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“Thank you, but how do you know me?”
“Morelli.” Jude glared at the man holding my hand. “Get away from her.”
Chapter 22
Jude
I met Luke in the back room where an active card game was being held. There was never any room for error when these games took place. They generated a lot of cash flow and gave us the opportunity to figure out who we could trust with our business.
“I’m sorry I interrupted Emmie’s birthday dinner,” Luke said. “I thought you’d want to know we have some guests.” He nodded in the direction of two men standing by the bar. “They walked right in. They knew where we were playing tonight.”
“Who are they?”
“From what I’ve gathered, they’re with Morelli.”
“Where is he?” I glanced around the room.
“According to the security footage, he entered the building with them, but didn’t come into this room.”
“So, he’s roaming freely around the club?” I took out my phone and dialed security. “How the hell did that happen?”
“Mr. Cordero,” the man who was paid to monitor my cameras answered. “How can I help you?”
“You can tell me how three men entered my club without being noticed.”
“Oh, yes, Luke told us. We’re trying to figure that out.”
“I don’t pay you to try.” I kept my voice low so I didn’t alert the players who came here and expected discretion that there could be a problem. “Two of them are in the back room. Where is the third?”
“Well, the last time we saw him on the camera, he was by the main lobby, but then he went down the south corridor.”
“And then?”
“That’s when Luke called us, and I took my eyes off the monitor.”
“You did what?”
“I’m sorry, but I’ve been running the footage, trying to locate him.”
“Again with thefucking trying. You’re useless to me.” I hung up, frustrated with myself for not being more attentive on the night of a card game. I thought I could celebrate Emmie’s birthday for a few hours without hell breaking loose. “Fucking moron.”
“I’ll take care of him.” Luke looked in the direction of Morelli’s men who were now having drinks at the bar. “What do you want me to do about them?”
“Let them stay for now. Keep a presence on them to let them know they’re being watched.” I motioned for Johnny and Cory to come with me. “I need to get back to Emmie since I don’t know where Morelli is.”
“Go,” Luke said. “I’ll handle this.”
“Make it clear that this is a private card game and we won’t tolerate any more party crashers in the future.” I looked at my two guards. “Come with me.”
They followed me out of the room and down the hall. My rage simmered, but it wasn’t going to take much for me to explode. Joey Morelli had been making waves in the city the last few months. He’d been on my radar, but hadn’t made a move. Why would he pick tonight to infiltrate my club?
“I’m going to need you to take Emmie home,” I said to Johnny. “You stay inside the house until I get there.”
“Yes, sir,” he said.
“Have her take Sasha up to bed with her.” My girl would protect Emmie if anything was off. “Call for backup if anyone suspicious comes on to the property.”
When we reached the private room, I found Morelli with Emmie, kissing her hand. My rage was no longer contained when I saw him touch her.
