“Taviano is here,” Emilio reported.

For a moment Ricco sagged with relief at the knowledge that his brother was alive. Mariko moved close to him and he locked his arm around her waist, as if she gave him strength. “Tell him to go to the security room. The house is lethal right now. Gas in the great room. Guns activated. Tell him… I’m glad he’s alive.”

“He’s reporting Giovanni and Emme both were shot. Emme has a shattered shoulder and Gee has multiple wounds in his leg. He’s being prepped for surgery. Stefano checked in with them. He, Francesca and Vittorio are good. Cosimo and Tomas took major hits. They were alive the last time he heard news, taken to the hospital, both in very bad shape. We don’t know their status at this time.”

“Eloisa? Phillip?”

“He doesn’t know.”

Ricco indicated they move forward toward the pool room where the last two attackers were busy setting up their explosives. He held her hand as they rode the shadow into the room. Fifteen seconds later, solid steel plates dropped down over the windows. Both men jumped to their feet and stared at the steel.

Ricco took one. Mariko took the other. She was on him immediately, not giving him time to trigger the explosives they already had wired and ready to blow. The moment her hands were on his head, he slammed it backward, trying to dislodge her, his superior weight carrying them six or seven steps back. His elbow crashed into her ribs in another attempt to knock her from him. She leapt onto his back, her legs circling him like a vise.

Her hands never left his head, not even to protect herself when he smashed her back into the wall. She let out her breath and wrenched, snapping his neck, ending his desperate attempt to survive.

Ricco was there instantly, yanking up the T-shirt that covered her body. “Did he break your ribs? Can you breathe?”

She was very aware she wore only her red bra and lace panties beneath the T-shirt. “I’m fine. He was strong. Is it over?”

He touched the fading marks on her skin from the ropes, lowered the tee and took her hands, turning them over to inspect her palms and the pads of her fingers where she’d taken skin off trying to brake in the gardens.

“All quiet. We’ve got the cameras sweeping the grounds and house,” Emilio said. “Ricco, you took a hit. How bad?”

Ricco kissed the center of her palm and then her fingertips. “Bruising only. My chest feels like someone took a sledgehammer to it. Call Sal in. I want them to do the cleanup here and maybe he and his crew can find some clues to who is doing this.”

Her heart stuttered a little at the feel of his lips brushing so gently over her torn skin.

Ricco looked at Mariko. “I’m fairly certain I know, but we need proof.”

She knew, too. She’d brought this down on the Ferraro family. “I’m so sorry,” she said, meaning it. Very slowly she removed her hands from his. His touch was making it difficult to think. “I had no idea when I came here that this would happen.”

“The council threatened me years ago,” he pointed out. “This has nothing to do with you and everything to do with me. With what happened.”

She lifted her chin. “If you’re correct and I’m a Tanaka, then this is my fight. They allowed their sons to get away with killing my family. They made me believe I hurt my brother when one of their sons did it. I’m with you all the way.”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Riders came from all over the world to attend the funeral of Phillip Ferraro. Each family sent a representative. Every member of the International Council was there. The council was made up of retired riders from around the world. There were five at all times and it was significant that they were all present at Phillip’s funeral.

What was more significant was that the Archambault family had come in full force, with the exception of the one always secreted until the family came home. Riders in that family brought justice to any riders and their families if the laws were broken. There were five brothers and one girl, just like in the Ferraro family. Mariko was shocked to see the ruling council as well as the Archambault riders making their presence known to all the rider families. She could see that it made everyone uneasy.

Emmanuelle sat between Vittorio and Taviano. Vittorio was still pale and walked carefully, but he had insisted on coming. Giovanni couldn’t be there. Emilio and Enzo guarded him at the hospital. Stefano sat beside his mother, Francesca on his other side. Ricco had insisted Mariko sit with him. He kept his arm around her, his body sheltering hers from prying eyes – and she was well aware that her presence was shocking the world of shadow riders.

A family friend, Henry, sat on the other side of Eloisa, and Lucia and Amo sat with Nicoletta in the family section. Valentino Saldi attended with his father Giuseppi and Val’s cousin Dario. There were at least five other men in the Saldi party. Just about everyone who lived or worked in the Ferraro territory was present.

There were seventeen families in the shadow rider community after the loss of the four families in Japan. The murder of the Tanaka family had been a terrible blow, but the loss of the Yamamoto, Ito and Saito families had crippled the riders there. Japan had sent a representative from their remaining family. His name was Kichiro Nakamura, and he had trained with Mariko. He hadn’t been mean, but then he hadn’t been very friendly, either. He spent a lot of time during the funeral looking from Mariko to Ricco.

She pushed closer to Ricco, sensing his grief. The Ferraro family was shaken, no doubt about it. And angry. Stefano Ferraro was going to have someone’s head. She could feel his rage smoldering just beneath the surface – and that rage was nothing compared to Ricco’s.

She’d never attended any gathering so grim. Even with the people from the Ferraro territory attending, the family didn’t put on their calm, all-is-well faces. They looked angry. They felt angry. By the time they gathered together with the riders in the Ferraro Hotel, their rage wasn’t to be contained.

It was a long time to maintain that anger, all through the funeral, then the reception with everyone outside the shadow riding families giving their condolences. Ricco didn’t let Mariko slip away from him. Even when she had to use the bathroom, he walked her there and was waiting for her when she came out. Everyone was hypervigilant. There was security everywhere. No one tried to be subtle about it. They were right out in the open, and all of them had guns.

The Ferraro cousins had arrived en masse, bringing investigators, bodyguards and riders. They made it plain that they stood with their cousins and would remain until the threat was gone. Eventually, only the riders were left and they went to the Ferraro Hotel, filing into the large conference room. Catered food and drinks were on the tables, although Mariko noticed not too many people were eating.

Stefano waited for the room to become quiet, holding Francesca’s hand the entire time, keeping her close. When the five ruling members of the council indicated they were ready for a meeting, he brought her hand to his mouth. “You will excuse us, Francesca? I’ll have Demetrio and Drago escort you up to our home. I want them to stay with you while I’m away from you.”