Total pages in book: 117
Estimated words: 114260 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 571(@200wpm)___ 457(@250wpm)___ 381(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 114260 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 571(@200wpm)___ 457(@250wpm)___ 381(@300wpm)
“I seem to recall you calling him that, didn’t you?” Joe asks, his eyes twinkling.
She shrugs. No regrets.
I love this woman.
Claude speaks up. “Armand wanted to be number one with Cain. Never really stepped up enough to get there, so he wasn’t happy when we let him go.”
“Got it.” Violet nods. “Does this have anything to do with what happened at Descamps’ house last night?”
“I’m getting there,” Joe says.
“We don’t have all day, Joe.” Violet’s eyes snap at him, her anger evident.
She needs to be patient. I keep my voice low. “Violet.”
She frowns but nods.
“We interrogated Descamps’ team. They’ve been taken care of. They were all ready to talk once he was out of the picture.”
I nod.
“He’s in with the Rossis.”
I blow out a low whistle.
“They’re organized crime, right?” Violet asks.
“Yeah. They’re the biggest mafia group in New England. Practically run Boston, oversee all imports in the Northeast. They practically own every harbor from here to Newport. Got a family home just north of Boston, too.”
Violet blinks. “Wow.”
“Yeah,” Joe continues. “It seems your parents did some work for them.” He clears his throat and looks to me.
“She knows they were assassins, Joe.”
I wince. Here it comes.
Henri looks to me before he speaks, and I give him a nod. “Her father wasn’t. He was a bookkeeper for them but not a made man. Neither of them were actually in with the Rossi family. Both were contractors that worked for them.”
“She contracted hits,” Violet says in a low voice. She winces. “Didn’t she?”
“Your mother did, Violet,” Joe says gently. She nods. She’s already figured this out.
“So she was an assassin for the Rossis. Then why were she and my dad killed?”
“The Rossis were not responsible for their deaths. They did a hit for the Rossis, but the hit was on one of their rivals. We suspect the Rossi target brought vengeance back to them.”
“You suspect?” Violet’s voice holds a note of anger. “I want more than suspect.”
“We’re working on that, Violet. Descamps’s men gave us everything they knew.”
She nods. “So we go to the Rossis.”
A murmur goes up in the group, and Violet gives a questioning look.
“You don’t just… go to the Rossis, Violet.”
She tips her head to me. “No? And why not?”
“They’re the most notorious crime ring on the East Coast, that’s why. They’ll blow your head off and bury your body, then pour a glass of wine and call it a day before we’ve gotten anywhere.”
“Well that’s rather drastic,” she mutters. “I can play nice.”
“I’ll go with you.” My men all look my way. Claude shakes his head slowly from side to side, and Henri’s mouth drops open.
“Sir,” Henri says. “They can’t be trusted.”
“I’m not trusting them. We have questions, and they have answers.”
“They do. And we’ll go together.” I turn to Joe. “Bring Armand in.”
He holds my gaze but doesn’t respond at first. I know he’s worried about what Armand will say to Violet, but I can’t hold back the truth any longer. I need her to know exactly where we stand.
There’s a knock on the door. “Yes?” I answer.
The door opens, and Skylar comes in. She stares at me with accusation in her eyes, her arms crossed over her chest. “Excuse me. There’s an all-hands-on-deck staff meeting, and no one invited me?”
“Come in, Sky.” One of the guys stands to let her sit, and she waves him off.
“I’m one of the team now, since I looked through all that footage.” Her gaze swivels to mine, and she clears her throat. “And I do mean all the footage, Cain. That wasn’t my initial plan, but it’s how things worked out. And it seems there’s lots that needs to happen and be brought to light, no?”
Shit.
“There is, Skylar, but in time. Right now, we have to move on the Rossis. They were likely the ones that sent someone to silence Descamps. They’re onto us, and we need to be proactive.”
“Right. Is Violet going with you?”
I nod. “We’ll go together.”
She blows out a breath. “Take me with you.”
The room goes so quiet, I can hear the slow ticking of a clock on the wall.
“Excuse me?”
“Take me with you.” There’s a note of steel in her voice that’s unlike Skylar.
Is my baby sister quietly blackmailing me?
“Sky, you haven’t trained with him,” Violet says gently. “We’ve worked for months on my knife and gun skills.”
“No, but I’ve trained with you,” Sky says, holding her own. The first time I ever saw Violet, she was training young kids in martial arts. Skylar’s been working with her for months, but is still very much a novice.
“It’ll be a dangerous situation, though,” Violet says, her voice tighter now.
“Listen, I have reasons for wanting to go, okay?” Skylar says. “Plus, I know them.”
“You know the Rossis?” I ask.
Skylar shrugs. “I used to read Tarot cards with the youngest Rossi girl. And I maybe had a little fling with… one of her brothers,” she says in a rush.