Six Guns: Volume Two

by Sara V. Zook

  “I have to admit, I’ll be sad to be moving on.” Victoria’s bottom lip protruded a little bit. “I have so loved working with you, dear Lilah.”

  I walked over and gave Victoria a hug. I’d been nervous working with such a high profile designer in the beginning, but now we’d become close friends. She was a little fake for my taste, always talking in that sweet, almost-baby tone, flashing a smile just to get the attention of someone more popular, but all in all, this had been a wonderful experience. Actually, it was a once in a lifetime experience, and one I wouldn’t have had if not for Nicky. He told me he would make my dream a reality, and he certainly did. Now I was nervous for opening day, but I tried to push that out of my mind for now and work on finishing up details.

  Victoria walked to the far end of the room, her heels clicking against the elegant marble floor. “What about that door?” she asked, pointing to the far wall. “You said not to touch it, but why?”

  I gave her a small smile and shrugged. “It leads to another room. Nicky told me to leave it be, that he was going to have someone come in later on and arrange things in there.”

  “Nicky’s going to use it?” Victoria’s dark painted-on eyebrows rose.

  I pressed my lips together for a moment. “I think he’s going to turn it into an office space for himself or something.” Really, I didn’t know what he was going to use it for, but he’d told me to let it alone, so I’d obliged. What did I care what it was used for anyway?

  “Hmm…” Victoria placed a finger to her lips, her eyes still plastered to the closed door. “Interesting.” But she didn’t bother saying anything more after that. “Well, dear, I have lunch plans.” She walked back over to me and kissed me on the cheek. “Call you later?”

  I nodded. “Thanks, Victoria—for everything.”

  She grinned and spun abruptly on her heels before exiting the building.

  I sat down at my large desk and took in the scenery. This was all mine. It belonged to me. What a surreal feeling. Tears came into my eyes as I thought about how last year at this time I’d been with Mark and how terrible my life had been. My, how things had drastically changed—for the better. I owed a lot to Nicky. Meeting him was the best thing to happen to me. I was now living the kind of life I’d always thought I’d deserved. I smiled as I continued to take in my surroundings before pulling over a stack of paperwork and starting to get some work done in the peace and quiet of the vacant store.

  The front door buzzed sometime later, catching my attention. My head shot up in surprise to see a man dressed in a top of the line suit looking around. Shit. I should’ve locked the front door after Victoria stepped out.

  Slicking back the stray strands of hair on the sides of my head, I stood and plastered on my best professional face as I rose from my desk to greet him.

  “I’m sorry, I’m not open yet,” I said in a loud tone.

  The man turned my way, his striking blue eyes catching me by surprise as he met my gaze. “Oh, hello.” He smiled then, showing perfect white teeth.

  “Hello.” I returned the smile and walked over to him.

  “I had some business downtown and the Cain Designs caught my eye. I like fine clothes.” He chuckled then. “I guess I was interested in what was going to be sold in here. I didn’t know you weren’t open yet.” He smiled again and extended out his hand. “I apologize. How rude of me. I’m Robert Simeon.”

  I reached out and he took my hand in his, his fingers brushing over the top of my knuckles briefly as he stared into my eyes and then released me.

  “And you are?” he asked.

  I blushed. “Oh, of course. Lilah Cross.”

  “Are you the owner, Lilah Cross?”

  “I am. We’ll be opening next Monday. I’m just getting everything in place right now. I will also have a men’s clothing line that I think you may find appropriate for your tastes.” My eyes scanned his suit. “Looks like you dress extremely well.”

  “Thank you.” His own eyes scanned over me then, making the heat rise from my neck up into my cheeks. “How come I’ve never heard of you before, Lilah Cross?”

  The way he kept saying my name had me all flustered, and I wasn’t sure why. I was going to be meeting people like this all the time. Might as well start practicing getting it down pat right now. It’s not that I wasn’t a personable person; it was more that I wasn’t used to having to speak with upper class people like this guy.

  I took a deep breath and tried to relax. “Because I’m new in every aspect of the word.”

