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I wasn’t doing anything to tamp down those flames. Hell no, I’d sent a couple of my men to drop off Jock’s body at Henny’s club with a Duomomenu shoved in his mouth, a dead snake wrapped around his neck and his eyes gouged out.
Even that was too good for the bastard.
Meanwhile, I’d sent Joe Ugly and Sarksi off with some of the older guys so they could have a little chat. Eventually, I’d have to dispose of them. We couldn’t have them out in the world running their mouths about what they’d seen at my house, though that worried me less than Lia. Her innocence had already been shattered since coming here. Now she was weighed down by Jock’s death and I found myself worried to shit about how she'd handle two more.
Earlier that morning, I’d sent Daniel on a tamer errand than usual, and he’d come back with a bag of her stuff from her apartment, including clothes, sketchbooks, and other belongings. Later this week, we’d go get the rest.
Daniel had snapped a few pictures on his phone of her apartment and I hadn’t realized how hard things had been for Lia, especially considering her big art dreams. It only madethings harder, as I didn’t want to send her back to that tiny shithole or make her feel like a charity case. Hell, before the attack last night, I would’ve been happy to figure out a solution to keep her by me and help her pursue her dreams.
Now, I knew the clock was ticking on our time together.
With a start, I came back to myself and glanced around. Somehow, I’d drifted into the empty back room without paying attention to where I was going. Since I was a kid, I'd always liked this room, so much brighter and warmer than the rest of the house, with lots of windows and its view to the north and east. But it had no furniture because I had no purpose for it. Still, it had always been a good place to escape and think.
As per usual, since the first moment I laid eyes on her, my thoughts turned to Lia.
As much as I wanted her, as much as I had stupid, impossible dreams of keeping her by my side forever, I couldn’t stop my second thoughts.
For once, the selfish bastard beating the drum of my heart wasn’t winning out.
Or maybe he was. Maybe I was such a selfish bastard that I wanted Lia safe above everything else, above her happiness or mine. Because now, with Hendrix breathing down my neck and Volksov dead, it would only be a matter of time before all of the gangland of Boston frothed at the mouth for blood.
Keeping her with me would shorten her life.
We’d gotten lucky last night. Next time, I didn’t think it would work out so well.
So, for now, I’d try to spend as much time as possible with her before we had to say goodbye forever.
A few hours later, I slipped into the bedroom and found Lia sitting on the couch, one of my duffel bags in front of her with her stuff spilling out. Something about it made my heart twist in my chest and the feeling worsened when Lia looked up and smiled.
“Where have you been?” she asked.
I didn’t answer; I leaned down and dropped a kiss on her forehead, then tugged her to her feet. Lia obeyed, though she gave me a sassy look and raised an eyebrow. In response, I gestured behind me.
Flora came in, jabbering fast in Italian, and two other women fluttered in as well, then Artie, hauling a pile of dress bags, followed by Pasquale and Daniel shoving an entire rack of clothes between them.
“Ty, what’s all this?” Lia asked.
I pulled her close and my hands found her lower back's warm, bare skin. I wasn’t a fucking monk. “Pick a dress,” I whispered into her hair. “And be ready to go out in an hour and a half, okay?”
Before Lia could say a word, I gave her a swift kiss and left the room. Daniel and Pasquale found me downstairs in my office; both giving me wary looks.
“Hendrix hasn’t responded?” I asked.
“No,” Pasquale answered. “Should we escalate things?”
I leaned against my desk and folded my arms, well aware that escalation, thatanymanner of fire and brimstone, would’ve been my father’s response. Rhino’s reputation was to rain hell and then some. I had a feeling that Caleb Hendrix planned on that. He wanted me to lose my shit and go scorched earth.
“No,” I sighed, and Pasquale made a sound. “I get it,” I growled. “But we have to be smart. He killedfiveof our men. We killed his cousin and we have two of his guys. They’re after Lia and the cop’s laptop. That’s only the beginning, though. What they’re really after is all of us and everything we built.”
“No kidding,” Daniel said. “And Hendrix already managed to kill Volksov, which means we have no allies we can trust right now.”
“If we retaliate and don’t win, it’s going to make us look like easy pickings,” I said. “We need more information, starting with proving to the Bratva that Hendrix offed old Ivan.”
“So, business as usual,” Pasquale sighed. “Cold as fuck.”
I nodded. “Doesn’t mean we’re going to be boy scouts.” I could feel myself falling into that dark, hollow place inside of me and I knew what I had to do, even as my sins tasted like blood in my mouth. “I want you to ramp up the interrogation of Sarksi and Joe Ugly. Start making promises that they can live in exchange for information on their boss.” I let out a rough laugh. “But record it and send it to Hendrix.”
There was a brief silence, then Pasquale audibly exhaled, “Holy shit.”
