“Know what?” Mil shouted.
I gripped her hand. Hard.
“I wonder…” Tanya took a long drag, “…if repressed memories can cause a person to go insane. Chase?” She eyed me coolly. “What do you think? Should I tell her?”
I assessed her from head to toe. “If you don’t, I’ll cut out your tongue and feed it to your favorite bodyguard, so sure, I’d start talking.”
“I like him.” She turned away from me and tilted her head, as if she had nothing but pity for Mil. “My dear, your father marked you.”
“I know.” Mil rubbed her scar and leaned further into me.
“You’ve been on borrowed time since you were fourteen, and he’s finally called up his marker. After all, he paid two million dollars for you, and we all know what happens when a debt hasn’t been paid.”
Mil squirmed in her seat. “But why now?”
“Because now you have what he wants.”
“A husband?”
Tanya’s eyes turned into tiny slits. “No. You have leadership of the De Langes. You’re the boss of the family he’s been wanting to keep quiet for over twenty years. After all, they know all his secrets, and it’s only a matter of time before you do too.” She shrugged. “Besides, you also have three mafia bosses at your fingertips. Tell me, will they come for you? Will little Chase fight your battles? Will Nixon fall all over himself to protect his own family?”
“No.” Mil shook her head. “They couldn’t care less about me. It’s a business arrangement, that’s all.”
“Really?”
Mil nodded.
Tanya lunged for her, but I was quicker. I kneed Tanya in the chest, caught her in the mouth with my elbow, pulled out my gun, and held it to her head.
Blood spewed from her mouth. “Go ahead. He’s just going to kill me anyway.”
I slammed her head back against the seat. Her hand came up and gripped my wrist, and that’s when I saw it.
The exact same mark that was on Mil’s wrist.
“So,” Tanya sputtered, blood caking her teeth from my hit. “Now you know.”
“Chase?” Mil asked.
“We need to go now.” I jerked away from Tanya and grabbed Mil’s hand, pulling her out of the car before we could do anything. I was taking her away. I was running. Because no place in the freaking United States would be safe for her. Not now, not for any of us.
The dry desert air hit me in the face as I jerked Mil toward my body with one arm and shot the bodyguard in the chest. No loose ends.
Mil gasped, probably horrified that I could be so cold, but it didn’t matter. I didn’t even hesitate, because it wasn’t my life hanging in the balance. It was hers, and suddenly, every single puzzle piece finally fused together. My time with Mil, our past, our history, our marriage — it had all led to this. Even things with Trace. Had I met Mil all over again and hadn’t had my heart stomped on, I wouldn’t have treasured her as much as I did now.
That’s what she was to me. She was a treasure. One I wanted to keep for myself, one I would die saving. If it was the last thing I did.
“Come on.” I tucked the gun back into my jeans and gripped her hand and squeezed.
Luckily, the street was more of an alleyway so it wasn’t exactly flooded with people, and Vegas was full of crazies. We got as far as Freemont when I got a text from Nixon. They were waiting for us back at the hotel.
At least they hadn’t been captured. Not yet.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Nixon
The restaurant back at The Golden Nugget wasn’t crowded in the least. We took a booth in the very back and sat. Nobody spoke for a while. I’d never seen Luca so quiet in my entire life. I mean, this was Luca we were talking about. He fed on small children and laughed when people bled out. I wasn’t looking at the same man. I was looking at a man afraid — and to see a man as terrifying as Luca afraid? It didn’t sit well with me. It made me think that maybe this was bigger than I’d originally thought.
I slid a small Glock .9 toward Trace; her eyes flickered shut before she gave a quick nod and put it in her purse. She knew what I was asking her — what I was communicating to her. I needed her to protect herself at all costs.
We’d gone over her escape plan more times than I’d like to count. She had seven passports that would gain her access into the countries I’d previously chosen. Countries where I knew she’d be given asylum. I’d also assigned two men who would leave with her and protect her until the day I could either find her again or until the day we were reunited, that is, if God even let people like me into Heaven. If not, at least Trace would be there. I could live with that. A private account had been set up so that she would never want for anything. She’d hated me for it. But it was necessary. If she wasn’t safe… Hell, I couldn’t even think about it. My mind couldn’t wrap around the idea of a world where she was no longer breathing, a world where her heartbeat wasn’t slow and steady next to mine.
“I think we need to talk.” Frank ordered a bottle of wine and placed his weathered hands on the table.
Luca shook his head. “Talking like a bunch of women will accomplish nothing.”
“Try,” I urged through clenched teeth.
Tex plopped down on the other side of Trace and crooked his finger at Mo. Wordless, she took a seat and waited in silence like the rest of us.
“We wait.” Luca nodded. “For Mil and Chase.” He nodded again as if he was convincing himself that it was the best plan imaginable. Then he pulled out a cigar and began puffing on it like it was his only lifeline.
“Here they are,” Trace whispered.
I turned around. Mil’s face was white as a sheet, and Chase looked like he needed something a hell of a lot stronger than wine. His gaze flickered to mine and then back to Mil as he put his arm around her and pulled out a chair.
Now that was interesting. Usually he looked at me, then at Trace, and then back to me again. What had changed?
“Loose ends?” Luca said without looking up.
“None.” Chase swallowed. “One dead.”
“Anyone important?” Sergio spoke up for the first time. We were huddled in a dark booth where we were all facing out so that we could see anyone or anything that dared approach us. They’d be dead before they could open their mouth in greeting.
“No.” Mil’s voice shook. “Just Tanya’s bodyguard.”