  Robert glanced around again. “This place is…incredible. You must have some nice connections.”

  Again, I blushed. It was like his stunning blue eyes were ravishing me as he spoke. He kept looking me up and down and then back to my face again. I was suddenly very self-conscious of what I was wearing today and wished I had put some more thought into my outfit this morning. And when was the last time I’d looked in a mirror? I’d been working diligently. What if pieces of my hair were coming undone from my messy bun?

  I swallowed. “Yes, I have a few.”

  Robert laughed. It was a low, raspy kind of laugh, one that sent a fluttering feeling straight to my stomach. “I’m sorry again for barging in like this. But then again, I’m glad I caught you alone. I’m sure this place is going to be a prime location for all the local celebrities. Everyone is going to be dying for your attention.”

  “I don’t know about that.” I gave him another shy smile as I played with my fingers. Why was I fiddling so much? What was the matter with me? I mean, okay, he was handsome and had those eyes, but still, was it just because he screamed of coming from money that I was afraid I’d slip up and say something stupid?

  “Well, I do,” he whispered, leaning in more closely. I could smell his cologne. God, it smelled so good. I found myself almost wanting to lean in for a bigger whiff. “Talent as well as beauty are two things hard to come by.”

  Blush. Blush. Blush. I was sure my face was flaming red by now.

  The door burst open a little more forcefully this time. I stepped back, relieved by the distraction away from this Robert Simeon—that is, until I realized who it was.

  “Stan?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at Nicky’s cousin. “Is everything okay?”

  Stan tossed an apple up in the air and caught it again. He then bit into it nosily and grinned as he seemed completely focused on Robert. “Everything’s okay with me. Everything okay here?”

  I still felt too close to Robert so I took an additional step back. I felt as if I’d been caught, and some guilt ripped through me, but I hadn’t done anything wrong. “It’s fine. Why are you here?” I questioned him, my tone turning more bitter by the second.

  Nicky loved Stan, this I knew, but there was something about him that irritated me. He was a gangly sort of man with plain features. He looked rough as if the street life back in Lazerne had hardened him. And as far as brains, from what I could see, I didn’t know if he had any.

  “Who’s this?” Stan asked, walking over to us and inspecting Robert further.

  Robert chuckled and extended his hand to Stan who rejected it. Not the impression I’d like to make. Robert was sure to associate me with Stan’s rudeness. My embarrassment quickly turned into anger.

  “Okay…” Robert took his hand back.

  “A potential customer,” I spit out at Stan. “As if that’s any of your business.”

  Stan took another large chunk out of the apple with his front teeth. “It is now.”

  “What are you talking about?” I hissed between my teeth.

  “Well, I should go,” Robert said. “Pleasure meeting you, Lilah. I’m sure we’ll run into each other again soon.” He smiled at me again.

  “Yes, I hope so,” I told him, watching as he walked to the front door and left. I turned on my heels and glared at Stan who was still munching on that stupid piece of fruit and sounding like a cow. I was still pissy that I had been forced from the house as Nicky handed it right over to
him the second Stan stepped foot in it. The house and all its glory had been a bargaining tool to get Stan to stay, to be a part of the mob group with Nicky. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like moving into Carmine’s mansion wasn’t an upgrade, it was, but I couldn’t shake from my mind that Carmine had been shot there. I thought about it too often actually. It made me feel uncomfortable there, especially when no one could seem to figure out who the killer was. Why hadn’t they caught the person yet? It didn’t appear that the police were doing a whole lot either. It was almost as if Nicky had told the police to back off on the investigation, but I wasn’t entirely sure. I knew things, the things Nicky told me, but I didn’t know everything. I got bits and pieces here and there. “What are you doing here, Stan?”

  Even his name annoyed me.

  “I guess you didn’t hear,” he remarked.

  “Hear what?” I put my hands on my hips.

  Stan smirked. God, I wanted to wipe that smirk from his face with my fist. “I’m your new bodyguard.”

  Bodyguard?

  What the hell?

