AllFreeNovel
Share Us
But Bricker remains unconvinced, his jaw set in a stubborn line. “Anna-Vittoria said no contact.”
“Anna-Vittoria doesn’t get to make a call like that,” I counter. “I was trying to smooth it over before it became a problem. That’s all.”
He prods his cereal. “Even if that’s true,” he says, no longer outraged, but still pretty pissed, “as yourcurrentCapo, it’smyass on the line. You should have come to me first, let me talk to the Maestra on your behalf.”
He does have a point, damn it. “I should have,” I agree. “But I didn’t think you’d understand.”
“This isn’t a game, Pedretti. I built this crew from the ground up, and I’ll be damned if I let anyone undermine that.”
“That’s not my aim.”
“No? Last night you had me doubting my oldest friends, and ready to call off the most important job we’ve ever done.”
Dread hits me right in the gut. “Bricker,” I say carefully, “you’re still calling it off. Right?”
“Wrong.” He resumes eating his cereal, his air standoffish. “The job is getting done.”
Oh, Jesus. I have royally fucked this. And I can see that nothing I say today is going to make him budge. “Okay,” I say at last. “In that case, I hope you’ll still let me help.”
“Get fucked, Castellani. You think I’m an idiot?”
I tilt my head to one side. “I think you’re a pragmatist. And after that fiasco yesterday, I thinkI’veproved that I’ll put my own life on the line for whichever crew I’m with. That’s how I work.”
He pokes at his cereal again. I’ve already pushed mine away, sick to the stomach at the idea of this stupid bank job going ahead. But Bricker’s the type to dig his heels in. If I don’t push too much now, I might have a chance of talking him out of it later.
“Let me help you protect your people,” I plead. “Let me prove my loyalty through my actions.”
Bricker’s glare is steely. The playful humor has vanished, and those soft eyes that looked at me last night seem like just a dream this morning. Any attempt to explain will be futile. Bricker has made up his mind.
And he’s as stubborn as his old man, that much is clear.
“I’ll tell Anna-Vittoria myself about the comms device,” I offer. “Let her decide what she wants to do about it.”
“No,” he says abruptly, and turns to put his bowl in the sink. He drinks down his coffee before he adds, “She doesn’t like disobedience. And besides,I’mthe one who’d get it in the neck for not watching you closer.”
Cowboy though he may be, he’s not a guy who shies away from responsibility. So I wonder if the truth of his concern is closer to the first part: Anna-Vittoria doesn’t like disobedience.
Well, what Mob Boss does? Maybe he really is trying to protect me as well as himself.
“Listen,” he says abruptly. “What happened—whatnearlyhappened last night…it was a mistake, and the crew doesn’t need to hear about it.”
It shouldn’t hurt as much as it does to hear him say that. “Understood.”
“Good,” he says, and turns away. “Now let’s get moving.”
CHAPTER16
BRICKER
Outside,I slide into my Charger and gun the engine into a roar. Max climbs in beside me, his usual stoic expression betraying nothing.
After last night, I can’t look at him without remembering the feel of his hands on my skin, the taste of his tongue in my mouth. And then the strange wire sticking out from beneath the toilet cistern, the shock as I pulled out a contraband device. It makes my blood run hot, anger and desire warring inside me. I peel out from the curb, tires squealing, the engine drowning out the tense silence between us.
The drive to the Valley house passes in a blur of narrow streets and dilapidated buildings, my mind wandering to memories of kisses, touches, Max’s gravelly voice in my ear. I curse silently, again and again—curse myself, mostly. How the hell did this happen?
How did I lose my mind socompletely?
When we arrive at the Lair, I cut the engine and turn on Max with a snarl. “I need to go report to Anna-Vittoria about yesterday. You’ll stay here in the house, in Van’s eyesight at all times. You don’t take a piss without his permission, you hear me?”
