“I’m worried. The fucker’s been too quiet.” I tap my fingertips on the gleaming surface of the table. “I think he’s up to something.”
“Probably right,” Dario agrees.
Raoul nods too. “Men like Whitlock…they don’t let shit like that slide. He got his face rubbed in the dirt at that party. He’ll be back, for sure.”
“That’s exactly what’s bothering me,” I say. “Especially since I have something planned that may leave her exposed.”
“What do you want from us?” Dario gets straight to the point, not questioning what I’m planning or even my reasons. “More manpower? Take as many as you need.”
“Appreciate it.” I give a tight smile. “Though I’ve got some of my own crew in the works. Keeping eyes on Andy 24/7.”
“Good thinking.” Dario nods. “So how can we help? I’m going to be back in Vegas now that things have settled, but I’m only a call away.”
“I’m sticking around,” Raoul adds. “Club scene’s better here.” He winks at me. “But I’m keeping tabs on that fucker too.” Of course he is. Dario’s kid brother might like to assume the role of light-hearted playboy, but he’s mean as a tiger, and more ambitious than any of us. It was Raoul who undermined Dario’s operation enough to sink the bastard when all the shit came down recently. While I was making a case against Ernesto Caraldi, Raoul was quietly gathering allies among Caraldi’s old associates. I have no doubt he knows more about Whitmore’s business than anyone.
“That’s where I need your help, Raoul,” I tell him. “The other night, at the club, I got chatting to one of the girls.” I wait for him to make some wise-ass comment about pussy, but he doesn’t. Dario cocks his head and I go on. “She and a girlfriend got hired for one of Whitlock’s parties. Got roughed up pretty bad. But not before she stumbled across a pile of shit that could be just what we need to put the bastard away.”
“That sounds legit,” Raoul muses. “It ties in with what Bennetti’s boy said.”
“Exactly. Now we need to get our hands on all of that incriminating crap.”
“Incriminating crap,” Dario scoffs. “For all his big talk, that ass-wipe’s still just a fucking egotistical cunt. What idiot keeps trophies of his hits?”
“A serial killer,” I say. Mark Whitmore’s been hiding his psychopathic tendencies under the guise of mob business. But it can’t disguise the fact that he’s a sadistic motherfucker. “But that’s not the issue here. What we need is a way to get into that place. And that’s where you come in, Raoul.”
“What did you have in mind?” He rubs his chin, his eyes on me.
“If you’re working the party circuit, maybe you can get in on one over those guest lists.”
Raoul barks out a laugh. “You think Whitlock’s gonna invite me to one of his private parties?”
“Of course not. But you know people who move in those spheres. Do you think you could find someone who might crack the nod?”
Raoul purses his lips. “You’re saying you think I hang out with twisted fucks like that? What the fuck do you take me for?”
“Kid, get your head out of your ass,” Dario interrupts. “You know the club circuit better than any of us. The drug runners…the gangs who deal in girls… You’ve been running the Big Apple operation since our old man went down. You gotta know someone who’d be in on that kind of shit.”
“Never!” he snaps. “My Ma raised me right. And I saw her go through enough not to hang around with that brand of scum.”
I heave a sigh. “Look, let’s take a different angle. Can you get a guy inside? Like the Bennettis brothers did? I can’t pull that kind of operation with the Feds. Reed’s not playing ball unless I suck his dick, and there’s no way I’m getting back on that payroll.”
Raoul thinks on it, then nods. “Sure. That I can do.”
“Then make it happen,” Dario says. “It’ll pay out for everyone if we can take Whitlock out of the picture. You most of all.”
“True.” Raoul’s expression would be inscrutable to anyone but us. But I can sense he’s seeing how this would suit him and his newfound powerbase. “Of course, it’s gonna pay out for you too, huh, Ricci? Get the good doctor owing you a favor or two? You’ll be tapping that ass for as long as you want.” His grin is pure filth, and I’d wipe it off his smug face if I didn’t know he was deliberately revving me.
“Leave him alone, Raoul.” Dario still has a hold over his younger brother, even though the kid has shown he’s the one who’ll be taking over the reins. “Besides, I think Dr. Andy’s gonna be good for old Mateo.”
“Who you calling old?” I grumble, though his words warm me a little.
“You can’t deny it though, right? You’re different around that woman.”
“That’s because she’s got him pussy whipped.” Raoul smirks.
Dario chuckles. “A bit of a whipping is probably just what you need, bro. Remember when she slapped you?”
“Piss off!” I mumble. It feels like a lifetime ago that Dario had me keeping an eye on the beautiful doctor while he was figuring things out with Nikki. The woman was a wildcat – I got more kicks and slaps than I care to remember. No, that’s a lie. I remember every moment. It’s probably when the fire began to flare.
