Page 17 of Cruel Secrets

“I like burning the leaves.”

He sips his coffee, his nose wrinkling. “Why? You’re standing out here and staring at fire.”

“Smells good. Reminds me of the times that we all used to go upstate with Mom and Dad back when they were both alive. The girls all used to love it.”

“Skyla still spends most of the fall upstate.” A slow smile takes over his face as he looks at the leaves burning, but it goes away just as quick. “You know, Ellie and Sean are thinking about getting a huge place with a lot of land near Niagara Falls. I think Ellie has it in her head to run a vineyard.”

“Well, can you blame her?” I cup my mug with both hands, letting the warmth seep through my skin since the flannel I have on does very little to keep out the cold. “You’re being difficult about her marriage, even when you are happy for both of them.”

“I’m never going to think anybody is good enough for her. Even my best friend. The sooner Ellie figures that out, the easier this is going to be for all of us.”

“Have you ever just considered backing off and letting her live her life? She’s a grown woman with a husband. They’re going to start a family of their own soon, and then you’re really going to be given the boot.”

“I raised all of you.”

“I’m twenty-eight now too. I don’t need you the way I did when I was sixteen. Maybe it’s time that you start thinking about the fact that the girls aren’t going to need you the same way either. I mean, if you tried half of the shit you pull on Summer or Jade with Skyla, she would kill you.”

Aiden chuckles, but he’s falls somber quick. “It’s hard dealing with all of you growing up and settling down.”

“Whoa now. I didn’t say I was going to settle down.” I take another large sip of my coffee before stooping to scoop up more leaves with one hand and tossing them in the barrel.

“Sooner or later, you’re going to meet someone who makes you change your mind.”

“I doubt it. I’m happy with my life as it is. I have the family to look after.” Although, as I’m speaking, little bumps rise on my arms. I turn, the feeling of being watched making me suspicious.

Gia stares down at me from behind the curtain, the fabric fluttering shut the moment our eyes make contact. For a long second, all I can do is stare after her.

Of course she’s ignoring me.

Frustration has my fist clenching. I don’t know what the hell I’m going to do about her if Aiden sees her and decides he wants to talk to her.

“I’ve been thinking,” Aiden says as he glances at the house, “that it would be better to keep Gia in one of the cells.”

“I’m going to have to disagree with you. If we take her to the cells, you know that’s the first place Noah is going to come looking. The location of our holding cells isn’t a secret, but the safe houses are.”

Aiden finishes his coffee and sets the mug on the ground to grab more leaves. “Sean thinks that it’s stupid to keep her all the way out here, but then again, he’s itching for a fight after everything that happened.”

“All he’s going to think about is getting revenge for what happened to Ellie.” I shrug and watch the orange flames rise higher, smoke drifting away in little clouds on the wind.

“You’re right about that. And about the safe houses. Which means that a member of the family is going to have to stay with her. I don’t want anyone outside the inner circle knowing where certain safe houses are.”

“I’ll stay with her.”

He nods. “I was hoping you would say that. We have millions of dollars moving this week and I need Skyla in the city to clean and hide it all.”

“A little break from everything going on is just what I need.” I toss the last of the leaves into the fire. “Have you been able to track down Noah yet?”

“We started again as soon as you were out of the city. Matt went out and Sean sent Dominic again, but neither of them have been able to hunt down Noah or Jace. Other Rinaldos have been seen around the city, but those two are missing.”

I finish my coffee, letting the last of the heat scald my tongue. “I don’t like the sound of that. It’s been months. I’m sure they’ve replaced the people they lost at the warehouse.”

“Numbers we’ve been able to glean from one of the people we have planted within the Rinaldo operations are sounding like he has replenished, but the source also doesn’t know where he is, leaving us with another dead end.”

“He’ll turn up sooner or later.”

“And that’s what I’m afraid of. With no sightings of him or his inner circle, we’re going in blind. I don’t know what he’s planning or what he’s been up to. It’s a problem.”

“You’re running under the assumption that Noah is even willing to come to the table with you in the first place. His family came back because they want territory in New York again. Are you prepared to offer that?”

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