'Is everything under control, Consigliere?" one of them asked in perfect English.

'Unfortunately not, Don Guiseppe. A rival family just attacked us on the street outside and kidnapped Don Alonzo's daughter. I'm afraid I'll have to postpone our meeting until I can get her back."

'Of course. We're at your disposal." Don Guiseppe Cattaneo's casual eye traced the room. He took in all the injuries and the security guys talking into their walkie-talkies. 'Let me know if we can offer any assistance."

'We were just discussing…" Levi began when some of the Terranova's crew came over and started talking to him.

'The chopper is airborne, Consigliere. Our recon team tracked the Navaros to the Park Avenue rendezvous. The Navaros are taking Miss Levine to their headquarters building."

'Load up all our guys, and get ready to take the place. Don Vincenzo and I will be with you shortly."

Levi and Don Vincenzo started to turn away. I had to stand there and let the medics stop the bleeding in my arm and shoulder where I took two bullets, but no way in hell was I going to stand around and let the fucking Navaros get away with this.

I waited just long enough for the medics to finish. I set off to follow Levi when Don Guiseppe stopped me. He held out his hand, took mine, and pressed it between both of his. 'Niccolò… Niccolò Greco!"

I blinked at him. 'Uh… Yes, Don Guiseppe?"

He burst into a huge grin that lit up his whole face. 'You don't have to call me ‘don,' my dear boy. You're more highly ranked than I am."

My jaw dropped. I couldn't think of anything to say. The other two dons came over and started talking very fast in Italian.

Levi elbowed through the crowd. 'What's going on?"

'It's Don Edoardo Greco's son!" Don Giovanni D'Angelo exclaimed in a thick Italian accent. 'We thought we had lost him forever!" He grabbed my hand and kissed my knuckles, even though I was still holding my sidearm. 'Padrino! How wonderful to find you at last!"

I glanced over at Levi still blinking in stupid shock. 'Uh… What the hell are they talking about?"

He frowned at me and then at the Italians. 'This… You think Nico is Don Edoardo Greco's son?"

'He is! He is!" Don Giovanni waved up and down in front of my face. 'He's an exact copy of his father."

'I would recognize you anywhere." Don Guiseppe brought my hand to his lips too. 'We're entirely at your service, Padrino."

'Padrino! I can't be!" I looked back at Levi. 'Tell them. Tell them I'm nobody. This is all a Genevant mistake."

'It's no mistake, Padrino." Don Guiseppe pressed my hand again, and his eyes brimmed with tears. 'We've kept your inheritance safe for you, but we had almost given up on ever finding you. What a happy chance to find you here."

'I don't have any…"

Levi cut in. 'Hold it. If Nico is Don Edoardo's son…"

'There's no if about it." Don Guiseppe patted my cheek. 'You look so much like him."

'I can't be!" I stammered. 'I'm an orphan. I'm nothing."

'Your parents were assassinated at Coney Island while they were on an outing with you. You were two years old, and you disappeared before the police could reach the scene. You were never found… until now."

I looked over at Levi, and my world dropped out from under me when I saw him staring at me with huge eyes. Charles, Don Vincenzo, and all their relatives gazed at me with the same wide-eyed amazement.

This couldn't be right. I couldn't be a don, and I definitely couldn't be their Padrino—their godfather—the most powerful mobster on the planet. That wasn't possible.

Don Guisseppe must have noticed how uncomfortable this meeting was making me. He held out his hand to Levi. 'Perhaps, Consigliere, we could meet at your home to discuss this further. I understand Don Niccolò is also staying there."

'Yes, he is." Levi shook his hand. 'We'd be delighted to have you, Don Guiseppe."

They kissed on both cheeks, and then both Don Guiseppe and the other top-level dons came over to say goodbye to me. They all kissed my hand again, but I could only stand there in shock until they all left.

I almost had a stroke when Don Vincenzo and Charles came over and tried to do the same thing. I yanked my hand out of Don Vincenzo's grasp. 'Stop it! I'm not a don! I'm just…" I broke off. I couldn't say it again.

'Take it easy, son," Levi murmured in my ear. 'We'll meet with them at the estate and figure this whole thing out, but right now, we need to deal with getting Geneva back. Do you think you can handle that?"

I snapped out of my trance and spun around to stare at him. Geneva! She was still out there.

If these Italian dons were right about me, that must mean I had a chance with Geneva after all.

All my pain evaporated. I took a roll of tape from the medics, stripped open my shirt, and started taping up my broken ribs. I had to get Geneva back at all costs.