by Cassie May
Theresa grabs the phone and almost throws it out of the window when she realizes who is on the picture. “Fuck! Do you want to kill me? I should follow the bossman’s wife? That is suicide, Matteo! And here I thought you liked me.”
“Calm down, little one. Where’s your adventurous spirit?”
She snorts and punches me in the arm. “My adventurous spirit has saved my life more than once when it told be to step back and be careful.”
“Okay, I promise you, you don’t have to fear anything. I found evidence that she is betraying Rico and I need to know who is in it with her. You have to be careful, but Rico won’t come after you. The only thing that could get dangerous for you is if Clara notices you following her.” Another snort makes me stop talking. I know Theresa is the best and the possibility of her getting noticed is almost zero. “Do you need something else? Do you have a place to sleep? Are your clothes warm enough?”
She bats her eyelashes at me and grins. “Awww you do care about me. But don’t worry, mafia boy. I am perfectly all right and I would let you know if I needed something. I might need some more clothes to follow your rich bitch in the right restaurants, but so far I am good.”
“Okay. Let me know if that changes. You have my number and you know where to find me, even though I will be more on the streets in the next weeks. I have to find leads to other problems, but you always find me. I know you.”
Theresa nods. “Yep. You can let me out on the next corner. It wouldn’t do me good to be seen with you. As for the other problems you mentioned. Try to start in Hell’s Kitchen. I heard there was increased Mexican activity.” With that last statement she blows me a kiss and jumps out of the car before I can respond.
Shaking my head I look after her till she disappears around the next corner. Then I start the car again and make my way over to Hell’s Kitchen while calling my brother.
“What do you have for me, Matteo?”
“Not much, but I need a few guys you can spare come to Hell’s Kitchen. A bird on the street told me there might be increased Mexican activity.”
“I’ll send someone to you and notify Vitali as well. It would do us good if we can appear as a closed front in front of the Mexicans.” I nod out of reflex even though my brother can’t see me. “Do you have news on the other problem?”
“No, but I asked around and might have an insight. I’ll keep you posted.”
“Good. Men are on the way. Ours and the Russians. They’ll be there in about ten minutes.” Taking a deep breath he adds. “Be careful, brother. I don’t want to bring a bad message to your woman.”
“I am always careful, Rico. You know that.” With that I end the call and park the car in a small alley. Slowly walking over to a coffee shop I take in my surroundings. Hell’s Kitchen is bustling with activity, as always, but I can’t detect anything suspicious. Well, not more suspicious than before. There is a drug deal going on next to the coffee shop. Three hookers are waiting for customers in the bright daylight but they don’t seem to have much luck right now.
Entering the coffee shop I order a hot chocolate to go grinning to myself when I think of the secret I told Valerie earlier. Thank fuck no one is the wiser when the hot liquid is in the to-go mug. Stepping out of the shop I lean against the wall and sip my chocolate while observing the people around me. Only a few minutes later I feel a presence next to me.
“Long time no see, Matteo.” The Russian accent tells me all I have to know. Without turning my head I answer the oldest of Vitali’s sons.
“Well, I haven’t missed you, Grischa.” The Russian chuckles and extends his hand.
“We’ll see more of each other in the next time till those fucking Mexicans are gone out of our city.” I never would have thought that I agree with him, but he is right. Everything was divided more or less evenly between us and the Russians and it worked. The city was more or less quiet. Of course we didn’t control everything, there are the Chinese, the Albanians and a small chapter of the yakuza, but we all coexist more or less peaceful in this big town. The Mexicans are only stirring shit up and making everything complicated. And complicated is bad for the business. It leads the pigs to us and we can’t have that.
“How trustful is your information?”
“Very trustful. My informant has given me a lot of useful information in the past and this one I even got for free.”
Grischa shakes his head. “Then it is either a lie or your informant is desperate.”
