by June Kramin
“I’m not bringing him in on the pittance you’ve shared. Your husband will only have him out in no time. There’s not enough to hold Angelo either, even to try to cut a deal with Menusco.”
“I won’t allow you to bring Angelo in, anyway.”
“Won’t allow? I think you’re getting the wrong idea here, Mandy. You work for me. You’re getting too close to the situation. You do as you’re told and gather info, and we take it from there. If I tell you to shoot Vince’s grandmother for jaywalking, you’d better goddamn do it!”
“Don’t talk to me like that. I know my job.”
“Then start acting like it. I’m the only one pulling for you here. Your ass would have been out for marrying that asshole. I had to convince them it was a good move undercover wise. So far you haven’t let me down. But if you continue to make pets out of every member of the family, I can’t guarantee your job or your safety, sweetheart.”
“Just let me worry about me. I have it covered and I’m making progress. Don’t even threaten my job on this. I’ve gotten more in a matter of months than you’ve gotten in a year. This was a good step and you know it.”
“I worry about when push comes to shove.”
“Let me worry about that. I have to go. Darci goes to bed in an hour.”
Abbey sighed heavily. “You’re getting too close, Amanda.”
“I’m the right amount of close. I’ll talk to you later.” She hung up the phone and regarded the people around her. No one was paying attention. She hadn’t been followed. So far she wasn’t a suspect. Or at least it still appeared that way. She stepped into a shoe store and bought a pair of shoes she didn’t need and a pretty jeweled purse for Darci because she never went over empty-handed. Maybe Abbey was right. Getting attached to the family wasn’t a good plan, but she couldn’t help it. She had a bond with Gerard’s sister that couldn’t be explained.
Oddly enough, his sister Sue had no clue what he did. As far as she knew, Gerard was a lawyer and that was the extent of it. Women weren’t usually brought into the “family business.” Amanda was a great exception. She had earned her way in then married into it. If things were reversed, she probably wouldn’t be where she was now. Some nights, when she couldn’t sleep, she lay there wondering if she married Gerard under other circumstances, would she even be aware of what he did? They were discreet if nothing else. No wonder agencies had a hard time locking anyone up.
Mandy longed for a normal life. She really loved Gerard and his sister. Moving away from it was a pipe dream. She knew better than to tease herself to believe it could happen. The exception to the happy family picture was Sue’s husband.
Lonny was an active right hand man to Vince and had, since the day she met him, always made the hair on her neck stand up. He was nice enough to his family when he was home, but he wouldn’t be recognized as the same man at work. She couldn’t understand how he shed that man at the door of his home.
He always treated Mandy as if he was suspicious of her, although she gave him no reason to do so. Lonny simply didn’t trust women—especially when it came to business.
When she showed up that night, jeweled purse in hand, Lonny wasn’t there. Mandy was grateful. Sue allowed Darci to stay up a little late to play with her. After she went to bed, the two women shared a glass of wine and had great conversation. Mandy missed having girlfriends around. Her last real friend was her college roommate. Sadly, they parted ways once school was over and never reconnected. Mandy blamed herself. Being a mob-wife left little for lasting friendships. Even with the fancy dinners and dinner parties, it didn’t leave much for a social life. While the other wives pampered themselves at spas during their days, she was busy watching fingers be broken, angry disputes over territory, and dirty money exchange hands.
Sue was really the only woman she could relate with. Darci was a bonus and helped keep Mandy in check of what this was all for. Make things better for the next generation. Hugs and cuddle time with her niece helped keep Mandy’s thoughts on the right track. Get the job done. Get out. Save who you can in the process.
Mandy arrived at home right before Gerard. He did the husbandly eye-roll at the new pair of shoes. There was something oddly normal feeling and comforting at the same time with that little gesture. Mandy allowed herself to feel ‘ordinary’ for just a while. As they made love, she imagined one day doing it with the hopes of making their own baby. Someday. When this was just a bad dream.
Chapter Fifty-Seven
After stopping to pick up Angelo the next morning, Mandy insisted on going to see Willy before they had even gotten in the car.
“Why?” Angelo asked.
“Does your father tell you anything?”
“Enough. What is it you think I don’t know?”
“How much faith do you put in Willy?”
“About as much as I put in anyone.”
“Think about it, Angelo. I need to know if you trust him.”
“Of course. He’s never let me down before. What the hell is up?”
“Someone is complaining about a rat and Gerard mentioned his name last night.”
“That’s ridiculous. Willy doesn’t have the brains to be a fed. Accusing him is like accusing you.”
“Excuse me?”
He laughed. “I’m sorry. You know what I meant. I didn’t mean it about the brains comment with you. I mean it’s ridiculous.”
“Well, I put my ass on the line last night defending him. I wanted to make sure we were on the same page. I still want to go talk to him. Shake him down a little and make sure.”
Angelo laughed again. “You sound funny when you try to talk tough, Amanda.” She took his arm and had it stretched behind his back in a flash. Then she pushed him against the car, not so gently. “All right,” Angelo said in a half laugh, half in pain. Mandy let go and stepped back.
“Talk tough my ass. I can still whip your punk behind.”
