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Viktor gave his buddy’s shoulder a slap. “I know you will. Keep me posted and good luck.”
Corona nodded and then helped Nina with her bags. They got into the SUV and headed to the runway where the jet was being fueled and prepared for the trip..
* * * *
Atlanta was staring at Nina. She was young, only in her twenties, but very attractive, kind of sweet looking. It hit him pretty quickly that he remembered seeing her at the club, Bailey’s. It was only a few weeks back, and he’d been with Zinc. He was not going to admit that to Freeman and the guys. He felt that ache in his gut. It was so crazy that Freeman had met her first and was completely attracted to her, and then he’d seen her and couldn’t peel his eyes from her. In fact, a friend of his and Zinc’s had spotted her. He’d been totally checking her out, and then Atlanta did, too. That was when Zinc told them that she was off-limits, that a heavy—some guy in the mob—had his eyes on her. And that, unless they had a death wish, they needed to back the hell off. Who would have known the man was lying? Or maybe he wasn’t, but then, wouldn’t that heavy be protecting her now? It made Atlanta have questions about her, and for some reason, his curiosity even had him feeling sorry for her. She looked so sad and was trying to be strong. Zinc had a sister?
What if what they’d heard was true and Zinc had been doing business with the Cubans? What if he was working both sides and trying to make a profit for himself behind Viktor and the bosses’ backs? Maybe the heavy she was with was a Cuban boss or some higher-up? The shit would truly hit the fan, and the truth would come out sooner than later. He wondered what the hell was going on.
Atlanta watched her as she fought to stay awake. He couldn’t blame her for being on guard. She didn’t know them or trust them. Hopefully she focused on the fact that she wasn’t truly in any danger, but this was a means of watching over her, protecting her, and helping her to mourn her brother. He just hoped she didn’t want to talk about Zinc with him. He wasn’t the mushy, emotional guy. None of his team was, even though Zinc had been a good friend. This job, being a soldier and engaging in this profession, could be dangerous. They weren’t as deep as Zinc had been because they were still working for the government and taking on special missions. These next several weeks were to recoup and get some much-needed rest.
It shouldn’t be stressful at all, Atlanta thought. But then one look at Nina, with her legs crossed and her petite, voluptuous figure and the knowledge that they were all going to be living with her in the house, brought on some feelings he didn’t want to think deeper about. One glance at the others and he saw how they watched her just as closely, and he wondered what exactly they’d gotten themselves into this favor for Viktor.
* * * *
A few hours later, Nina was fighting to keep her eyes open. She was on guard, pretty shaken up over the way her brother, Zinc, and his buddy, Cobra, had been killed. It was like something out of a movie. She didn’t really think people did hits anymore. The fact that they’d found a bunch of money and guns at Zinc’s place didn’t sit well, either. It wasn’t the property of the Russians. It was property of the Cubans who’d gone missing after a team of five men in a van were found murdered. It wasn’t looking good for Zinc’s reputation, but considering he was dead, that wouldn’t affect him now. Instead, it would make them question her and her loyalty to the Russian bosses. Meanwhile, she didn’t know what the hell was going on. She just knew not to trust anyone and realized she was being watched because they thought she was connected to this heist, too. Now she was pissed off at Zinc, as well as sad that he was dead. She truly was alone now, and getting back into that protective state from her life years ago was a necessity in surviving this.
She swallowed hard and then rubbed her eyes. She felt the tears fill them. She loved Zinc so much, despite the fact they had been separated for many years while he took off and served his country. She never heard a word from him, and even if he’d tried, which he admitted he hadn’t, Zinc wouldn’t have found her.
She was practically living on the streets, staying in shelters or what the government deemed safe houses. She became street-smart, getting her fast taste of the rough life when a group of other teens stole what little money she had and beat the hell out of her. The damn South Liberty gang dominated the streets, but on the gang-banging level, not on the level of the various mafias that ruled certain neighborhoods. There were the Russians, the Cubans, the Puerto Ricans, the Koreans, and the Italians. That was just within the city. She learned quickly who to stay clear of and who not to piss off. All she wanted was a job to make money and to get the hell out of there. Now she wished she’d headed out of the state, instead.
She felt the ache in her heart. It didn’t matter how many years had passed since then. She could remember the fear, the danger, as though it were yesterday. She would never wish that life upon anyone. It wasn’t even a life. It had been a war for survival.
Nina was down and out, at her wit’s end, and approaching her nineteenth birthday when she’d gotten jammed up in a bad situation. South Liberty controlled the streets where they all hung out and lived. They had her number, especially because of one night when the Cuban gang members saved her ass (and Brook’s) from getting beaten. She gulped down the lump of emotion. That scene, that intervention, hadn’t gone unnoticed. Nor had the night she wound up helping Gale, which changed her future completely.
