Golden Atonement - Chapter 68

Chapter Thirty-Four

Reaper

It was a miracle.

Sitting at my kitchen table in my house, it was silent.

I could finally catch my breath and think.

No kids, no brothers, no wives, just plain, beautiful silence. Of course, if my math was correct, I had about three minutes left of pure bliss before all hell broke loose.

Drinking my coffee, I watched the minutes tick by, counting down the seconds before life’s interruptions would begin. I could already hear the light shuffle of feet above me as low moans and groans of unwilling participants got up, reluctantly willing to start another day when someone flung open my back door and growled.

Banging my head on the table, I moaned, “I still had three minutes, asshole.”

“Get over it,” Bullseye sneered, stomping over to the table, dragging a chair across the floor before plopping his annoying ass in it, glaring at me. “When is my wife coming home?”

Sighing, I looked at the man who shared my blood and wondered if Pops would like a companion in hell because I was seriously considering sending Dylan to visit the man.

“Two weeks. You knew this before shit kicked off, and you agreed. Why are you bitchin’ now?”

Like I knew he would, Dylan huffed, crossing his arms over his chest and said absolutely nothing.

Grumpy bastard.

“Good morning, Bullseye.” My beautiful wife breezed into the kitchen like it were nothing to see a brother brooding at her kitchen table. “Would you like a cup of coffee?”

“Yes, please,” the man grumbled.

“Max, get your nephew a cup of coffee.”

Dylan smirked.

“Fucker can get it himself. He interrupted my quiet time,” I snarked right before Massacre, Matrix, and Ink walked in the back door.

Rolling my eyes, I sat back while mayhem ensued.

“Boss, got a call last night. We got visitors coming today and Remi got another delivery.” Massacre smiled as he walked in the front door carrying another bouquet.

Groaning, I banged my head on the table.

“No.”

Placing them on the table before me, I glared at the offending, smelly weeds.

When I got my hands on this motherfucker, I was going to strangle the fucker with my bare hands.

“JESSE!” my wife yelled. “If you want breakfast, move your ass!”

“Woman, that better be tea you’re drinking,” Ink said, sauntering into my home like he owned the fucking place.

What the fuck was happening?

“MOM!” my son shouted. “I can’t find my shoes!”

“Max, don’t forget I have my prenatal appointment today.”

“Dude!” Ink smirked. “You buy Remi anymore flowers and you’ll go broke.”

“What!” my head snapped up.

No one moved but when Ink smirked and whispered, “Oops,” I jumped to my feet and roared, “I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!”

He was a dead man walking!

“MOM!” Jesse screeched like a banshee while a thundering herd of elephants rumbled down the stairs. My soon-to-be-dead son ran straight for his mother, his sister hot on his tail.

“You’re dead!” I shouted angrily, pointing my finger at Massacre who just smiled like a fucking moron.

Emma looked ready to commit murder, and from the way she was glaring at her brother, I was fairly sure she was more than willing to do twenty-five to life if she got her hands on the little shit.

Cowering behind his mother, my son stuck his head out and snipped, “It wasn’t me!”

“Bullshit!”

Sighing, my wife asked, “What happened?”

“Your son destroyed all my makeup!” Emma seethed. “The new stuff my dad just bought me!”

“He’s my dad too, Emma!”

“Not for long,” my daughter growled, stepping closer.

Sighing, my wife turned to Jesse. “Tell me you didn’t?”

“I swear, Mom. It wasn’t me this time. I promise!”

“Liar!”

“Uh, Emma?” Ink snickered, getting the angry teen’s attention, pointing to something behind her. We all turned and stared while Snickers, my daughter’s silver pit bull, sat wagging her tail, her face painted in many colors.

“See!” Jesse laughed. “Told ya it wasn’t me!”

Sighing, my wife tried to be the peacemaker. “Emma, after school, I will take you to replace what you need. In the meantime, you can borrow mine.”

“And what? Look like a whore.”

Before I could move, Remi’s hand shot out and slapped Emma across the face.

No one moved.

No one breathed.

With tears running down her face, my wife stood straight and clearly said, “Jesse, go finish getting dressed. Massacre will take you to school.”

“Sure,” Mass muttered, all laughter now gone as he got to his feet. “Come on, kid. We’ll stop and get breakfast too.”

“If you all don’t mind, Max and I need to have a moment alone with Emma,” my wife added, never taking her eyes off the teen, who stood stock still, holding the right side of her face.

