The next few weeks pass fairly uneventfully. Molly and I have been house shopping - we're out visiting our 4th home out on Long Island when I receive the call. My phone vibrates in my pocket as I'm admiring the master bedroom's walk-in closet with Molly. I pull it out and see it's Tommy, one of my capos. "Yeah?" I answer."Boss, we got a situation," Tommy says, a nervous edge to his voice. "Duncan caught one in the chest during a meet-up with the Albanians over on Shore Road. He's been rushed to Mercy Hospital but it ain't looking good.""What the hell happened?" I demand. We had a decent truce going with the Albanians. Shore Road was neutral territory. "Not sure yet boss. Word is the meet went south and shots rang out. Two of theirs for our one, but still, it's not good."I clench my jaw, mind racing. First, those hits on my shipments last month where two of my best men got clipped, and now this? "Find out exactly what went down, you hear me?" I order. "I want the name of the Alba
I sit silently on the balcony overlooking the city, nursing my coffee as I reflect on the events of last night. Having Molly's friend Alexandra over for dinner was an interesting experience, to say the least. I didn't hesitate when Molly asked if I could make myself scarce while she had her friend over for some girl time. You see, my real objective was to observe Alexandra through our security surveillance system wired into our place, to try and ascertain if she was who I suspected her to be – a deep undercover fed looking to take me down over my association with the men who killed her father.As I watched them chatting and laughing over wine, reminiscing about old times and old flames, I studied Alexandra closely. She seemed relaxed at first, but anytime Molly mentioned me, I noticed Alexandra tense up ever so slightly, forcing a polite smile but saying little. Interesting. They spoke of the tragedy that befell Alexandra's father; a cop killed in the line of duty by one of my men. A
I called the law firm where Alexandra worked to confirm that she'd left work a few minutes ago. The receptionist told me Alexandra had just walked out the door. Perfect timing. I grabbed my purse and headed straight for her apartment complex. Despite her refusal to take my calls or answer my texts, I had to talk to her in person. Our friendship couldn't end like this over one rash decision. Surely when I showed up on her doorstep, she wouldn't be able to turn me away. We were practically sisters, bonded together since middle school. A friendship this strong could weather any storm, even this one.I made myself comfortable in the lobby of Alexandra's upscale apartment building. It was about what you'd expect for an attorney working at a high-end law firm. Yep, my friend had done extremely well for herself, while I'd taken a very different path. She'd never find herself shoehorned into a marriage of convenience to save her sorry family like I did. But I had to make Lexi understand tha
I hold her close, feeling content and at peace. I know that I will never let anything happen to her. She is my everything.I awoke before sunrise, as I often do, and carefully extracted myself from Molly's embrace so as not to disturb her sleep. After shrugging on my robe, I headed to the expansive kitchen to prepare breakfast for my wife. I fired up the stove and gathered ingredients for homemade pancakes, bacon, and eggs. Cooking always relaxed me, and I enjoyed making meals for Molly whenever I had the time. As I whisked the pancake batter, I thought back to our honeymoon the week prior, and how it had been so rudely interrupted. I’m going to make it up to Molly. Take her somewhere spectacular and short of WW3 breaking out, I’m not leaving until I show her the time of her life. Once the food was ready, I arranged it artfully on a tray along with orange juice and a vase with a red rose. As I prepare to carry it to our bedroom, my cell phone rings.“Shit.” I set down the tray and h
But the honeymoon was a spur-of-the-moment thing. Booked those tickets on a whim, not even my inner circle knew until we were halfway across the Atlantic. So, how'd the feds react so fast, and mobilize a raid that quickly? Unless they had it planned already. Just waiting for me to leave town so they could pounce. Then again, maybe it really was the Russians. But why would Petrosky stab me in the back after our trade talks just two months ago? The Bratva bastard even asked me to block Donovan's access to my docks. It doesn’t make a lick of sense for him to pull this crap after that.I sink into my leather chair and dial Petrosky's private line. He answers on the second ring, his polished, Ivy League accent floating through the phone. "Shaughnessy, my friend. To what do I owe the pleasure?"I tap my smoke on the ashtray, weighing my words. "Sorry to bother you, Petrosky. But some serious shit went down last night, and I need to square some things away.""Oh? Nothing too troublesome, I
The lieutenants file into my office, shoulders hunched and eyes darting around like scared rabbits. Red's face is flushed, beads of sweat dripping down his forehead. Fat Tommy fidgets in his seat, sausage fingers worrying the brim of his hat. Duncan stares at the floor, refusing to meet my gaze. They're rattled, shaken to the core by the ambush. Can't say I blame them. Finding Rocco and Vinnie in an alley with their brains splattered on the pavement would spook any man. I light a cigarette, which I’d given up a year ago, and lean back in my leather chair, forcing an aura of calm. "So, which is it, fellas? Feds or Russians?"Red shakes his head. "Gotta be the Russians, boss. Why else would they use Kalashnikovs? Feds don't go around spraying Uzis.""Yeah, unless they wanted it to look like the Russians did it," Duncan says. Fat Tommy slams his fist on the desk. "Bull! It was those vodka-swilling snow monkeys, I just know it."I raise a hand for silence. Fat Tommy quiets, but his jowl