Playing Jasper (Genoa Mafia Series Book 4)

by Ginger Ring

  “Bags of cash, bootleg booze. Turn around and look at this.” She signaled with her hand. “There’s the Picasso that was reported stolen from Rodney Studd’s home. That alone would put them in jail for years.”

  “This is amazing, Jackie.” He studied the painting up close. “There are millions of dollars’ worth of stuff here, and all stolen.” Hower turned her way. “Have you told anyone else about this?”

  She placed her hand over her heart. “What? Of course not. You said to only tell you.” Everything that had accrued in the last year rushed back, and her head throbbed. Suddenly, everything with Jasper came to the surface, and her knees wobbled. Was it all worth it? Yes, but it still hurt like hell. “I could never pass up the chance to bring the person responsible for my parents’ death to justice. It’s all I’ve thought about ever since it happened.” Andrew opened a few more boxes, and she risked a glance at her watch. It wouldn’t be long, and all this would be over with.

  He placed the lid back on one of the totes and rested his elbows on it. “You know, I’ve always liked you, Jackie. You have spunk, and your father would’ve been proud of your investigative skills. You’d make a great reporter, just like your dad.”

  “Thank you.” Her heart raced, and it was hard to remain calm.

  “Too bad you’ll never get to be one.” His voice echoed in the hollow room.

  “What do you mean? This will be a big scoop, just like the one my dad was working on.”

  “Yes. It would be.” Hower pulled a gun out from under his jacket. “That’s why it pains me so to have to kill you.”

  “What?” Her mouth dropped open, and she took a step back. “What’re you doing?”

  “Finishing the job your father started.” He motioned with the gun for her to take a seat. It was a good thing, as her legs were about to give out.

  “I don’t understand. Why are you doing this? Why would you shoot me? You were his friend.” She sobbed.

  “Was being the operative word.” The man’s whole demeanor had changed in an instant. “He made the mistake of going after someone who I was on the payroll to protect. The Russian mob pays me well, and when your father found out about their link to powerful political members, well, we had to put him down.” He was a fiend and even worse than she expected.

  “Put him down?” She rose. “He was my father, not a wounded animal, and what about my mother? She was innocent. They were my parents.” A tear rolled down her cheek, and anger filled her blood.

  “It was them,” he pointed a thumb to his chest, “or me.” His hard-soled shoes reverberated off the cement walls as he circled the room before coming to stand in front of her. “And now, poor little Jackie, it’s your turn.”

  ***

  Jasper

  True fear was foreign to him. Not knowing what was going on, except that Jackie was involved, had beads of sweat rolling down the back of his neck as they stood waiting in the damp tunnel.

  All he knew was to keep his mouth shut and that Roman was in charge, but could he do nothing when the woman he loved was in danger?

  It happened in a second. The man pointed a gun at Jackie. Roman and Arlo rushed the room, and Dominic had him in a choke hold. Him. Not the guy with the gun!

  What the fuck?

  The only thing that kept him from a full-blown meltdown was when Dominic whispered in his ear. “Don’t say a word. It’s a setup. She’s in on it. She’s not in danger.”

  Jackie was part of this, whatever it was. “Keep quiet, or she might end up getting hurt.” Jasper could see what was going on as Roman and Arlo quickly disarmed a man he’d never seen before. “If I let you go, do you promise not to engage?”

  Slowly, Jasper nodded, and Dom released him. “Just listen. I don’t know the whole story, but that guy killed her parents.”

  “What?” Jasper tightened his fists. The urge to tear this man limb from limb was stronger than anything.

  He watched as Arlo easily tied the man’s hands behind his back and threw him onto a chair. Madison wrapped her arms around Jackie and led her to a bench to sit.

  Wait a minute, Maddy is here?

  Roman never involved her in family business. Both women appeared pale and shaken.

  He took a step forward, and Dominic grabbed his arm. “You promised. Step back. Let Roman play this out.”

