Page 77 of Tango

“I guess we got our answer.” Mark chuckled as his fork clattered against his plate. “I think that went well.”

“Yeah.” Ty chucked. “Were you even here for it? You were so busy sucking back all that food.” He couldn’t let an opportunity go to give Mark a hard time.

“I was playing my part,” Mark scoffed, “and I played it well, I might add. Someone had to look like they were here for the food. Guys,” he spoke clearly but quietly through his radio, “let the record state that Ty is leaving a half-eaten bowl of chowder behind.”

“Wow.” Ty laughed.

“That’s a sin in my world, by the way.”

“Hill and Rivera just made a beeline for the door.” Ty went back to business. “Bait taken, boys. Good to go?”

“Roger that,” Mike replied. “They’re pullin’ out now.”

I placed a quick call, and the driver Frank had arranged for us soon pulled up in the van, and we piled in. On the drive across town, Mike and Mark peppered Ty and Moore with questions about Hill and what happened that night with Brown. You could tell Ty appreciated their need for detail. It was important for us to know just what kind of man we were up against.

“If this doesn’t play out,” Mike turned around to look at Ty, “you know I got you covered. Trigger would gladly step in and wipe them both off the map.”

“Don’t think I didn’t consider it.” Ty nodded and looked out the window. I bet he really had thought about Trigger at some point. “Maybe even throw a bit of Grim Gates in there too,” he added.

“I’m sure he’d be up for it.” Mike gave a dark chuckle.

“Speaking of which, what happened to him?” Moore chimed in. “One minute I was watching him shake hands with Elio Capri in the hall, and the next he vanished. What’s their connection, anyway?”

“The Gates and Capris go way back. They both work for, well…a different side of the law than we do.” Mike tapped his fingers on his knee as he thought. “Elio would have left immediately after and flown back with Rosa Coppola.”

I had no idea that Grim knew Elio Capri, but I really didn’t know that much about Grim.

“And Grim?” Moore asked.

“I guess you’re in this now,” Mike muttered and turned to look at me.

“It’s fine.” I waved at him to go on.

“Grim’s family business is in Vegas, but he works for them out of Mexico. You know what I’m sayin? I’m sure you’ve cultivated friends to do your job.” Moore nodded at that. We’d all had to make that choice in our line of work. We’d befriended more than a few young Taliban members to help the cause. They were usually forced into working for the Taliban in the first place, so it wasn’t difficult, and we tried to make it worth their while. It might look bad on our part, but that was the way of the world. “Grim’s not someone you wanna be close with, but he’s someone to keep in your back pocket. He’d help us out if we needed him.”

“And Trigger?” Moore kept going.

“Trigger’s a friend. He’s proven that many times.” Mike paused to think. “He’s helped me and Cole, and the others time and time again. And I’d drop anything and help him, anytime. Off the books, of course. Cole even introduced Savi to Tess, Trig’s wife. Says a lot.” He nodded and folded his arms.

“Sure does,” Mark chimed in.

“As for Trigger and Grim, they have their own history,” Mike continued. “I’ve never asked. I just know that both of them and the head of the Italian mafia had our backs when we needed them the most.”

“And if they want something in return?” Moore asked.

“Then we cover the flag and return the favor.” Mike turned and held his gaze for a beat then sat back and stared out the front.

“So, same rules apply here, too.” Moore nodded his understanding.

We pulled up a few blocks away from the house. I called Keith as Ty and Moore hopped out and opened the trunk to grab a few things. They took off down a side street.

“Are you still on them?”

“Yeah,” Keith huffed. “They circled the street a couple times and parked around the corner.”

“Roger that.” I kept my voice even.

I met Gear on the sidewalk, and we went inside to pretend to wait for Josh. The house was dark except for the living room and kitchen. The TV flickered with a video game, and we put a couple beer cans on the table.

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