“Yeah, yeah,” he said as he climbed into the limo.
They met up with Willy at a restaurant on the east side of town. When he requested that for a location, Mandy was worried she had been wrong. There wasn’t a lot she could do if things went wrong and he decided to take her on in this neighborhood. But if Craig Abbey didn’t claim Willy was working with them, then who was he working for?
Mandy walked as sensually as she could over to his table. Willy was obviously surprised at her behavior. “What’s up, Mandy? You finally leaving that law book hubby of yours for your favorite boy toy?”
Not caring at all about a scene in a public restaurant, Mandy seized him by his tie and tightened it. She jerked him to his feet, knocked his chair backward, and slammed him at the closest wall. The restaurant fell silent and the owner rushed over. She held her hand at Willy’s neck and turned to the owner. “I’ll only be a minute. Go tend to your guests if you know what’s good for you.”
“But miss—”
“Go!” she shouted. She turned back to Willy. “Tell me you’re not two-timing me, Willy, or so help me God, I’ll kill you right here.”
The owner walked away, shaking his head. He mumbled something about a lover’s spat as he took the corner.
Willy could barely speak over a whisper. “What are you talking about? You’re married, you stupid bitch.”
It was her turn to whisper and lean in. “You want me to shout out that you’re a hit man on the take with the feds right here or would you rather play ‘sorry I cheated on you honey’?”
His eyes went wide. “I didn’t do anything. I swear!”
She took hold of his crotch. “Make me believe you.”
He cried out. “I’m not! I promise!”
“I’m not convinced!”
She released her grip and pulled him by the tie into the men’s room. Angelo followed.
“Mandy…I…I swear! I’m not no fed. I have no idea what you are talking about.”
“Why are you being fingered?”
“By who?”
“Someone b
ig enough that you’d be dead if the news didn’t make it to me.”
“I didn’t do anything!”
“Who are you talking to?”
“Nobody!” He rushed over to Angelo. “Nobody. I swear! You know me, Angelo. We go too far back for me to do anything to get myself involved anywhere you don’t tell me to. It’s not me. If there’s a rat—it’s not me.”
“What do you know about a rat?” Angelo asked him.
“I haven’t heard anything!”
Mandy shoved him against the wall and pulled a gun out from behind her back. She pointed it at his head. “Not a peep?”
“I swear! Nothing!”
She took a step back and tucked the gun away. “I stuck up for you. I said you couldn’t be involved, but I had to be sure. I’m sorry.”
Willy doubled over in relief. “Sonofabitch, Mandy. If you trust me, I hate to see how you treat someone you don’t.”
“Don’t ever cross me and you won’t ever find out.”
Mandy walked out of the bathroom and over to the table. No one else had moved. Tossing a hundred dollar bill on the table, Mandy said, “You gentlemen go buy yourself some new boxers.” She walked toward the door and winked at the owner as she walked past him. “Sorry. That time of the month, you know.”
They climbed in the limo and were silent for a while. Angelo spoke first. “I thought you were going to break something.”
“If I didn’t believe him, I would have.”
“I didn’t think he was lying either. You really think there’s a snitch?”
“I don’t know. I don’t have reason to believe there’s one, but I’m never too far from you and I really don’t think you’re it.”
Angelo chuckled. “So what now?”
“Business as usual. We keep our eyes open a little better from now on. I know Willy will be looking, too.”
When Gerard came home that night, he had already been informed about what Mandy had done. Of course, the story had been exaggerated again a little by the time it reached him.
“I didn’t break his nose, Gerard. I hardly touched him. I just needed him to be afraid. I wanted to clear him of suspicion. I knew it couldn’t be him.”
“Then why did you do it?”
“Because it was my ass if I was wrong.” She cuddled up to him as they stood in the doorway. They hadn’t gotten past their hello kiss when Gerard drilled her for information. “Do we have to go out tonight?”
“We really should. Vince will be there tonight. You know he likes it when we at least make a showing.”
“I suppose it’s not good to stand up the boss.”
“We can be fashionably late, though.”
“There’s a thought,” Mandy said with a kiss.
Chapter Fifty-Eight
“So what happened exactly with Darci?” Hunt asked Craig. They were about a half an hour from their destination.
“You heard that much of the story at the cabin. Gerard accidently killed her.”
“Why do I think there is more to the story?”
“You know everything that Mandy does after your last shoot out.”
“And what about what she doesn’t know?”
Craig glared at Hunt for a long while before he returned his attention back to the road. “I’m not sure you need to know that.”
“The hell I don’t. This is my wife we’re talking about!”
“Your wife. Think about that. Wasn’t this all just a little sudden?”
“It would have happened a long time ago if I could have found her.”
“You don’t at all feel like you’re another game piece in her big picture?”
“I’m not so sure I appreciate what you are insinuating, Abbey.”
“You’re a smart guy, Hunt. At least, you seemed like one before she came into your life. You think a big time FBI agent is going to settle for a small town Vermont sheriff?”
“She’s not FBI anymore, and things have changed. She’s a mom. She doesn’t want to lose Hannah the way she lost Darci. I’m not even going to sit here and listen to this shit. After she got her revenge it was over. At least, we thought it was. If you had kept a tighter leash on your men, we wouldn’t be having this conversation right now.”