  Jasper cursed under his breath. “Yeah, yeah.” He shook out of his grasp but stayed where he was. This was killing him, but his friend was right. Going in blind to a situation he knew nothing about was never a smart move.

  “Mr. Caponelli.” The man in the chair finally spoke. “We meet for the first time.”

  “As if we would have reason to.” Roman folded his arms across his chest, a handgun held tightly in his grip. “You’re a liar, a murderer, and a front for the Bratva.”

  “Whatever you say, but I’ve never killed anyone.” The man avoided eye contact and glanced down at the floor.

  “Hower, you no good bastard. You knew the story Sid wrote was going to bring unwanted attention to the Russians. You reported it to them, and they put a hit on her mom and dad. You were responsible for the death of Jackie’s parents, even if you didn’t pull the trigger.” Roman’s voice roared in the windowless room. “So shut the fuck up while I tell you what’s going to happen.”

  This time, the doomed man turned his attention to Roman, and so did everyone else.

  “You will die today.” Roman walked around the room as he spoke.

  Jasper watched Jackie as everyone waited to hear what would happen next.

  “Your reputation will die today.” Roman stopped in front of the man in the chair. “Arlo and Dominic are going to take you back to a no-tell motel outside of town and hang you from the ceiling. We’ve already cleared out your room in town, and the tech guys have copied and erased everything on your laptop. They will soon do the same thing with your phone.” Arlo plucked Hower’s phone from his pocket. “Then, as you swing from the rope and take your last breath, they will download kiddy porn and other sick shit that the police will uncover. Your bank account will be emptied and be transferred to an offshore account where Jackie can do what she wishes with it.” Hower’s face turned white, and he slumped in the chair. It was over, and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it.

  “I don’t want his blood money,” Jackie hissed.

  “Donate it, if you want, but it’s yours. End of story.” Roman was in full command of the situation. “Any last words?”

  The soon-to-be-dead man remained still, and the room reverberated with the slap of Roman’s hand across Hower’s face. “I repeat, anything you wish to say?” Everyone turned to Jackie.

  “I’m sorry for what happened to your parents, but you can’t condone this.” Hower whimpered. Suddenly, Arlo pulled the man to his feet. “Jackie, please, you have to save me.” Dom came out for the shadows and helped drag him away. The screams from the man for help visibly shook Jackie, and Madison placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

  “I’m no better than him.” Tears streamed down her face. “I’m a murderer now too.”

  “No.” Madison knelt by her side. “You probably saved many others from losing loved ones also. You weren’t the only one he did this to. The man is a swine. He had a front row seat to keep an eye out for the Bratva, and anyone who might be a threat was eliminated.”

  Madison had stepped into the shoes of a mob wife and was clearly the perfect one to be by Roman’s side. “Do you understand?” Maddy stood now and repeated her statement again.

  Jasper watched as Jackie finally lifted her head and said, “Yes.” She rose and wiped her tears. “What happens next?”

  “Jasper.” He’d been so concerned with watching his woman, Jasper jumped when Roman called his name.

  “Yeah, boss?” Walking out from where Dom and he had waited in the wings, Jackie made a move in his direction, but Roman stopped her.

  “Wait.” His boss held a hand up.

  “Jackie, I had no i
dea this was going on. I would’ve been here for you.” Jasper’s heart broke just thinking about what she’d gone through. “Why didn’t you tell me? Did he threaten you? Was that why he was here?”

  “I brought him here. It was a trap, and I didn’t want you to know.” She sighed. “You were never supposed to be a part of this.” Jackie shook her head, and all he could think about was running his fingers through those reddish curls as he hugged her close.

  “What are you talking about?” Jasper asked.

