Page 35 of Gin & Trouble

Yeah right, like the Marchionnis would help the Abruzzos.

I’d wasted enough time hoping Dante would fly his X-Wing fighter into the Death Star and save the universe. Sophia and I were on our own, and time was running out for Valentina.

I opened a new window and aligned it beside the live feed. I was, after all, the queen of multitasking.

It’d taken me months to hack into Dante’s super-secret program, but I’d put it to good use since. His software created an interface between several government entities, including the Federal Aviation Administration, federal, state, and local law enforcement, and even the booking systems of larger hotel chains.

After entering in the numeric identifier for the Abruzzo family jet, I pressed search and sat back to wait for a hit. Like I said, my brother was an idiot. It would never occur to him that anyone could track his plane.

Movement on the video feed from the mansion caught my attention, and I glanced over in time to see Dante walking away. I slid the mouse to close the window, but hesitated when Marco scowled.

What’s going on? Not thirty seconds ago, he was all smiles and laughter.

Marco took out his phone, stabbed the screen, and pressed it to his ear. Since I couldn’t read lips, and the feed didn’t have audio, I had no idea what he was saying, but he looked angry. Very angry.

An alert popped up in the flight records and my heart stopped.

Tommaso is here? In New Orleans? Oh shit. No, no, no.

I fumbled for my cell and called Soph.

“Miss me already?” She sounded happy, probably because she had our apartment to herself for the first time in a week.

I hated to ruin her good mood, but she needed to know what was happening. “Tommaso’s plane left Sicily Thursday.”

She inhaled and exhaled several times before speaking. “Do you know where it landed?”

“Lakeshore, Mississippi. It’s close, just over the state line.” I typed the information into another database and accessed the flight manifest. “I don’t recognize any of the names on the passenger list. There’s no way to know if he was on the plane.”

Her voice hardened. “It’s him or his men. Either way, we need to leave the city.”

I glanced back at the video feed. “Nicolina and Marco are in town for the birthday party. Tommaso could be here for them. I’m surprised he hasn’t taken a shot at them before now.”

“Maybe. Any idea when they arrived?”

“Not until I review last week’s footage at the mansion.” I pressed my hand to my chest in hopes of slowing my racing heart. “Their security in New Orleans is a lot laxer than at the compound in Comiso.”

She sighed. “Tommaso’s timing is suspect, but we can’t be sure. We need to get out of New Orleans.”

“I can’t. Not until I see if I can access security feeds from the airport. If I can find the license plate of the car Tommaso took, I might be able to figure out where he’s staying.”

“It doesn’t matter where he’s staying. We’re leaving.” The sounds of doors opening and closing filled the line. “Why haven’t the DNA results come back yet?”

I’d wondered the same thing. According to the lab, we should have received the report in the mail in three to five business days. “No clue. I’ll call Monday and ask when they were sent.”

She continued what I assumed was packing. “Are you on your way yet?”

Running was the last thing I wanted to do. We couldn’t help Valentina from the road, but we weren’t safe in New Orleans. Not until my brother, and the Marchionnis who could recognize me, left town.

Tommaso wouldn’t hesitate to put me and Sophia on a plane back to Sicily by any means necessary. Nico and Evelyn presented another problem. They could recognize me and blow my cover. “Maybe I should stay here until nightfall.”

Sophia must have heard the anxiety in my voice, because for once, she lowered hers. “Frankie, listen to me. We knew this day would come. We have a plan. We need to stick to it.”

Wedidhave a plan. A good one. The problem was, I’d already screwed it up by taking the previous week off. Tommaso had been close for three days without my knowledge.

“He could be anywhere by now.” I stood and glanced around the empty room as if I expected my brother to come barreling in any moment.

“My guess is he’s hiding out and having his goons watch Marchionni properties.”

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