As my brothers filed out of my house, I walked over to my wife, standing behind her while she simply said, “Apologize.”

When Emma refused to say the words, I growled, “Now.”

“I will not. It’s the fucking truth and you know it, Dad.”

“What is?” Remi asked too calmly for my tastes.

“That you are a whore. I saw the pictures.”

Moving Remi behind me, I sneered, “What the fuck are you talking about, Emma? What pictures?”

“The ones Angelica Morales showed me. You married a fucking whore!”

“Oh God,” Remi gasped, hiding her face behind her hands.

“Your slut wouldn’t tell me anything, so I asked Angelica. She told me everything!” Emma screamed, tears running down her face. “You married a Russian slut. She spread her legs for any man who wanted her. She’s nothing but a whore and you… you raped my mother!”

Stumbling, I took a step back, as if she slapped me.

I couldn’t speak.

What could I say?

Technically, she was right.

Sitting on the couch next to Remi, neither one of us said a fucking word as Logic leaned forward and said, “Look, guys, I’m just gonna lay this shit out for you. It’s going to get worse before it gets better. Right now, Emma’s mind is all messed up. She doesn’t know what to believe or who to trust, and no one is telling her anything.”

“We just wanted to protect her from all of this,” Remi whispered, sniffling while she wiped her tears away.

“And until a year ago, you two had done an admirable job, but both of you know that life will always find a way. Instead of hearing the truth from you guys, she heard it from someone who was a part of your own trauma. Emma isn’t like you two. For all intents and purposes, she’s normal. She’s never had to fight to survive.”

“She was raised by that fucking cult, Logic,” I sneered.

“Yes.” He nodded. “But she was just a little girl and was never subjected to the horrors of what awaited her when she turned eighteen. Even if you were to tell Emma the truth, she will not believe it. Right now, her mind is full of information she got from a woman she trusted.”

“How do we fix this?” Remi asked.

“You don’t.” Logic sighed. “I do, and it’s going to take time. Which is why I’m suggesting taking Emma out of the environment she’s in and putting her in neutral territory. A place where she feels safe and can still get the help she needs.”

“And where the fuck is that?” I asked.

“Disturbed,” Logic said, quickly holding up his hand. “And before you tell me no, you two have a new baby on the way. Right now, Remi doesn’t need this stress, and you know it, Reaper. Plus, with everything you have going on, are you really willing to risk the chance of your daughter getting mixed up in that shit?”

“No,” I growled.

“I’ve already mentioned it to Luc, and he has agreed. Until Emma can filter through the lies, she needs to be in a place where she doesn’t feel threatened. A place where she has access to therapy when shit gets too much for her.”

“What about school?” Remi asked.

“There are schools in Destiny, Remi. With your permission, Saint can have her transferred by tomorrow.”

“So soon?” my wife gasped.

“Yeah. After what she revealed this morning, I think it’s best for everyone involved.”

“Do it,” I said, getting to my feet.

Remi gasped. “Max.”

Shaking my head, I clearly stated, “He’s right, Remi. I love Emma, but I will not allow what happened this morning to happen again. To make matters worse, I get to explain to our son what a whore is. But more importantly, I will allow no one, even our daughter, to hurt you again. If Logic thinks he can get her head straight, we are going to let him try.”

With that said, I walked out of the house.

Looking at the clock, I noted the time.

Two hours before school let out and she returned home. I hated myself for what I was going to do, but I knew Logic was right. The only way to help Emma was to take her out of the situation and put her in a neutral setting where she could get the therapy she needed.

“She will be fine, Reaper,” Luc said over the speaker. “Give you my word. Nothing’s gonna happen to that girl. She may not like the rules set in place, but she will adapt. Logic is the best at what he does. Hell, man, if he can get my Ivy talking, Emma’s gonna be a snap.”

“Speaking of Ivy. How is she?”

“Still as mouthy as ever.” He chuckled. “But nothing I can’t handle.”

“Any issues from Los Santanas?”

“Nope,” the man clearly said. “All is quiet on my end.”

“That changes, let me know.”

“Will do, brother,” the man said before disconnecting the call.

Leaning back in my chair, I had just closed my eyes when Massacre happily walked in. “Hiya, boss. Company’s here!”

Groaning, I sat up when Cesar Vitale and two of his brothers, Massimo and Emmanuelle, walked in behind him.

