Lace and Bullets(21)
Someone out there had to care about this woman sitting in front of him. She was kind and passionate. Determined and full of life.
She shrank down on the bed, all at once so small and vulnerable. “Guess I’ve never mattered much to anyone.”
Shit. He fought down every instinct screaming at him to hold her. “I’m sorry, Mia.”
“I don’t need your pity.” She crossed her arms over the sheet. “You’re a murderer for God sakes.”
“Yeah, I am.”
“If you hand me over, you really think you’ll get whatever it is you’re after?”
“I don’t have a choice. It’s my only option.”
She wiped at her left eye. “You’re even more naïve than I am. If everything you’ve said about the cartel is true, they’ll never give you what you want. You’ll never feel whole.”
Damien clenched his fists. “You’re right, I won’t. But at least I’ll know the truth. I’ll know it wasn’t my fault.” He turned to the dresser and grabbed her clothes. They landed on the bed with a soft thud. “Get dressed. I’ve got to meet someone.”
“What are you doing with me?”
“Making sure you don’t leave.”
* * *
Damien strode out of the house and pulled his hood over his head. Meeting with JJ was a major risk. One that could get him killed. But he needed to know what he’d be walking into the next night.
Mia’s words kept repeating inside his head. If he handed her over, would Marcelo give him what he wanted? Would he tell him the truth and let him walk away?
He thought about her gentle touch. The way she curled up against his chest in the night like she needed him. It had been years since he’d held someone else like that.
Those nights still haunted him. The bitter cold. The hard concrete. The grunts and fast shuffles of feet as strangers passed them by. People rushing home to their houses and heaters and fireplaces. To waiting blankets and warm soup and love.
Men and women stepped over the tiny pair huddled into the walls like they were weeds that needed pulling. Damien shoved his hands in his pockets to ward off the chill. It wasn’t all from the night air.
People like Mia would never understand what it meant to be scared and hungry and so damn desperate you’d do anything to survive.
The headlights of the car in front of him flicked on and off. She would understand soon enough.
He slid into the passenger seat. “Hey, JJ.”
“S’up, man, you look rough.”
“I was with Angelo at the DA’s place.”
JJ hissed and shook his head. “That shit’s not good, man. Cops are everywhere. Media’s a fucking circus. You need to get the hell outta here, man.”
Damien glanced at JJ. Built like a tank and a half, the man took up all the space on the driver’s side of the Crown Vic and then some. His massive forearm sat on the center console, bulging with veins.
With a reputation for hitting first and not bothering to ask questions, the guy had one serious temper. But he’d always been chill with Damien. One of the few guys in the scene who took him at face value.
If JJ said shit was bad, it was a God damn cesspool.
“How’s Marcelo?”
JJ snorted. “Foaming at the mouth. He wants someone to pay for this fuck up. It took him years to get in with the DA’s office. Now he’ll have to start all over. With the turnover in cops, he’s feeling the heat.”
Damien nodded.
“He finds out you were involved, he’s gonna want your head.”
“Gotta ask for a favor.” Damien knew it was a risk, but there was no one else he could trust.
“Depends. What’s in it for me?”
“If it goes down like it should, you’ll be a fucking hero to Marcelo.”
JJ twisted in the seat. “Yeah? Then talk.”
“After Angelo fucked it all up, I showed up. Took him out.”
JJ leaned back. “You shot Angelo? Yo, man, that’s…bad.”
“Hear me out.” Damien turned to face the other man. “Now it looks like the DA shot him. Couldn’t risk Angelo talking to the EMTs. If they found out Marcelo was involved…It was the best way to keep it quiet. It looks like a robbery gone bad.”
His fellow criminal thought for a moment. “I got you. All right. So, what you want me to tell Marcelo?”
Damien shook his head. “That’s not it. He already knows.”
JJ frowned. “Then what is it?”
“There’s a witness. I took her.”
“Shit.”
“I don’t trust Donny not to play me. I need you to get word to Marcelo. Tell him I want to set up a trade.”