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Vito’s glare could’ve melted the skin off my face.
“Unless,” I drew out. “You tell me everything you know. Who is in charge? How many of you are there? Where do you meet? And what are you planning next? I’ll take all those answers in whatever order you choose.”
Vito rocked in his seat, head twisting this way and that. Sweat dampened his forehead, dripping into eyes that were blinking too fast. He was feeling the shackles on him more than ever.
Giving him my back, I headed up the stairs.
“Fuck’s sake, will you wait?” He bellowed. “I lied—okay. I don’t know anything! Luca vouched for me to get me into the gang, but he was the only one I had contact with.”
I took a few steps down the stairs.
“He said he’d text me when we had a job. The night at the shipping yard was the first he did. We were going to kill every Merchant cockroach that wandered into our trap.” He spat in Liam’s direction. “He knows how that turned out.”
“The shipping yard attack was the first time you met a brother other than Luca?” I said.
“That’s right.”
Humming, I pushed out my lips. “And are you feeding me that bullshit because you know Luca’s dead and will never be able to confirm your story?”
“No,” he gritted, lips peeling back from his teeth. “I’m telling you the truth. I don’t know the answer to any of those questions. I’m at the bottom of the organization. Only the inner circle knows who’s at the top. Only they meet. The rest of us just receive instructions through text.”
I came all the way down. “This is unfortunate. You may very well be telling me the truth, but like I said before, we have to assume any information you voluntarily give up are lies—”
“It’s the truth!”
“—so I’ll be stepping out,” I continued. “I’m going to edit the video, put on one of those creepy, deep voices, and then I’m going to send it out. Don’t worry.” I beamed. “You’ll get the final look before we hit send together.”
“Argh!” Vito leaped out of his seat, running at me. His arms wrenched behind his back and he flipped off his feet, crashing against the chair legs. I didn’t notice they were bolted down until then. Apparently neither did he.
“Anyway, after the video goes live, you’ll have forty-eight hours to rethink what you know. Before that bomb goes off, you’re just another weirdo looking for attention. Some people may even call you a hero if the mayor really makes that donation,” I said. “If I have to set that bomb off, you’ll have one last opportunity to spill what you know about the Brotherhood... before we release you on the streets to take your chances. Maybe the cops will get to you first. Maybe the Brotherhood will. It’ll be fun to find out.”
“You won’t do it,” he shouted from the floor, straining to right himself. “You won’t kill innocent people just to get me to talk. I can smell the coward on you, bitch.”
I breathed deep. “And I can smell the urine on you. There are so much more effective methods than torture.” My glance flicked to an expressionless Liam. “The Brotherhood is all you have. Without them, you’re the grandson of a ruined King that no one cares about anymore, living on the sidelines while the young, pretty, badass Merchant rules on the remains of your kingdom.
“I’m going to take the Brotherhood away from you,” I said, voice hard. “Whether or not you lose your freedom, then your life, is up to you.”
“Hey— Come back here! I said come back!”
I clomped up the stairs, slamming out the door without a glance back. Liam’s men gathered on the couches, raising brows at me as I picked up the pace and bolted into the hall. I wasn’t expecting them to be there waiting.
My heart beat so loud it drowned out the club music. Who the heck was that down there? All those words came out of my mouth, but I didn’t recognize the woman saying them. I made a man bleed. I threatened to ruin his life and get him killed.
And all of that was better than breaking his fingers or taking a hammer to him. Vito would not appreciate it, but I was saving him from a worse fate. I was saving myself too.
I rushed out the back door, falling on Liam’s car. A couple tugs reminded me I didn’t have the keys. Spinning around, Liam’s and my eyes connected across the parking lot.
“I couldn’t do it,” I blurted. “It’s not the same, Liam. They had my baby. When I shot that man, I was a mother protecting her child. That’s not what I am now. That’s not what this is!”
Liam slowly closed the distance.
“I’m this close to finding the mole in Caddell House. What if we torture Vito, and then in a week, I find out who’s putting in the trackers and they tell us everything? I would’ve done this horrible thing for no reason.”