The Vitale brothers were nothing more than hired thugs. Violent and dangerous thugs. Cesar and his brothers had worked for Giovanni Valentinetti occasionally before Cesar took over running the City of Chicago. The Vitale brothers fled Italy in a hail of gunfire, making them the only remaining descendants of the Vitale family. Bianchi decimated and eradicated their entire family due to a deal gone wrong. The brothers only survived because their father snuck them out of Italy in the dead of night. Left to their own devices, the Vitale brothers made a name for themselves in the criminal underground by offering their assistance to anyone who could pay handsomely. It didn’t take long before everyone knew them as the Mafia Manhunters.

They didn’t care who they worked for.

Only that they were paid handsomely for their services.

They were only loyal to each other and the money on the table.

No one knew for sure how many brothers there actually were, but it was rumored to be seven of them.

Each more deadly than the other.

With Cesar Vitale as the oldest, he ran his family like a business and that business was protecting his family.

Oh, he dabbled in a lot of other things, but his family came first.

Standing, I extended my hand in greeting.

“Good to see you again, Reaper.” Cesar smiled.

Nodding, I replied, “Same. What can the Golden Skulls do for you, Cesar?”

Motioning for the man to sit down, I took my seat again when he said, “Before I begin, let me ask you something?”

“Okay,” I uttered.

“Crispin Sinclair.”

I growled, narrowing my eyes, leaning back in my chair. “What about the fucker?”

Massimo grinned. “Told ya, brother.”

“Yes, you did.” Cesar sighed, unbuttoning his suit as he took a seat. Looking directly at me, he continued, “When I took over Chicago, Giovanni only asked one thing of me. Would you like to know what that was?”

“Pretty sure you’re gonna tell me whether I want to know or not.”

And I was right.

He did.

“Giovanni asked me to follow your lead. No matter what it concerned, to listen and follow you, but if I do that it will put me in a precarious position.”

“How so?”

“Because Crispin Sinclair tasked my family to find a woman and I’ve just learned she’s not only wanted by him, but several others, including you.”

Smirking, I shook my head. “Let me guess. Thena Hartley?”

“She is the woman of the hour, it seems,” Cesar admitted. “I thought maybe you would tell me what no one else will. Who is this woman and why is she being hunted?”

Sighing, I sat up. “I probably know about as much as you at the moment. All I know is Sinclair wants her bad. Said she belongs to him. Fucker even asked me to look for her. I know she hails from the Trick Pony, like Sinclair. Apparently, she’s also Popeye’s daughter, and I’ve recently learned that this woman helped my wife escape her captors along with one other. As for the why, I don’t know.”

“What would you say if I was to tell you that the Trick Pony wasn’t just a BDSM Club? That it was a brokerage house used by the Society and that Scott used his affiliations with the Society to infiltrate the underworld to gain access to not only your club but the entire Biker Federation?”

Carefully, I replied, “Then I would say, you have my undivided attention.”

Emmanuelle stepped forward and handed me a file.

“That is everything I have on Crispin Sinclair, Silas Sharp, and Rowen Shay,” Cesar Vitale said, then added, “Or, as the underworld knows them, Mr. Ess or the Ess. You should also know that the Italian families are voting in two days for who will take over the seat at the table.”

Looking at the man, I stated, “You?”

Cesar nodded.

Quickly scanning the information, I stiffened when I saw what was before me. “Shit.”

“Now you understand why Giovanni told me to only trust you.”

Closing the file, I sat back and said, “Has Gio seen this?”

“Yes, and he asked me to tell you to tread carefully.”

“Maxim?”

Cesar shook his head. “No. I have a meeting with him tomorrow. You should know that Crispin Sinclair isn’t one to trifle with. The man is cold, and his reach is far. The man is single-minded. When he has you in his sights, he will not stop until he gets what he wants.”

“And what does he want?”

“Thena Hartley.”

Smirking, I simply said, “Too bad for him, we don’t always get what we want. Do you think she knows?”

Cesar took a deep breath and said, “If she does, then that would explain why she’s vanished.”

“So, what do you want from me? This information is damning. It will change everything. Why give it to me?”

“Because Giovanni said you would know best what to do with it.”

Getting to my feet, I grabbed the file and said, “He was right.”

Taking my lighter out of my pocket, I lit the file on fire before placing it in the trash can next to my desk.

“Any more copies?”

“No.”

“Good,” I said, taking my seat again. “Let’s keep it that way. In the meantime, I would like you to keep playing your part. You have an in with Sinclair, it’s time we used it to our advantage.”

Cesar grinned. “With pleasure.”