still offering to talk.
I glanced back at Alessa
to see an amused smile she didn’t quite cover quickly enough, but she accepted
my pointed look without saying anything. I didn’t think she’d try and run off,
not after what we’d said earlier. And despite her fiery attitude, she seemed to
instinctively realize that there were things I wouldn’t let her get away with -
not when we were out and there was real risk involved.
Letting out a short
breath, I turned away from her and followed a tense Jay through a narrow
parting and into a secondary office, which he quickly shut the door on before
rounding on me.
“This trouble better
not be about Viktor Kovalski, Leo.” His grey-blue eyes narrowed at me, and I
ran a hand through my hair.
“I—”
“How could you be fucking
stupid enough to take a job on the premier crimelord of—”
“Fuck it, I didn’t take the job. I was set up, Jay. No way was I gonna take a job like that. I took
a job on some harmless financial guru—”
“If you were enough of an
idiot to fall for a set up, I see even less reason to help you now it’s all
come crashing down.”
I ground my teeth in
frustration. This was Jay to a tee.
You’re only worth
something if you’re good enough. Fast enough. Strong enough. You’ll just be a
two-bit street rat until you prove yourself - and keep proving yourself. Slip, and
you’ll be right back in the cold—
I shook the sharp
memories off, taking a breath and reminding myself that I was good
enough. One of the best. This was no ordinary set up.
“Manny is dead , Jay .” That announcement was enough for Jay to go still, and I seized the
opportunity to make him listen to what I was saying. “This was calculated and
coordinated - and whoever did it is taking out all of the pawns they used. Yes,
I took a rush job, but there was nothing suspicious about it and I used my own
source to verify. He ended up dead for his trouble. If I’d had time, sure I
would’ve gone the whole extra mile - but I did everything you taught me as a
minimum, and more. It was a straight, easy job - same as dozens before. And you
fucking know you would’ve taken it too.”
To my surprise, he didn’t
say anything after I’d finished, just looked at me with the same eyes that had
weighed me up for years, judging my worth against some standards I’d only ever
guessed at.
I took the opening to
continue with the main reason that I was here. “Look, I know how bad this is. I
know how many people will be out looking for me. The bratva, as well as
whoever was really behind this hit - and hell, probably Santini now too. I need
to clear this up, Jay. With Manny dead, I don’t have anyone left to pursue -
and I know how deep your connections go. Just give me a lead on who hired me,
and I can put an end—”
Jay was shaking his head,
and my stomach knotted despite the way his face softened momentarily as he
looked at me. “It’s too late for that, kiddo. Forget the people behind this -
you’ve got no hope in hell of finding them before someone tracks you down. This
has gone all the way through NYC’s underworld already. The city isn’t safe for
you anymore. Find some gods-forsaken hole-in-the-ground village somewhere - or
better yet, another country.”
My heart dropped. “But—”
“No buts about it.
You’re lucky your face and name is an unknown - that you’ve spent more time in
other cities than here over the last several years - but that won’t hold for
long. Get out of here before they get a lead that you won’t be able to shake.
You had a good run, boy, but maybe it’s time to retire.”
I blinked at that, the
drastic implications of this one fucking mistake slowly dawning on me. Everyone
in this business knew that was a possibility - piss off the wrong person,
client or victim, and you might find yourself needing to disappear. But I’d
never truly thought about it before. There was a reason I hadn’t retired yet,
and my bank balance made it
I glanced back at Alessa
to see an amused smile she didn’t quite cover quickly enough, but she accepted
my pointed look without saying anything. I didn’t think she’d try and run off,
not after what we’d said earlier. And despite her fiery attitude, she seemed to
instinctively realize that there were things I wouldn’t let her get away with -
not when we were out and there was real risk involved.
Letting out a short
breath, I turned away from her and followed a tense Jay through a narrow
parting and into a secondary office, which he quickly shut the door on before
rounding on me.
“This trouble better
not be about Viktor Kovalski, Leo.” His grey-blue eyes narrowed at me, and I
ran a hand through my hair.
“I—”
“How could you be fucking
stupid enough to take a job on the premier crimelord of—”
“Fuck it, I didn’t take the job. I was set up, Jay. No way was I gonna take a job like that. I took
a job on some harmless financial guru—”
“If you were enough of an
idiot to fall for a set up, I see even less reason to help you now it’s all
come crashing down.”
I ground my teeth in
frustration. This was Jay to a tee.
You’re only worth
something if you’re good enough. Fast enough. Strong enough. You’ll just be a
two-bit street rat until you prove yourself - and keep proving yourself. Slip, and
you’ll be right back in the cold—
I shook the sharp
memories off, taking a breath and reminding myself that I was good
enough. One of the best. This was no ordinary set up.
“Manny is dead , Jay .” That announcement was enough for Jay to go still, and I seized the
opportunity to make him listen to what I was saying. “This was calculated and
coordinated - and whoever did it is taking out all of the pawns they used. Yes,
I took a rush job, but there was nothing suspicious about it and I used my own
source to verify. He ended up dead for his trouble. If I’d had time, sure I
would’ve gone the whole extra mile - but I did everything you taught me as a
minimum, and more. It was a straight, easy job - same as dozens before. And you
fucking know you would’ve taken it too.”
To my surprise, he didn’t
say anything after I’d finished, just looked at me with the same eyes that had
weighed me up for years, judging my worth against some standards I’d only ever
guessed at.
I took the opening to
continue with the main reason that I was here. “Look, I know how bad this is. I
know how many people will be out looking for me. The bratva, as well as
whoever was really behind this hit - and hell, probably Santini now too. I need
to clear this up, Jay. With Manny dead, I don’t have anyone left to pursue -
and I know how deep your connections go. Just give me a lead on who hired me,
and I can put an end—”
Jay was shaking his head,
and my stomach knotted despite the way his face softened momentarily as he
looked at me. “It’s too late for that, kiddo. Forget the people behind this -
you’ve got no hope in hell of finding them before someone tracks you down. This
has gone all the way through NYC’s underworld already. The city isn’t safe for
you anymore. Find some gods-forsaken hole-in-the-ground village somewhere - or
better yet, another country.”
My heart dropped. “But—”
“No buts about it.
You’re lucky your face and name is an unknown - that you’ve spent more time in
other cities than here over the last several years - but that won’t hold for
long. Get out of here before they get a lead that you won’t be able to shake.
You had a good run, boy, but maybe it’s time to retire.”
I blinked at that, the
drastic implications of this one fucking mistake slowly dawning on me. Everyone
in this business knew that was a possibility - piss off the wrong person,
client or victim, and you might find yourself needing to disappear. But I’d
never truly thought about it before. There was a reason I hadn’t retired yet,
and my bank balance made it
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