Laughing I finish my hot chocolate and toss the cup in the waste. “Trust me. This informant is neither lying nor desperate and if you look closely to your left you see that the information was right.”
Grischa looks in the direction I pointed and tenses. Three guys with obviously latino heritage approach the hookers on the other side of the street. “Where are your people?” I ask the Russian and he makes a vague gesture.
“Spread all over the place. Let’s go, slowly.” Without another word we approach the six people now huddled together even though the hookers don’t seem too fond of these guys.
“Aaaah, come on, chica. It’s your job to spread your fucking legs for cash, so why don’t you take our money and do your job?” One of the guys tries to stuff some notes into her bra, but she pushes him away.
“Because I’m still able to fucking choose my clients on my own, asshole, so either you leave now, or you’ll face the consequences.”
The guy laughs loudly while his two buddies restrain the other two women. “And what consequences might that be, birdie? Are you going to scratch my face? Let me tell you, I like it rough and I am sure you would appreciate the ten inches I have to show you.”
I take a step forward and the relief on the women’s faces is palpable. “You can only wish for ten inches, gringo. Now leave the lady alone or there will be no face that can be scratched up anymore. Not for you and not for your friends.”
The three guys whirl around and while the women scurry away a few of our men approach and make it impossible for them to leave. “Gentlemen, I think it is time you accompany us on a ride.” Each Mexican is flanked by two of our men and we make a slow trek to our cars. “Your place or ours?”
Grischa grins. “I think I would like to get to know the Italian hospitality. Lead the way. We’ll follow you.” After every latino is safely placed in one car one Russian, one Italian and one driver get inside and drive away.
Grischa follows me to my car and climbs in on the passenger side. “How nice of you to take me with you, Matteo.” Chuckling I start the car and drive to one of our hideouts. I have a feeling as if it is going to be a long day.
Chapter 15
Valerie
Matteo only wrote one message today, but I had the bakery full all day, so I was not really noticing the lack of communication. I am just now finishing up. Everything is clean and I have only one batch of cupcakes I want to take home with me. Maybe Luca or Sandro can send them over to Matteo. I doubt he will be with me tonight, so I want to send him something that is going to make him think of me. While I pack the cupcakes in a transport box the doorbell chimes and I look up. Obviously I forgot to lock the door because I knew Luca would watch over me.
Looking up to greet the last customer of the day I regret not locking the door immediately. “Hi, I am sorry, we are already closing up. I fear I can only offer you some cupcakes.” My forced smile and overly cheery tone alert Luca that these are obviously no welcomed customers.
Miss Perfect steps forward and scrunches her nose. “Do you really think I would like to eat cupcakes? You might not worry about your waist line, even though you should, but this perfection needs maintenance.” She motions up and down her body while her two friends giggle loudly.
Sighing I close the lid to the transport box and look at her. I am proud of my body. I know I am not a size zero or even a size six. I am a healthy ten or twelve and most of the days I love how I look. I refuse to give her more power over me. Matteo loves my curves and he has shown me so many time
s since we got to know each other that I now start to believe he is right. “So why are you here? What do you want? Other than preventing me from closing up my shop.”
“Aaah, just the usual. I wanted to show you your place.” She takes a step forward and I try to understand if she means it as a threat. Before I can come up with a conclusion Luca steps between them and me and all three take a few steps back.
“I think Valerie will agree with me when I say that you are no longer welcome here. You are leaving now and you are not coming back. If you come back for any reason I suppose your father would not like the outcome, Tiffany Woodley.” He flashes a dangerous grin when Miss Perfect pales. “Surprised that I know who you are? Just go to your daddy and ask him if he would like to lose his connections to the Italians. I am sure he is going to give you a nice answer, little one. And now leave. And let Valerie stay in peace. Are we clear?” All three nod and scurry out of the door almost stumbling over the small step in their hurry to leave.
I stare after them and then at Luca. “That… that was awesome! I mean. You do not know her father, do you?”
