“This is like an incredibly nice hotel, like something you’d see on TV.”
“Except this place is incredibly dangerous.” I collapsed into the chair across from Emma. “Are you sure about this? We can still get the fuck out of here.”
“Stop, Brooks,” she said, rubbing her temples. “I trust her. You should trust me.”
“Trusting you isn’t a part of this.” I stood up, annoyed that she wasn’t listening.
“Where are you going?” she asked.
“Looking around. I want to get a feel for this place before we commit ourselves further.”
“Fine. Do what you want. I’m sleeping.” She stretched out on the couch.
I stared at her for a second before grabbing a key card and heading toward the door.
I shouldn’t have been angry at her. I knew it was stupid for something to come down between us, but I couldn’t help myself. I felt like we were slowly getting further and further away from where we needed to be, which was as far from the Barone family as possible.
And yet I was wandering around the mansion’s hallways, ignored by everyone around me as if I belonged. As I moved, I made note of the layout of the mansion, and slowly I realized that the place wasn’t built in any sort of logical sequence.
In fact, it seemed like it had been purposefully designed to be as confusing as possible. I was willing to bet that was a defensive function, meant to confuse anybody who was an outsider. That was going to make navigating the place much more difficult, but not impossible.
As I moved through the hallways, I took note of the cameras and the staff. They looked like normal hotel staff, but some of the men were definitely carrying weapons. I guessed they were guards, meant to look like they were just normal cleaning staff.
This place was much more than it seemed. On the outside, to the casual, untrained eye, the Barone mansion was a lavish hotel meant to show their wealth. And in truth, it was that. But it was also the home of a very dangerous and powerful gangster, a man with many enemies. Ever since the mafia and the Russian mob went to war, I was willing to bet the compound had been on high alert.
Which meant that there were more eyes around. Louisa may have been powerful in her own way, but maybe she was a little blind to her own family. She was so used to living invisibly inside their walls, so used to moving around the way she wanted to, that she forgot how it could be for a stranger coming into the compound. I was sure that multiple people were watching me every single step I took, whether they were watching through cameras or watching from the shadows.
It was an eerie feeling, and it only made me feel surer that we were making a mistake. But it was too late. We had committed to this plan. I’d been seen, so I was sure Gian knew I had come for the meeting. I couldn’t back down anymore.
As I kept moving through the mansion, I came to a more populated area. I saw more and more guys I recognized, other thugs and goons from the mafia. I guessed that these were the guest quarters, meant for thugs within the organization. There wasn’t as much gilt and as many expensive paintings all over the place, which suggested that the Barones were less interested in impressing their own workers.
As I turned a corner, I heard a familiar voice and stopped short. “Brooks!”
I turned around and saw Rice standing there, smirking at me. “Rice,” I said, nodding.
He walked over to me and we shook hands. He was a few inches shorter than me, though incredibly stocky. Rice was another hit man in the mob, a man I’d worked with numerous times over the years. He was brutal but efficient, and he was one of the better hit men. He was also much older than I was and had been doing this job for many years.
“I heard about the girls,” Rice said. “I heard you did some serious shit that night.”
“Just moved a few cars,” I answered.
“Still, you did well. Everyone is talking about you.”
I frowned. I definitely didn’t want to be talked about, not right now.
“What are they saying?”
“They’re impressed. Not a lot of guys can think fast under pressure like that.”
“Just reacted. Wasn’t thinking.”
He slapped me on the shoulder, laughing. “I’ve been saying for years that you have good instincts, kid. Shame about all those girls, though.”
“Yeah, real shame.”
“Those sluts would have brought in a lot of money for the group. Not that we really fucking need it, mind, but still. Shame so many got maimed.”
“What do you mean, maimed?”
He laughed. “You didn’t hear? One of the cars with the girls in it exploded. Most of the girls survived, but they were all burned up, disfigured, disgusting.”