Total pages in book: 137
Estimated words: 132791 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 664(@200wpm)___ 531(@250wpm)___ 443(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 132791 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 664(@200wpm)___ 531(@250wpm)___ 443(@300wpm)
Enzo wiped a hand over his mouth. “Fuck me, but ’o chiattillo is telling the truth. Which means…”
Which meant we were back to square one.
Only without any promising leads.
Angelo wasn’t the rapist.
I couldn’t let this go. Not because of my pride, or even Lila’s. But because whoever it was, he was coming after her and our baby. My only consolation was that, now that the issue with the Bratva was solved, I could throw myself into finding this bastard.
I was going to kill this cunt if I had to personally assassinate every single person on that guest list.
“Untie the motherfucker,” I told Enzo, turning my back on Angelo and going up the stairs.
Back to the drawing board we go.
_______
After I tucked Lila into bed and informed her that Angelo wasn’t the attacker, I met Tierney and Fintan downstairs for a pint.
“We were going at it like rabbits in Achilles’s room.” Tierney played with the stem of her chilled white wine, sitting cross-legged across from me. “He is surprisingly agile and feral, you know, for a pretty boy.”
“Christ. Like I didn’t need intense therapy as it is,” I mumbled into my Guinness.
“Is it still going on between you two?” Fintan asked her.
“No. He broke it off when he realized how serious Achilles is about protecting my nonexistent virtue.” She pouted. “Speaking of, I do hope Achilles was there when Angelo spilled the beans.”
“He was,” I confirmed, letting her bask in his misery. “And he lost his ever-loving shit.”
“Really, now?” Her eyes sparkled excitedly.
I nodded. “Enzo and I almost tore his arms off trying to unpeel him from the poor bastard.”
“He’s got it hard for you, sis.” Fintan lifted his pint in a cheers motion.
“I know.” Tierney swirled her wine, a faraway look on her face. Her bruises were meticulously covered in makeup. “I cannot wait to destroy his life.”
“He took two of Angelo’s fingers,” I goaded.
She winced, before remembering she was a cold bitch who wasn’t supposed to care.
“Shame.” She slouched against the vinyl bench. “He has talented fingers. I shall always remember them fondly.”
“Oi.” I tossed a crisp at her. She caught it in her mouth and wiggled her brows, chewing.
“Add that to your list of things to talk about with your nonexistent therapist.” She laughed.
We fell silent, each of the siblings sipping their respective drink.
I was running several options of who the attacker might be in my head.
“How’s Da doing?” Tierney broke the quiet.
“Grand, yeah.” Fintan stroked his chin. “His depression seems to be under control. The new meds are working wonders.”
It was the best-kept secret of the underworld that my father was down for the count his entire career, battling depression. I took over his work when I was fifteen and never looked back. It was as though he’d waited for Tierney and me to come along so he could finally collapse into the breakdown he had when Mam was murdered. I remembered not understanding him one bit. His despair, and inability to move on, push forward, rejoin society.
Now it was crystal clear to me, though.
I, too, couldn’t think of myself without Lila.
That he made it so far without killing himself was a heroic act in itself.
“So what’re you going to do?” Fintan turned to face me. “Now that Angelo provided a sufficient alibi.”
For the first time in my life, I wasn’t forthcoming with my siblings. I didn’t tell them the truth. I just told him what I wanted the world to think. I couldn’t trust anybody anymore. “I’m going to send her off to meet him, if he ever contacts her again. And then I’m going to give him what he wants and make sure he pisses off. If it’s money he wants, he is welcome to it.”
Fintan nodded. “Can’t say I blame ya.”
Tierney stared at me in disbelief. “What if he harms her?”
“Why would he?” I asked. “He had eight months to do it. He got as far as our apartment. Could’ve finished her off while she was under him, if he wanted.”
They both gave me disturbed looks.
I rapped my knuckles on the table. “Another round?”
CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO
TIERNAN
Three days later, Lila’s attacker came forth.
I had a feeling he was biding his time, watching us, trying to see how the Angelo Bandini angle was going to unfold. Now that Angelo was out and about, walking on his two useless feet—albeit missing a couple fingers—it was obvious we crossed him off the list of suspects.
And even though the other, unchecked candidates were extremely unlikely, I wasn’t going to rule any of them out.
“This time he sent me a message straight to my phone.” Lila handed me said phone. “I wonder why?”
The message read:
If you want to stay alive, meet me tonight at 11pm at Fort Market port. Come alone. Shake off your husband/security detail. Bring 150K in cash.
The reason as to the why was simple. He could no longer risk slipping mail into the building without going unnoticed. The place was more secured than the White House now.