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Caruitar Darkness obstructed Haven’s view of his face, but the glow fros

She took a few steps forward, entranced as the rew louder It swirled all around her, goose bu up as the melody seeped into her skin Her stohout her body She closed her eyes, reveling in the foreign sensation, until the music stopped

Haven’s eyes snapped back open, and she could see his face then, still partially encased in the shadows He frowned, staring at her with questions in his eyes, but she had no answers to give

Turning on her heel, Haven ran back into the rooainst it as the , Carrabbed a bowl of cereal, his footsteps faltering in the fa a Sports Illustrated, and Haven was beside hi

Before Carle word, Haven leaped to her feet and scurried away He watched her retreating for the seat she’d vacated "She acts like I’ near " He paused "I don’t think, anyway"

"You don’t realize how abrasive you come off," Dominic said "It’s the way you look at people"

Car he could do about that "Whatever There’s obviously so with her"

"Have you taken the tiht be?"

"Haven’t had a chance," he said "Like I said, she runs from me"

"Well, maybe if you took an interest in her, she wouldn’t act sketchy around you"

"Is that what you did--took an interest?" Carmine asked "I’m not sure Tess would be happy about that"

Do some of his cereal "I was nice to her, bro You should try it"

Carlaring at the wet patch where the milk had soaked into his pants "Asshole"

Vincent DeMarco was an easily recognized man The people in Durante knew hile father, the wealthy bachelor woray hairs, but he looked younger than his forty years He was like his father that way Antonio DeMarco had died at fifty when he looked ht, was a peculiar thing

Although he ell known, few people saw the man behind the mask Vincent felt like he lived two different lives, both equally real yet at odds with each other He liked to believe he was the family man that others saw, but he was also deeply committed to a different type of faed by spilled blood and sworn oaths LCN, the government called it, short for La Cosa Nostra, but it was known by ata, outfit, syndicate It all meant the sao, o and the center of the action, but there was no leaving the organization once it had you in its brutal grasp He was kept on as an unofficial consigliere to the Don, Salvatore Capozzi Vincent’s job was to play the ive advice when asked and co care of whatever needed to be handled But just because he was good at what he did, didn’t mean he enjoyed it

Vincent sat in the slass of scotch as he listened to the swarm of men debate business There were twenty of them, but Vincent wasn’t sure why half were there They had no say in how things were run, some of them so new they hadn’t earned their buttons There was no reason to trust the there was no blood on their hands

Not to say he wanted them to be murderers He envied their clear consciences and wished he could warn them all to turn away Get out while they still could, because someday it would be too lateand that sothy prison sentence

Or a hollow-point bullet to the brain Vincent hadn’t decided which outcome would be worse

But he couldn’t warn anyone He’d sworn an oath to put the organization first, and if the organization wanted these dis silently He’d initiated young--one of the youngestto prove theh to see it happen But not Vincent He’d slipped right in the door while his father was in control

He wasn’t the youngest to do business with theh school,The young ones incurred all the risk, while those at the top lavished in the fruits of their labor

Blood money Hundreds had died to pay for the s They are savages"

Giovanni was speaking, his thick accentVincent strain to pay attention Sicilian by birth, he’d irated to America a decade before andCapo So off to the side Vincent had a hard ti the names of the soldati, but one he was fa around for years They called him Squint because of the way his eyes always seeuish scowl He kept his head buzzed, a light dusting of brown hair showing, and his eyes were the dull color of cracked earth The Don’s brother had taken him in as a baby, so Salvatore had a soft spot for the boy

The ued back and forth as Vincent swirled the scotch around in his glass, having no intention of drinking it He remained quiet until the un directly to hio ho hasty will backfire I don’t like the way the Russians conduct business, but they’ve yet to hurt any of our people"