“Uh, since we’re on the subject of Tim being your brother…”
“What?” I bring us to a stop and pull Minka around to face me. “What happened?”
“I may or may not have told Aubree there are three more.”
“Three more what?”
And yet, Iknow. My stomachknows.
“What the fuck did you say?” I demand.
“She was bitching about Tim, and how he’s completely incapable of committing. She was mad while I was showering for our date, so she was lamenting how I get to go out with a Malone tonight. I might’ve said she didn’t have to worry, because there are three more Malone brothers and maybe she could choose a different one…”
“Minka!” My voice comes out too loud, my bark enough to set off some neighboring dogs. “What the hell were you thinking?”
“It was a slip of the tongue,” she insists. “I was kidding.”
“You realize that my other brothers, the three you speak of,” I lower my voice and lean closer, “areactivefucking mafia, right? They’re killers, Mayet. They’re on the news at least once a fucking week.”
“They are?” Her eyes grow wide. “Seriously?”
“They’re not named, but I’m their brother; I know what’s happening by the signatures they leave behind.”
“What signatures?” she asks. “And, wait! You know the perpetrators of current crimes, and you saynothing?”
“You mean like the very fucking basis of our relationship?” I slap a hand to my face and drag it down with a groan. “I know your crimes, Mayet. I don’t say shit. You know mine, you don’t say shit.
“Of course my brothers are still doing bad shit. That’s literally what they do on a day-to-day basis. I was raised with them, trained by the same father, so it’s not insane to think I recognize the tells they leave behind that the cops have yet to label.”
“What kind of tells?” Her words come out in an almost-whisper, even as her burrito steams in the night air. “They purposely leave something behind to be identified by?”
“Not for the cops.” Snagging her free hand in mine, I shake my head and continue walking. “The mafia don’t give a fuck about the police, Minka. But each family who runs through that city wants other crews to know they’ve been there. So they leave a signature.”
“What kinds of signature?” Morbid curiosity has her far too invested in our conversation. “Like a graffiti tag?”
I take another bite of my dinner and try to remember back to my post-sex bliss. It was only minutes ago, and yet, already it feels like a lifetime has passed.
“Some crews burn everything,” I grunt. “Others steal things. There’s this one Russian guy who’s well-known for using blades and removing fingers. Other families can run an entire neighborhood with the cops they have in their pockets. The tells are easy to find when you know to look for them.”
“So what does your family do?” Her words are uncertain, her tone gentle and almost scared. It’s like witnessing a car crash; a bystander shouldn’t watch, but they can’t look away. “What’s the Malone tell?”
“Do you actually wanna know?” I take a bite of my burrito and chew slowly to buy myself time. “Because once you know, I can’t take it back. And maybe you won’t be able to sleep beside me once you know too much.”
“Because you’ll whack me to silence me?”
I clamp my lips shut and look down at her puckered smile. “Shut the hell up.”
Coughing out a loud laugh, she shakes her hand free of mine for just a minute, then she scoops her arm around mine so we walk hip to hip. “You know my shit, Archer. I’ve killed men, up close and personal enough to look into their eyes while I did it.” Shrugging, she takes a bite of her food and slowly peels back more of the foil. “Tell me. I bet I can handle it.”
“Eyes.” I say the word and leave it to hang as we cross another ten or so feet in the dark. Streetlights surround the park, but they’re few and far between, so we walk in the moonlight for most of our stroll. “They take eyes.”
“They…” Stunned, she looks up at me. “They what?”
“Eyes,” I say again. “My family is known for taking them at every job.”
I pull her closer when I feel her arm tense. She asked, and I’ll be damned if I let her run away now.
“It’s a threat, in a way,” I explain. “‘You didn’t see shit. And if you did, we’ll take your eyes, too.’”