  “What on earth are you talking about?” I spit out.

  Stan put up his hand as if in defense. “Hey, don’t get all pissed off at me. It was Nicky’s idea. Watching you is my job now.”

  “You’ve got to be kidding,” I huffed out. “A bodyguard? This has got to be some kind of sick joke.”

  “Nicky thinks you need one.” Stan raised his thick eyebrows and began chewing with his mouth wide open again.

  “What the fuck for?”

  Stan shrugged but continued to smirk. I had to walk away or else I was going to end up throwing a punch his way. He was obviously amused by my frustration, so I’d take it out on the real culprit.

  Bodyguard? I texted to Nicky. Are you serious?

  It took a few minutes, but he ended up texting me back. For your own protection. Don’t take it the wrong way.

  I’m being watched.

  No, others are being watched around you.

  I glanced back at Stan. He was now leaning casually against one of the walls, the apple the focus of his attention

  Stan looks like he’s the one who needs a bodyguard.

  He’s stronger than you think. Don’t underestimate him, hun.

  I gritted my teeth together. Nicky was obviously dead set on this arrangement. I would have a face-to-face conversation with him about this later. For now, I had work to do to get Cain Designs ready. I walked to the front door and locked it, not wanting any more surprises to come strolling through that door. I decided to ignore Stan’s presence. What was really lingering on my mind though was Robert Simeon and the way he’d looked at me with those beautiful blues of his…

  SEVEN

  CAIN

  I looked around at the table. All of the men were seated around it along with three new soon-to-be members. Their eyes were all on me. Were they looking for me to falter? If so, they’d be fucking disappointed. I remembered well Carmine standing up here at the head of the table and being an intimidating force. Now it was time for me to show these guys that I was cut from the same cloth as my father.

  Seton had brought in some men he deemed appropriate fits for the group. They were supposedly buddies of Seton’s that weren’t married, didn’t have any kids, basically didn’t have any sort of attachments. How Seton found these guys or knew them for that matter, I didn’t know. Seton wasn’t exactly the friendliest person on the face of the earth. Being social and getting to know others wasn’t something I thought he really shined at, but hey, I could be dead wrong. But I did trust the man. If he said these two were legit, they were legit. I wasn’t going to question it unless in the future they gave me a reason to.

  Then my eyes met Stan’s. He was the familiar face in the bunch. I was glad he was here. He, like the other two, didn’t have any attachments outside of this life. Things like that only complicated matters. Hell, even with Lilah, she could distract me and creep into my mind when I didn’t want her to be there. Then again, she was also a welcome distraction at night when I needed to forget about the awful events of the day. It was a bittersweet two-way street.

  “I know you see the new guys sitting around you. I wanted to call a meeting to formerly introduce you to them.”

  Hagan took a hit from his cigarette. He was the only one not looking up. Disrespectful bastard.

  Ignoring him, I continued, “We need some more hands around here. I don’t want us to be considered small by any means. From here on out, we’ll only grow, but we’ll always remain a tight knit family. I want that for us. I want us to be strong.” I laughed. “I want us to be a fucking unstoppable force that everyone fears.”

  “Everyone does fear you already after that stunt you pulled at the Due Amiche,” Hagan mumbled just loud enough for everyone else to hear.

  I narrowed my eyes at him.

  “Shut the fuck up, Hagan.” Seton slammed his hand down on the table and glared at him. “That needed to be done.”

  “Did it?” Hagan asked as if he was bored.

  “Yeah, it did,” Seton snapped. “Like you haven’t done shit like that before. Don’t act like you’re better than everyone else. If anything, you’re lower.”

  Hagan sat up straight, his face twisting in ugly hatred. “Fuck you, Seton. Of all people, I thought you’d have my back.”

  “I won’t have your back when you’re acting like an asshole,” Seton told him, his fist clenching tightly on the table for everyone to see. His vein was beginning to protrude from his neck. That meant trouble. “Grow some balls, Hagan. Everyone’s been thrown into the same shit storm. We’re all trying to cope.”

