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“You don’t think it’s worth checking it out?”
“There’s nothing to find.”
“Get into the investigation. Put pressure on the blues.”
“Like that’s easy.”
“You’ve never shied from it before. What’s your plan of action?” he asked. “What’s your next lead? Are you giving up on the McDades? Where’s your guard today?”
Last thing she wanted to be was the story. The line she walked was precarious. Yes, she wanted her boss to believe she was capable and committed, but her job and reputation weren’t more important than an innocent woman’s life.
“My guard is around,” she said, having left Strat by the elevator. “I’m not giving up on the McDades, but they’re on the back burner.” She took a breath. “My piece on the Manzanis was abstract. From the outside looking in. Conjecture, you know? Facts were researched, questions asked and answered. I want to go deeper.”
“Deeper?”
“Ask the questions people are afraid to ask. Did you know I started writing to Helios Manzani in the course of my last article?”
“Yeah, you told me.”
“I was thinking maybe I could go see him. Talk to him.”
Concern weighed his expression. “About?”
“His family. How he ended up in prison.”
“Murder. That’s why he’s in prison. For killing someone. Mystery solved.”
Not by a long shot. “A lot of people in his line of work could be accused of the same. How did they get him?”
“Did you read his police file?”
“Not yet,” she said. “I’ll talk to Lachlan. What do you think? An exposé on the Manzanis from the one who’s been off the street for years.”
“An exposé on the Manzani locked up as a teenager?”
“Could he be purer than the other Manzanis?”
“Safe to say he got himself in trouble in the joint.”
“Yeah, worse than his brothers?”
“Vex’s got his own rep. Hell is in prison. Fury’s long gone.”
Dead probably. Fury, also known as Atlas Manzani, was unaccounted for. Not missing, just location unknown.
“We start with the eldest,” she said. “The forgotten Manzani. I bet he wants his story told.”
“If his ego is anything like Evander’s…” Steeple said. “You’ll get Silvio’s attention.” Again. “If the Manzanis are already gunning for you…?”
“Duck and cover won’t change that. I’m already on Silvio’s radar. You don’t win against families like that by running and hiding.”
“You’re going on the offensive. Taking the Manzanis on alone?”
“It’s a balancing act,” she said. “Maybe they won’t realize I’m turning up the heat.” Leaving the chair, she started for the door, glancing back at her boss. “Besides, no one said I was alone.”
THIRTY-THREE
EXERCISES. Pain meds. But the splint was off. Thank God. The bruises weren’t gone and her muscles still ached, but it was all progress. Every minute was progress.
