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“We were raised by them. We know how they operate, how they think. We know they strike first, ask questions later. We need to be one step ahead of them,” I say.
I know I’m stalling, and the truth is, I don’t have a clear plan yet. I need to know whose support I have. And if it’s not all of theirs, then I hate to think what I’m going to have to do to the ones who leave.
Arie fidgets again and then glances around the room.
“You have something to say, Arie?” I frown at her, and surprisingly, she frowns back at me instead of glancing away.
“Fuck off,” Lucas says, shaking his head. He knows how his sister is.
In the families, most women are demure, always in their place, raised to be like that—Ginny is an anomaly—but Arie can’t be small and complacent in this room.
“You can’t shrink now,” I tell her. “If you are in with us, it won’t be pretty. Decisions will be made, and things will be done that you might not approve of or agree with. You can’t faint at the first sight of blood or a dead body.”
“I know,” she says, her voice stronger than before. She stands up and squares off with me. “You don’t have to be such an asshole.”
I grin at her, slow clapping. “I like it, Arie.”
She smiles back. “Asshole,” she says again, causing chuckles to ring out around the room. “I heard my father talking about something last night. He didn’t know I was there, but you know who the best spies are in the families? Women.”
I never thought of it like that, but she’s right. They are mostly overlooked.
“Go on,” I say, crossing my arms over my chest.
“He was on the phone, so I could only hear one side, but he was talking about shipments, and they had colors, which was really confusing. Does that make sense to you?”
“Colors?”
“Yes, like he was talking about a purple shipment and a red shipment. Maybe it means different things are being shipped. I don’t know. But that’s not the weird thing. It’s the meeting spot.”
She pauses, and I can tell we are all waiting, holding our breath.
“Come on. This isn’t a play, so we don’t need the drama,” Dean barks at her.
I watch Geo plant his feet on the floor and lean forward, eyeing him. I smirk.
“They are meeting at a flower shop.”
We all stand there, deep in thought.
“At first, I thought maybe he was ordering flowers, but why would he be ordering large shipments of flowers? It has to be something else.” Arie shrugs.
I focus on Geo. “Get me the details of the flower shop. The name, who owns it, what kind of money passes through there, and anything else you can find out.”
“Will do,” he replies, and I clap my hands together.
“It’s a solid start,” I tell Arie, and she smiles softly at me.
She’s beautiful with soft strawberry-blonde hair and a pixie face, but I’ve never been attracted to her. And I wouldn’t do that to Geo, who won’t admit to me or himself that he has a thing for her.
“I’m still working on a plan. I won’t lie to you and tell you I have it all under control. This is a volatile thing that won’t be resolved easily. But as soon as I have information, I’ll call a meeting. Did you get the date the shipment would be there?” I ask Arie.
“A week from yesterday,” she says, and I nod.
“Okay. That’s all I have for now. Get out and keep your mouths shut,” I say almost in a growl.
The success of what we are trying to do rests on the shoulders of all of us, and I have a bad feeling about it.
“Dean, stay behind,” I tell him as everyone stands.
