Page 27 of Velvet Cruelty

Bobby comes to my side of the table. “Can I have a word?”

“Of course.”

We take our grappa into the hallway. Bobby and I both have dark hair and brown eyes, but no one ever mistakes us for siblings. He is rough-looking with olive skin and thick brows. Common, my nonna would say, but handsome and smarter than anyone I knew until I met Doc.

“Problem with Cooper?” I ask.

“Nope. He’s with Harvey and Sal. He’ll be in the Atlantic by morning. It’s just…” He gazes at a point beyond my shoulder. “Adriano shouldn’t have made me kill him in front of her.”

My hand tightens around my tumbler. For months Doc warned me Bobby was in love with January, but I took him for a loudmouth asshole. This is a complication I don’t need, especially now that I want the girl.

“I made you kill Cooper and it was the right decision.”

“You could have told Adri—”

“But I didn’t.” I squeeze Basher’s shoulder. “Let’s go eat.”

He hesitates. “What’s going to happen to January?”

Even the way he says her name is a warning. Soft and protective. “We’ll discuss it later. Right now, we’re celebrating.”

Bobby looks like he wants to say something else, but I turn and walk back to the dining room. Doc bangs his empty grappa glass on the table. “Reload.”

I pour him more liquor and top up my own glass. Bobby takes his seat to my right, pulling mushroom ramen toward himself. He sneaks his vegetarian meals in the order last, as though we might not notice his diminishing appetite for flesh. We, who know him better than anyone.

Doc’s eyes are wild as he raises his glass. “A toast.”

Adriano, Basher, and I lift our glasses.

“To pissing in Parker’s face and stealing his bride. Salut.”

I grin. “Salut.”

Bobby taps a hand on the table. “Gretzky’s been listening in at Parker’s place. He killed three of his men after he got home from the cathedral.”

“He’s doing our job for us,” Doc says gleefully.

I say nothing. Parker’s blind rage will only last a short time. He’ll compose himself and come after us.

“Have any of the families called to account for the scene at the cathedral?” I ask.

Bobby shakes his head. “No one’s reached out yet.”

“They will and when they do, we’ll give one answer. We’re enacting revenge against Parker. Anyone who stands to lose money from the situation can have a cut of whatever we claim from his estate. The rest can look the other way.”

Adriano sucks up ramen noodles. “And if they don’t want a cut? If they want retribution for the inconvenience?”

“We tell them to choose a side. Parker or Velvet House.”

Doc smiles dreamily. He’d love a crime family to pick a fight with us. If I gave the word, he’d Jonestown every branch of the New York famiglia. But I’m a businessman. I don’t kill for pleasure. I kill when it’s necessary and when it benefits me. Parker is the only exception. I built Velvet House with one eye on that animal. To collect enough wealth and power that when the time came to ruin him, we would endure.

I pour us all another round. “Get drunk tonight. Tomorrow, the real work starts.”

Doc drains his grappa. “January Whitehall.”

Basher’s face falls. Even Adriano looks up from his ramen. Trust Doc to mention the elephant in the room in the most disruptive way possible.

“What about her?” I ask.

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