Then I picked up my phone. I didn’t give a shit what time it was, Alexander was going to take my call.
He answered after the third ring. “Fuck, buddy. Do you know what time it is?”
“Yeah, well, I knew you wouldn’t be sleeping. You’re going to answer me a question and you damn well better not lie to me.”
“O-kay. What the hell is going on?”
“Did you lie to us about Senator Fields? Did you offer campaign funds to him in exchange for looking the other way for you taking over Chicago?”
Alexander didn’t answer right away. When he did, his tone indicated he was telling the truth. “No, I did not. But that will explain why Rocco pulled out of New York and why he asked me to share a drink with him. My father must have made a deal with his father years before.”
“You better not be lying to me. Cassie has gotten herself in the middle of some shit. She sent me damning evidence of her father’s involvement with your family.”
“No wonder the great senator just announced his retirement.” He cursed under his breath.
My gut remained active. I switched to the dark web, searching for key names. I’d created a persona years before, gathering more information on international criminals on the site than in other locations.
“What are you doing?” he barked.
“Checking the dark web for any chatter.”
“Cassie could be in danger,” he hissed.
“Why do you say that?”
“Because I allowed Rocco to live.”
Growling, I shifted my focus to the Luciano name, my fingers flying. After a full five minutes, I found what I didn’t want to find. “He’s out to get you, my friend. Word on the web is that he’s planning an attack. Or as two individuals state, he’s going to bring you to your knees.”
“That would take a weakness and I only have one.”
I slammed my fist on the desk. “Cassie. How the hell would Rocco know of her existence?”
“Let me make a phone call.”
“You damn well better not take too long.” After checking the time, I ended the call abruptly, shifting through page after page. While the information was limited, it would appear the proposed attack was imminent. When I looked at the digital clock again, I realized almost ten minutes had passed. “Call me, you prick.” When the phone rang a few seconds later, I jerked it into my hand.
“Remember she mentioned the asshole following her at the university?” he snarled.
“Yeah.”
“If I had to guess, I’d say that was Rocco Luciano. He was appointed to the board of trustees four and a half months ago. He’s not a stupid man, Daniel. You know that.”
“Fuck. We need to get to her.” I jerked to a standing position.
“I’m leaving for Illinois tonight. She’s coming back with me.”
I thought about his decision and huffed. “You won’t be alone. Have Brogan with you. The target is Cassie. Get her out of that house.”
* * *
Cassie
Saturday morning dawned with cloudy skies and the threat of rain. I stood at the window with a cup of coffee in my hand, daydreaming when I should have been cleaning. At least I had a good reason, or a bad one.
Alexander had called in the middle of the night. I’d grabbed the phone on the third ring, staring down at the number, my heart racing. I wanted nothing more than to talk to him, to hear his sexy voice. But I knew that it would keep my heartache at a high level. I was barely functioning as it was, unable to sleep or eat. Part of that had to do with my father’s retirement. Part had to do with my late-night email to Daniel, the damning information I’d sent him.
Did I feel guilty about possibly sending my father to prison? In truth, no. What did that make me? He was my father, but in biological terms only. After the ringing sound had stopped, I’d turned off the phone to avoid being weak.
