Page 8 of One for the Money

Grasping the black hood, I tugged it off, making Norbert groan as the fabric got stuck to his skin where he’d been bleeding. The man was hardly recognizable with how battered his face appeared. It would seem whatever plan Risto put in place might have backfired with me, but it sure as hell pissed someone off.

“Norbie, what the hell happened to you?” I asked, poking his cheek to make sure he was awake.

He grunted and turned his face away from the pain. “Von?”

“Yes, but I’m not the one who turned your face into ground beef,” I pointed out.

Norbert shifted, trying to find some way to lay that didn’t make him wince in pain. “I failed… didn’t get the C4 like I promised.”

Letting out a sigh, I rolled my eyes. Well, duh, that was stupid of me to ask. It’s not like I gave a shit why this happened or who did it.

“Figures,” I muttered. “Forget about that. What I really want to know is how the hell you knew I’d want information about the Accardi heirs? There’s no point in keeping this secret since you’re already one foot in the grave. Tell me what I want to know, and I’ll end your pain much faster.”

“I don’t want to die,” Norbert sobbed.

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I tried not to lash out. This failure of a criminal was too fragile for me to lose my shit on. One wrong move and I’d kill him before I got the answers I wanted.

“Norbie, I hear you, and I understand why you’d want to focus on that. Unfortunately for you, the person who beat the hell out of you didn’t finish you off, and now you’re here with me. So answer the question, or I’m going to make things even more painful for you,” I explained to him as simply as I could.

When I got no response from the sack of skin before me, I poked his ribs, which I knew were broken. Norbert convulsed, gasped, and let out another pained cry that would have bleeding hearts all over the world rushing to his aid. Too bad he was stuck with me.

“How did you know, Norbie,” I pressed.

“My cousin…” he managed to rasp out. “You asked her if she had any intel on them.”

So far, we’d only talked to a handful of people, and only two of them were women. “What’s your cousin’s name?”

“Aurora Ocean,” Norbert answered, then started to cough.

Blood trickled out of the corner of his mouth, and I knew my time was running out. “Why would Aurora say anything to you about it?”

“Trent is her brother. They’re not close, but he and I are. If anyone knew something about those two, it would be him,” Norbert managed to wheeze out before catching his breath was too much work.

Taking the sack that had been over his head, I smothered him with it. Since I planned to have Ballio put him back where he found Norbert, I didn’t want there to be any sign he died from something other than his injuries. This idiot was connected to some people I needed to be willing to talk to me. If word got out that I’m the one who offed him, it would make things far more challenging than I’d appreciate it to be.

Standing, I ran my hand through my hair, relieved that what we thought was a leak wasn’t. In a way, this worked in my favor because Norbert was going to have to die one way or another for knowing I was looking. Turning to head back to Risto, I was halted as Bear’s hand shot out.

“Aurora doesn’t make stupid mistakes like that,” he pointed out. “She would have found another way to get that information… it’s what she’s known for. Something as silly as her not speaking to her brother wouldn’t lead her to asking someone like Norbert for help.”

“What are you trying to say? Aurora’s setting me up?” I demanded, crossing my arms. “Why the fuck would she do that? I paid her upfront to ensure we kept this shit quiet.”

“I don’t know, Von, but something isn’t right. We need to be absolutely certain we’re not walking into a trap if we go to this bar. That’s what I’m trying to say,” Bear snapped back.

I could always tell when he was upset or being sassy with how he signed the words, not to mention the expression on his face that went along with them. No one else would see what I see or recognize his ‘tone,’ but there was little about this man I didn’t know. Which was why, mad at him or not, I took his words to heart. Bear didn’t push back like this unless he was serious.

“Noted,” I assured him. “Anything else, or can I go terrorize Risto now?”

Bear narrowed his eyes, looking at me intently. I knew he was confused as to why I was being such a bitch, but right now, I couldn’t explain myself. One of two things would happen if we actually laid our cards on the table, and I wasn’t ready for either of them. Finally, Bear stepped to the side but changed his mind a second later and caught my chin with his hand. Even as I tried to fight him, he forced me to meet his gaze again.

“Fight all you want, but nothing you do will make me leave your side,” Bear stated, letting his fingers trail down my neck until he placed his palm over my heart. “Ripping this out of my chest is the only way to be rid of me.”

“I can’t do this,” I rasped, my throat closing up as emotions I didn’t know how to process bombarded me.

Bear nodded. “I know. Now, go play with Risto. It will make you feel better.”

Of course, the bastard had been right like he always was. Bear helped me hang Risto up and stood back watching as I used the man like a punching bag. I didn’t get much information from him, but I wasn’t expecting to. The reason he was here was because he tried to use me to do his dirty work, and I couldn’t let that stand. Once I was done, my hands were cut, and my knuckles split, but this was the release I’d been looking for.

The sting as I patched up my hands, refusing to let Bear help me, grounded me in a way nothing else would. This was who I was—a wolf ready to hunt down those who dared to encroach on my land. I didn’t want to be tamed or coddled by anyone. To me, the scars on my body were proof that I’d been tested and came out the winner, and no one could take that badge of honor from me.