Page 149 of The Slayer
Alaine shook her head. “No.”
“Holy shit.” Nova sounded very pleasantly surprised. “I need more Puerto Rican friends. I really do. There are very few people in this world I believe would take a bullet for my brother. Chuito’s one of them. That’s something, Alaine. That makes him unique.”
“How so?”
“He’s extremely loyal. His word has value. Most people are largely self-serving. Chuito’s motivated by something completely different, and I admire that very much.”
“Are you really considering killing me?” she asked him harshly, because what did she have to lose at this point. “If he’s been loyal to you—”
“I’m not gonna kill you.” He cut her off with a hard look. “I should. If I was smart, I would. Trust me, if my grandfather knew Tino told a friggin’ lawyer from Garnet his shit, we’d all be fucked, but I am guilty of having a conscience, and I don’t want my brother to disown me. Plus, I tend to be a fan of beautiful women. It’s one of my weaknesses. Taking one out goes against my personal code of ethics.” He sent her a dazzling smile that she realized only then was Tino’s smile, wide and genuine in the way few were. “And you are an exceptionally beautiful woman.”
Alaine arched an eyebrow at that, because she suddenly recognized that Nova was worse than his brother. He had the air of a man who was used to getting what he wanted…in all things.
“Then I’ll ask you kindly not to talk about it again,” she said rather than acknowledge the rest. “It upsets Chu. It upsets me too.”
“I still need insurance, Alaine.” He sighed as he looked back to the window. “So I’ll make you a deal. We’ll try very hard to keep you from ending up in the hands of the Feds. Thus far I have a pretty good track record, but on the completely remote chance you do get stuck, and we can’t get you out.” He turned and looked at her as he took another drag of his cigarette. “Sell me out instead.”
“I don’t know anything about you,” she admitted, though in an odd way she was touched by that level of sacrifice from him.
“Hang around. You’ll pick up something.” He turned back to look out the window. “These Russians are gonna be a serious pain in my ass.”
She nodded. “Okay.”
“Okay,” he agreed, still looking out the window as he went back to smoking. “I’m holding you to it, Alaine. I’m trusting you with something that matters more to me than anything in this world. You’ll forget this shit ever touched my brother. He does not deserve this. None of it. He is, despite evidence to the contrary, innocent. His sins are my sins. I’m the one who should go down for them if it comes to that.”
“I’ll forget.” She nodded. “It’s already forgotten.”
“So this’ll just be a deal between you and me. No one needs to know I have a weakness for beautiful women in hoodies and high heels.” He took another drag off his cigarette and then tossed it on the floor and stomped on it. “I’ll make it right with Chuito and my brother in the morning. Then we’ll deal with the friggin’ Russians and this Angel motherfucker who is a bigger pain in my ass than any of them. I had a very good deal going with him. I made his business forty percent more profitable, but it only cost him twenty percent. It bothers me that he didn’t fucking acknowledge it and say thank you. I hate this bastard. Pride is the enemy of so many men. It fucks up business faster than a love story, and we both know how I feel about those.”
“You don’t want a love story? Ever? Your plan is to die alone?” Alaine asked with a smile. “I thought you were a fan of beautiful women.”
“I’m a fan of beautiful women who don’t require the love story.” He smirked and turned back to her. “Just the happy ending.”
She frowned for a moment. “That was dirty.”
“Yeah, it was a little dirty.” He laughed and shook his head. “Cazzo, Alaine, I’m a progressive gangster, but Jesus Christ, how are you gonna handle all this? Tino and Chuito are collectively insane for putting this issue in my life.”
She shrugged. “I’m a fast learner. That’s a bonus.”
“Oh my God, get outta here with those legs.” He shooed her off. “Go let Chuito corrupt you. I got enough fucking problems. He made his bed; he can make you scream in it.”
“I wasn’t screaming,” she chastised. “You’re exaggerating.”
“You were screaming,” he argued with a glare. “I don’t forget things. That shit is in my brain, and you are mostly naked right now. Go away.”
Alaine’s face and neck felt hot with embarrassment, so she left, using Chuito’s phone to make her way to the garage. She grabbed her bag and decided against charging Chuito’s phone, even though it was on 10 percent, because Tino’s phone was charging and one was good enough.
She needed the darn light.
Nova didn’t say anything as she headed back, and she was glad for it. She got the impression he was dealing with his own set of demons, and at this point, Alaine had so many of her own she just left him to it.
She was quiet when she got back to the room she shared with Chuito, and amazingly he was still passed out, even though he was usually a very light sleeper. He hadn’t slept in literally days, and he needed it.
Especially if he was going to be dealing with the Russians for the Italians.
The bathroom was grim. It didn’t have any toilet paper, which was fantastic. Alaine closed the bathroom door and used her phone to dig into her bag. She pulled out an emergency travel pack they’d bought at the outlet mall.
There were tissues.
