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“But…”

“This is the address you’re being paid to guard, and right now, you boys are the lowest-ranked guards in a much, much bigger organization. We already have hundreds of guards who are better trained and a hell of a lot more loyal than you are. You boys get back in your vans and go to your addresses… or you can go home. It’s your choice.”

They sloped back to their vans, most of them frowning and some even grumbling. I watched them go in disgust. Those cocksucking Neccis did this. We wouldn’t need to hire in ringers from town if the Neccis weren’t causing so much trouble.

I went over to Art and wrote out a bunch of names on the same paper pad. “Call these guys and tell them to come back to the estate on the double. Then call these guys over here and warn them about these slackers on their way in. Tell them to put the screws to them and don’t spare the whip.”

“You got it. What do you want to do withthem?” He nodded toward the guys I posted on the other side of the driveway.

“I’ll deal with them.”

He pulled his head in and got on the phone. I strode over to the last ten waiting for me. They all stood up straight. None of them bothered to hide the fact that they were measuring me the same way I was measuring them. Good. That was what I was looking for.

“All right, boys. Listen up. We got a situation here. I’m going to arm you all and change your uniforms. Then I’m going to post you on a rotation around the grounds. This estate is ten acres with a six-and-a-half-foot wall around the perimeter. We need to patrol it around the clock. I’ll assign you your positions, and you’ll rotate them every half hour. When you reach the end of your rotation, you’ll do a rotation on patrol going around the exterior and the grounds to make sure there are no breaches. When you finish the patrol, you reenter the rotation until the next round. Understand?”

“What about the house?” a burly thug with a two-foot neck asked. “How can we guard the house and the residents if we’re patrolling the perimeter?”

“We have our own guys guarding the house. You don’t worry about the house. That’s my job.”

All of them looked straight at me. Now they knew who they were dealing with.

“Come with me, all of you.”

I led them up to the house and into the club room behind the kitchens. I issued them with new uniforms, sidearms, and shotguns.

They handled the guns perfectly, even though none of the new guards had been armed. I made the right choice with these ten. They knew exactly what they were doing.

They checked their weapons and loaded their pockets with extra ammo before I led them out into the grounds. I assigned them their posts and showed them where the patrols should pass the wall. Then I pointed out weak spots where someone might try to slip between their positions.

They nodded and took their places facing outward. I stuck around just long enough to make sure they were surveying the surrounding neighborhood for any sign of intrusion. Then I headed back to the gatehouse.

Art handed me the notepad with the names on it. “Just finished making all the calls. The boys are on their way in.”

“Good. We need them here.” Just then, my phone rang. I pulled it out and checked the screen. It was Leo. “Yeah?”

“How’s it going?” he asked. “How are the new men shaping up?”

“They’re a bunch of fat, sagging, hopeless wrecks. I kept the best ten for the perimeter and sent the rest out into the city.”

“So, do you have the wall covered?”

“I’m doing the best I can with what I got, but it still isn’t enough,” I told him. “Our boys are coming in to fill the gaps, but if the Neccis really want to make an attempt on Gia’s life or your life or both, they can still find a way in. I’m sorry, but I’m only one man. I can’t do everything.”

Leo sighed. “I hate to tell you this, man, but I’m about to make your life a little more complicated.”

I froze, staring at Art. “Just a little?”

Leo laughed, but I could tell even over the phone that his heart wasn’t in it. “Cesare Terranova is coming to stay at the estate for a while. I’m sorry. I know this is putting a lot on your shoulders. I wish I could tell you something different.”

I punched the gatehouse and then kicked it several times. Art cowered inside, gaping at me with huge eyes.

My mouth said, “Okay. No problem. I’ll handle it. Don’t worry about it,” while I kept kicking the gatehouse again and again.

Fuck. Fucking fucketty fuck fuck fuck. This was the last fucking thing I needed.

Leo kept saying, “If you need more resources, let me know. I’d like nothing better than to throw a few cases of dynamite in the Neccis’ faces, but we can’t start an all-out war until Gia gets engaged. We’ll be in a much better position with another family on our side. Once our two families unite, all the others will fall in line to help out. They’ll all want to kiss our asses.”

I barely heard him. Son of a bitch. Guarding Gia was hard enough considering all our forces were already deployed around town guarding all our other assets.


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