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Chapter Thirty
-Dante-
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“ARE YOU READY?” GABRIELasked.
I nodded. I was ready weeks ago. A sense of urgency to end thismadness drove me to work tirelessly toward my goal. Willis did his part from afar, but Bailey was slow to take the bait. I anticipated that, but Gabriel grew more irritated by the day.
He blew out a breath. “I can’t hear you nodding over the phone, Dante. Can I assume your silence is a ‘yes’?”
Fuck, he irritated me. I pinched the bridge of my nose. This was why I worked alone. I loved my brother and I trusted him, and right now, I needed his help, because Willis was right, I couldn’t just assassinate a four-star general, no matter how much he deserved it. Gabriel’s assistance gave me more options than I had working alone.
“Fuck you,” I growled.
Gabriel laughed. “That’s better. How many men do you want?”
“Three. And choose them personally, Gabriel. I only want men you would vouch for.”
“I choose all of my men personally.”
“Really?” I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to throw it in his face in good, brotherly fashion. “Is that why Jacko still drives Lilly around?”
“Shut up or he’ll be the one and only man I send.”
One corner of my mouth ticked upward. “Do that. Maybe he’ll finally learn something.”
I missed hearing his laughter. Each week when we spoke, I heard less and less of it. He tried to hide it but helping me take out Bailey wasn’t the only pressure he was under.
“I’d like to return the favor when this is over, Gabriel, but-”
“Don’t worry about it, Dante,” he said quietly but with strength. “I’ve got it under control. You just worry about taking care of whoever the hell pissed you off. I will expect the details someday, by the way. That’s the price I’m charging you.”
That’s how good of a man my brother was. He gave me weapons, men and his support without even asking me why I needed them.
He took care of Noemi for me as if she were one of the family and never once asked me why I had left her.
I nodded again. I would never tell him, and he would never really expect me to, but he’d enjoy holding it over my head, probably for the rest of my life.
“Someday,” I said.
“Someday,” he answered. The only detail I had given him was that once this job was done, I’d be leaving for a while. Walking away from him, Lilly, Ma and our home like a coward. But it wasn’t cowardly to put distance between us, to keep them safe while I tried to figure out who else was involved in this mess. I had my suspicions, but I couldn’t go home every few months and keep breaking Noemi’s heart every time I walked through the door.
“I’m sorry.” I must have been getting soft in my old age. The words were out before I could stop them. I knew I was leaving him with a huge burden.
“You have nothing to be sorry for. You’ll pay me back. I know that.”
“How is she?” If he told me about anyone but Noemi, I’d go mad.
“She’s doing better. She got that job she wanted. The part-time one at the library. And yes, I have people with her. They drive her to work, wait until she gets off and then bring her back home. She doesn’t like it, but... she’s adjusting.”
I smiled. “Adjusting, huh? She’s giving you an earful, isn’t she?” I knew her. There was no way she just sat back and let Gabriel call the shots, not without telling him what she really thought.
“Every. Fucking. Day,” he exaggerated.
I laughed into the phone as I stretched my feet out in front of me.
“Holy shit. Did you just laugh? Brother, I haven’t heard you laugh in years. Since we were kids,” he added softly. “You miss her, don’t you?”
