out his last few words indicated I hadn’t succeeded.
I nodded, remembering the battery of examinations Katie had undergone as she’d started to emerge from her coma. "Now it’s just a waiting game."
"It’s always been a waiting game." Delveccio stood and shrugged off his expensive coat. He didn’t seem the least bit self-conscious about standing there in his silk pajamas. Considering a lot of patients were wearing things that covered them a lot less, I could understand his comfort level.
He kicked off a pair of Italian loafers that probably cost more than my entire wardrobe, bent his knees, and pitched forward.
"Hey!" I gasped, lunging for him as he fell face-first toward the ground. I grabbed for his silk shirt, but it slipped through my fingers.
"Yoga," he wheezed, "my doctor’s got me doing it to relieve stress."
He straightened his legs and did a respectable downward dog pose. I admired his flexibility. Aunt Leslie had tried to teach the move to me once, but I hadn’t been able to pull it off.
"Downward dog," Delveccio huffed. "Or as Dom likes to call it, Wild Dog." He chuckled at the inside joke.
"Wild dog?" I repeated, an unclear thought drilling through the back of my head like a woodpecker after a bug. "Wild dog," I gasped as the pieces fell together. It was a Scrabble tile prediction Armani had given me not that long ago. I’d assumed it was about the lizard’s antics and interpreted it as Wild God, but what if it had been Wild Dog? After all, I’d found a yoga magazine in Ike Medd’s apartment.
"Do you know a guy named Ike Medd?" I blurted out.
Delveccio tensed, then slowly straightened up, his face as red as his sleepwear from the exertion. He glanced over at Katie who was watching his yoga practice like it was the most fascinating cartoon program she’d ever seen. "Can you keep an eye on my grandson while I talk to your aunt in the hallway for a minute?"
"Sure!"
Delveccio shoved his feet back into his shoes and cocked his head, indicating I should go out into the hallway as he shrugged into his discarded coat.
When I stepped outside the room with his boss right behind me, the bodyguard raised his eyebrows in curiosity.
"Get us a couple of coffees," Delveccio ordered.
Without a word, his man hurried off.
Sticking his hands in the pockets of his coat, the mobster looked in all directions to make sure no one could overhear our conversation. "Why are you asking about Ike Medd?"
He fixed me with a stare so hard and cold that I physically shivered.
Straightening my shoulders, I met his icy gaze as calmly as I could. "A friend of mine was dating him. Now she’s disappeared."
"Medd’s dead."
"So I heard. Any idea who did it or why?"
He shook his head. "I forget sometimes."
"Forget what?"
"What a hardass you can be," a note of respect warmed his tone. "Sometimes it’s easy to fall for your giant goof act, and sometimes I’m impressed by your loyalty to your family… and to me, and then you go and do something like this."
"Like this?" I pitched my voice low, hoping that would prevent the nervous squeak I felt in my chest from escaping.
"Hardball."
I swallowed hard, not wanting the friendly mob boss to think I was challenging him. "Hey, if you got rid of Medd, it’s cool with me. I didn’t like him. I’m just trying to find out what happened to my friend."
Delveccio chuckled. "Medd didn’t mess with me. I didn’t mess with him."
I nodded my understanding. "Any idea of who he did mess with."
"Word has it, the O’Hara family."
I closed my eyes, silently thinking, Lucky-Oh.
My eyes snapped open when Delveccio rested a heavy hand on my shoulder. "You should stay far away from whatever this is."
"Can’t," I choked out. "I’ve got to find my friend." I didn’t add the part about needing to find Detective Gilbert too, but that was weighing heavily on my mind.
"You’ve done right by my family a couple of times now," Delveccio said slowly. "I appreciate that, which is why
I nodded, remembering the battery of examinations Katie had undergone as she’d started to emerge from her coma. "Now it’s just a waiting game."
"It’s always been a waiting game." Delveccio stood and shrugged off his expensive coat. He didn’t seem the least bit self-conscious about standing there in his silk pajamas. Considering a lot of patients were wearing things that covered them a lot less, I could understand his comfort level.
He kicked off a pair of Italian loafers that probably cost more than my entire wardrobe, bent his knees, and pitched forward.
"Hey!" I gasped, lunging for him as he fell face-first toward the ground. I grabbed for his silk shirt, but it slipped through my fingers.
"Yoga," he wheezed, "my doctor’s got me doing it to relieve stress."
He straightened his legs and did a respectable downward dog pose. I admired his flexibility. Aunt Leslie had tried to teach the move to me once, but I hadn’t been able to pull it off.
"Downward dog," Delveccio huffed. "Or as Dom likes to call it, Wild Dog." He chuckled at the inside joke.
"Wild dog?" I repeated, an unclear thought drilling through the back of my head like a woodpecker after a bug. "Wild dog," I gasped as the pieces fell together. It was a Scrabble tile prediction Armani had given me not that long ago. I’d assumed it was about the lizard’s antics and interpreted it as Wild God, but what if it had been Wild Dog? After all, I’d found a yoga magazine in Ike Medd’s apartment.
"Do you know a guy named Ike Medd?" I blurted out.
Delveccio tensed, then slowly straightened up, his face as red as his sleepwear from the exertion. He glanced over at Katie who was watching his yoga practice like it was the most fascinating cartoon program she’d ever seen. "Can you keep an eye on my grandson while I talk to your aunt in the hallway for a minute?"
"Sure!"
Delveccio shoved his feet back into his shoes and cocked his head, indicating I should go out into the hallway as he shrugged into his discarded coat.
When I stepped outside the room with his boss right behind me, the bodyguard raised his eyebrows in curiosity.
"Get us a couple of coffees," Delveccio ordered.
Without a word, his man hurried off.
Sticking his hands in the pockets of his coat, the mobster looked in all directions to make sure no one could overhear our conversation. "Why are you asking about Ike Medd?"
He fixed me with a stare so hard and cold that I physically shivered.
Straightening my shoulders, I met his icy gaze as calmly as I could. "A friend of mine was dating him. Now she’s disappeared."
"Medd’s dead."
"So I heard. Any idea who did it or why?"
He shook his head. "I forget sometimes."
"Forget what?"
"What a hardass you can be," a note of respect warmed his tone. "Sometimes it’s easy to fall for your giant goof act, and sometimes I’m impressed by your loyalty to your family… and to me, and then you go and do something like this."
"Like this?" I pitched my voice low, hoping that would prevent the nervous squeak I felt in my chest from escaping.
"Hardball."
I swallowed hard, not wanting the friendly mob boss to think I was challenging him. "Hey, if you got rid of Medd, it’s cool with me. I didn’t like him. I’m just trying to find out what happened to my friend."
Delveccio chuckled. "Medd didn’t mess with me. I didn’t mess with him."
I nodded my understanding. "Any idea of who he did mess with."
"Word has it, the O’Hara family."
I closed my eyes, silently thinking, Lucky-Oh.
My eyes snapped open when Delveccio rested a heavy hand on my shoulder. "You should stay far away from whatever this is."
"Can’t," I choked out. "I’ve got to find my friend." I didn’t add the part about needing to find Detective Gilbert too, but that was weighing heavily on my mind.
"You’ve done right by my family a couple of times now," Delveccio said slowly. "I appreciate that, which is why
Similar Books
