Page 102 of Love Lies Bleeding

“She’s gonna be fine. Just an overnight stay for observation.”

“Good.”

I place my hands on my hips and try and control the rolling rage trying to break through my skin.

“Kendrick?”

“I have a team looking for him and my dad put a call into the Mancinis. They won’t get involved but they’re happy to clean up any mess for us as an apology for letting him slip through the net.”

“Okay. Call me when you find him. He’s mine, Mac.”

“You got it. You just take care of Cherry and I’ll handle this.”

“Thank you.”

“No need, it’s what friends do.”

That’s more than I deserve. I certainly didn’t have his back quick enough with Lexi, but I’ll make sure that going forward, I don’t let anything happen to the people I love and that starts with Cherry.

34. Jake

My phone rings and I blink away sleep as I grab it to stop it from waking Cherry. The hospital lights are dim, but my brain clears quickly as I head for the hallway to take the call from an unknown number.

“Mr. Marshall, this is Nico Mancini.”

My spine straightens at the sound of his voice. Nico is the oldest son of the head of the Neapolitan Camorra, Enzo Mancini. Feared and revered in equal measure, he’s known for slicing a man’s throat for spitting his gum out in front of him and has allegedly killed his best friend’s entire family. Although that’s never been proven.

“What can I do for you, Mr. Mancini?”

“It’s what I can do for you, Mr. Marshall. I have left a gift for you at the following address.”

He rattles off an address in the meatpacking area of the city that has long been forgotten by industry. “This gift, is it a mutual acquaintance?”

“Indeed.”

“Why are you helping me?”

“Because, Mr. Marshall, I do not believe in bringing women into a war between men.”

The line goes dead and I look at my phone in shock, and with a hefty dose of apprehension. The Camorra doesn’t get involved without a reason and, while I want to take his reason at face value, I have to weigh up whether this gift will cost me a favor in the future.

It takes me about half a second to decide that whatever he wanted, I’d pay to avenge the woman I love.

Deciding to drive instead of taking my bike, I leave Cherry knowing that the men I’d hired to protect her at the hospital would get the job done. I’d been lucky that Eidolon, the team who’d helped Hunter get Lexi and Theo back, were currently in the States and were willing to do me a solid.

Reid and Alex are mean-looking bastards who’d never let anyone get past them and hurt her and it’s the only reason I feel happy leaving her. I text Alex and let him know I’m leaving, and he texts me back saying she’ll be safe until my return. I don’t doubt it, and only wish I could hire them full-time, but they work for someone even more powerful than even the McKenzies and are loyal as hell to her.

I arrive at the abandoned industrial estate and find the disused factory Nico had indicated. Stepping out, I hear the crunch of gravel and spin to see Eddie Crowe stepping out of the shadows.

My lips curl at his presence and the bastard has the nerve to grin as he puts his hands up.

“I come in peace. I hear you have some trash to take care of and I want in on it.”

“Why?”

Cherry had told me that she and Eddie were just friends and her flirting with him had all been to get under my skin. Still, the thought that he’d had his hands anywhere near my girl makes me want to rip his arms off and beat him with them.

“We both love Cherry.”

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