“That’s right,” Abbey said. “If things went the way they were supposed to, she’d be dead.”
“What?”
“You dumb asshole. The bullet was meant for her, not the kid. He was ordered to kill her and had no problem following the order. Stupid lawyer bastard was always a lousy shot, lucky for her.”
“How could he kill her? Why?”
“They found out what she was. Vince wasn’t going to put up with that. He offered the job to Angelo, but the pussy couldn’t do it. Gerard ended up killing his niece instead. That pretty little wife of yours is petite, but shouldn’t have been mistaken for a three year old. She was too fast on returning fire. He couldn’t hit her after that. His brother-in-law was an easy enough target though, the dumb oaf. I hated to lose him with what he knew, but c’est la vie. At least we had Mandy for the info.”
“This is unbelievable. Why are they bothering kidnapping her? Why not just do a hit?”
“They need the information first.”
“What information?”
“That’s what we’re going to find out.”
“I honestly don’t think they’d be dumb enough to go back to this same cabin. You have any clues on where to go when this dead ends us?”
Abbey pulled the car over and held his gun up then laughed hard. “I can’t do this any longer. This is almost pathetic. You still can’t smell a setup, can you?”
“You’re on the take, too? What the hell is this?”
“I was almost clean and out of this, but I knew you’d mess it up, so now I’m along for the ride. Thanks a ton, shithead.” Craig cracked Hunt in the side of the head with the gun and knocked him out cold.
Mandy woke up when someone brought a tray of food into her room. She recognized him and grew angrier by the second. It was Luke. Pulling at the restraints did no good. “You son of a bitch! You called me in?”
He bowed and made a sweeping motion with this hand. “At your service.”
“Don’t you have any loyalty to Hunt? To your badge?”
He laughed. “My badge? I’m sorry. Should I be shedding a tear here? The mob pays well, sweetheart. I’m a little surprised you lived in it the way you did and didn’t break away from your so called paycheck.”
“Being in the FBI wasn’t about the money.”
“That’s right. You were paid at both ends as well as getting this one filled.” He placed his hand on her crotch as he said that. She struggled until he removed his hand.
“Don’t fucking touch me.”
He leaned into her face. “We’re more alike than you and Hunt. I like a woman with spunk. Let him keep the kid and you run away with me. I can make us disappear with what they paid me for turning you in. Add that to your stash and we’ll be set for life.”
“The money they paid me is in the evidence locker. I didn’t keep any of it. I took what I had to just to keep my cover.”
“I’m not talking about your pay. You know where Lonny has his stash. I know you do. You were the last one to see him before he was killed.”
“That’s what this is about? You guys captured me because you think I know where Lonny hid some money?”
“That’s the rumor anyway. I’m sure they want to pop you for your treachery ’n shit, too. Come on, Mandy.” He placed his hand on her again. “What do you say? You and me. I can get us out of here.”
She pretended to consider it and looked to the door as if she was waiting for someone to walk in. Whispering, “Come here,” she motioned with her head that he should come closer. When he leaned down, she head-butted him. His nose heavily streamed blood as he swore loudly. He backhanded her hard before wiping his nose on his sleeve.
“You stupid bitch!” He whipped his belt off and unzipped his pants. H
e climbed on her and pressed himself hard into her midsection. The door flew open.
“Get off of her!”
“Bitch probably broke my nose,” Luke screamed.
“You were warned to keep your distance. Now get the hell out of here!” Luke climbed off and stormed out the door. Dan asked, “If I release an arm, you going to eat or try to kick my ass?” She didn’t care for any food, but she was grateful for his timing. She wasn’t about to thank him.
“Shove the plate up your ass.”
“Is that any way to treat someone that saved you from being raped?”
“You’re going to claim to be my hero? You probably just didn’t want him soiling what you’re going to do later anyway.”
“I was hoping to not have to force it on you.” He sat down in a chair next to her bed. “When you finally got Gerard out of the way, I really thought you’d come to your senses.”
“And what? Run to you? I can’t believe that every step of the way, no matter what line of work a man is in, what position in life he plays, he’s still really only interested in one position.”
“Don’t be silly. I like lots of different positions.”
“We worked together, for crying out loud. How was I supposed to form a romantic interest in you? I was practically in lockdown with that job. What kind of relationship do you think we could have had?”
“And when it was over…you found that sheriff.”
“And when that was over, I was pregnant with his baby. I love him, Dan. Do what you will to me, but leave him and my baby alone.”
“You think I’ll buy that you’ll pretend to stick around and be my whore? You’d kill me first chance you got.”
“I would never make such a claim. You know better. Of course I’d kill you.”
“Then what can you offer me?”
“What Luke wanted.”
“He was trying to rape you. I thought we just covered this.”
“Not that, asshole. Someone told him about Lonny’s stash. He promised to set me free if I told him where it was.”
“That little prick!” Dan stormed out of the room. Mandy could hear arguing immediately. A shot was fired and she jumped. Dan opened the door after a minute and stood in the doorway.