An Arrangement for the Mafia Princess

Chapter 7- Reilly

-Reilly-

I’ve been to funeral homes before, but I’ve never been in the office of one until now. The man is kind, and he’s trying to be gentle about the subject, but I can see the dollar signs flashing in his eyes as he looks at Gabriella. He’s been offering her the most expensive of everything, and she seems so overwhelmed.

“I’m so sorry, but could we have some water?” I ask, trying to get the man to leave so she can have a moment to herself.

“Perhaps some coffee,” Gabriella suggests. He agrees and stands to leave. “A fresh pot.”

I sigh in relief when he leaves, and I’m sure she feels the same way. “Even death is a business,” she grumbles, looking through all the papers before her. “People say we are terrible for the business we do, but no one talks about this. THIS is the true rip-off.”

I give her a sad smile as she looks back at the papers. She seems so overwhelmed, and I wish I had known Alessandro so I could actually help her. I never met him, though. I don’t know what he liked.

“He never wanted to talk about his death,” she sighs. “It’s a part of life, though, and he left me to deal with it. He was always an asshole.”

I giggle a little, and she smiles at me. “What do you think he’d want?” I ask.

Gabriella shrugs. “I just don’t know. Marco? Do you have thoughts?”

The man who has been driving us today comes to stand behind Gabriella and looks over her shoulder. “He’d have hated to waste that much money on anything. He didn’t talk about it, but I’m sure he’d have agreed that a cardboard box was the best.”

“I agree,” the other man with us says. “He hated to waste money more than anything. He’d want a grand headstone, though.”

Gabriella smiles as she wipes tears from her cheek. “That is very true. I feel overwhelmed. I don’t care what he’s in, just as long as it matches.”

Marco gives me a small smile as he takes the papers from Gabriella and hands them to me. “We’ll pick for her. Something that looks nice, but not a waste.”

I nod and look at the price sheet for the casket, almost choking as I see the more expensive ones. I find a nice white and gold one and look through the rest of the options. Marco and I put something together and show it to Gabriella, who smiles and nods in response.

“He’d have liked you,” she tells me, squeezing my hand. “I’d always hoped he and Sean would work things out and you’d be with my Luca. It worked out even better for Enzo, don’t you think, Marco?”

Marco looks at me with wide, fearful eyes, as if this is some kind of trap. “She seems very nice, Mamma. He’s a lucky man.”

“Very lucky,” she smiles at me as the man returns with only two cups of coffee.

-------------------------

“Let’s stop for lunch,” Gabriella suggests.

“Can’t,” Marco tells her. “You heard Enzo. No stops. Reilly can’t be seen with us yet.”

“You’re really going to let an old woman starve?” she asks as she smiles at me mischievously. If there’s anything I’ve learned today, it’s that all the men love her like their own mother.

He sighs. “I’m sorry. I’m to take you straight to the McCarthy house.”

“What if we’re at a property that we own?” I offer. We were at the funeral home for hours while they tried to suck every dime they could out of her. I’m sure she’s hungry. “We have a pub off 2nd street.”

The other man pulls out a phone and types out a message. His phone dings with a response. “Boss says that’s alright.”

“I’ve never been to an Irish pub,” Gabriella says excitedly.

When we pull up, I climb out first and rush inside. The hostess on duty knows me and immediately takes me to the back room upon my request. The rest follow shortly after and join me.

“This looks like an office,” Marco says, looking around.

I shrug. “We won’t be seen. That’s the important thing, right?”

One of the waitresses comes in with her too-short kilt on, immediately grabbing both men’s attention. It may not be exactly just a pub, but the girls have always been nice to me, and I know they make good money. I don’t ask what else they do here, nor do I want to know.

These Italians are acting like I’ve taken them to an entirely different part of the world as they look at the menu, so I order fish and chips and Guinness for everyone. That’s what’s most popular in the US and seems like a good place to start.

“What do you guys eat?” I laugh.

Gabriella smiles. “Why would we eat something else when the Italian food is best?”

Everyone likes it, and as we eat, I continue to order beers and teach Gabriella how to split the ‘G’. The guys don’t join us, explaining that they’re on duty and that Enzo would kill them. I can see that they want to, though, so I decide I’ll have to bring them back another day when they’re not making sure we leave here alive.

With an arm full of glasses that I stole, I help a tipsy Gabriella into the car. She is one of the nicest people I think I’ve ever met. When I think about her and Enzo, I realize her husband must have been terrible because I don’t understand how my father could have blamed them for Mom’s death for so long.

We start down the road to the house. And I decide to ask the burning question while Gabriella is nice and tipsy. “What does Cattivello mean?”

She smiles at me. “It means naughty. Enzo was always into SOMETHING. Even before he knew what Alessandro did, he acted just like him. We tried to hide it from the boys, but Enzo had questions when he started high school. The other boys found out at an earlier age. How old were you when you learned what Sean does?”

I shrug. “I, ummm… I don’t. That’s not quite true. I know my father has a lot of money, and I know you don’t get that kind of money through legal means. I know that the pub is a front for SOMETHING, but I don’t know what. It’s the same way with everything except the jewelry.”

