Chapter 4 Enemy in Disguise

“Goodness gracious! What have you done?” Connor grimaced as Anton’s sharp bark echoed through the room. “I explicitly asked you to say yes to them! What about your daughter now? What if she is subjected to their cruelty?” 

“Janet is to blame for coming here without my permission. Now, she will reap the consequences of her actions. We spent an entire year smuggling those diamonds, and if we betray Stallions, he’ll make sure we regret it. The consignment will be dispatched on schedule, and I will take it to Stallion myself.” 

Connor kept a stoic expression on his face as he stood in front of Anton, showing no signs of remorse for his actions. “Alright, what about Janet?” Anton asked. 

“I hope Marco understands that his best choice is to contact me and exchange money for my daughter.” 

“They might kill her, Connor!” Anton glared at him. “Do you believe they would set Janet free if you pretended that diamonds meant more to you than she did? What if the reverse psychology fails, and instead of setting her free, they end up harming or killing her?” 

“Then it is her fate to be sacrificed for the Genovese. I did what was within my control. No matter the situation, I will not go against the Genovese. I can’t jeopardize the Genovese family. Going against Stallion would spell disaster for us, and we can’t afford it until you announce our next Mafia King!” 

“It’s my order, Connor. Do as I say!” Anton voiced in a high-pitched inflection. 

“No. I cannot follow your order!” Connor retorted with such vehemence that Anton was left speechless. “Whether it’s Stallion or any other mobster, my soldiers are the first line of defense to reach you. I cannot endanger the lives of soldiers. I am sorry.” He turned and walked out of the room, with Alex trailing behind. 

As soon as the door shut, Anton was hit with a wave of shock as he stood there, staring at it in disbelief and trying to understand Connor’s decision. In just a few minutes, his attitude toward Marco shifted from wanting to bury him alive to leaving his daughter vulnerable in his hands. 

Lighting his cigarette, Anton walked over to the window. He took a deep drag from his cigarette, taking in the sight of the trees swaying in the cool breeze. He blew the smoke out in a series of rings before reaching for his cell phone and making a call. 

“Sebastian, I believe it’s time for you to return. And it should be nothing short of impressive as you promised.” He ended the call. 

***

“What? Did you call Sebastian back for Connor’s daughter?” Serena, Sebastian’s mother, said sharply, snapping at Anton. He turned to her and nodded his head before walking over to the bar. 

“Putting our son in danger over a girl seems reckless, doesn’t it?” she asked, stepping forward, her anger fueling a heated argument inside her. “And how come we didn’t know about Connor’s daughter? Did she fall from the sky?” 

“Connor abandoned her when she was a newborn. She came here looking for him. Unfortunately, our enemies took hold of her.” Her eyes narrowed as he put ice in his glass, shook it, and then took a sip. 

“Fortunately, or unfortunately, I don’t care! My son won’t put himself in danger because of her. He is meant for greater things. Connor’s daughter is Connor’s problem. And why should we care if he shows no regard for her safety?” Serena stood in a confrontational stance with her arms crossed over her chest.

Anton cast a withering look her way. “Serena, you’re so evil! Connor saved my life!” 

“That’s his job!” Serena answered in an equally high pitch. “We’re paying him to work for us. He didn’t do us any favors. But enlisting our son’s life in danger to rescue Connor’s daughter, with whom Connor has no connection, is sheer folly!” 

Anton took another sip of his whiskey, avoiding his gaze, his jaw clenched tightly. “Connor is worried about her. Instead of putting us at risk, he protected us over his daughter. Anyway, I have taken matters into my own hands, and my ruling stands. Sebastian needs to come back soon, and we will rescue Janet. We will definitely bring her back!” 

The only sound in the room was the ticking of the clock as a long silence settled between them. Serena looked at him. “You know what?” 

“What?” The sharp clink of the glass hitting the bar counter echoed as he locked eyes with her. 

“You’re weak! That’s why your father chose me for you. He was cognizant of the fact that your feeble heart would pose a threat to us in the future! You say Connor is close to you, huh? Why didn’t he ever open up about his past?” 

“You’re speaking as if we have a longstanding friendship, and he is obligated to divulge everything to me.” 

Serena sank heavily into the recliner, letting out a deep sigh of exhaustion as she held her head in her hands. “Anton, I love you. But it’s disheartening that you don’t even try to see things from my perspective. The frustration is maddening!” 

As the couple argued in the bedroom on the second floor, Connor strode through the entrance, and the guards bowed their heads in acknowledgment as he passed. “Get me a filtered coffee!” he instructed the servant and made his way toward the left wing of the Genovese mansion. 

He crossed through one room after another until he finally arrived at the door of Don Vitalino Genovese’s room, the retired godfather and Anton’s ruthless father, who once struck fear into the heart of Springfield. 

Whistling his way into the room, Connor’s hands were tucked comfortably in his pockets, and Don Vitalino recognized his signature tune and opened his eyes. His lips trembled as Connor’s face loomed over him, and he felt a wave of fear wash over him. 

“My heart aches at the sight of you bedridden. Karma is a real bitch.” He lifted Don’s hand, gently stroked the back, and then let it fall from above, letting it hang down the side of the bed. “It fucked you up so bad!” 

His eyes drifted over his paralyzed body, then traced the network of wires tethering him to the machine. “Last time we met, I left plenty of clues for you to follow. Do you now remember who I am, huh?”

He pulled over a chair and sat beside him, studying his face intently. “Blink twice if you don’t recognize me.” 

Don blinked twice and stared at the ceiling after hearing his words. Connor’s face twisted as he leaned forward, his hand gripping Don’s throat. 

“Holy cow! Because if something happened to my daughter, I would have to kill you with my bare hands, and you’d never know why it all started!” He clenched his teeth as Don’s eyes welled up, but Connor withdrew his hand only at the beeping sound of the machines. 

“Fucking pray that I get my baby girl back, or I will give you all a hundred times more brutal deaths.”