He wants to know if I’ll say it—if I’ll say Holly’s name. Nothing gets past our boss, and he knows that I’m sweet on her; in fact, he doesn’t care about the other names at all, because this is a test.
Really wish Santo would stop testing us all the fucking time.
“And Holly,” I grind out, hating myself and Santo and even her a little bit. This whole situation is so messed up. “The new maid. She’s… slippery. Kept changing the subject when I questioned her.”
Changed it to the one topic with the power to distract me. Played me like a beat-up old fiddle. That little picture she painted of the two of us, curled up together in a snowy wonderland? I couldn’t sleep last night, I fixated on it so badly.
Not that I’m sour about it.
“Any of them have ties to the Governor?” I ask, because of course Santo will have already thought of this. He’s always three steps ahead.
“We’re looking into it. It won’t take long.” The boss rolls his stiff neck, but there’s a pleased smile tugging at his mouth. The sort of smile that sets off alarm bells ringing in your head. “And we’ve leaked different secrets to each staff member. Held conversations where they could overhear, so one way or another, they’ll reveal themselves soon enough. We’ve got the spy, Diego, I can feel it.”
If Santo squeezes that fountain pen any harder, he’ll have an ink explosion on his fancy clothes.
“And then what?” I ask, throat dry.
I’ve never asked that question before. Never much cared about the fate of Santo’s enemies, beyond how much it cost me in dry cleaning.
Holly’s different. Maybe that was the whole point of her daydream confession, but in any case, it worked. I don’t want her in pain.
But… maybe it’s not her. Maybe it’s Carlotta or the Merlotti boy, and Holly’s just a sweet little thing who blushes when I get near. Who crinkles her maid outfit when she gets nervous. Who wants me closer, and who might let me steal a taste.
Fuck. I need to get her alone again.
“Then I’ll remind everyone of who I am.” The boss’s tone is almost pleasant, his hand steady as it draws a file across his desk. “That will be all.”
My footsteps to the door are muffled by a thick Turkish rug.
I leave Santo alone in the frozen air. Just how he likes it.
* * *
As evening falls, a few rounds with Nico in the boxing ring get my head on straight. Heavy bags hang from chains all around the edges of the basement, all available for me to pound out my frustrations, but there’s nothing like wiping the smirk off Falasca’s face to put me in a better mood. By the time we’re unwrapping our hands, breathing hard together over by the bench, I’m practically whistling.
“Jesus.” Nico prods at his jaw, glaring at me out of the corner of his eye. “I think you knocked a tooth loose.”
I shrug, happy as a clam. “Shoulda ducked.”
It’s been a long day. Hell, a longmonth, and December’s only half done. Hit men and spies; shoot outs and rushed weddings. It’s like living in a goddamn soap opera around here.
There have been lots of changes lately. I miss simpler times.
Nico’s voice bounces off the concrete, even as he speaks quietly. “Santo says he knows. Says he’s already sure, but waiting on some final details.”
I sniff and take a long drink of water. It’s not over until we’re one hundred percent sure.
But Nico’s watching me, eyes weirdly bright. “He says it’s your favorite maid. How about that, huh?”
My grip tightens on the water bottle, denting five fingerprints into the metal. I lower it and swallow. “We don’t know until we know.”
And suddenly, I don’t want to be here anymore. My good mood has fled, and I’m back to sour and stressed and so damn worried about Holly. Will he order me to kill her? How did she get herself in this mess?
Does she hate us? Is that it? Lord knows we’ve made plenty of enemies over the years; turned plenty of souls against us. Maybe Holly got caught up in old drama, and now she’s taking her revenge. It wouldn’t be the first time angry ghosts have come back to haunt the De Rossis, and it won’t be the last.
“You want me to handle her if Santo’s right?” Nico says it lightly, but he’s squinting at the far wall. It’s a kind offer, such as it is, especially since I just loosened his tooth. He’d go easy on her, that’s what he’s saying, and he’d spare me the nightmare of doing it myself. Seems that every fucker in this building knows I’m far gone for Holly.
“No.” I flex my throbbing fingers. “I’ll do it.”