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“He looks up to you, you know,” she remarks, sipping on her bourbon.
“And you’ve got a soft spot for the little fucker.”
Kate laughs, leaning back in her chair as she meets my gaze. “I know you like him too. Don’t pretend you don’t care.”
“Yeah, alright. He’s a good kid beneath all the attitude,” I admit begrudgingly.
“He’s got fight, and I don’t just mean his talent in the ring. He’s like us.”
“What, a little unhinged?” I say, only half-joking considering I just slid a twelve inch serrated blade into his stepdad’s lungs not more than five minutes ago.
“I meant that he’s had a rough start in life, but he won’t let the actions of shitty parenting prevent him from getting what he wants, just like we haven’t. I’m excluding your mum in this of course.”
“Of course. Mum was a fucking angel. I wish you could’ve met her.”
“Me too,” she replies, frowning as she stares at the screen some more.
“What is it, Princess?” I ask, crooking my finger under her chin and urging her to look at me.
“There’s something about him…” she says, chewing on the inside of her cheek.
“Like what?”
“I don’t know. I can’t put my finger on it.”
“He comes from a broken home, he’s tough, and perhaps a teensy bit unhinged, a bit like us. Maybe that’s what you’re picking up on,” I say, palming her cheek and wanting to kiss the worry away.
“No. I mean, yeah he is, but it’s more than that…” She looks back at the screen and takes another sip of her bourbon. Sighing she adds, “Don’t mind me. Long fucking day.”
“Then let’s get out of here. Fancy something to eat at Sapori? It’s been a while.”
“Are you asking me out on a proper date this time?” she jokes, a smile lighting her eyes.
“I am,” I agree, then putting on a posh accent, say, “Ma’am, would you do me the honour of accompanying me on a date to Sapori where I can wine and dine you, feed you morsels of delicious food then take you home for dessert?”
“Dessert at home? I’d prefer their almond semifreddo than a tub of ice cream from the freezer,” she quips.
“That wasn’t the kind of dessert I was talking about, but if you want we’ll take the semifreddo to go. I’m sure Romeo won’t mind.”
“You think?” she grins, then her smile drops as she clicks off the CCTV and stares at an Excel spreadsheet filled with figures that make my brain ache just looking at it.
“Well that shit looks complicated.”
“It is,” she sighs, rubbing at her temples. “Honestly, I’d love to go to dinner with you but the club’s opening for tonight’s fight is in a few hours, and I still haven’t gone through this month’s accounts.”
“So palm off the accounts to someone else.”
“I could, but there’s still a body to dispose of, and a deadbeat mother to deal with,” she reminds me, her voice darkening.
“Well you don’t need to sweat it about the body. Cleveland’s calling the cleaners, and I can help you figure out the other shit.”
“The other shit being Ford’s mum,Mary.”
“Yeah, have you got any plans in mind for her?” I ask, genuinely interested to know how she’s going to handle the situation.
Whilst I have zero guilt killing his cunt of a stepdad and I despise his mum just as much, it ain’t as cut and dry regarding her. I’ve no doubt that Ford hates his mother, how could he not after the abuse he’s received at her hands, but I’m betting there’s still love there, no matter how complicated it might be. If we go ahead and kill her, there’s a possibility we’ll lose him, and just like Kate said, I happen to like the little toerag. He’s growing on me.
“I want to gut her for the things she’s done to Ford,” Kate says, pressing her mouth in a hard line and tapping her finger against her desk. “His whole body is covered in scars.”
