“It’s a working hypothesis.”
That earned me a grunt.
“When’s Aidan calling a Summit?”
“Soon.”
“What’s he waiting for?”
“The last thing he wants is a war. Not when it gets in the way of his true goals?—
“We need a show of strength,” I snarled, hands tightening around the steering wheel.
“I know, I know,” she hissed. “Let me finish! We need to regain order on the streets before we declareanything.”
“What does that mean?”
“New shipments of weapons are coming in this week from theLobos Rojosand the Hell’s Rebels. You can’t fight a war if you’re not armed.”
“We have a few shipments coming in ourselves.”
“Good. I know TFB are well-stocked. My question about all of this iswhy. If it is the Bratva, then okay. The city’s a major stronghold for The Forgotten Boys, along with Miami, Chicago, and Houston. One-time Bratva allies are being picked off like crazy, switching allegiances to the usurpers, which is bound to piss off Moscow. Butwhyagitate the Irish and Sicilians? The Irish run the Eastern Seaboard, and the Sicilians’ reach since your sister married Hunter is incalculable.”
“They didn’t wade in to make war with Lyanov et al.” Unease filled me as I went with my gut. “This goes deeper.”
“Sounds like you just talked yourself out of believing the Bratva is behind the whorehouse,” she joked warily.
“Fuck. Maybe.” Still… “Rumor has it that the president is deep in the Bratva’s pocket… Could be there’s something to it?” My jaw worked as different news items from the past couple weeks hovered at the forefront of my mind. “When I was in Cancún, Martinez indicated that he’s trying to shape the upcoming Mexican elections.”
“I know. That’s why Dead To—” She paused. Grunted. “Taubewas there.”
“Did you hear about Graham Brackton’s death recently?” When she cleared her throat, I groaned. “Don’t tell me. That wasalsoTaube’s work?”
“I won’t tell you. Don’t worry.”
“Fuck, is there anyone she hasn’t killed yet?”
“You’re still breathing.”
“Reassuring.”
With a tap of my fingers to the steering wheel, I thought about that crazy blog, one that Luc had backed up withfacts. “Did you know Brackton had an addiction to high-class hookers?”
“I’m not surprised. As soon as men reach billionaire status, it’s like they get an aversion to paying taxes and to sleeping with their wives.”
“He was one of our clients…”
“No way! He slept with a woman from your stables?”
“Sure did. The same one every time he was in the city. A few weeks ago, we lost her.”
“The girl Brackton fucked?!”
“Yeah. She was there when Taube took him out.”
“Wow. That’s uncanny. What are you thinking?”
“I’m thinking that Brackton had no way of knowing how close Aurora is to our hookers.”
