Broken Trust
Two days after Giuseppe left, Regenia received a call from him at five in the morning. She was upset because he had woken her from her sleep, and on top of it, he woke Giovanna. She could argue it was unnecessary, but it was news about her dad. Giuseppe felt Jake could be working for the enemy, or it was a chance he didn’t know he was being used, but to be safe, he wanted her to get the guards to lock him away. It was hard to do, and the look on his face broke Regenia’s heart, but she had to do it. As she had said before, Genia didn’t know whether to trust him, and if it was a small amount of distrust, she had to follow it until the truth was revealed.
“Regenia, I told you all I know. You’re my daughter, and I would never bring danger to yours or Giuseppe’s doorstep. Why do you have me down here? And to let them beat me.”
“I needed you to talk. This isn’t a game, Dad! The Cobras are a part of the union so there is no way they would go against it. There is something you’re not telling me. The man who helped you in Japan, what did he want in return?” She asked as Jake sat there looking at Regenia as if she lost her mind. Regenia wasn’t crazy and she knew it was a possibility Yamaguchi didn’t have anything to do with the man at the gala or what her father told her. It had to be The Icchisuka Clan since she couldn’t find anything on the man or his wife no matter where she looked. She even used her power as US ambassador and found nothing. Something about them wasn’t right, and Jake knew.
“They didn’t want anything, Doll. Kodama didn’t question anything about Giuseppe or your family—.”
“Then what did you tell him about Giuseppe?” Again, Jake shook his head with a sigh as the door to the basement opened. Regenia didn’t have to turn to see it was Giovanni Sr, but she did question why he was down there. As always, he walked in and sat as if he owned the place, telling her he was having one of his good days, which made her smile. “Mia Cara, you shouldn’t be the one torturing answers out of your Padre... you should allow me to take care of him. I haven’t done this in a long while, but I’m sure I remember my way around a torture room. What do you say, Cara? You want this old man to help?”
“Regenia Kate Miller—”
“Romano! My last name is Romano, and that tone no longer works with me. Now you listen to me, Jake Ellis Miller; this is my fucking territory, and when I ask you a damn question, you will answer it. Or suffer the damn consequences. I warned you, don’t make me kill you. I cannot live with myself if I have to take your life, but I will be damn if I let you hurt my family.” Regenia spoke, gripping her father’s chin while Gio chuckled behind her. Jake, on the other hand, shook in fear while Genia reached for the first thing she saw, bringing it down across his lap.
“TALK DAMNIT!”
“Regenia, they never asked me for a damn thing—nothing... not even about Berardo. I’m telling you, he never breathed Giuseppe’s name or his family!” Regenia didn’t believe him, so she brought the metal rod down hard across his legs for the second time, causing Jake to scream. “REGENIA, WILL YOU LISTEN TO ME! I KNOW NOTHING!”
“You know something. The Cobras... does any of this have to do with them? How did Kodama know they were in New York? Who told them, and why would they tell you to warn us?”
Still, Jake seemed confused, shaking his head which pissed Regenia off. Therefore, she reached for another weapon but was stopped by Giovanni as he gripped the man by the collar. “If you don’t want your daughter to kill you, Jake. I advise you to talk. I don’t know what the Icchisuka Clan promised you, but it was all lies. The Two Tail Fox is considered to be a ghost clan; no one knows much about them, and very few are allies with them. So, they had to want something!” Gio nodded to see if Jake understood as the man slowly nodded back, cutting his eyes over Regenia, and swallowing hard.
“You’ve been secretive about this whole thing, Dad. What did you do that caused the Icchisuka Clan to help you? No more lies. We need to know what they did for you and what you promised them.”
“I told you they didn’t ask me shit!” Regenia sighed as she nicely took a hook off the wall and brought it down hard on Jake’s shoulder. He tried his best not to scream while Regenia held back her cries. She hated herself for what she was doing, but it was necessary if she wanted her family safe. “I’m pregnant...”
“What—”
“If you don’t care about anything else, think about me, Isla, and your grandchildren. Please?” Regenia begged as she kneeled at her father’s level. The hurt in his eyes had her emotional, but Genia never showed it. Caterina and Adele made her into the woman she is today. They taught her not to show fear and always to stand tall. It shouldn’t matter who she had on her torture table when they needed answers; she had to do whatever possible to get them. That’s why they were here now, but no matter what she threw at her dad, he stuck to his story.
“River....”
“Donna, I-I can’t take your Dad’s life—”
“WHATAMINUTE!” Jake yelled just as Regenia picked up an ax. It had him struggling against his restraints while she nicely held it to his neck. “I KILLED SOMEONE! I KILLED SOMEONE, OKAY!”
