Page 30 of The Mobster’s Nurse

I need to slow down. Focus.

I offer her my hand. "Are you ready?"

She takes it, smiles shakily. "Sure."

Something's wrong. It doesn't take a genius to figure out what. I killed a man last night. Tortured another one for information. All while my woman has expressed concerns about the violence in this business.

In the car, she stares out the window, not saying anything. We're flanked by two cars, filled with my men, ready if this Lynchpin bastard sends any more of his men after us. Last night, I learned he's more than an up-and-comer now. He's a lieutenant, with his own crew, eager to use the Morettis as a step up to enhance his reputation.

"Everybody looks scared," Ellie comments as we drive up the long gravel path toward the villa.

"They know we're at war," I say quietly. "They probably saw the news about the restaurant. A groomsman and the chief vet are missing."

She nods. "Life has become very strange very fast."

I reach over and squeeze her leg.

"What's going on in there?" I ask, watching her profile. She doesn't look at me.

"I'm trying to figure out if I'm scared of you. And your world. Or scared of myself."

I swallow and focus on driving.

She turns to her left and gazes out through the window.

In the villa, I walk with my hand on her back. But she doesn't lean against me. We haven't kissed or embraced today. It stings, but I need to concentrate on the task at hand.

Dad is waiting for us behind his big desk. I hold the door open for Ellie, then shut it behind us. When Don Dario frowns, his silver tooth glints.

"So?" he says, raising an eyebrow at me. "What do you and one of our junior vets have to tell me, son?"

"Ellie is more than a junior vet," I snap.

Dad looks shocked. “Oh, really?” Can't blame him. Two days ago, I didn't know anything about anybody on this ranch. When he sees I'm serious, he inclines his head. “Okay … Go on.”

"Ellie spotted inconsistencies with Daryl's behavior and instructions. She brought these to my attention, allowing me to extract more information from him. He's in police custody now for drug possession. And I'm sure he counts himself lucky."

"Why not just …" Dad bites his lip and looks down, but his thought is obvious.

… Why not just blow his head off?

I glance at Ellie, who's staring into the middle distance as though she's the one being interrogated. My heart aches for her.

"We don't need that mess," I say. "Sometimes, it's easier to go the legal route."

Dad shrugs. "He doesn't know anything that can hurt us anyway. We keep it all separate. What else?"

"Cormac Lynch is leading the Irish in LA. We've got locations for two strongholds. Vito and Georgio are drawing up attack plans. If you give me the go-ahead, we'll get to work. Their plan is to poison our horses so they underperform, drive the price of the racing syndicate down, then buy us out. When our horses make a miraculous recovery, they'll use the reduced odds to earn a windfall. Plus, they'll have grabbed some of our turf."

Dad massages his jaw. "Clever," he grunts. "I need to confer with my father. The Rossis might have something to say about this, too."

"I understand," I tell him, hesitating. But only because Ellie looks so withdrawn. "Ellie is more than somebody who's just helping me."

Ellie looks at me with that devastatingly beautiful light in her eyes. A smile touches her lips, but vanishes a moment later.

Her internal conflict is writ clearly on her human features.

Dad just stares blankly at us both. His eyes go back and forth.