Dark Shadows of the Past

Chapter Twelve

Antonio Rosetti paced back and forth on the balcony of his mansion on the Greek island of Kefalonia, thankful he was back on the island after the ordeal with the raid on the convoy in the States. He walked over to the edge and leaned against the iron railings, letting his eyes wander over the breathtaking view. His luxurious mansion was built high up on a cliff. The huge balcony provided a spectacular panorama of Myrtos Beach—the trademark of Kefalonia with numerous international awards as one of the best beaches in the Mediterranean Sea. This view—green rocks slopping down to a long, white pebble beach, and the turquoise and sapphire waters of the Ionian Sea—always made him feel like he was at the top of the world. He was filthy rich and one of the most powerful men in both Greece and the United States, as well. He owned properties, hotels, casinos, restaurants, and other businesses, not to mention his other more profitable and less legitimate activities. However, nowhere else in the world gave him the same feeling as when he stood on the balcony of his mansion here on the island.

His family was originally from Palermo, Italy. When his brother, Paolo, married Natalie Daliani and inherited this amazing piece of property, Antonio fell in love with it right from the start. Besides, this was a great place to be, away from Palermo and the Grimaldis—another Mafia family that had been in constant war with the Rosettis for generations. So he persuaded his brother to renovate the mansion and move into it. Antonio moved here, along with Paolo, and remained on the island, even after Paolo moved back to the States, unable to stay away from his mistress, Maria. After Paolo's death, his illegitimate son, Adriano, took care of business in the States, and Antonio spent most of his time on Kefalonia, flying to their mansion in Nevada only whenever it was absolutely necessary.

"Mr. Rosetti..." The timid voice of the maid drew Antonio from his thoughts. "Mr. Reynolds is calling."

Antonio grabbed the phone and brought it to his ear, watching the maid disappearing inside the house. "Where the hell have you been?" he barked. "I've been expecting your call for hours," he exaggerated, as usual. It had only been a few minutes since he called Adriano on his cell phone and got a busy signal.

He listened carefully as Adriano explained to him about Christina.

"Where is she now?" Antonio asked abruptly.

"On board our private jet," Adriano replied, and Antonio didn't miss the fact that Adriano considered the private jet of the company as his.

"Bring her here," Antonio ordered, without a moment's hesitation, and hung up the phone. It was time he met this missing niece of his.

Of course, he was aware of Adriano's ulterior motives. He knew Adriano was responsible for Paolo's death. But that served Antonio just fine since he was not on good terms with his brother, and after he was out of the way, Antonio took over the leadership of the organization.

Antonio drew a deep breath. He couldn't believe that he was so rich and still, the only place in the world that mattered to him—this mansion on Kefalonia—didn't belong to him, but to his brother Paolo. He had offered to buy the property on several occasions, but Paolo had stubbornly refused, even though he didn't care for Kefalonia. It seemed that Paolo enjoyed denying him the only thing he wanted most.

Now Antonio had a chance to acquire the property, after all. That's why he wanted both Adriano and Christina on the island—where he was the law, having the police chief on his payroll—to take care of things once and for all.

Having them out of the way, nobody else could stake a claim to the multi-million dollar fortune of the family, not to mention this paradise.

Throwing the phone on a lounge chair, he walked over to the edge again and leaned against the railings, smiling. Everything was working out just the way he had planned it.