  “It started last summer. I was at a coffee shop in Chicago, and this man just sat down next to me. He gave me his card and said he represented the Caponelli family. They knew who killed my parents but couldn’t prove it. The man told me if I wanted to see the guilty ones brought to justice, they needed my help.” She stopped and brushed a tear from her eye. “At first, I said no. I thought it was crazy, but he was very convincing, and I agreed. Before long, everything fell into place. The job at the paper, the nice apartment on the lake. I knew those things didn’t materialize by accident, but nothing else happened. I got complacent and decided I was going to give it until the end of the summer and move on.” Jackie puffed out her cheeks. “Then Madison stopped in with the ad, and I knew the deal was back on. I tried to pretend it was nothing more than needing a job, but in the back of my mind, I knew this was it. The man said that, at some point, the Caponelli family here would contact me, but I was supposed to say nothing to no one, not even them. Then Madison started pushing me toward you and,” her voice trailed off, “I wasn’t sure I wanted to do it anymore. Too many people were going to get hurt.”

  “I still don’t understand what this has to do with the man they just dragged out of here.” Jasper shook his head. “How did he get here and why?”

  “In time, I was to uncover some illegal activities going on in Genoa and report it to Hower. Tell him it was a big story and that I wanted to follow in my father’s footsteps. Hower was his editor at the paper.”

  “Maddy and I knew about it but weren’t sure how to go about getting the guy here. With your involvement with Jackie, we were able to keep her even closer to the family than if she were just an employee.” Roman words dropped like a pit in his stomach. “When you had the idea for the painting, I ran with it. There’s no international jewel thief coming, and the bricks of drugs are powered sugar. I would never leave that kind of merchandise here at my wife’s place of business. The painting is the only thing that’s hot, but I needed something stolen to make it convincing.”

  Jasper calmed his nerves but was on the verge of breaking. “I don’t get this at all. You played me?” He pointed at Roman before turning his attention to Jackie. “And you played hard to get but then claimed to fall for me?” His jaw tensed.

  “No, I didn’t, and no I wasn’t. I fought it as much as I could, but everyone basically set us together. I didn’t want to fall for you, but I did anyway.” Jasper wanted to believe her, but he still had no clue what the truth was.

  “Yes, and that’s what brings me to the next problem we have to deal with,” Roman interrupted. “Maddy, come here.” She did as told and wrapped her arms around his waist.

  “What do you need me to do?” Jasper itched to get the hell out of here and fast. He needed time to sort things through, and if it wasn’t too late, he’d love to get a few punches in on the bastard Hower before he was killed.

  “You can help me decide which one of you I should kill.” Roman now had a gun in each hand. One pointed one at him and one toward Jackie.

  “Whoa.” Jasper put his hands up. “I knew nothing about this.”

  Jackie appeared just as shocked as he was. Well, good for her. The other surprising thing was that Maddy just stood there, glancing back and forth between the two of them.

  “You see, that’s the problem. Even though I set this up, you should have known what was going on, Jasper. You got involved with a woman who was not part of the family. You shared secrets. You put her and us at risk.” It was true. He’d been careless over a woman. A woman whom he loved.

  Well, thought he loved. Now, he wasn’t so sure.

  “The last thing I would ever do is put the organization at risk, and I would die for you. You know that is true.”

  “But given a choice, which would you pick?” Roman put one gun away but pointed the remaining one back and forth between Jackie and Jasper “Her or us?”

  Jasper closed his eyes. This was a nightmare. As angry at and hurt as he was by Jackie, he still loved her. It was true. “Neither,” he finally admitted. “I would die for both. Shoot me, if you have to.” He held up his hands. “I’m over this shit.”

  “No. No. No.” Jackie raced over to his side. “Jasper was never part of this. You can’t kill him.”

  “Are you saying you would die for him, as well?” Roman held the gun in their direction. He was testing them both.

  “This is crazy. No one needs to die,” Jackie pleaded.

  “No, they don’t. But if I had to pick one of you, who would it be?” Roman insisted.

  Madison remained quiet by her husband’s side.

  “Jasper has all of you. You’re his family. You need him, and he needs you. I have no one left, no family. I couldn’t live with the thought that he died because of me.” Jackie stepped in front of him. She’d chosen him, and she’d chosen to die for him. His heart soared and dropped, all at the same time.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Jasper

  “That’s where you’re mistaken, Jackie. We’re your family. Your father was a distant relative of my father’s,” Roman addressed Jackie. “While he worked on that expose, he contacted us about the information he’d found out about the Russians. Sid made us promise to take you in if anything ever happened to him, and in exchange, he gave us all the goods that he found first. That’s why, after they passed, I had my man contact you,” Roman explained.

