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“Yeah, well, they must’ve jumped the gun and screwed the pooch because it’s out there and it’s getting some attention by the media.”
“Can’t make money if you kill off the client. What’s the end game?” Pyro muttered beneath his breath as he mulled over the pieces of the puzzle. He turned to Angel. “You said he’s got cops involved…dirty cops only care about the money. People will stop buying the shit if it’s too dangerous, right? So where’s the draw? No money to make if people aren’t buying.”
“I don’t know,” she answered, looking miserable. “But I can tell you Benton only cares about what can make him money.”
“Do you think it’s possible he doesn’t know about the dead users?”
“No, he knew there was a problem before I split because Roxy died.”
“Who’s Roxy?” Bronx asked.
“A prostitute with a taste for anything that’ll get her high. She overdosed.” Tears filled Angel’s eyes. “I tried to warn her but she was like a fiend once she’d had a taste of it. I knew it was dangerous. I tried, I really did. I mean, she had a kid. Roxy wasn’t a great mom but at least she was better than nothing.”
“What do you mean she had a kid?” Bronx asked.
“Yeah, sometimes I babysat for her when she couldn’t find anyone to watch Jazzy for the night.”
“The kid probably ended up in foster care,” Bronx said to Pyro. “I can look into that. If Jazzy went into the system, there will be a record.”
Angel nodded as she blinked back tears. She might try to hide it but Angel had a soft heart. Pryo reached out to Angel to reassure her the best he could. “Bronx is part of a watch dog group called Gage’s Watch. They make sure foster kids aren’t getting hurt in state custody. He’ll make sure Jazzy is being taken care of.”
She accepted his offer with a flash of gratitude but something was still eating at her. “What if she’s not in the system?”
“Does Roxy have any family that could take in the kid?” Bronx asked. Angel shook her head. “Then, she’s probably in the system. Don’t worry, we’ll find her and make sure she’s okay. In the meantime, what’s happening with this Benton asshole?”
“He’s going to call Angel and arrange a meeting. Seems I didn’t get every cop involved with Ashley’s murder. There’s some loose ends and they’ve been looking for Angel. Benton is trading Angel to the dirty cops in exchange for freedom to run his territory the way he sees fit.”
“You know it’s a trap, right?” Bronx pointed out. “And even if it’s not, it’s not going to end well for Angel.”
“She’s not going alone. I’m going to have a chat with this Benton duckweed and see how he likes being on the receiving end of being fucked.”
Angel, suddenly antsy, excused herself and disappeared into the bedroom with a muttered excuse about needing to piss and Bronx turned to him and said in a low tone, “Something don’t smell right. This feels like a trap and that girl is the bait.” Pyro nodded, not surprised. He’d been mulling the same thought since Angel had told him what was going on. She’d caved pretty easy in the end, which didn’t feel like something she’d do without a real fight. Bronx continued with a persuasive tone. “Think about it. If the same cops are involved who killed Ashley, Angel isn’t the only loose end they’ve been looking to snip. Frankly, you’re the bigger prize. Maybe you’re being lured in by a pretty face and you’re the real target. I have a bad feeling that Angel is lying and if that’s the case, you sure as hell can’t trust her.”
“I know,” he said grimly. “But I’m going anyway. Even if she’s lying, it doesn’t change a thing. It’s time to end this. One way or another.”
“This isn’t your penance, man,” Bronx returned in a harsh whisper. “You gotta stop nurturing that death wish. Ashley’s gone and it was tragic. You did what you could and now you gotta move on. Don’t walk willingly into a trap.”
In the good old days, Pyro wouldn’t have hesitated to call on his old friend for a little back up. Bronx had always been down for a little danger — actually thrived on it — but that was before he was married to a good woman and a daddy to one cute little baby girl. Hell, he wouldn’t ask Bronx to risk all that on his mangy ass. Not now. “I appreciate your concern. I got this. Don’t worry about it.”
“You sonofabitch, you’re going to do it anyway. Stubborn, mule-headed, my-way-or-the-muthafucking-highway…” Bronx muttered with a shake of his head. When he realized that Pyro wouldn’t budge, he relented with another string of expletives before biting out, “Fine. Just try not to get yourself killed.”
“I don’t doubt someone’s gonna die,” he said, a slow smile forming. “I just know it ain’t gonna be me.”
“Yeah well, watch out for that one,” he jerked a nod toward the bedroom where Angel remained. “She’s the one who’s likely gonna put the knife through your heart.”
Maybe. But it was a risk he was willing to take. He owed her that.
