Four: Niccolo Capaldi

Four

Niccolo Capaldi

When I got home, the first thing I did was I scrolled through Daniela’s I*******m. I had kept tabs on her over the years. Knowing who her family was, I had to. Pop had given Daniela’s mom, Augusta Berni, a job when no one else would because of them. As long as she’d worked for us, she had been safe from her past. Augusta had been a teenager when she met and fell in love with the son of our rivals, the Ramono’s. Augusta had worked as a nanny for the family. When their son got her pregnant, the Ramono family wanted her and her baby gone because it interfered with their plans to marry their son off to a mafia don’s daughter.

            My dad had done a business deal with the Ramono’s at the time had seen everything happened. Knowing Augusta would need someone to help keep her and her baby safe, he gave her a job as the maid in our house. That way he could always keep her safe and everyone would know that Augusta and her daughter Daniela were under Capaldi protection. It was one of the main reasons Pop had wanted Daniela to marry me when we turned eighteen after her mom had died.

            Once she left our house, she wouldn’t have the protection of our family anymore. Sure, I knew people in Florida that could keep tabs on her, but it was different. They had loyalties elsewhere. And I had no doubt that if people knew who Daniela really was, they would sell her to the highest bidder.

            I’d always known what Giuseppe’s plans for Daniela were. But I hated the idea that he had told me, and not her. And that she wasn’t given a choice in the matter. I’d done everything I could to make her hate me. If Daniela was going to be with me, I wanted it to be her choice. Not because she was caught in some turf war that she didn’t even know about.

            As I sat in my home office looking at Daniela’s pictures, I searched for any of her with another man. Mostly, it was pictures of her with her aunt, or with her aunt’s friends. All older, all retirees. No one that was a real threat.

            Good.

            I needed to know who was in Daniela’s life to keep her safe. I had let Daniela go once; I wasn’t going to let that happen again. Daniela had come back to Boston to put down roots. So, I was going to make sure that I was part of that.

            She’d been part of my life for as long as I could remember. The first memory I have of her, we were both five years old. My old man was known for throwing extravagant Christmas parties with everyone who worked for, friends, and family coming to the big mansion that we had in Beacon Hill. Her mom and her had just arrived from the party as I was coming down stairs to get a present for my parents.

            Mrs. Berni and Daniela had entered at that exact, moment. They’d both been wearing matching, red jackets trimmed in black, faux fur with golden buttons holding gifts for my mom and dad. Mrs. Bruni helped Daniela get the jacket off, along with her mittens. She was wearing a maroon velvet dress with glittery snowflakes stenciled on it. Her brown hair had been held back in a ribbon.

            I remembered thinking that I didn’t care about all of the presents that were under the tree waiting for me and my brother. All I wanted for Christmas was Daniela Berni. And I hated that I knew I would never have her. From that moment on, I resolved that keep my distance from her. That was harder than it should have been.

            When Daniela was eighteen, one of the Ramono’s found out the truth about her and Daniela. Daniela’s father had long since re-married, giving up Augusta so he could keep them safe and taking his place in the family that he hated. It had been his son that had found out the truth about Daniela. He’d been so filled with anger; he had killed Daniela’s mom. But there had been no one around and no way to prove it at the time.

            I had only found out because my old man had told me about it. And he had wanted to keep Daniela safe too, so he had kept his mouth shut about the whole thing. If Daniela ever found out the truth, she would hate our family more than she already did. I had to do what I could to keep that from happening. Even if that meant keeping her close by when she wanted nothing to do with me.

            Luca would hate it, I was sure. We always said what was best for Daniela was to keep our distance. This time though, knowing that my father was near death, I wasn’t sure about what was best anymore. Just that if I lost Daniela, I was sure I would lose my fucking mind. So, since Daniela was in Boston, it was time to bring her back into the Capaldi fold. Whether she liked it or not.

            I was about to go to bed when I cell phone buzzed in my pocket. I took it out, surprised at the name that had flashed across the screen. “Hello?” I asked.

            “Good evening, Niccolo,” a deep, raspy voice said, “I heard your father was in the hospital. I wanted to call and give my regards.”

            I coughed. “Yes, thank you Mr. Romano. I’ll be sure he knows. How are you?”

            “Oh, absolutely terrible,” he said, “it seems that my father’s nurse gave him the wrong medication, and he passed away today. The funeral will be on Friday, and I’ll be taking over his place.”

            “Well….” I didn’t know what to say. “I’m very sorry for your loss, Mr. Ramono. If there’s anything I can do, please let me know.”

            There was a pause. “How kind of you to say, Niccolo. You’ve always been such a good boy. So good in fact that I know you’ll do the right thing when I ask you to.”

            “What’s that?”

            “Bring my daughter with you to the funeral. I know that she’s back, Niccolo. I lost her mother because I couldn’t keep her safe. But I’m at the top now. I want my daughter back. And if you don’t bring her to me, there will be consequences. I promise.” The call ended then, and I stared at my phone in shock.

            The head of the Ramono crime family was dead.

            Now, Daniela’s father was the head of it. Which made her a mafia princess. And her father wanted her back.

            I couldn’t let that happen. Ever. Because I knew if I did, she’d be married off to the richest bidder. Daniela was mine or no ones. I was going to see to it.