Promised For Truce

Chapter 11

When the clock struck twelve, lights from the hallway peeked into the darkened master bedroom. The heavy door shut and the ray of light was gone.

Nina was unmoving as she laid in bed. Slowly, she lifted her gaze to see Luciano walking toward the bathroom. The door was left open and light flooded into the bedroom again. Nina went to lie on her back as she listened to the stream of water hitting the tiles. She momentarily closed her eyes, opening them again when she heard a click.

"Good night," Luciano said as he got in his side of the bed.

She moved her head sideways, facing him. "Good night."

The faint scent of cigars Nina got teased with earlier had been replaced by a fresh and clean woodsy aroma.

"Can I ask you something?"

"I'm not stopping you."

Silver eyes were directed in her way resulting in the question she initially wanted to ask to die on her tongue.

"Do you smoke?"

"And you would like to know?"

"I smelled it on you."

"I've gotten myself quite the observant wife." Amusement danced in his eyes. "I don't smoke. My grandfather does."

Neither engaged in any further conversation. Nina stared back at the ceiling, thinking back on the guest she received earlier that day. Teodoro's throwaway comment about the security had been gnawing at her. She wanted to be in the know.

Her father's warning whispered through her mind. Questioning men would not be welcomed with open arms according to him. Lips parted and locked. One part of Nina was ready to bring her voice to the surface and the other ready to drown it.

Will he get angry with me? Will he ignore me? She exhaled softly at the possibility. I could try.

"Your brother came here." Nina slid her gaze back to him. "He mentioned something about you having more security."

"Yes, he told me all about it. It's true."

Is he willing to tell me more?

She tried her luck. "Is it because you are next in line? Is that why you were with your grandfather?"

"It's because of the Irish." A grim expression fell over his features, the darkness doing nothing to hide it. "You should know that they are more active over here than in New Orleans."

Chicago was not in its entirety ruled by the Gallucci family. There were plenty of rivals who had laid claim on other parts of the city – MC clubs, Hispanic-American street gangs, Bratva and The Irish Mob. Most of them were not big enough to cause problems, much less bring a full-on war to The Outfit for more territory. Only one syndicate had the manpower to do so.

The North Side Irish Mob had been posing as a problem for decades. A constant force to be reckoned with. Four years ago, they had been the cause of alarm amongst The Outfit families. The Banion Family was a glaring red dot on Luciano's radar. Once Luciano was the Don, he planned on cutting their numbers in half by marching a war. An act of violence to put the scorching flames inside him to rest.

"Did something happen with The Irish?"

"One of Banion's guys was on stakeout yesterday. He was watching the house."

What if there is someone outside right now?

A chilling sensation ran along her spine. The mere idea of a lurking enemy watching their every move was unsettling.

"I need to get up early. Any last questions?"

"No, thank you."

"For?"