***
Angel bit her knuckles to keep from hyperventilating in the small bathroom. This was all wrong. She couldn’t do it. Pyro was certainly walking to his death. There was no doubt in her mind that the cops who wanted Pyro wanted to put a bullet in his head. She couldn’t take it anymore. Guilt ripped at her insides for what she was planning to do. Pyro wasn’t the monster she’d thought he was. Just come clean. But how could she? Her baby’s life was on the line. This is your chance to be a better mother. To make the right choice — even if it broke her heart.
She stared at herself in the mirror, trying not to hate what she saw. A coward, a drug addict, a pathetic loser who couldn’t seem to keep herself out of trouble stared back at her. How could she see anything else when she knew she was leading a good man to his death?
As if that weren’t bad enough, there was something else eating at her. Something that she couldn’t share unless she revealed where her misgivings were coming from. The thing was, she hoped to God Jazzy was in the system. But the way her stomach clenched and rolled, she had a bad feeling that Jazzy wouldn’t be. And it had everything to do with Benton. She bit her lip until she tasted blood. She had to wait and see if Bronx came through. Hopefully, she was wrong and the authorities had Jazzy. The alternative was something she couldn’t even fathom. Her body began to shake and she squeezed her eyes shut as more tears leaked from beneath her lids. Benton was evil— she wouldn’t put it past him to do anything that furthered his own needs. She thought of Jazzy with her sweet brown curls and her shining brown eyes and she felt the need to vomit. What was she going to do? Please God, help me. Please let me be wrong.
A sharp rap on the door startled her and she knew it was Pyro. She couldn’t hide in the bathroom forever. “Just a minute,” she called out as she rinsed her face quickly. There was no hiding the fact that she’d been crying. Her puffy eyes and red nose gave her away. She open the door and met Pyro’s concerned gaze. Don’t look worried about me. I don’t deserve it. She pushed past him. “I need to go out,” she announced, not surprised when he growled in answer. She whirled on him with a flash of temper. “You’re not my keeper. I have some errands to run.”
“Have you forgotten there’s a psychotic fuck out there looking for you?”
“I haven’t forgotten. But I need some space. Things are getting too weird around here between you and I — the lines are blurring. And I’m not comfortable with that. The next thing I know you’re going to want to pick out China patterns or something. I’m not into this ‘playing house’ thing going on.”
“What
the fuck are you talking about?” he asked, irritated. “Just tell me where you’re going.”
“No. It’s my business and you just need to stay out of it.”
He grabbed her arm. “What is wrong with you? What set you off? Something that Bronx said?”
She jerked her arm free. “I’m fine. I told you I just need a little space. I’ll be back this evening so stop freaking out and stop being so possessive. We’re not dating and you’re not my daddy so fuck off.”
He shook his head as if he knew there was no way he was going to make sense of her bullshit and she didn’t blame him. She wasn’t making any sense to herself. All she knew was that she was suffocating under the mountain of guilt for what she had to do and she didn’t know what the right choice was any more. She desperately just wanted to tell Pyro and let the chips fall where they may but she couldn’t do that. Up until recently, she hadn’t really taken to heart what it meant to be a mother. She’d been a fucked up kid, still running from the past, until real danger came knocking. Now all she wanted was to keep her daughter safe. She grabbed her purse and stalked out the front door, thankful when Pyro didn’t follow her.
She didn’t have any money and she didn’t have any transportation so she had to rely upon her thumb. Not that she wasn’t familiar with hitchhiking. She jumped into the first car that stopped and then found herself giving the address of her old apartment building, the one she’d shared with Ashley. It’d been a long time since she’d driven past this address. She’d purposely avoided it for so long. But as she climbed from a car with thanks thrown over her shoulder, the memories collided with one another and Angel’s knees buckled. Everything looked the same. A multiplex with hundreds of units, thousands of souls crammed into the blue-gray building, it’d been the nicest place Ashley could afford with her meager resources after their parents had died. Ashley had gotten some social security money to help take care of Angel but it’d never been enough. That’s why she’d taken that bartending job to supplement their income when Ashley had met Pyro. She climbed the steps to the third floor and walked the halls. Before she know it, she was standing in front of their old door. She knocked before she lost her nerve. What was she doing? She didn’t know. She just wanted to feel close to Ashley one last time. Angel didn’t have anything left from that time, she’d lost everything that night. All she had were her memories. She just wanted to stand in the place where things had been decent —before everything fell to shit. The door opened and a young woman, looking to be about nineteen, cautiously opened the door. A toddler poked his head between her legs, curious. “Can I help you?” she asked.
