Gael's Naughty Angel: A Mafia Prince Romance

Police and ambulance sirens sounded from a distance from the city before them. However, none of those mattered to Jimmy at the moment. The two front legs of the chairs were the only ones touching the dusty floor—his ankles were bound to them but were done so in a way that his feet didn't meet the ground, making it even harder for him to find balance. He was literally facing death and was at the De Lucas' mercy.

"I'll tell you everything! Please! Just put me back down!" Jimmy begged.

Giovanni clicked his tongue. "That's not how this works. You tell us first…and then we'll put you back down."

"Okay! Okay! Just don't drop me!" Jimmy breathed heavily, squeezing his eyes shut as it was scarier to see the height below him. "Th-they… Mr. Morelli's men come with us to make sure the goods are delivered properly to the correct client."

Gael shifted the lollipop to the side of his mouth and stuffed his free hand into his pocket as if they were casually chatting and not playing with a man's life. Then he questioned, "Why the hell would he care about a truck full of clothes?"

Jimmy looked up at Gael. His eyes were red and misty and looking as though he was also figuring out what they were thinking. 

"Ah…" An idea came to Gael's mind. "Unless…they're not actually clothes." He shot his uncle a glance.

Giovanni then urged the man, "What's on the truck?" When Jimmy didn't answer, Gael abruptly shook the chair forward, causing Jimmy to scream. "Our hands are getting tired, Jimmy. We'd have to let go soon," said Giovanni.

"Coke!" Jimmy yelled in desperation. "It's coke!"

Hearing the man's answer didn't surprise Gael and Giovanni. "Figures," Gael muttered. The Morellis had been in the drug business for years now, so the information wasn't new to them. However, this was the first time they heard about Marino using the transportation of the drugs through a clothing brand.

"Please… Mr. Perry will kill me if he finds out I spilled," Jimmy begged, pulling Gael out of his trance. 

"Who's Perry?" Gael inquired. The name didn't sound Italian, so he must be an associate or a client. 

"Please put me back down… My heart is about to burst." Jimmy's face turned red, and although it was probably an exaggeration, Gael and Giovanni pulled him back upright. The man breathed in relief.

"Speak," Gael demanded.

Jimmy, who was barely catching his breath, swallowed and then answered, "He's Mr. Morelli's future son-in-law. He's very strict when it comes to business, and I don't want to ever cross him."

"Marino's son-in-law?" Giovanni drew his brows together and exchanged looks with Gael.

"Yes. It's that daughter of Mr. Morelli he's marrying."

Without talking to his uncle, Gael knew that Giovanni was thinking about his ex, Lia. When Gael heard about her engagement from his uncle, he thought that she was marrying someone who wasn't related to any of their family's underground business. Maybe it was just that hard to get away with this life, seeing as Marino was working with this Perry guy.

"Looks like Marino trusts this Perry so much that you even fear him," Gael remarked.

"There's hardly trust in their family," Jimmy replied. "But since they benefit each other on the deliveries—"

"What are you talking about?" asked Giovanni.

Jimmy turned his head and looked at Giovanni. At this point, he already gave up protesting and just answered. "I'm pretty sure Mr. Perry gets a big cut from the deliveries, and Mr. Morelli has a courier for his goods. It's a win-win."

That didn't sound like a normal relationship between the two men. As far as they knew, Marino didn't give any special treatments. "Why would this Perry guy receive a portion on the deliveries? Who is he?"

Jimmy looked at the two of them in confusion before he spoke. "Because Luna is his clothing company. It's his warehouse… It's his trucks used for transportation."

"Huh…" Gael gave Giovanni a look. The latter let out a huff as if he was pissed at something. Gael signaled his uncle for a side talk, and once they were out of earshot, he probed, "You didn't know Lia's fiancé was the company's owner?"

"How the fuck should I know?" Gael bit out. His face was marred with irritation as he lit up a cigarette and harshly blew it to the side. 

"I thought you had that in your little research after knowing she's engaged."

"I'm not interested to know who the hell she's marrying."

Gael sucked his lollipop as he studied his uncle's expression. Giovanni looked bothered despite not vocalizing what he's actually thinking. The hard candy cracked between Gael's molars, and he threw the stick to the side as he glanced at their captive a few meters away. Their informant had only given them the information this morning and there wasn't enough about the warehouse or the company Luna yet. Gael and Giovanni flew to Chicago to make use of their time and decided to see where things would take them.

"Come on. Let's wrap this up and fly back."

The two walked back towards Jimmy and dragged him away from the edge. As they untied the rope from his ankles, Gael wondered, "Where do you take the trucks with the drugs?"

"I don't know their names. We don't talk to anyone after we drop the shipments."

"Which city?"

"I don't have the same routes as the other drivers. But I heard some of them go as far as Las Vegas and New York. I only delivered in the neighboring states and a couple of times down Florida and Esmea."

Gael's hands paused from untying the ropes fully. He exchanged hard stares with Giovanni. Even without them saying anything, they knew what exactly the other was thinking. The Morellis were totally screwed. Esmea was off-limits to any of the crime families, which meant none of them were allowed to do any illegal dealings there without the Parks' permission. 

After making sure Jimmy wouldn't blabber about his detour by instilling fear that shook him to his core, Gael and Giovanni headed towards the airport. Their trip to Chicago was enlightening, but flying back to New York was of the essence even though they wanted to investigate further.

Once they landed at JFK and were on their way to Nonna Flavia's house in an SUV, Gael received a text message from Angela, and his brows drew together when he read it.

[ Angel: Lauretta saw us on the balcony that night at the party. ]

The message was sent an hour ago when they were still in the air.

"Shit." His jaw ticked, and he was already thinking of ways to subdue the Morelli woman.

"What's up?" Giovanni asked.

Gael showed Angela's text to his uncle and Giovanni only nodded, saying, "Ah… right… She won't say anything. Don't worry about it."

"How do you know?"

Giovanni shrugged. "Saw her snooping that night and told her if she says anything to her family, I'd personally deliver the incriminating photos we have of her to her grandfather." He chuckled, recalling how shocked Lauretta was that night. It was Gael's idea to keep a file on Lauretta as soon as the marriage order was given. The woman was a socialite, and there should be something they could use in their favor. "I have to admit. I thought it was a waste of money to get those pictures. I guess you're getting your money's worth, brother."

Relief washed over Gael, and his shoulders dropped as he slumped backward. Then his thoughts went back to Angela, thinking that he should call her soon so she wouldn't worry. He sent her a text.

[ Gael: Just landed and saw your text. Don't worry, Angel. It's already taken care of. She can't touch you, so she won't be a problem. ]

[ Angel: I wasn't worried for me… I was worried for you. ]