Luca just shrugs and I see a fine blush rising in his cheeks. “Okay, okay. I don’t want to know. Here, take a cupcake. I know you want one.” I put one in his hand and take the rest with me in the transport box. “After you bring me home, is there a possibility to bring the rest to Matteo? I mean Sandro is at our house with Jess and I am sure he is capable of looking after us for a short while.”
Luca shakes his head. “I won’t leave you alone till I get the message to do so, Valerie. But I’ll make sure that he receives the cupcakes, okay? I promise.”
Rolling my eyes I nod. He barely left me alone today, this man didn’t even use the toilet, so I know I have no other choice. “Can I ask you a question?”
Chuckling he leads me to the car after locking the door to the shop twice and making sure everything is locked and the security system is armed. “Of course you can. I can’t promise I’ll answer, though.”
Rolling my eyes again I get in the car and wait till he is in as well. “Are you human?”
His surprised snort and shaking shoulders tell me he doesn’t take me seriously. “I am serious, Luca. You haven’t been to the toilet all day, even though you drank a lot of coffee. You barely moved, other than to get something new to eat or pay the pizza guy when you ordered lunch. Is this normal for you? Are you wearing diapers?”
I am sure he only keeps the car under control, because he has nerves of steel. The way his head swivels around to me I am actually surprised that he doesn’t break his neck. “Are you shitting me, Val? Of course I am not wearing diapers. I have a lot of self-control and I was on the toilet earlier when Federico was at the bakery.”
Oh. Okay, I didn’t notice that, but I am glad that Luca obviously has a sense of humor. His eyes sparkle with amusement and a small grin curls his lips. It is the most human reaction I got out of him all day. He is the perfect picture of a bodyguard. Quiet and statuesque as long as he is not needed, alert and attentive as soon as there is a threat or only the threat of a threat.
“You know, I never thought that I could get accustomed to having a bodyguard that fast. I mean, I have always been some kind of a loner and then suddenly I have someone following me 24/7 and I almost don’t feel a difference.”
Luca smiles and seems proud of himself. “Well, that’s how it should be. A good bodyguard should not be noticed. Not from the protégé and not from the bad guys until it is too late and they are restrained.” He winks at me and stops the car in front of my house. “Come on, let’s see if your friend behaved as good as you.”
I can’t stop the snort escaping me. “Somehow I doubt that. Jess is not really good with rules, never was and it only gets worse when she realizes that she doesn’t have a chance.”
“We’ll see. She wouldn’t be the first brat Sandro has to tame.” It sounds as if there is a story behind his statement, but he doesn’t elaborate. Instead he gets out of the car and opens my door while scanning our surroundings.
When we approach the house the door slams open and Jess storms out. “You! Tell this alpha asshole that he can stick his rules and surveillance anywhere, but not at me. I won’t be hold in a cage no matter how dangerous it might be to be outside at the moment! I need to go out!” She shouts and while I don’t see Sandro behind her I assume he has made her stay in for the day. Not his best choice I would say. Jess needs her freedom. She has fought so hard for it that she doesn’t ever want to give it up.
Quietly Luca ushers us inside and when I see the man sitting on our couch I come to a halt. Obviously Jess didn’t speak of Sandro. Sitting there seemingly completely at ease is Domenico who smirks at us while sipping a whisky. “Hi Domenico, what are you doing here?”
He winks at me and a smile curls his lips. Damn those mobsters are lethal when they smile. I almost feel my panties melting. “Ciao Valerie. I was just in your neighborhood and thought I check on you and Jess.”
Jess’ snort in my back makes my grin widen. “Well, that’s awesome. Where’s Sandro? Luca refused to bring Matteo the cupcakes I made, because Sandro would be alone with Jess ad me, but with you here one of them could go, or not? Do you want to stay for dinner?”
Before he can answer my questions Jess pushes me aside and glares at him. “No, he won’t. He has to leave now. I am sure he is able to bring those cupcakes to your loverboy.” Damn, he really must have done a number on Jess when she is not even able to pretend to be polite. I look at Domenico who seems only amused by Jess’ outburst and grins which only infuriates her more.