One night Nina was with a couple of friends, and this girl, Gale, was in trouble with some other girls. That night, Nina remembered, she had been jumped herself, and everything was stolen from her. She had learned a lot about the street life pretty damn quickly. So when Gale was in trouble, Nina came to her rescue. It was a setup from the Puerto Rican gang and a small group of thugs who were trying to traffic in drugs under the Cuban’s radar.
But Nina hadn’t known that at the time, only later. If she had, she probably would have stayed clear of getting involved.
So Nina got to Gale in the nick of time and helped her get out of danger. That was when she’d met Corning Ponopolous. He was a big shot, and everyone called him “Polo.” Apparently the gang members did business with him, and he got them off Nina’s back. She also found out that Gale was his niece, and instantly, Nina got the Cuban boss’s protection.
She hadn’t wanted to accept anything from him, but when he asked where she was living and she told him the streets and the shelter, he was shocked. He refused to let her leave and go back there, and she refused to be owned by him or to owe him anything, but he offered her a reward for saving his niece. Then he gave her a job working in the club nearby. It was a bit of a hard place with lots of drugs, prostitution, and shady business, but the pay was cash. She worked like a dog, but she kept her mouth shut and respected the men in charge, and they respected her. Well, they didn’t try to persuade her into their beds after she denied them numerous times and then Polo ordered them to lay off.
She learned a lot about the bar business and started thinking that one day, if she saved enough money, she would go to college. She’d barely gotten through high school, but that was only because her mother had taken off. Nina had to lie about her even existing in order to stay in school, not wind up in a shelter, and obtain her high school diploma. She learned how to be a survivor and count solely on herself and no one else. She had trust issues. That was for sure.
She remembered Polo asking her a bunch of questions about her family and where she’d come from. She had no qualms telling him that her mother was a lost cause and had disappeared when Nina was in high school. She didn’t know who her father was, and she didn’t tell Polo that Zinc said he didn’t
know who their father was, either—or that he wouldn’t be surprised if their mom had them with two different men. He’d heard things on the street, and whatever it was, it made him angry and he refused to tell Nina. She figured she was better off not knowing who her dad was because if he turned out to be some piece-of-crap loser, she might think she was destined for failure and lose her motivation to fight for a better life.
Everything changed for her one night when a group of suits walked into Delora’s, the club where she was bartending and waitressing. Polo wasn’t around. He was out of the country on business, but his key players were there, and they were quite the shady characters. She never liked the way they looked at her or how they talked about how things would “change” when she turned twenty-one. At first, she didn’t know why twenty-one was some magic number, but then they hinted about Polo wanting her.
She wasn’t stupid. The man kept a close eye on her and had her followed for protection, which pissed off those girls in the South Liberty gang. She knew they were still angry about Nina saving Gale and Polo discovering that certain gang members were working behind his back to help the Puerto Rican gangs. It was a mess and something Nina wanted no involvement with, but she knew better. These people held grudges for a long time. It made her wonder about those women and the gang. When she was able to get out of there, she never looked back. Now here she was, trying to figure out who could have wanted to frame and hurt Zinc—and why.
She moved around in the cushioned seat, trying to get comfortable, but her mind was going in circles thinking about that night when everything changed for her.
The men who’d entered the club had a different kind of look to them than Polo’s men. Although, she knew they were thugs. Whether they had custom suits or department store styles, they were still thugs. They all looked badass, and she knew to stay clear the moment she heard the Russian accents. These men were different. They were important and very attractive, despite the angry, mean, psycho facial expressions they all had when they entered the place.
At the time, Nina didn’t know what was actually happening, but she learned later that Viktor and his team of men were taking over the place and cleaning house. That same night, she hadn’t noticed the men planted in the club, or the fact that her brother, Zinc, was there. But Viktor had recognized her.
* * * *
“Nina, right?” Viktor asked her.
She looked at the tall, very attractive man with the Russian accent and tried to ignore him. She didn’t want anyone to think he knew her. Not when she worked for the Cubans and something was going down. Her instincts were on alert as she shook her head ‘no’ in denial.
“Hey, I know your brother. He’s been looking all over the place for you.”
“Listen, guy, I don’t know who you are or what game you’re playing, but I’m not interested,” she snapped at him, and he squinted his eyes at her. She saw his jaw tense. Something warned her to not piss the man off. He pulled out his cell phone, and she had a feeling he even took a picture of her as she worked.