“Now, was that so hard?” Regenia cocked a brow, watching her dad shake before her. It was sad she needed to threaten his life to make him talk. Still, this was only the beginning. They had a ways to go, and Genia was sure there was more to the story. “Who did you kill? And don’t you dare say it was no one important. If a mafia offered you protection, it was something. So, who the fuck did you kill Jake?”
For some reason, his eyes found Giovanni’s standing on the side of Regenia. He wasn’t there to help him, and neither was River. The best thing he could do at this moment was tell the truth and the whole truth if he wanted to walk out of this room alive. “I didn’t know the man was a part of some big-ass influential group. Like I told your husband, I ran into trouble and had to defend myself. I don’t know... Kodama must have wanted the man dead too, and after he found out what I had done... like any other gang, he reached out.”
He was still lying. Regenia could see it in his eyes... she wanted to know what was so important about this man that her dad would risk his life for. Then, it seemed he cared nothing about her and what it could do to her family. Her kids were at risk... her little sister and all the others she cared about. Jake was a fool if he thought she would fall for his games. Therefore, it was time to show him she meant business.
“I don’t believe you... River.”
“Donna—”
“DO NOT FUCKING DONNA ME! IF I SAY KILL HIM, THAT’S WHAT YOU WILL DO! NO QUESTIONS ASKED! DO YOU FUCKING UNDERSTAND?!”
Quickly, the man nodded and stepped forward, waiting for a command while Regenia rubbed the sharp part of the ax against Jake’s throat, daring him to breathe another lie. If he hadn’t realized it yet, he should. She wasn’t taking another lie for an answer. Regenia was tired. She needed answers, and if he didn’t give them to her. This time, she was chopping off his head.
“Last chance, Jake. If you ever want me to trust you again, I need you to tell the truth and the whole truth, so help me, god. Don’t think I’m bluffing; just because I love you doesn’t mean shit right now. I have bigger things to worry about, which is my family. My husband, children, sister, his siblings... I think you get the picture. They are what’s important to me. Sadly, you died, and I morn. But for you to come back into my life with the snap of your fingers lying to me means shit. I want to… no I need to know if I can rely on you, but it seems your loyalties lay elsewhere.”
“That’s not true—”
“Then tell me the truth, Dad! That’s all I’m asking... please. I don’t want to kill you, and I’m holding back as much as I can.” Genia cried, shaking her head. Still, her dad held the same emotionless face which she couldn’t bare to look at any longer. Before she knew it, Genia was holding a gun in her hand as she pulled the trigger, shooting her dad in the shoulder.
“Kill’em! If he’s unwilling to talk, it means he dies. I have no patience for this stupid ass shit.”
“You want the truth, Regenia? I’ll tell you the truth... the truth is Kodama wanted a way to bring down The Cobras! I told him I knew nothing about the mafias, but somehow, he knew about my ties with The Romanos. He knew you were married to Giuseppe, and when he learned about the gala, he put a plan in motion. I didn’t know anything about the person he sent here to take out Giuse. If so, I would have warned him!”
Regenia had turned for the door, but Jake’s words stopped her dead in her tracks. She was pissed her dad knew what this man was doing and said shit. Anger took control, causing her to turn to the man and quickly punch him a few times before pulling her blade and stabbing him where she had shot him moments before. “DO THEY KNOW MY FUCKING HUSBAND IS IN TOKYO NOW?”
“Regenia....”
“Answer the fucking question, Jake. Do they know?” The man shook his head, begging her to reason with him, but that was out of the question. Giuseppe and the others were in Tokyo with Tanaka. Not only that, but they were also set to meet up with Yamaguchi. The scary part was they hadn’t heard a thing from Giuseppe or the other Dons while this man sat here all-day toying with her time.
“I didn’t tell them anything if that’s what you are asking. You can check for yourself. I haven’t had contact with them since New York. Dollbaby, I would never intentionally put you or Giuseppe in danger.”
“Signore Giovanni—” She cried as the man touched her shoulder. Regenia needed to know what to do. She wanted to kill him, but her mind was screaming to call Giuseppe to make sure he was good. Japan was eight hours ahead of them, and at the moment, it was 9:45 at night, meaning it was 5:45 in the morning in Tokyo. Unlike Giuseppe, she respected people’s sleep schedules until Cartina and her mom walked in, looking a mess.
Immediately, Regenia knew something was wrong, causing her to look back at her dad. She swore if her husband was dead, she would kill him. After all, this was all his fault. He brought this war to them... Jake was the one who put them in harm’s way, and to make matters worse, he lied to their faces. There was more to the story, and Regenia knew she needed to keep Jake alive to learn the rest.
“You better pray to God that Giuseppe and the others are okay because if he’s dead. I’m coming back and putting a bullet straight through your fucking head. You said you loved me and Isla, but what I see now is a fucking liar. As of now, you are nothing to me.”
