Page 80 of Pretty Lies

Joe let out a hard breath. “You mean like—”

“Frankie’s got a bigger problem than Luis’s interest in Della. The guy’s getting information from the inside. The Outfit has a dirty little rat somewhere. Someone better find who it is before they make shit a lot worse.”

“How many people are attached to the warehouse?”

“Besides the people there today?”

“Yeah,” Joe confirmed.

“You know those crews—could be five, could be ten. I don’t have an exact number.”

“I’ll find it. Every fucking name. I will go through every one of them.”

No doubt.

“But I missed something,” Cory said, more to himself than his brother. “I knew I was missing something, Joe, and her brother’s dead because of it. How am I supposed to tell her that?”

Joe cleared his throat. “Hey—”

Cory shook his head. “Don’t, I’m fine. In my head, I think.”

“Or your feelings.”

“Well …”

“Women do that to us,” Joe said when Cory couldn’t find the words. “They make us messy as fuck.”

“Is that what it is?”

Joe smiled faintly. “Yeah, that’s what it is.”

The two brothers stood there, silent. Cory felt every second tick by. Mace didn’t move a muscle at his boots.

For a moment, Cory allowed himself to feel his own sadness about what happened that day, and the person who had been lost because of it. He’d been keeping it at bay; it was easier to focus and do what he needed. In that quiet span of time while he stood with his brother and his dog, he let his sadness roam free. It was rare that he could or even wanted to, but he figured … the soul lost in that warehouse was worth it.

“Could have been you,” Joe said, shifting a bit on his feet so the two of them stood side by side instead of facing one another. “Dad’s right—we chose this, but days like these don’t get easier when it comes this close.”

Cory watched Joe from the side. “It’s never going to get easier. There’s no way out of this life, Joe. Can’t live it like we’re always scared.”

“Can’t live it like we’re bulletproof, either, Cory.”

Fair enough.

“Call me when you have something that I might be able to use,” Cory said.

Joe handed over Mace’s leash. “Of course. Give your girl my condolences, would you? I’m sure we’ll be around for the funeral whenever that happens.”

“Nobody said she was mine.”

“Nobody has to, bro. I just know.”