Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 77066 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 385(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77066 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 385(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
“What do you know about Ellie Baker?” I snap.
She looks from the body to the tip of my gun and then back to my eyes.
“They spoke of her,” she says, her voice sounding as distant as I imagine her memories are. “Alessio bragged about hurting her.”
“Were you involved?” I growl.
She looks confused for a second before she shakes her head. “I was in kindergarten when it happened.”
I know she’s no better than the others. Her link to the family, the way Alessio put his hand at her back as they entered the club, tell me she’s valuable to him on some level. But as much as I’d like to, I can’t kill her right now. I want his pain to be drawn out. I want him to reel from the loss of his brother, and then maybe I’ll start picking them off one by one before putting a bullet in his head. Quick and painless isn’t the level of vengeance and retribution that Ellie deserves.
I holster my gun as I take a step back, memorizing her face and the pattern the blood makes on her skin. The shadows begin to move. I cover my head with the hood of my jacket before turning and disappearing down the alleyway.
I may not have to worry about her after all as I watch several men approach the car. There’s a very real chance that she’ll go missing, either sold or taken away to be used by the men closing in on the SUV.
This isn’t the type of town that produces witnesses, no matter what someone saw. They’re more likely to call a friend to get help picking apart the car and selling it for parts than they are to call the police and report a crime.
Marcello Severino, second-born son to kingpin mob boss, Lucian Severino, will be rolled out of that vehicle and tossed to the side like the garbage that he is. His connection to the Mafia don’t mean shit on the streets of Mexico.
The woman is no longer my concern. There’s a real chance that she’ll take her last breath before the sun rises.
I try not to feel bad about that as I climb back into my vehicle and drive away. Her connection makes her guilty, and that’s all that matters. Women are no less deserving of retribution than men are, and if she listens to them brag and does nothing to stop them or seek justice for their victims, that’s as good as playing a role herself as far as I’m concerned.
I head back to the club, my real concern still there. I don’t want to lose Alessio Severino while he’s still in Mexico.
Killing him right now isn’t part of the plan, but I don’t want to miss the fallout from what I just did.
I pay cover for the second time, having changed my shirt in my truck. I don’t draw any more attention from the bouncer than I did the first time. I’m just one of a hundred gringos in the place, wanting to have a little fun in Mexico.
I’m inching toward the bar, planning to go to a different bartender than I did the first time when I dart my eyes in the direction of the VIP area.
I stop in my tracks, noticing the empty space that no less than thirty minutes ago held the second-in-command of two very dangerous organizations.
My jaw ticks as I start walking again.
It will draw unwanted attention if I turn right around and head out. The goal is always to blend in, to be unremarkable. I should look just like every other guy in their twenties that’s in here.
I’m five feet from the front door as I pat my pockets, looking at the ground.
“Did you see a wallet?” I ask the bouncer, making sure to keep my face angled down.
“No English,” he says, even though I heard him flirting with the women that entered right in front of me in perfect English, not five minutes ago.
I keep up the charade for a minute longer as I retrace my steps back to my truck.
I hate to think I’ll have to head to Chicago for the second damn part of my plan. I never wanted to step back into that city again. It holds too many ghosts. It also more than triples my chance of death because of the stronghold the Severino family has there. I just happened to get lucky tonight. If Marcello was paying attention, rather than concerning himself with getting his dick sucked by his brother’s girl, then the man might have gotten the jump on me. I won’t get that lucky a second time, especially after Alessio’s guard goes up with the news of his brother’s death.
I circle the block, confused at my luck, when I notice an SUV, looking exactly like the one Marcello drove away from the club in, passes me by. The image in my rearview shows me the same specialty tag I know to be an elite car rental place.