Vinnie set his drink down on the coffee table and leaned forward. “They wanted Edward’s whereabouts?”
I nodded as I began to relay what I had overheard when I arrived at the gallery. “They were demanding to know where Eddie was, When Lany played dumb, they started smacking him around. When I arrived, the guy who seemed like he was in charge called someone and told him that whatever he planned to do, he needed to do it. Shit was going down.”
Vinnie folded his hands together. I had to wonder if he was doing it for comfort or so that he wouldn’t leap across the floor and attack me. It wasn’t like I had brought him good information.
“I see.”
The look Vinnie gave Isabella confirmed my thought that he might know more about what was going on than anyone else. I wanted to know what he knew.
“What’s going on, Vinnie?” I asked, dropping the formalities between us. At the moment, I didn’t have the temperament to be nice or cordial. “They roughed up my husband. Now, I don’t care if my relationship with Lany ruffles your delicate sensibilities, butI—”
“Relax, Lieutenant, I’m gay.”
Chapter Eleven
Salvador
Now it was my turn to stare.
“You’re gay?”
Isabella chuckled as she stroked her manicured hand down Vinnie’s arm. “Mossad taught me many things, Lieutenant.” Her smile was like a siren’s song. “My mother taught me more.”
My eyebrows rose swiftly up my forehead. “Your mother taught you to be the beard for a mobster?”
“Alleged mobster,” Vinnie said. “Nothing has ever been proven.”
It was all I could do not to roll my eyes.
“Now is not the time to argue semantics, Vinnie.”
“Look, what I just told you can’t leave this room,” Vinnie said. “If certain people found out, the length of my lifespan would be greatly shortened. Not even Edward knows I’m gay. The only person who does know is sitting right beside me.”
My gaze went back to Isabella.
She just shrugged.
“So,” Vinnie said, “you being married to a man is a nonissue. My alleged crimes are.”
“Okay, fine.” A dark heat started to well up inside of my gut as my anger rose. “You’re lily fucking white. That doesn’t tell me shit about who is going after my husband.”
Vinnie sighed. “I don’t know. There have been some rumblings for a while now, but nothing I can pin down. I can feel someone breathing down my neck, but I don’t know who that someone is.”
“Not Eddie’s father?”
“No.” Vinnie shook his head. “Carlos and I have an understanding and have had one for nearly two decades now. There has been peace between us far too long to start some petty squabble over territory.”
“Is that what this is?”
Greedy bastards.
“Again, I’m not sure. I have some people looking into the matter, but so far, nothing has panned out.”
“So, what does Eddie have to do with it?” That was the question burning at me. “I thought he was out of the family business.”
“He is.” Vinnie nodded. “To anyone who matters, Edward is merely my nephew. Those who were around when there was war between Carlos and I know the truth. Everyone else knows the story. He is Carlos Gambino’s son. My blood oath makes Eddie a relative of theCastellanofamily.”
Must be nice to have those kinds of connections.