Before she can say something she will regret I pull her in the kitchen with me. “What’s wrong, Jess? Why are you so angry? What did he do?”
She throws her hands up in an exasperated pose and shakes her head. “I don’t want him here, Val. He has seen me so vulnerable. I mean, I was drugged and he took care of me. Did you know that he stayed the whole night? Not in my bed, he never touched me, but next to me. He cooled me down and told me things from when he grew up. I can barely remember anything, but what I remember from that night is him. Always. His face, his voice and his attention. I can’t deal with that, Val. I don’t know how to deal with that. I tried to seduce him so he fucks me and leaves, but he told me to back off. I don’t know what he wants and it scares me to death.”
“Have you asked him?” I try to be reasonable here even though I would love to clap my hands and jump around because finally Jess has found her match. I doubt he will give in so easily and I hope Jess learns that men could want something more from her than just sex.
Rolling her eyes she shakes her head. “As if he would tell me that. No. It is easy. He. Has. To. Leave. Now. I can work with Sandro, because he just follows me, but I won’t put up with Mr. Bossy Asshole over there.” Pointing in the direction of the living room she raises her voice again and I try to hide my grin.
“Okay, listen. I will talk to him, okay? I try to make him leave or at least leave you alone even though you still haven’t told me what he did to deserve this treatment. Could you please start with dinner? Cut some onions, please.” Jess nods and hugs me while a grateful look shines in her eyes.
“Thank you, Val. You have to tell me all about your first day with a shadow later, okay?” Nodding I make my way over to Domenico and Luca who sit together in our living room, talking quietly with each other.
Stemming my hands on my hips I try to glare at Domenico, but I fail miserably when I see the humor twinkling in his eyes again. “So what did you do to Jess? Why is she so hell bend on throwing you out of the house?”
Chapter 16
Matteo
When we arrive at the old warehouse in a nondescript part of Brooklyn the other cars are already there. My men knew where to drive so we took different routes to avoid being followed. As far as I can see everything is good. No one has followed us or the others and we quietly bring the three Mexicans inside. As soon as they see the old butchery the loudest opens
his mouth. “What is this? Some kind of torture chamber? You have nothing that will make us talk. Nothing, do you understand?”
Smirking I sit backwards on a chair and lean my arms on the back rest. “That’s what you are saying now, but just you wait. I have time. Time you don’t have. Time your bosses don’t have. I can wait. Hang all three up there.” I point to the old hooks that were used to hang up pigs when the butchery was still running. Now a different sort of pig is going to hang here and they will be alive. I wait till they are all hanging upside down and nod to Grischa. “Your turn.”
He grins maliciously and pulls out a knife. “So, my friend here has told you that he has time, well, unlike him I do have a family that waits for me. A beautiful wife and two little kids that want to spend the evening with me. It would be great if you can just tell us what we want to know, so we can bring this to a fast end and maybe we even let you live. You understand?” His accent grows thicker the longer he speaks and I know that it is only a ruse to appear even more dangerous. He speaks accent free if he wants to.
The three Mexicans have already red heads from the blood rushing down and I know we have to let them down in a few minutes or this will be over too fast. “Fuck you! We won’t tell you anything.” The loudmouth tries to spit at Grischa, but his position makes that impossible.
“Ts ts ts. You don’t even know, what we want to know.” Now Grischa’s voice is soft and even I feel a shiver running down my spine. I am glad that we are on the same side most of the times. “Now, Matteo will ask you some questions. If you answer them you can go. It’s that easy. If you don’t answer them and I am going to miss dinner with my family you will hurt. For every minute I am late you will lose an essential part of your body. It is quite fascinating how many parts you can cut off till a human bleeds out.” He winks at the three guys and I see the other two pale. We are going forward; or so it seems.