Page 69 of Bound By A Promise

Dario turned, facing me, his stern expression giving nothing away. He was in capo mode. I knew this side of my brother. However, usually we were on the same side of whatever situation. “Tell me about the attack.”

“You don’t want to yell at me any more about my wedding?”

“I think we covered that on the phone. I would like to know what was happening between you and Andrés when we arrived.”

“He slapped Camila, and I threatened to kill him if he ever touched her again.”

Dario closed his eyes, and his nostrils flared. When he looked back at me, he had a slight shake of his head. “You’re going to need to work that out.”

“He slapped Camila. She deserves an apology. He also told Jorge he wants the alliance ended.”

“He’s upset. The alliance isn’t ending.”

“Maybe he’s dirty like Gerardo was.”

“Christ, Dante. Are you forgetting that he’s my father-in-law too? He’s Catalina and Camila’s father. He’s not dirty.”

“You saidtoo. You’re acknowledging Camila and I are married?”

“You were smart to have a priest. It gives me something to work with.”

“Camila deserved a real wedding even if it was rushed.”

Dario crossed his arms, the sleeves on his suit coat pulling taut across his shoulders. “The attack.”

“We heard the helicopter before we saw it.”

“You said there were three men inside the copter?”

I nodded. “Pilot, copilot, and the door gunner armed with an MP5 submachine gun.”

“MP5 doesn’t exactly narrow anything down. They’re used by militaries around the world, including Naval Spetsnaz.” When I didn’t respond, he added, “Russian commando frogmen. They’re equivalent to our Navy Seals.”

“Aléjandro said there was recently a shipment stopped at the border. Homeland Security tried to associate it with the Roríguez cartel, but it wasn’t them. It was the Kozlov bratva.”

“The same group responsible for the attack on the Ruiz home a few months ago.” Dario’s forehead furrowed. “Did the bratva plant the shipment to purposely incriminate the cartel?”

“I didn’t ask. Eight hundred rounds a minute were raining down on this house.”

“Bulletproof windows. Glad we’re high in the sky or I’d want to invest in some.”

“If you and Catalina move to the Ozarks, you might consider it.”

“What makes you think I want to leave the city?” he asked.

“There’s no yard for Ariadna to play in.”

“There’s a park.” He shook his head. “I’d only consider it if we could move our mother someplace else.” Dario exhaled. “I want to talk to them inside about the attack before Jorge arrives. First, we need to settle the wedding thing.”

“The wedding thing is settled.” I lifted my left hand. “I’m married.”

“Let’s go inside and convince Andrés so we can utilize the resources of both organizations to once and for all eliminate this Russian threat.”

“I’ll do whatever is possible to keep Camila safe.” I thought about it. Despite Andrés’s reaction, they were my wife’s family. I reconsidered. “All of them.”

“And all of us. Mia is still famiglia.”

“Okay, my capo, I’ll do whatever I can.”