My gut told me this had something to do with Cassie. The little spitfire needed to keep out of politics and other dangerous business, but I had a bad feeling she wouldn’t follow our instructions. As I moved to my email, I noticed one from Alexander. The words were simple but in bold and all caps.
CALL ME.
“Yeah, yeah. I’ll call you.” I hadn’t felt like talking to him since leaving the island. What did we have to say to each other? I scrolled through the other emails, finding nothing that mattered.
Until…
Then another shock.
She’d emailed me.
Cassie.
The woman I’d fallen madly in love with.
I’d given her my private email address since I never carried my phone while on a job. My mouth was dry, my pulse quickening. I took a deep breath before I opened it. I wasn’t certain what I was expecting, but what she’d sent me made my blood boil.
“What. The. Fuck?”
As I read through the information, including various documents, I remained floored. If even half of what she’d sent regarding her father was true, the man could spend one hell of a long time behind bars. Her accusations were disturbing, especially her indication that her father had been funded by the Durante family. Did Alexander fucking know about this? Had he condoned it?
That wasn’t possible. Couldn’t be. This had to be all about his father.
Jesus Christ.
My gut continued churning. I’d been an agent for long enough to know that when an amateur when sleuthing, no matter how careful they’d been, they would leave a trail a mile wide. I shifted immediately to my secure account, trying to calm my nerves as I searched for any sign of mob activity. While we handled international cases, that didn’t mean we didn’t keep watch on every crime syndicate and cartel, especially given most had business in another country.
When I found nothing conclusive on any activity surrounding the Durantes, I sat back, nursing on my beer.
Then I picked up my phone. I didn’t give a shit what time it was, Alexander was going to take my call.
He answered after the third ring. “Fuck, buddy. Do you know what time it is?”
“Yeah, well, I knew you wouldn’t be sleeping. You’re going to answer me a question and you damn well better not lie to me.”
“O-kay. What the hell is going on?”
“Did you lie to us about Senator Fields? Did you offer campaign funds to him in exchange for looking the other way for you taking over Chicago?”
Alexander didn’t answer right away. When he did, his tone indicated he was telling the truth. “No, I did not. But that will explain why Rocco pulled out of New York and why he asked me to share a drink with him. My father must have made a deal with his father years before.”
“You better not be lying to me. Cassie has gotten herself in the middle of some shit. She sent me damning evidence of her father’s involvement with your family.”
“No wonder the great senator just announced his retirement.” He cursed under his breath.
My gut remained active. I switched to the dark web, searching for key names. I’d created a persona years before, gathering more information on international criminals on the site than in other locations.
“What are you doing?” he barked.
“Checking the dark web for any chatter.”
“Cassie could be in danger,” he hissed.
“Why do you say that?”
“Because I allowed Rocco to live.”
Growling, I shifted my focus to the Luciano name, my fingers flying. After a full five minutes, I found what I didn’t want to find. “He’s out to get you, my friend. Word on the web is that he’s planning an attack. Or as two individuals state, he’s going to bring you to your knees.”