AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“He was warned about what would happen. That when I’m not paid I have to resort to distasteful measures.”
“Dad?” I can barely say it. This man isn’t my dad. He doesn’t deserve that title anymore. I’ve already gotten used to the fact that he sold me out.
But now? Learning this? That he was partially responsible for my mom’s death? That he fucking knew it was coming, and did nothing?
And I could have died that night too. My father has been playing games with my life since I was ten years old.
“Oh, don’t get upset now,” Mr. Brigham says with a weary-sounding sigh. “All is well. Your father paid me back quite quickly after that. I believe that’s when he started skimming from Darragh. Isn’t it, Jack?”
“Yes,” he says to the water.
“And now we’re good friends,” Mr. Brigham says jovially, flashing those big white teeth at me. “Business partners, even. He’s been funnelling money to me for a long time now. Helped me build this beautiful place.” He gestures behind himself, to a massive, sprawling structure of white stone among the trees. “So when he ran into trouble with Mr. Titone, Mr. Gowan, and Mr. Severu, of course I was happy for him to come and live here. He and Bridget have built a lovely little life on this island.”
My knees buckle. No one tries to stop me from falling. I land heavily on my knees and my hands, splinters gouging into the skin until I bleed.
“So what do you want with me?” I ask, watching the red of my blood stain the wood beneath my hands.
“Your father has mentioned bringing you here several times. Once I saw a recent photograph of you, I decided that might not be such a bad idea after all. You’ll do very well working for me here.”
“Working for you doing what?”
“Anything my guests desire.”
My spine ices with dread. I force myself to sit up on my knees, curling my bleeding hands into fists on my skirt.
“Elio will not allow that,” I tell him bluntly.
“Then he may come here and negotiate for your release. Ah, I must say, it feels good to take a toy away from someone as powerful as Elio Titone. I imagine that he’ll pay a pretty penny to get you back. And if he decides that he doesn’t want you, then I’ll make good money with you in other ways.” He grins, but his blue eyes are flinty and dead-looking. “When my friends finish with you, you’ll be so broken that your husband may not even want you back.”
“This wasn’t the deal,” my father says, finally turning around. “That wasn’t why I agreed for her to come here.”
“Oh? Did you think you were saving her?” Mr. Brigham says mildly, taking a moment to examine his perfectly groomed cuticles. “This is why you’re perpetually in debt, Jack. You have no vision. No business acumen. You’re constantly two steps behind.”
As if deciding that he’s done with this conversation, Mr. Brigham turns his back and begins to stroll off the dock towards the shore. The two men haul me up, dragging me between them. My father says nothing and follows silently behind, head bent and face in shadow.
Chapter 43
Elio
Cat-Foot Caruso’s got some nice digs here, but I barely even notice his big house on the beach. All I care about is getting on that helicopter and finding Deirdre. My skull feels like it’s splitting open, and I don’t know if it’s because of the blow to the temple or because of how many thoughts are gunning through me now about what might be happening to her without me there to protect her.
They had a head start, but our jet is fast and the helicopter will be fast too. With any luck we’ll show up and storm the place two fucking minutes after Deirdre arrives.
“What are we gonna be dealing with?” I ask Caruso as we haul ass into the helicopter.
“Charlie’s rich, and he’s involved in some shady shit, but he’s not a real mob boss,” Caruso informs us. “He’s got some private security working for him at his place. Don’t know how many guys could be there. He might have some friends staying as guests, but they’re usually just your run of the mill rich assholes looking for drugs and whores. I doubt they’d be ready for a shootout. Your wife’s papà lives there with his cute little piece of ass, too.”
I grunt, taking that all in as we lift off. Caruso has made good use of his retirement, learning new skills, I guess, because he actually knows how to fucking fly this thing.
We lift off over his property, heading for the open water and an island beyond. As we get closer, a big white building comes into view.
“That’s Charlie’s place,” Caruso tells me via a microphone and the protective headphones I’ve got on. “He’s got a landing pad. We won’t have the element of surprise if we land there, though.”
“Do it,” I tell him, palming the pistol at my hip and the automatic strapped to my side. I don’t give a fuck about the element of surprise right now. The second they took Deirdre, they should have known I’d follow them. Fuck surprise. I’ll kill any man who didn’t see this fucking coming.
And I’ll kill the rest of them, too.
Caruso banks and begins to descend towards a large helipad on the property, about 500 metres away from the main building. There are already two guards in tan uniforms with guns on their hips waiting for us. Enzo, Robbie, and Curse all wait for my command.
