As we ate, Emma reassured me. “Really, Rett, I’m confident about speaking to Mr. Michelson and the police detective.” She grinned at Ms. Lynch. “And Sophie will be there. There’s no need for you to keep worrying.”
“I’ll be at the courthouse, waiting outside the door of your room.”
“Everett,” Boyd began. “We’ve discussed—”
“I won’t go in to the questioning,” I interrupted. “But I’ve told you what’s happening. I have to be sure Emma is safe and no one gets to her.”
Her blue eyes came my way. “You said Kyle would stop once we were married.”
“He will. Nothing is settled yet.” I looked at Boyd. “Except that I’m going.”
That was my plan until I received the message of what had just happened in the Lower Ninth Ward.
An hour later, as I stood with Emma in the underground garage, I repeated my plan. “Ian and Noah will be with you.” I cupped her cheeks. “Remember me saying that security will become second nature. Don’t fight this.”
“I’m not fighting. Who will be with you?”
“Leon and others.” I exhaled and thought about the message. A shotgun house had exploded. News crews were there. The city was investigating natural gas lines.
None of that was necessary.
The explosion was a message.
The residents within the house were believed to include a woman and two children. The house was the known address for a member of the Tupelo Money Boys. Rumor was that there was a new dispute over drug turf between the Tupelo Money Boys and another gang, the Park Boys.
A few years ago, there’d been another incident between these two gangs.
Dealing with shit like this was what I did. My goal was to curtail the fallout. Brazen acts brought unwanted attention to the crime in New Orleans. That crime made me money. I didn’t want it to stop, just exist behind a veil of perceived normalcy.
There wasn’t anything normal about an explosion killing a woman and two kids.
“Stay safe, Rett,” Emma said. “I’ll go and be back before you miss me. Just come home to me.”
I kissed the top of Emma’s hair. “Nothing will keep me away.”
The last thing I said was to Ian. “Protect her with your life.”
“Yes, boss.”
Since Emma had arrived, I’d watched as a connection formed between her and Ian. It wasn’t something I disliked; it was the opposite. The bond they’d fashioned was the reason I could let her go to the courthouse while I went to the Lower Ninth.
My chest clenched as I watched the taillights of the SUV move away down the tunnel. I’d left her over the last six weeks dozens of times. I couldn’t recall one time I’d allowed her to leave without me.
Another SUV pulled up to the cement stairs.
Once I was in the back seat, Leon began driving through the tunnel. “Three children, boss. Tupelo Money Boys are after blood.”
Emma
“Can you tell us when you met your husband?” Detective Owens asked.
“Detective,” Sophie interrupted. “Mrs. Ramses was asked to visit to make a statement regarding Ross Underwood. She has answered every question you and Mr. Michelson have asked regarding the deceased, from their rivalry at University of Pittsburgh, through their partnership with Editorial Inc. If you’ve exhausted all your questions, we will be going.”
Mr. Michelson leaned back against the straight chair, forcing the chair’s front legs from the floor. With his arms crossed over his chest, he stared my way. “When did you learn you were the daughter of Jezebel North?”
My gaze snapped to Sophie.
She sighed. “Again, irrelevant.”