I watch as Gabriella and Marco meet eyes through the rearview mirror, and I feel ridiculous. I should have lied and said I was in high school. “Do you know what the Esposito family does?” she asks.

I shake my head as my cheeks pink. “I know you’re the competition, but no.”

She smiles and reaches across the seat to pat my leg. “I’ll make sure Enzo explains it tonight. I do not doubt that Sean is a good father, but he can’t keep you safe from what you don’t know about.”

“Thank you,” I tell her. It’s genuine because I’ve hated living my life in the dark like this.

“Does everyone have their seatbelt on?” Marco asks. “We’re being followed. Rocco, call the boss.”

The other man does as instructed. “Voicemail,” he says, as he calls again and again.

I open my phone and call my father, but he doesn’t answer, either. “Same for my father.”

Marco drives around the city. He goes away from the house before going toward it, but not exactly close. “Still there.”

I feel so incredibly nervous. I pull out my phone and call the one person I’m sure will answer, but that Enzo may kill me for calling.

“Hello?

“Fionn,” I breathe out. He answered.

“Reilly, you called,” he says.

“I, umm… I’m so sorry. I need you to get Enzo. Is he in with my father?”

“That’s why you call me?” he asks. I can hear the hurt in his voice.

I sigh. I knew Enzo would be upset, but I didn’t realize that Fionn would be, too. “Please. It’s important.”

“No, Reilly. No,” he says before hanging up.

I look down at the screen, shocked that he wouldn’t even listen to me. “I’ll text him and tell him what’s going on.”

Gabriella reaches across and places her hand on the phone. “No, you can’t text it. There can be no record. Marco, go to the McCarthy house. He has men at the house, correct?” I nod in confirmation. “Wonderful. We have Reilly with us. Whoever is following us would not be that bold.”

“Enzo is going to kill me if someone saw her with us.”

“It will be fine. Go straight there now,” she says calmly.

I feel like my heart may beat out of my chest. Is this why my father won’t let me drive? Are we really in more danger because someone saw me with Gabriella?

“Breath, Reilly,” Gabriella tells me, taking my hand. “I can assure you this isn’t the first time you’ve been followed. They just hid it from you. It’s part of our world, sweetheart.”

I look at her and nod. She’s so calm right now, and I wish I could be that way. I take a deep breath and slowly exhale as I try not to panic, but I’m nothing like Gabriella. “Sorry. I’m trying.”

“I know,” she says, squeezing my hand. “You just don’t know Marco and Rocco. They’ll keep us safe. They’re the best you could ask for other than my own boys.”

Rocco smiles brightly, but I’m not sure Marco even heard her. He’s focused intently on the road and the rearview mirror, and that’s probably the best sign I could ask for. He’s got this. I don’t know him, but Enzo trusts him, and that has to be good enough for me.

I look at the road ahead, then outside my window, and settle on staring at my lap because how fast we’re going isn’t calming my anxiety at all. I absentmindedly rub my scar, but when I catch Gabriella watching me out of the corner of my eye, I move my hand. It won’t do for her to think I’m crazy and not cut out for this.

We’re getting close to the house. We’re getting close to my father. We’re getting close to Enzo. They will keep us safe.

Rocco lifts his phone to his ear. “Hey. I’ve been trying to reach you. We’re being followed. We couldn’t shake him, so we’re coming to you.”

That’s it. That’s all the man says before hanging up. There were no plans made. There was no deep conversation about our safety. There’s so much trust between all of them, and I need to trust that, too.

We turn onto the street, and Marco speeds up before slamming on the brakes and quickly turning into the drive. The gates are already open, and I relax a bit. As we continue down the drive, I glance over my shoulder, finding that there’s no longer anyone behind us.

“I told you,” Gabriella tells me. “No one would be dumb enough to follow us onto your father’s property. You’re safe here.”

I nod and give her a weak smile. I’ve always felt safe here, but I never knew how much danger I was in until now. Does that really change things? My father has always known since Mom died, and he’s kept me safe since then.

We pull up to the house, where a bunch of guys who work for Dad are waiting. They’re all alert with guns drawn, and in the center stands Enzo. The car stops, and he immediately comes to the door, opening it for me. He offers me his hand and helps me out of the car before ushering me inside the house.

“Your Mom,” I tell him as we continue in.

“Marco’s got her,” he says, not turning around. “What happened?”

I shrug. “I don’t know. Marco just said someone was following us.”

“From where? Who?” he asks me.

I blink up at him. I have no clue. “How am I supposed to know?”

Gabriella comes to him and places her hand on his arm. “Calm down. This is the first time Reilly has been followed. She’s scared.”

He looks down at me in disbelief, but his face softens and he puts his arm around me. “Why don’t you ladies go pack Reilly’s things while I finish talking to Sean?”

“No,” Gabriella tells him. “She needs to know what danger she’s in. She has a right to.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Enzo says, looking at me. “There are things he’s told me… I’ll tell you at home.”

I nod, not willing to push him. “Is he alright?”

“He’s very tired,” Enzo frowns. “Go tell him hello and then pack your things.”