“Cassie was right along,” Jagger said, his gaze glued to the screen.
“What the fuck is going on exactly?” Rock had set down the binder to look at the screen with Jagger and Neo.
“Someone was hired to kill Bram and Cassie’s parents, but all we knew about the guy who did the hiring was that he was Russian.” Jagger hesitated and I knew he was thinking about the conversation we’d had with “Dave Jones” at the Last Stop diner. It was a good fucking thing Jagger left that part out because that shit wasn’t for public consumption. “We’ve been trying to run down the people behind it ever since, which is why you got our attention when you said the Aventine money went to the Rooks.”
Every house at Aventine was connected to a criminal enterprise: the Kings’ parents were part of the Italian mafia, the Knights were Irish, the Saints part of the cartels.
And the Rooks: bratva.
Neo and Rock exchanged a look that made my FBI spidey senses tingle.
“You don’t think…” Rock started.
“What?” Jagger asked them.
Neo sighed. “Ireallydon’t want to be pulled into this shit again.”
“If you know something that will help us untangle this shit, please fucking enlighten us,” I said.
Rock shrugged and leveled his blue eyes at me. “Have you considered asking Bram?”
35
CASSIE
Morning sun streamedacross my apartment floors as I boxed up my parents’ files. It was quiet, the light both familiar and comforting, but I was surprised to find that I didn’t miss it.
I’d lived in the apartment since I’d graduated high school, ever since Bram bought the building for me as a graduation gift. I had a lot of good memories here: laughter-filled takeout with Daisy and Sarai, more than a few heart-to-hearts, lots of TV binges curled up on the sofa in my pajamas.
But it felt like part of a life that wasn’t mine anymore.
My life — my real life in the here and now — was in the sprawling house outside of town.
With the Hawks.
My heartbeat kicked up a notch at the thought of them. I never stopped wanting them, never stopped craving whatever they’d do to me next when we were naked and desperate for each other, and I’d almost gotten used to walking around in a state of near-constant arousal.
Hawk and Jagger had come home late after meeting up with the Kings to try and track the recipient of the money transferred from Kensington Trust to Aventine.
The transfer my parents had highlighted before their murders.
I’d been post-orgasm and asleep in Vigo’s bed when they come home, but that hadn’t stopped them from joining us, from stripping off my pajamas and making me come again and again before I’d fallen back into a deep sleep, this time with all three of the men who dominated my thoughts and dreams.
Thanks to my early morning shift at the coffee shop, we hadn’t even gotten to ask what Hawk and Jagger found. I probably should have called out — I’d hardly slept — but the coffee shop still felt like my real life and I hadn’t wanted to bail on Kaylee.
Plus, I wanted to move the boxes full of my parents things to the Hawks’ house where I could access them anytime I wanted.
I was putting the lid on the box I’d just packed when a heavy knock sounded at my door.
I knew it was Bram — he always knocked like the police serving a search warrant, or the way I imagined the police would sound serving a search warrant anyway — but I’d been extra careful to double bolt the door and use the chain so I got up off the floor and crossed the room to answer it instead of just telling him to come in.
“Good.” He scowled when I opened the door. “I’m glad you’re locking up even when you’re home.”
I opened the door wider. “I’m not an idiot.” I was careful after what had happened to me on the mountain, not just in my apartment but everywhere. “And good morning to you too.”
“Sorry.” He strode into my apartment and looked around like he expected the Hawks to be hiding behind the furniture.
I didn’t know what to do about the fact that they seemed to hate each other, about the fact that my ninety days with the Hawks was up in less than two weeks and I had no idea how to talk to the Hawks — let alone Bram — about what came next.
