Page 144 of The Tempted

“I don’t like little piss on’s like yourself insinuating shit,” he growled.

“Piss on? Yeah? Funny how this ‘piss on’ was the guy sent to fix your fuck up.”

“You going to take credit for that? That’s pathetic,” he laughed, sarcastically.

“I’m just stating facts. Victor didn’t send you with Jack, he sent me.”

“And you did shit!” Jimmy shouted.

“I didn’t have time to do a goddamn thing because he was fucking toast when I got there.”

“And a good thing too because you’ve been too soft these days.” He leaned closer, grinning creepily as he whispered. “I know your secret.”

“And what secret might that be?” I asked, humoring him. “You know that gambling junkie we barged in on, the one with the wife? Remember? Yeah you remember. Funny thing happened after he paid his debt, he came back looking for more and told me all about how you gave the wife back the ring,” he reached out and cupped my chin with his hand, his gray eyes cold as they penetrated mine. “Lucky for us that Fed’s house went up in flames. If it was left in your hands you would’ve handed us over to him on a silver platter.”

“Fuck you,” I spat, grabbing hold of his wrist and pushing his hand off me before I pushed him back and stood to my full height, towering over the fucking creep. “Don’t fucking question my intentions Jimmy.”

“Don’t give me a reason to,” he shouted as he shrugged his shoulders as if it was no sweat off his back.

“You torch that house?” I asked angrily, knowing he’d never confess but this little conversation made my thoughts so much clearer. If Jimmy was responsible for Danny’s death I wouldn’t give up until the motherfucker paid.

Jimmy laughed in my face. “Yeah Bianci, I torched the house,” he shook his head. “You really are going soft,” he said tauntingly. “You should give up on Adrianna, go get yourself some new pussy and stop being such a fucking softy.”

“Don’t go there Jimmy. You understand me?”

“She got knocked up by another guy and you’re still holding a candle. It’s fucking with your head and your job. You may not like it but you answer to me just as much as you answer to Victor and you better get used to that shit,” he said, poking his index finger into my chest. “I will not tolerate your bullshit Bianci. You’re not fucking my daughter.”

I snapped, everything inside me faded away and all I saw was red. I grabbed Jimmy by his fur coat and threw him up against the wall then I released him and grabbed hold of his neck with one hand.

“You’re right I’m not fucking your daughter and Adrianna is off fucking limits to you. I may not see eye to eye with Victor but I bet he wouldn’t care too much if I smacked you around for talking abouthisdaughter the way you just did. Keep her name out of your mouth or so help me God, I’ll show you how fucking soft I am.”

I released him, watching as he slithered down the wall like a snake, gasping for breath. He lifted his eyes to mine, took a deep breath in and out before he spoke.

“I’m the fucking underboss!” He said through his pants for air.

“See if I care,” I said calmly, before leaving him on the floor like the piece of shit he was and stepping outside of the house.

My adrenaline was pumping, and I tried to calm myself down before I did something irrational. Jimmy would get his, whether it is at my hands or Jack’s, I’d see that the son of a bitch went down. There was no doubt in my mind he had something to do with the fire and I’d spend every waking moment trying to prove it. The fact that he had found out I had given that poor woman back her ring and paid the husband’s debt could’ve shaken him up. When he got word, I would be the one responsible for covering up his body he didn’t want to risk I wouldn’t get it done.

He wasn’t wrong about me I agreed to let Jack handle things because Danny was his brother if it was anyone else I wouldn’t have thought twice about making the Fed disappear. Maybe I was soft, but I was also on a mission to get the fuck out. I didn’t want to be the stone-cold enforcer for the mob that everyone thought I was anymore. I wanted to reclaim what was mine and start a new life.

The next day was hard for all of us as we watched Mike say goodbye to his mother. They turned the respirator off and Mike stayed inside of her room, holding her hand as she took her last breath. All the times I had driven up here to check on him, he always seemed so lost. Today he was exceptionally off, walking around and packing his shit as if he didn’t have a soul in the world left to turn to. I guess he didn’t. Many years had passed since Mike had a relationship with any of us and he’s thought all along that none of us gave two fucks about him or his mother because we weren’t allowed to keep in contact. Maryanne wanted nothing to do with Victor or anyone that was associated with him, myself included, so I could understand why Michael was apprehensive to let us in.

The plan was to bury Maryanne in the same plot as Val that they bought in the Green-wood Cemetery after he was killed. Victor had taken care of all the arrangements and had the body brought back to Brooklyn. I had the pleasure of driving a grieving Mike back to the home he hated. I don’t know if it was that I was just in a bad mood because of my altercation with Jimmy or if Mike’s bad temperament was getting to me but after driving a while, I pulled off at a rest stop to take a breather. I had even called him Val at one point because he was pissing me off trying to poke and prod me for information on why I was such a miserable fuck. Calling him his old man’s nickname was a low blow on my part but I was having a bad fucking day, or month. Whatever.

After I reigned myself in, I caught up with Mike at the newsstand and watched from the door as he loaded up on snacks. My phone chimed with a new message and I pulled it from my pocket to see who it was.

Adrianna: I heard the news. How’s Michael?

Instead of texting her back, which I hated doing, I called her. Besides, I wanted to hear her voice.

“Hello?” She said into the phone, her voice sounding like a little piece of heaven to my ears.

“Hey baby,” I blew out a breath and leaned against the wall. “How are you doing?” she was silent for a moment causing me to believe I had lost her but then again all I ever did was lose her.

“I’m fine,” she whispered. “How’s Mike doing?”

“He’s…,” I glanced at him back in the store trying on a pair of sunglasses and checking himself out in the mirror. “Well, he’s Mike. He’s a mess, but he’s holding his shit together.”

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