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Like he knew I was at a crossroads.
My father didn’t care about hurting my feelings, thought nothing of dismissing my wife because he hadn’t chosen her, but the ramifications of Callum’s actions would be long-lasting.Thatwas what I couldn’t handle, and Ma would be the one who bore the brunt of it simply because she had to live with him.
“You’re really asking to have your cock lobbed off, ain’t you?” Forrest mocked.
“Shut up the lot of you,” I snapped. Rubbing a hand over my face, knowing I needed to get this underway, I bit out, “Callum, who was your point of contact?”
He hesitated a second, then rasped, “Just some detective in the 42nd Precinct.”
I frowned and cast Forrest a look, who muttered, “Let me guess. Craig Lacey?”
Callum blinked. “How the fuck did you know that?”
Lacey’s was a name that kept popping up. We’d first heard it from the Sinners, who told us the cop had set up one of their men who was currently serving time in Rikers.
Rex, the Prez, had petitioned the family to get the guy out early, and Da, being unusually accommodating—but then, Rex had just slaughtered some Italians which always put him in a good mood—had hopped onto the phone to make it so. Within the week, Quin should be a free man.
“Never mind,” I grunted. “Tell me what the NWS wanted you to do.”
He licked his lips. “Let me down, Bren, please?”
“Tell me what they wanted,” I bit off, hands bunching at my sides.
“Just to mess with commands, cause dissent.”
“Oh, just little things like that?” I rasped. “What was with the jewelry store robberies?”
Callum chewed on his bottom lip. “I think Hummel’s involved in something they want to muscle in on.”
“Like what? Blood diamonds?”
Callum shrugged, then groaned as his body responded to the movement. “I don’t know, Bren. I just know what they told me to do.”
“Give me specifics,” I demanded, even as I pointed at Tink. He nodded, so I knew he’d stored that piece of info in his mental computer to check it out later. Hummel’s were supposed to be respectable, and I’d never heard of their name and blood diamonds being mentioned in the same breath, but I could never have imagined beating the fuck out of Callum either.
“They said to get in touch with a thief with experience breaking into vaults and safes. To tell them that Hummel’s Diamonds was no longer under Points’ protection.”
My brow puckered at that as Tink, Forrest and I all darted glances at one another.
“How long have you been their patsy?”
“Three years, but they’ve only been in touch three times total.” He winced. “I wasn’t about to complain, was I?”
“What else have they asked you to do?” Tink inquired.
“It was in the early days, and the first time they just wanted to know if Lena had a routine, and what it was, where she went. Shit like that.”
“Why?” I asked, my temper bubbling now Ma was involved.
“They don’t tell me, Bren. They just want to know something so you give them that info. It was harmless. Back then, she only went to her shop and that little tea place over in Hell’s Kitchen.”
“What tea place?”
Callum blinked. “The one... Fuck.”
“What is it?” I snapped.
“The one Finn bought from Aoife. They just entered the final phase of development on the new skyscraper where her place was located, that Acuig Heights’ project.”
