Logan pushed the button on the winch to lower the dangling man, and Marcus struggled against the ropes binding him as he slowly descended.
"You thought I wouldn't notice how you were telling the Peraltas every secret we trusted you with, but obviously you're not that smart." I circled, leaning down to look into his eyes. "Not only were we on to you, but you haven't heard any real information in about six months."
Logan stopped lowering Marcus when his face was mere inches above the oil. I stared impassively as Marcus struggled again, eyes rolling wildly.
"Everything we fed you was a test. Every location, every meeting, every buy. And you failed that test—spectacularly." I shook my head. "I'm not even angry with you, Marcus." I leaned in very close and spoke quietly. "I'm disappointed."
Needing to release months of pent-up frustration, I used my fists on Marcus. A jab to the kidney was painful, but unnecessary on a dead man. When I felt as if I'd done enough damage to satisfy my craving for violence, I headed back to the car. Years of practice meant that though I broke a sweat, I walked out of the warehouse as spotless as when I arrived. The whirring sound of the boom being lowered behind me was music to my ears.
Nobody fucked with the Gallaghers and got away with it.
Logan would seal the drum with Marcus inside and deliver it to the Peralta Family in the morning. It sent a clear message that the Gallaghers knew what was going on at all times. The other Families squabbled constantly over territory, but I wasn't interested in such trivialities. What was mine was mine, and I wouldn't trade, sell, or otherwise make alterations.
I sat in the back of the limo waiting for Logan with my phone in my hand. Picturing Kinsley was as easy as breathing; she remained in my mind's eye even when I wished she'd give me peace. But I couldn't help looking through the pictures I'd taken of her while we were together. I wanted to put an end to the way I felt, to force myself to get over what was nothing more than a fucking release while stuck in a claustrophobic town. Perhaps calling up my current máistreás was the answer to my hardest problem.
Logan slammed the door when he got in the car. "He's nice and snug for now. I'll come back tomorrow and oversee the delivery."
"Thanks, Logan."
Pulling through the lot toward the exit, Logan glanced at me in the rearview mirror. "You all right, boss?"
"Of course."
Silence descended as Logan navigated the car through the wet streets in the direction of my house. We used it as our office more often than not, and Logan had spent the day there working with Caden and a few others.
Not more than five minutes passed before Logan spoke again. "Burke, you and I have known each other for a long-ass time. We're friends before we're coworkers, but more than that, we're family."
With a frown, I asked, "What is your point?"
Logan clenched his jaw and swung around a slow-moving vehicle. "That you're a lying piece of shit."
I stared at the back of Logan's blond head and contemplated coldcocking him. "What the fuck does that mean?"
"It means that something is not right, and it hasn't been since we got back from Connecticut."
"So you know me, congratu-fucking-lations."
Logan sighed and pulled to a stop at a red light. "I'm not bullshitting here, Burke. Tell me what it is so I can take care of it. That's my job. We don't need your head in the clouds when we've got shit going down left and right. If you're not in the game, tell me what to do to get you there."
I couldn't answer the question of what was causing my distraction. None of them knew what went on in Chester for those five glorious days. Though it was tempting to have Logan bring her to me as a máistreás, I was already arranged to marry someone else.
"Drop it, Logan."
"I'll let it go for now, but I'm giving you forty-eight hours to get your head out of your ass and into the game, or I'm going digging."
I came close to growling, absolutely wished I could punch Logan in the face, but ultimately said nothing.
I'd never let a woman twist me up in my entire life, including my mother and sister, and I wasn’t about to start now. I was sad when my grandmother passed away, but I wasn't that close to her.
"Boss?"
Glancing up, I discovered we'd arrived. As I got out, smoothing my coat automatically, I made a decision. I'd buried the old Burke years ago, and I could do it again. I would remember what I'd made myself into, who I owed my life to, and why I was better off forgetting Kinsley Hawthorne existed.
Caden waited for us in the foyer.
"Caden, where are we with Johnson?" I barked.
Frowning, he followed me into my personal office. "Ah, it's been taken care of."
