Chapter 36

Giovanni POV: 

That was the issue with war one side strikes, and the other reciprocates, and endless cycle until someone loses too much and can't go on. I was playing with an uncaring and heartless man, and he knew what I cared about. 

The docks weren't hard one call to my father, a simple donation to the judge's re-election fund and we were off the hook, the warrant was thrown out, but it was only a matter of time before Domenico threw something else at me. You had to try and get your opponent so tied up that they couldn't move through all the bureaucratic bullshit so that when you landed the real blow they couldn't respond. 

If he wasn't above involving the sweet detective Mosley neither was I. I made an anonymous tip that there were drugs at one of Domenico's houses where I knew his little flunkies had their parties. Domenico was smart about hiding his shit, his men, well there were downsides to hiring from the cesspools of the world. 

He would have a harder time getting rid of the drug charges and though I'm sure he would throw his men under the bus without a second thought, they'd be watching him more closely. I let him deal with that while I set up the true score. 

You see I wasn't the only one bringing things in through the ports, my stuff foods, and luxuries from Europe that you couldn't get in the U.S. His heroin, and cocaine, and he wasn't going to miss out on the fentanyl boom. Owning multiple ports along our coastline DOmenico changed where his imports came at random intervals, but after being busted for possession in one of his homes he'd be sure to up security. All I had to do was wait and watch. 

"Why haven't you done any of this before?" Arianna asked as looked at my plans. 

"Didn't have the resources, the men, the contacts in explosives, the power with the courts," I explained. 

"And yet you've survived," She noted. 

"It took a long time, and it was quite the beating but yes I survived waiting until I got big enough to play," I told her sitting on the corner of my desk watching her evaluate our plans. 

"You know he'll strike back," She stated coming over to me and settling herself between my legs. 

"I'm sure, all we can do is hope there aren't any fatalities, and that we can sustain the losses we incur," I assured her. 

We had been talking about this for so long now but here we were about to harm people and make a lot of lives worse in the names of those we lost. I stared at her wondering if she was ready for this. Sure the men we killed weren't good, but they were still human. 

The house was raided on Monday so we got ready to hit his goods in the next couple of days watching his ports and seeing which one got extra men. Luckily for us, Domenico himself made an appearance showing up and screaming at the dock workers about how perfect they had to be, warning them what would happen if any of them messed up. A terrible temper he had. 

Wednesday he was stuck in the legal jargon promising to pay a fine in court and that he had no clue that his men were using illegal substances in his house. They couldn't prove he knew, so they had to let him off of course. It also helps if you threaten the D.A.'s children, for some reason, his men were outside their elementary school during the court proceedings. 

"You should stay here," I told her as I got ready to go out and see it for myself. 

"You're joking," was all I got in response as she stomped out to my car getting in the passenger seat. Luca grinned as he followed behind her. 

"Now you know what it's like to live with you," he clapped me on the back getting into his hot rod to follow us. 

I wished she'd listen to me, but there was also a part of thankful I'd have eyes on her. As we delved further into this I was only forced to realize just how much I cared for her. Multiple nights now I was woken from dreams, her screams echoing in my ears, calling out to me, Domencio's greedy hands wrapped around her throat. A cold sweat would cover me and my heart would race, I never would be able to go back to sleep until I poked my head into her room and saw her there safe, peaceful. 

All this time I had been playing with nothing to lose and now just as I was big enough to fight the battle, I had the most precious thing in front of me. 

I got in the car speeding off through the streets dodging his men as they attempted to tail us. Another lovely development as soon as we left our house they seemed to appear out of nowhere hanging around like fruit flies. Their cars weren't a match for ours though, we were Italian after all. 

We made it to the port in what had to be record time I grabbed the binoculars and handed over another pair to her as she waited. Our tails were long lost we waited as the delivery truck pulled up the ship carrying his cargo already there being unloaded. We had to time it right, I wanted it all of the ship before we moved. 

We sat up on the hill and I held my breath as Becca in her delivery uniform flirted with guardsmen making them forget to sweep the packages. She'd get them in, and then Aldo posing as a dock worker would get them in position before running his ass out of there as fast he could. 

Becca stayed for a moment too long still talking to the men making her excuses as she tried getting back in the truck, Arianna gripping her binoculars as she watched. I was happy to see they got along, I knew they would, but you still want the woman you care for to feel comfortable with your family. 

I sent the message out to Aldo letting him know the packages had been delivered as Becca finally managed to get back into her truck and drive off. Not too long afterwards we heard her pull up behind us jumping out. 

Arianna ran up hugging her tightly the two women talked quickly about how the creep kept trying to get Becca's number as she was leaving. I hushed them only when were sitting on top of it, we held our breaths all of us putting down our binoculars. My heart was in my ears as we waited the seconds dragging on in that tortuous way they do when you are afraid. 

We wouldn't know if Aldo got clear until he texted us, for all I knew I had sent him to his death. I breathed in and out hearing only my heartbeat and breaths until. We heard the boom first, then the large fireballs engulfed the buildings going up one after the other. 

The other cheered hugging and celebrating the success, the drugs exploding would put a dent into Domencio's finances, and the men he lost would help us as well. Still, I waited for Aldo, I didn't want to tell his wife he wasn't coming home. 

Five minutes passed, then ten, then twenty. The longer it got the more sure I was I had killed a good man that day. Arianna got me to agree to get in the car and go home for our safety at the least, and just as I turned the car on my phone rang. 

"Aldo!" I picked up the phone. 

"Do you mind picking me up, I had to jump in the ocean, and this-" a loud thud as also moved something on his end. "-prick was holding onto me," 

"No problem," I grinned heaving a heavy breath of relief as I headed towards him. For today we could be happy we had survived and dealt a good blow to the Caputos, but this wouldn't last long.