Packing Heat(17)

“You’ll need to think of something else if you want to keep her alive.”

“She doesn’t know anything. Ernesto will see that.”

“No,” Vince said, shaking his head. “I don’t think he will. Ernesto is a stubborn fucking cunt, and he’s pissed about the Spiders.”

“He’s a sick bastard.”

“He is,” Vince agreed. “The whole thing is fucked up.” He sighed and poured two more drinks. “Whatever happened to the good old days when the mob didn’t buy and sell human beings?”

We drank and I shrugged. “Who knows? We don’t do it.”

“We don’t. And there are others in the mob who are against it, too.”

“Lucas?”

“Lucas, for one,” Vince said, nodding. Lucas Barone was Arturo Barone’s son and the heir to the whole family. When that old cock Arturo finally died, Lucas would be in control of everything.

And the mob would change for the better. Lucas had everything his father had, but he wasn’t burdened with being a total asshole. Lucas was smart enough to know what needed to be done, and hard enough to do it. But he wasn’t an insane person like his father.

Though Arturo had done a lot for the mob. He had taken the Barone family and grown it bigger than anyone could have imagined by being one of most vicious mobsters to ever live. Now we were one of the most powerful groups in the country, but back when Arturo had started we were almost nothing. We owed a lot to Arturo, but he wasn’t invincible.

“Is this going to be enough to finally make him act?”

“Probably not,” Vince said. “Taking over the mob and killing your father is no small thing. We need to wait.”

“Waiting isn’t my specialty.” I put my glass down on his desk. “I’m heading out.”

“Fine. Keep your phone handy. Who knows when they’ll come looking for you.”

“Stall them for me.”

“I’ll do what I can.”

I nodded to him and then headed out.

Things were complicated in the mob, and now Cassidy had been thrown into the thick of it. There was a war going on both outside and inside, and nobody was safe, least of all Cassidy.

Dasha dying was the worst thing imaginable for her, especially considering the girl hadn’t talked. If only she had given Ernesto something good, maybe Cassidy would be safe. As it was, I knew Ernesto would be after her, and I had to make sure he didn’t skip talking to me and go right for her.

I headed out, nervous anger in my stomach, ready to find and make sure Cassidy was okay.





9





Cassidy





I barely slept that night. I kept having visions of masked men breaking down my door and murdering me in my sleep.

The sun rose and pressed in through my windows, waking me up. I was exhausted and sluggish as I got up and made some coffee, but at least I was still alive.

I needed to get the hell out of my apartment. I kept seeing those men attacking me, and nothing seemed to help. I showered, got dressed, and drank some coffee.

I hadn’t heard from Rafa yet, but I hadn’t really expected to. I wished he hadn’t left, but I didn’t understand why. He was the enemy, but I couldn’t really think of him that way. He had said he didn’t want to hurt me, that he wasn’t going to hurt me, and for some reason I believed him. I trusted him, but maybe I shouldn’t have.

Rafa was a total stranger, but I still found myself attracted to him. It was so stupid and frustrating, but I kept seeing that kiss. Now he knew my real name and who I was, so all of that had to be over. Still, he had said he wouldn’t hurt me. I had to believe in that.

And I had to do what he said. No more researching the Spiders. I was done with human trafficking, done with the whole damn thing. I wanted to help the city, but I didn’t want to get myself killed. I could do more good alive than I could dead.

I left my apartment and got into my crappy, old, beat-up Nissan Altima. I headed out to the paper’s office, needing something to distract myself.

I wasn’t full time at the paper, but I could still come and go. I could use the office if I needed to, and there were always stories that needed a freelancer to write them up. They were usually really boring fluff pieces, like articles about local T-ball teams or something like that, but they paid money. I could use a little money and a little distraction.

I parked and headed into the office building. I rode the elevator up to the fifth floor, glancing over my shoulder the whole time. I was paranoid and I knew it, but I had to keep myself together. Rafa had said I needed to just lie low, so that was what I’d do.

The elevator doors opened and I walked out onto the floor. I smiled and nodded at the receptionist, who waved to me as I passed. I headed toward the bull pen in the back, my heart beating fast.