Gabriel nods as if the idea is commonplace, but it gives me an idea. “Hang on,” I interject. “What if this whole thing was a plot by one of the underdogs that wanted to take over the Grecoborgataafter my parents died? What if it had nothing to do with Johnny at all, but they needed to get him out of the way first?”
“Go on,” Gabriel says, leaning in to hear my thought through to fruition.
“Maybe hiring me to do the botched hit was a way to divert my attention. I mean, whoever hired me had to know that I wasn’t likely going to go through with it. I’ve never killed anyone in my life, let alone my friend’s brother. Maybe they were just trying to keep me busy so I didn’t stick my nose in my oldborgatawhile they were trying to take out Johnny. They might’ve worried I’d somehow mess with their plans, and decided to keep me occupied instead.”
“While at the same time distracting me too,” Gabriel says as he piggybacks off my idea. “Hell, why not try to distract one of thecaposwith the most powerful connections in the city—not unlike the Grecoborgata, just to make sure I didn’t catch wind of any foul play and use it as an opportunity to cause an upheaval. It could make sense.”
“But who would be that bold?” Pito asks. Everyone looks around at each other with blank stares.
“I don’t know anyone within the Grecoborgatawho would do such a thing,” I say.
“Agreed,” Gabriel chimes in. “If we were talking about some of the Grecos from the days of Camille’s parents, I could name a few. But that family has been without truly substantive players since those two died. I can’t think of a single one of them that would have the ambition and wherewithal to try and kill one of their own from the inside and then clamor for power. Especially not when there’s a direct descendent still in the city.”
“A female descendent,” Leo points out.
“Hey!” I take immediate offense at that. I know he’s mad at me, but that doesn’t mean that he should literally trash all of the principles we’ve upheld together.
Surprisingly, Gabriel comes to his defense.
“It’s true, though,” he says. “We might not agree with it, but Leo’s right. They didn’t recognize your claim to leadership when your parents died, and they aren’t likely to recognize it now either. But that doesn’t mean they don’t still see you as a threat and someone who can stir the pot and cause them trouble.” I momentarily focus on the fact that he said “we” as though he agreed that I should be able to follow in my father’s footsteps. Regardless of the semantics, I think the idea has merit.
“How do we find out who it is? If anyone?” Nick asks. “Their soldiers aren’t exactly forthcoming.”
After a few minutes of deliberating, I suggest a plan that might help us find out.
“I’ll go back,” I say.
All of four of the guys in the room turn to look at me in surprise. “You’ll go back where?” Gabriel asks slowly. I can tell he’s waiting for me to say the answer he already suspects and is preparing to shut down instantly.
“To being a lone wolf for hire.”
“Not a chance,” he says definitively.
“Hear me out, it’s a good plan,” I persist. “I can go back to being unaffiliated and wait for whoever is behind all of this to try and hire me again.”
“What makes you so sure they would?” Nick asks. “Especially after you failed their last job.”
“Technically, I didn’t fail it, not if their job was really just to get me to be distracted and to distract Gabriel in the process.”
“But what if it wasn’t? What if they truly wanted to try and fabricate a valid reason to take you out?”
“Then it’ll still work, because they’ll come back to take a second shot at their plan,” I answer. “I think this could work.”
“No,” Gabriel says again, this time with a raised voice. “It’s too risky. There are a million things that could go wrong. Even the fact that you’re out there unprotected might mean that someone just decides to take a hit on you instead. It’s not going to help solve anything if you wind up dead too.” There’s an edge of worry to his tone that is unmistakable, even though he keeps his face in a stone-cold expression. “And don’t try to give me that whole spiel about how you can take care of yourself and don’t need any help, either, because I have a feeling this is a lot bigger than we think it is.”
An argument is forming in my head because I know that I can do this without dropping the ball, but surprisingly, I don’t need to defend my idea myself because Leo does it for me. “It’s the best plan we have,” Leo says. It’s the most he’s said throughout the course of this entire meeting. “We can’t just wait around like sitting ducks.”
“So, your suggestion is to send your best friend into the line of fire?” Gabriel snaps back at him.
“No. My suggestion is to listen to Camille, who is an effective and capable person, and her idea to try and get to the bottom of this,” Leo says. He’s challenging his brother in no uncertain words. “She doesn’t need you to run in and rescue her, Gabriel. Camille can handle this. She’s not helpless, despite your insistence on making it seem like she is.”
“I never said she was helpless,” Gabriel growls angrily. “Don’t put words in my mouth. I only want to protect her.”
“Why? Because she’s your new girlfriend now?”
“Uh, guys? I’m right here, you know,” I say as I raise my hand in the air to stop their squabbling. It bugs me that they’re literally having a conversation about me right in front of my face as if my say doesn’t even matter.
“Fine,” Gabriel says. His word is so forceful that it doesn’t sound like a concession at all. “Nick, Pito, what do you think about it?”
