Page 45 of Her Dark Salvation

Jeff’s brown skin paled. The flush from the winter cold and its usual glow were gone, and the whites of his eyes were glassy and bloodshot.

“You know you can trust me.”

He let out a shaky breath. “Marco went to Pádraig Shaughnessy. Paid off my loan and the interest. Told him I was under DeVita family protection, that I was one of his people, and if anyone tried to shake me down again, it would be seen as an Irish move against the Italians.”

My stomach bottomed out. “Jesus, Jeff.”

He nodded somberly and squeezed my hand. “I know. I’ve never been so scared in my life.” His gaze grew distant as if he was reliving that day.

He grunted after a moment, and the corner of his mouth ticked up. “And then I got the lecture of a lifetime.”

I let out a nervous chuckle. “Knowing Mr. DeVita, I can imagine.”

“He told me how hard he worked to stay out of Mafia entanglements, how he refused to be dragged back into thegameas he called it. And that even though the Valenzanos knew he wanted no part in it, the Shaughnessys didn’t, and that’s what saved me. He broke a promise to himself to save my ass, Anna, and he made sure I knew it.

“Everything comes at a price in their world, and this was no different. He didn’t want his money back; he wanted my allegiance. That’s why I signed the NDA. I’ve been providing Marco with whatever he needs since.”

My mouth gaped in horror, speechless at the thought of Mr. DeVita exploiting Jeff. It shouldn’t have surprised me, given what I knew. That was the Mafia’s MO, wasn’t it? Find a weakness, leverage it to get a person in debt, then hold that debt over their head, squeezing them for every last cent. Just like the zoning commissioner.

Extortion landed differently when it was happening to your best friend. The idea of Mr. DeVita using Jeff upended everything I wanted to believe about my boss, making it hard to breathe.

Jeff’s eyes widened. “Oh, God. No. Anna, it’s not like that. That came out all wrong.” He grabbed my wine glass, set it on the coffee table, and took both of my hands. “The Shaughnessys would have killed me. Do you understand that? If it wasn’t for Marco, I would be dead right now.”

“I can’t believe you pulled me into this,” I whispered through my shock.

“I had no choice. Marco needed help. I owe him. You’re the only person who could have done this job on such a short timeline. I didn’t have the option not to pull you in.”

“You’re making excuses for him? Seriously, Jeff? It’s called extortion. He’s using you!”

“No.” He vehemently shook his head. “That’s not how it is. I have no problem doing the things I do for Marco. In fact, I’m happy to do them. I owe that man my life. He’s never asked me to do anything shady. We staff his cybersecurity needs, provide the occasional financial audit. What you’re doing for him isn’t criminal, is it?” He held my gaze without shame because he already knew the answer.

Everything about this conversation had me on the edge of panic, but Jeff was right. Nothing about my financial modeling or even the permit research was illegal. And after the nightmare situation Jeff had gotten himself into with the Shaughnessys, I felt like I owed Mr. DeVita for saving my best friend’s life.

“The work I do for Marco has nothing to do with the Mafia. It never has. That’s how I know his COO couldn’t be tied up with the Valenzanos. Marco wouldn’t allow someone connected like that on his staff. As for Mr. Valenzano? I don’t know why he was there, but I promise you, Marco wouldn’t be in business with him. No way.”

My shoulders relaxed as I willingly bought into Jeff’s words. Until that moment, I hadn’t realized how badly I’d wanted him to explain away my misgivings about Mr. DeVita. I needed to believe he wasn’t involved in the Mafia. I needed to believe however dark and dangerous, his intentions and integrity were good and true. I needed to believe I wasn’t falling for a monster.

ChapterTwelve

Anna

Asnowstorm had attacked the city in the early morning hours, and the blanket of fresh white reflected the bright sun shining in a cloudless sky outside the penthouse foyer’s windows. So clean. So pristine. So unlike the jumbled mess of my emotions.

I sipped the double latte I’d bought for myself along with Mr. DeVita’s breakfast and set it on my desk. I hadn’t slept well, not after my conversation with Jeff. There were still too many unanswered questions, too many ways we might be in danger. My racing thoughts had kept me awake following leads and exploring rabbit holes until physical exhaustion forced me into a fitful sleep.

I delivered Mr. DeVita’s breakfast without words. He was engrossed in something on his computer screen and didn’t spare me a glance, but I hesitated before heading back to my desk. Neither his handsome face nor his commanding presence had changed overnight. He was the same man he’d been before I’d learned of his influence in the world of organized crime or how he’d used that influence to save my best friend’s life. If anything, the power I now knew he wielded grounded his self-possession, legitimizing it and making it even more alluring.

I settled behind my desk with my caffeine to start the tedious process of assembling input files while waiting for my model to compile.

Hours passed sifting through megabytes of data, separating input streams, formatting files for ingestion. I found the first data hole just before lunch.

Mr. DeVita,

I have complete housekeeping expense reports from January of 2022 through December of 2023, but June through August of 2023 are missing. Maybe an ill-formed query?

Anna

His reply appeared in my inbox only a few minutes later.

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