I shake my head and scoff. As a happily married man, the Leone Room isn’t his scene at all. Yet, he’s the one who pushedfor us to go here. I’m pretty sure the excuse of looking at Tony’s list was just that. An excuse.
“Do you have anywhere else you’d rather be?” Rafe asks, smirking like the fucker he is.
“Obviously,” I bite out.
It’s after midnight, so I’d prefer to be in lots of other places. Inside Raven’s pussy, her mouth, or even just fucking sitting with her anywhere. Even a walk-in freezer would be preferable if she were with me.
“What are we looking at?” Enzo asks after checking his phone for the tenth time in just as many seconds. Seriously, what the hell is up with him?
From what little info Tony’s given me, I now know Joey was telling the truth. The black circle is not a symbol that belongs to an organized crew or gang. It’s a promise. Something that means there’s a score to settle. A circle that needs to be completed.
With a heavy sigh, I run my hand down my face. This is all a fucking mess, and I can’t even give it all of my attention. Raven keeps stealing it.
What if she’s really sick and needs a doctor? I should be there. Or bring one of the Russo doctors to her in case she’s too weak to leave her apartment. Or maybe she’s… do women still get embarrassed by their period in their late-twenties?
My entire being is itching to do something—anything. Sitting still and hanging tight have never been my M.O. Yet it feels like all I’ve been fucking doing since the explosion last year. If I can’t be with Raven, I should be out in the streets, setting fires and reminding people who I am.
I definitely shouldn’t be sitting in an office in a sex club with my cousins. Needing to feel some kind of spark, I flip my lighter open, watching the flame dance, and imagine setting the list on fire just to feel something burn.
But I won’t. Can’t. The list is too valuable, each name carefully curated by Antonia’s network of informants. Potential traitors within our ranks, and suspects who might have orchestrated the bombing last year that took my eye and left me with fresh scars to match the old ones.
“What the hell is a pyrotechnic company?” Rafe asks.
I frown. “A what now?”
Enzo looks between us. “Pyro… come on, guys. You know the answer to that.”
“Don’t be a dick,” I growl. “Just spit it out and then be smug about it later.”
He chuckles. “Pyrotechnics is—”
Rafe interrupts him. “It’s… well, fuck me.” He shows me his phone while he says, “It’s fireworks and basically anything that creates fire.”
Didn’t I come across this one company that did something like that? I scan the list again, methodically despite my restlessness. “North Coast Effects,” I read out loud. While I do a web search for the company, I change the subject. “Is Piper still with her friend?” I ask Enzo.
“Uhh, what? Yeah.”
His answer has me looking up from my phone. “What?” I snap. “Don’t tell me you don’t know where your wife is.”
Rafe laughs boisterously. “Just fucking tell him already.”
“Tell me what?” I demand.
Enzo gestures at the glass. “She’s here with her friend. I think they’re busy drinking themselves into one hell of a hangover tomorrow.”
Losing interest, I just nod and return my attention to my phone. Okay, here they are. North Coast Effects. A family-owned company now run by Adam and Finn Kearney. I go to their website and read their bios while looking at the pictures.
Adam seems like a nice and easygoing guy. The kind that just wants to make things go boom. I can respect and sympathize with that.
Finn, on the other hand, seems like he comes from a completely different mold. The brothers look nothing alike. In fact… “Hey, look at this.” I show both my cousins the picture of Finn. “Doesn’t he remind you of somebody?”
Both Rafe and Enzo nod slowly, but I can see on their expressions that they, like me, can’t place the familiarity.
“Have we done business with him?” I ask out loud.
When neither of them answers me, I pull Remus’ contact up on my phone and send him a screenshot of Finn Kearney and ask him if he knows him. He answers within five minutes.
Remus: He looks familiar, but I don’t think I’ve done business with him.