  I watched the two of them closely. They were on the verge of fist fighting. Was this animosity Hagan was displaying because of me being put in a position of leadership? I’d always thought him jealous of me. “Seton’s right. No one—at least I didn’t—want Carmine to die. Did you think I knew he was my father? Did you think I volunteered to be given all of this?”

  “Well, you didn’t exactly step down either,” Hagan mumbled again.

  “He’s doing a great fucking job!” Remmy hollered out. “Did you see how Bello crumbled like putty in his hand? Nicky Cain was born to do this job, whether he realizes it or not.”

  I felt pride at the compliment, coming from Remmy, but I didn’t bother displaying it on my face. These guys needed to hash a few things out. It gave me a way to evaluate them anyway, see which ones I felt may be guilty of the crime of taking Carmine’s life. My suspicion still leaned heavily with Hagan being my number one suspect. His arrogance right now only furthered that mistrust.

  “Step down? This is what Carmine wanted.” Seton was seething. He was about to explode. It was like they’d forgotten I was even in the room. I got to sit here and listen to the shit show. And the newbies—they just sat there not knowing what to say or do. Not exactly how I had envisioned this meeting to go, but hey, whatever. Let the new guys see exactly what this group was all about. Who wouldn’t want to be here, right? Fucking hilarious and degrading at the same time.

  “Well, Carmine’s gone, isn’t he? I think we should’ve voted,” Hagan remarked.

  Seton lunged across the table and cranked Hagan along the side of his jaw. There was a crunching noise. Had Hagan seriously not been expecting that? Even I was anticipating Seton totally losing it, and Hagan had been around way longer than me.

  Once Hagan had momentarily recovered from what I could only assume was excruciating pain from what looked like a broken jaw—if nothing else, it was out of place—his face transformed into one of a psychopath, like he was going to try to take Seton on. Was he insane? Seton was a monster, and when he was mad like this, he was a hundred times stronger. Hagan lunged across the table toward Seton who looked hungry for a fight. He was waiting for Hagan, ready to end his existence. The Triplets jumped to their feet. One grabbed Hagan and held him back, another one latched onto the back of Seton’s arms.

  “Enough,” I said in a stern tone. �
��Sit the fuck down. Now.”

  Seton struggled against the arms of the Triplet for a few more seconds before ripping away from him and going back to his chair. Hagan wiped blood from the side of his mouth, his bottom lip ripped wide open. He was an utter mess. Served him right, too.

  “Someone go get him a towel. He’s bleeding all over my floor,” I said.

  Augie stood then and left the room, returning with a navy blue towel and handing it to Hagan who snatched it away as he was still attempting to cool down.

  “I should shoot all you assholes for acting this way.” I aimed the direction of my stare at Hagan though. He’d really pissed me off, and I was very happy that he was in a world of misery right now. He needed a doctor, but I wasn’t going to let him go just yet. “Brock, Ham, Stan, stand up.”

  All three men stood up. I watched to see how they’d reacted to the whole Seton/Hagan thing. None of them seemed the least bit phased, which surprised me, because when I’d first come up here, I was ready to piss my pants. Then again, these three wanted to be here. This kind of stuff gave them shits and giggles. I hadn’t had much of a choice in the whole thing.

  “Take care of these men. Make them feel welcome. If I hear any of you assholes making trouble for them, there’ll be hell to pay. You better take that comment seriously, because I mean it.” I glanced around the room.

  “Can I have some ice?” Hagan asked.

  “No, you can’t fucking have some ice,” I snapped. “We’ll start these guys off easy and ease them into the whole thing. Any simple jobs, give to Brock or Ham for now. Stan has already been made aware of his position.”

  Stan nodded. He was watching Lilah, and she was pissed about it, but it needed to be done—for now at least. Lilah would be a target as she was associated with me. Even more so because of the fact she’d named the boutique Cain Designs. I still had plans to make that my underground hiding hole if need be. I just didn’t want anything happening to her, people using her as leverage or anything like that. Somebody taking her, possibly torturing her—that scared the shit out of me.