Dad didn’t teach me about his world. He kept that stuff from me, maybe out of some paternal instinct, or maybe because he didn’t give a shit about telling me who the power players were. The only things he taught me were how to open a beer with my teeth and how to avoid a creditor.
Otherwise, I’d been on my own for a long time.
We went to bed late and I woke early the next morning. I felt itchy, exhausted, on edge. I made coffee and scrambled some eggs, and Luke came down not long later wearing only a pair of gym shorts. I kept glancing at his muscular chest, at the tattoos on his skin, a pair of crossed swords, a tiger, tribal figures, koi fish—
Someone banged on the door.
Luke didn’t move. He stared toward the front of the house then glanced over at me. I was sitting at the table, a forkful of eggs at my lips.
“Don’t move,” he said and went into the other room. He peered through the window then relaxed and opened up.
German stormed inside.
“It’s early,” Luke said. “What are you doing here?”
“I’ve been calling all night,” German said, throwing up his hands. “Did you turn off your phone?”
“Battery died.” Luke crossed his arms over his chest. I stared at his muscles then remembered to eat my eggs and get control of myself.
“A guy showed up at the club right before closing. A big guy, slimy sort of fella, you know what I mean? Happy smile, ready to talk and grease palms.”
“Lionetti,” Luke said.
“One of their Capos. Can you believe that? Sent a Capo to do business.”
“What’d he want?”
“They want to meet with you.” German started pacing. I didn’t think I’d ever seen German on edge like that before and it made my stomach feel hollow with anxiety.
“I’m not surprised,” Luke said. “They know I have that file. Were you followed here?”
“No,” he said. “But if Maher knows, they know.”
Luke sighed and scratched his head. “Right, I keep forgetting. God damn, Maher’s a real pain.”
“I told him you’d meet,” German said. “This morning at nine in the park. Right in Rittenhouse. Somewhere public.”
Luke nodded slowly. “Public is good, but it won’t matter if they really want me dead. You know the Lionettis.”
I stood and drifted over toward them and leaned against the kitchen doorframe. “I don’t know them,” I said. “Why don’t you explain?”
German glanced over and snorted. “Not a lot to say. The Lionettis are dangerous.”
“The Lionettis are brutal,” Luke said, shaking his head. “Don’t sugarcoat it for her. The Lionettis are in power because they’re willing to cut off heads, murder people in daylight, and essentially terrorize the city until they get what they want. Politicians put up with it, and everyone always wondered why, but now it’s pretty fucking clear that the Lionettis have everyone under their thumb.”
“So we pissed off a violent gang by stealing the one thing that’s protecting them from getting destroyed by the politicians and the police?” I cocked my head, frowning. “Just so I’m clear.”
“Pretty much.” Luke looked up at the ceiling then back down to German. “All right, I’ll go. Rittenhouse might be too public even for them.”
“I’m coming,” I said, walking toward them.
I shook my head. “Absolutely not.”
But German raised a hand and grimaced. “Actually, the Capo asked for her specifically.”
I laughed and grinned at Luke. “Can’t really stop me then, can you?”
He glared at me, jaw flexing. “This isn’t a game, Cara.”
“No, it’s really not, but I’m not letting you negotiate for my life without me around.”
“She’s got a point,” German said.
“Thank you.” I glared at Luke. “Well? We’re going, right?”
“Fine,” he said, clearly annoyed. “Go get dressed. Don’t talk when we’re there. Don’t do anything stupid. We’ll meet with one guy, but that park’s going to be swarming with their men. One wrong move and we’re both dead.”
I felt a sudden dread but kept smiling through the fear. “Sounds like a lovely day at the park.” I walked past him and let my fingers trail across his arm. “I’ll be ready when you are.”
He watched me walk upstairs and I kept my smile on—until I was alone in my room.
I sat on the edge of the bed and leaned back on my hands and squeezed my eyes shut. I tried to calm down by taking deep breaths, and even tried some meditation crap I’d learned a few years ago when my dad was living in the basement and kept coming home in the middle of the night and waking me up, but nothing helped. My heart was a jackhammer and my body buzzed with anticipation.
These men wanted me dead, all because of what my father stole. And now that we had it back, the danger was even worse.
Luke should’ve given me to them along with the file folder. That would be the smart move, anyway. He’d guarantee that the Lionettis wouldn’t come after him or his crew, and maybe even end up with some good will from a powerful family.