Kissing the Killer(59)

“Dante has been talking a lot,” Gian said. “Thinks you’re trying to save the girl’s life. Thinks you’re breaking rules, that you’ve gone soft.” He paused, eyeing me. “Did you go soft, Brooks?”

“Dante is a fucking cunt,” I said. “I didn’t go soft.”

“Dante can be a cunt,” he agreed. “Frankly, we haven’t been happy with Dante for a long time. He hasn’t exactly been able to handle our little problem with the Spiders, as you saw firsthand.”

“That was a cluster fucker,” I said.

“Thanks to you, we managed to keep some of the girls.”

And you managed to murder a bunch more, I wanted to say, but I bit my tongue.

“Only did as ordered.”

“You got the cars out because you think about shit. You did what had to be done because you’re not a coward. That’s why I sent you, Brooks. Dante is a fucking coward, even though he’s got a lot of experience.”

“Dante is who he is,” I said.

“Yeah. That’s fucking right.” Gian knocked his drink back and so did I. “Listen, Brooks. I want to promote you.”

That came as a surprise. I genuinely didn’t think that was what this was about, though I’d had my suspicions. “Why now?” I asked.

“Because you’ve proven yourself time and again. This shit with the girl, who fucking cares? You say she’s dead, so she’s dead. That’s all that matters to me.”

“I appreciate the trust.”

“Like I said, you fucking earned it. And Dante, well, he’s been spouting off at the fucking mouth for too long. He’s not as useful as he once was.”

“So what do you want me to do, take over Dante’s territory?”

“That’s exactly right.” Gian leaned back in his chair, grinning hugely at me. “Interested?”

It was a very, very tempting offer. Dante’s territory was rich and important to the Barone family, and I knew that if I become the local boss, I would definitely elevate my fucking life.

But I wasn’t sure I wanted to elevate my life. I was happy where I was, content with what I did. If I became the boss, that meant I wouldn’t be a killer anymore, wouldn’t be a hit man. I’d be a fucking boss.

Then there was Emma. Gian seemed to be suggesting that he didn’t care if Emma was alive or dead, that he could just ignore it. If I told him that Emma was really this new girl, whatever the name was, he’d probably believe me, mostly because he didn’t care. We could be free, and I could make a lot more money.

But would she want that? I couldn’t imagine she’d want me working for the mafia, not after what she’d seen.

“Can I think about it?” I asked him.

He laughed. “You fucking serious? Any other guy would be freaking out for this chance, but not you. Shit, Brooks, I definitely have the right guy for this.” He shook his head and laughed again. “Sure, fucking think about it. Two days. How’s that?”

“That’s generous. Thanks, Gian.”

“One last thing. If you accept, you have to kill Dante. Take him out, and the territory is yours.”

I nodded. I’d expected that. “Fine.”

“Good. Think about it. Let me know.”

I stood up. “Anything else, boss?”

“That’s all. Go fucking enjoy this place, yeah?”

“I can handle that.”

He nodded and I turned and left.

He wanted to make me a boss, and all I had to do was kill a man I already strongly disliked. It should have been an easy choice.

But it wasn’t, not at all, not with Emma in my life, whatever she meant to me. She wasn’t going to be okay with this. I couldn’t imagine she’d want to stick around.

As I walked slowly back to the apartment, I dreaded telling her. I didn’t know how I felt about it or what I wanted from it, but I knew she’d be upset. I wasn’t going to lie to her though. I wasn’t going to hold this back. We’d come too far together, gone through too much shit to start lying like that.

Maybe I’d be a boss, or maybe not. For now, I was going back to the room to think and to see her, maybe figure this shit out.





24





Emma





After Brooks left for his meeting, I couldn’t help but wrap myself in a fluffy white robe that I found in the closet and lounge on the couch. I felt strangely good and safe, my head still buzzing from earlier, and I let out a long sigh.

I’d never experienced wealth like this before. I knew that people like the Barones lived in places like this, but it still felt completely unreal. I leafed through a packet that I found on the coffee table and realized that there were menus and lists of places I could go, like a sauna or even a small doctor’s office.