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Stepping out of the car, I hear a dog bark in the distance and notice a few cars parked farther up, but aside from my feet crunching on the gravel, there is nothing else of interest.
I am here to send a message. Sebastian had a tip-off that one of the men who knows the inner workings for the new drug syndicate we have running on the east side has come down here to a safe house. He is hiding from us because he attempted to take money that wasn’t his to take. As I step up to the front door, I huff out and shake my head, because this house is the most ridiculous safe house I have ever seen. Even the front window is wide open to catch the breeze.
I try the door handle, and it opens straight away. It could be good luck or it could be a trap, so I keep my eyes trained on everything as I quietly push open the door and step through. I should have brought Benji with me. At the very least, he could have stayed in the car for a quick getaway. Although I know he would never stay in the car. Benji would be next to me the entire time. Which is exactly why I didn’t bring him.
Noise from the TV blares at me from the back of the house, and I walk slowly down the hall, peering into each room as I go. I am about to keep going, when a man comes at me from the side.
“Arrggh!” he yells, his hands up, no gun or knife in sight, which gives me quick relief, before the air is pushed out of my lungs as he throws me against the wall.
“Fuck,” I grit. Being caught by surprise isn’t a good start, but as he pulls back to take a swing, I realize he really is no match.
Ducking his punch, his hand hits straight through the drywall, and I jump up beside him, punching him in the side, cracking a rib on contact.
“What the fuck!” As he grabs his side, I send an uppercut into his jaw, smashing his teeth together so hard I feel the vibration through my wrist.
“That is for sticking your nose in our business,” I say as I step back, and then kick his legs out from under him.
I grab his by the collar and lift him straight up, before my fist connects with his cheekbone. “That is for thinking you could take our money.”
I hit him again, connecting with his nose, the crunch of bones a familiar noise to me, as his face collapses into itself, and his eyes roll into the back of his head. Letting go of his shirt, his body falls back to the floor with a hard thump.
“And that is for trying to fuck with the mob.” I wipe the sweat from my brow, huffing out a breath. Taking a quick look around the house, I see no one else, so I step over his body and walk out, leaving the front door wide open.
Sebastian said to leave a message and this one says, “Don’t fuck with the Men of New York.”
***
I clench my hands together, my knuckles aching and in dire need of some ice. I cleaned myself up as best I could in the car, but detoured to the grocery store, which is closer than home, in need of an ice pack and pain relief. Seeing the store owner, Big Tony, talking to a little girl, I decide to walk over to say hello.
“Hey, Carter,” Tony says as we shake hands. We have known each other for years. Tony is one of the few people who knew me as a delinquent teenager, and many times in my younger years, he offered me food or a roof when I needed it. I was too young to appreciate it back then; I was just a kid with a giant chip on my shoulder, but I made it right once I grew into a man. I helped him financially and offered any other support he needed and still do.
“Hey, Tony.” He sends me a knowing look, as I cringe a little in his hard grip, but before I can say anything, we are interrupted by the little girl.
“Hi! My name is Ivy. What’s your name?” a little voice squeaks out. I look down at two pigtails, big brown eyes, and a cute purple dress.
“Hello, my name is Carter. Pleased to meet you, Ivy.” I put out my hand to shake hers, which she accepts and shakes with confidence. Who is this kid?
“Did you know that the oldest turtle in the world is 190 years old?” she asks me, and I raise my eyebrows.
“No, I didn't know that,” I grumble back. I look at Tony, and he is smiling, so I have a feeling he knows her well.
“Did you know that a giraffe’s tongue is over 45cm long?” Ivy asks again, and Tony laughs.
“You sure know a lot about animals,” I say to her, scratching my chin. I'm not usually one for kids, and try to stay right away from them beyond any training at the gym, but she has got spunk and is clearly a smart one. The kind of kid that parents would be lucky to have.
“I want to be a zoologist one day. My mommy said I can be anything I want to be, and I want to be that.”
Tony stiffens a little beside me, and I snap my gaze to him.
“Who’s that man with your mommy, Ivy?” he asks, and she turns to look.
“Mommy!” I hear her gasp before she runs to the woman, whose back is to us. Ivy slams into her mom’s legs, hiding behind her, and her mom’s hands come around to secure Ivy to her body. But her eyes don’t leave the man approaching her like she is a bird about to fly away. He doesn’t seem to have good intentions. Not from the way mom and daughter are behaving either.
“What’s that about?” I ask Tony quickly, not taking my eyes off Ivy and her mother.
The man steps closer to them, and her mom steps back, and it’s confirmed that the man is a danger. It is then that I get a glimpse of her face, and my body stills. It’s Cat.
My anger rises, and as he gets right in her face, I am on him before I even realize my feet have moved.
