Page 56 of Claiming Veronica

A few minutes later, I had it. Bingo.

“He’s staying at some cheap motel outside of Phoenix,” I said, showing Reed the details. “He’s booked it for the whole week. Looks like he’s planning to stay awhile.”

She paled slightly. “So he’s coming for sure.”

I nodded. “Yeah. But don’t worry. I’m not sure he knows where you are.” I winked at her. “And we know where he is. Too bad for him.”

“You really mean that Eli or your cousins are just going to.” She made a dramatic slicing motion across her throat.

“Would that bother you?” I asked, watching her carefully. I knew Reed, had known her for years, and she ‘knew’ my family was in organized crime, but having it in your face was a different story.

“No.” Her mouth set. “I might have said differently a while ago,” she admitted. “But I talked to someone at the police station, and you know what they said?”

I could guess, but I let her tell me, watching as her shoulders slumped and tears threatened to spill over.

“They said that he hadn’t threatened me or even bothered me. I couldn’t even file a report that he had harassed me or scared me or anything, Ronnie. There was nothing I could do. I’d left my job, left my home because I was scared, and the cops did nothing.” She looked off to the side for a minute as if gathering herself. “The cop said that I was lucky,” she spat the word out. “Lucky.”

My phone buzzed on the desk. I picked it up, seeing a new text from Eli.

Eli: You find something?

Me: Just found out Doug is flying in tomorrow. Has reservations to stay at some rundown motel. Creep bought a one-way ticket here.

Eli: We’ll take care of it.

Eli: Be good.

Eli: Or don’t. I’ll punish you later like you like.

I blushed hard and put the phone down. Reed looked over, curiosity flickering in her eyes. “Eli?” she asked.

“Yeah.” I cleared my throat. “Okay,” I said, sitting up straighter and focusing back on the task. “Now that we know where Doug’s staying, we’re done with that bozo.” I smacked my hands together. “It’s time for vacay. Relaxation. Let’s forget about him.”

“Really?”

“Yep. We need a strategic outline for our afternoon. Take out,” I ticked off a list. “Rom-com, and then binge shopping with Max’s credit card.” I nodded solemnly. “Let’s start with takeout. What will it be?”

“Pizza?” she asked hopefully.

“Let’s go, bestie.” Dragging her off the bed, I set off to make the most of the afternoon. If it started with pizza, that would be easy enough.

Chapter 28

Eli

Iwas still thinking about the venue as I stepped through the front door, with Maxim trailing behind me. Most of the drive, he’d barked orders in Russian to various people through the speakers, alternating between agitated and furious.

“Tough day at the office?” I’d asked at one point between calls, giving him a side glance.

“Da,” he grumbled. “Thatmudakthinks he’ll steal from us while I am out of town.”

He wasn’t really speaking to me, though; his thoughts were a million miles away, and already he was dialing another number as he thought of something else he needed to do.

I’d been surprised that he had come to Arizona to handle Spato personally and come alone. I’dknown several made men, but the bosses didn’t travel alone. Maxim didn’t seem to give a fuck, though.

I followed Maxim into the house, the smell of pizza hitting me as soon as we stepped inside. The low hum of the TV echoed down the hallway, and as we walked into the living room, I spotted them—Veronica and Reed, sprawled out on the couch, surrounded by empty pizza boxes and blankets. The TV still played some cheesy rom-com, the credits rolling while soft music filled the room.

Veronica had her head on Reed’s lap, both completely passed out. Reed’s hand still clutched a slice of pizza like she hadn’t quite finished her last bite before drifting off. The sight was surprisingly domestic. For all the chaos that usually surrounded Veronica, moments like these were rare and precious.

---