  “None of that matters. I still turned you in to get Hower and made the call to the number the guy gave me. What if someone had gotten killed?” Jackie argued. “I’d never forgive myself. I just called and didn’t think.”

  “We set you up to do this, and Madison helped me.” Roman motioned between the two of them, while Maddy smiled and leaned her head against her husband’s shoulder. “You’re a smart girl. You had to know we were involved and that nothing would happen.”

  “Don’t you remember? I asked you to stop here to help the delivery man. We left the door open for you. You played right into our hands and did everything we wanted you to do.”

  “But…” Jackie wouldn’t give up.

  “Believe me, I know everything that goes on in this town. Most often, even before it happens,” Roman reassured her. “You helped us, and that’s that.”

  Jasper remained silent as he listened to more of the story. His mind was in turmoil. He’d been played, a chess piece that they’d all moved around the board to win the game, no matter the cost. He felt like a fool. A love-sick fool. For the first time in his life, he’d given his all to a woman, only to be crushed and tossed aside like day-old bread.

  What could only be called fear popped out of nowhere. Anxiety ran through his veins. Just mere minutes ago, he’d been ready to die for Jackie. Now, all he felt was confusion and a sense of betrayal. He’d been honest, while everyone else was lying, or so it seemed right now. His head throbbed, and it was difficult to breathe. All he wanted to do was run, but he couldn’t move an inch. He couldn’t turn off his feelings for her like a faucet. It still dripped through his heart.

  “So why are you still pointing a gun at me?” Jasper finally caught his breath when Roman lowered his weapon.

  “Because, like I said, I know what is going on even before it happens. Maddy, my lovely matchmaking wife, thinks you two are a match made in heaven, but right now, you both are living a nightmare. You both feel lost and not sure you’ll ever trust each other again, and you’re wondering whether or not anything between you was real. When you both calm down, you might
remember that, at this point in time, with a gun to your heads, you were both willing to die for each other.” Roman put his gun away and kissed the top of Maddy’s head. “Just like we would. If that isn’t love, nothing is. Now, Jasper you close up the back door, and Jackie, you come with us. I think you both need time apart to process everything.”

  Jackie never looked his way. Jasper turned and left without acknowledging her, either. His heart had been pierced, and there was nothing left to do right now but go somewhere and lick his wounds. Now was not the time to talk things out. Roman was right. The more space between them right now, the better.

  Nearing the entrance to the tunnel, the panic attack started to fade. He knew what he needed to do. Grabbing his phone, he called Dom and asked for their location. Before Hower left this earth, he’d be giving Jasper the answers they needed and, with any luck, regain some of the faith his boss had lost in him.

  ***

  Jackie

  Jackie thought that when the man responsible for her parent’s death was dealt with, she’d feel something. Triumph, relief, accomplishment, but all that surged through her right now was emptiness. She was numb.

  What to do now? An hour from now? Tomorrow?

  It was all up in the air.

  After Jasper left, they’d gone to Madison’s office. Roman and Maddy spent a good hour counseling her through what had happened and what would happen. What to say if police questioned her about Hower. What to do about work—they didn’t want her to leave. What to do if she decided to go—she wouldn’t be allowed to come back. Despite the promise to her father, once she was out, she wouldn’t get back in. Any contact or help from the Caponellis would end. Forever.

  When it was time to go home, she couldn’t wait to get there. Walking into the apartment, she felt like a zombie. Her purse, her keys, her phone, everything just fell where it landed. She barely remembered stripping off her clothes and stepping into the shower until the cold water stunned her awake. Jackie screamed as her tears mingled with the water dripping down her face. She never needed her mother more than now, and that just caused the waterworks to flow even harder.