Enzio: An Undercover Romance

by Bry Ann

  “I know,” he whispers, “It’s fucked.”

  I shake my head and swallow. “Tell me behind your idiotic amusement is a plan.”

  “You haven’t prepared for this?” He cocks an eyebrow.

  My ego and role as a father and husband go to war with each other.

  “I have. I’ve planned for it. My fucking father drilled it in my head.”

  Sven’s eyebrows crease, not knowing my background. Neither will you. I’m sure as hell not sharing it here.

  “But…”

  “You can’t see past Lacey,” Sven finishes, rolling off his bunk so he can stand and face me.“Yes.”

  I run fingers through my hair. “Fuck! Fucking damn bastard.”

  “Boss,” Sven hisses, “You’re gonna dig this hole deeper if you keep talking like that.”

  I laugh bitterly. “The day has arrived when you are more wise with your words than me.”

  Sven smirks, but doesn’t say anything. The silence stretches on for a long time. Long enough for me to fall back into my thoughts.

  I know what set Derek off. I know what made him act so abruptly. It was that damn girl I took. Iriana? Ivy? … No, Iris. That’s it.

  I knew from the second Frances dragged her in that I should let her go. I felt sick looking at her being held captive in my house. After Lacey, the thought made me want to vomit. The last woman to be held captive in my house was my damn wife. I intended to keep it that way. To never let a woman hurt under my roof. The problem was that my senses as boss were going off. This girl was holding something back. I needed to know. Even though guilt was niggling in the back of my mind, I had to see if she was a risk to me, because I was scared of this exact thing happening.

  For the first time, fear controlled my actions. Because for once, I have something to lose.

  It definitely was that girl that set Derek off. I have a feeling he got attached to us, Lacey especially. I’m no idiot, and the first to admit Lacey has a pull. A way of pulling you in so deep you can’t see what your prior motivations were. I’m a good read of people; there’s no way in hell everything about his time with us was fake. I would have picked up on who he was otherwise. I think Mr. Perfect Special Agent liked playing bad for a bit. Liked the life he had with us and didn’t want to give it up. Then I crossed the line. It wasn’t even an invisible, unspoken line either. It was a line we both fucking shared, and I stupidly crossed it. I hurt my wife in the process. If I wasn’t in prison I know she’d still be beyond furious with me. She wouldn’t be talking to me. Sleeping with me. Touching me.

  So yeah, it was that girl. That sweet looking country girl who made Derek snap out of his taste for our bad and snap into his good. Not to mention, I think he felt something for her, and the sick part of all this is I get that. I fucking get it. Lacey changed the man I was, not just as Adam, but as Boss as well. So if he feels half of what I feel for Lacey, I get why she changed his game as an agent and made him step up. My understanding of his situation makes me nauseous. I don’t empathize!

  Back to the girl, though. Iris. More important in this whole twisted situation is the last name. Shelby. I knew I’d heard that name before, then when she exploded on me, fucking threatened me, I remembered.

  Carson Shelby.

  The memory comes back in flashbacks. With all that’s happened in the last few years, he seemed like such an insignificant part of my past. Not anymore. And certainly not to her. She chased me down from her cozy little farm life to get justice for him, which… respect.

  It’s ironic. They all think I killed Carson Shelby. They keep questioning me on it. Obviously Iris wants the case looked into, and I have no doubt she used her pull with Derek to get the bureau to as well. Whether or not she realizes that’s what she did.

  Ha! If only they knew the real story. They have nothing. I’m sure of it. Because the reality is so much more twisted than the simplicity of the big bad mafia boss hurting an innocent young boy.

  I shake my head back and forth.

  He’s the key. I just know it. The key to my freedom. The key to getting back to my wife and child, before I lose them. I turn to face Sven. To talk in a code I know he’ll understand. He’s worked with me long enough, and I have no time to waste. I open my mouth to speak when Sven’s voice rings through.

  “Wanna know why I’m so calm? So fucking calm when I’m so far away from my wife.”

  “I’d love to know,” I draw out, spinning the cold metal of the bar between my fingers.

  “You know Rose’s brother?”

  “Nix?”

  His dark eyes meet mine, and in them is the promise of freedom. Blood. Vengeance. Then he washes it away and shrugs.“He’ll get us out.”

  Throw the information I have on Carson Shelby, and all I can say is…

  See you soon, little dove.

  Derek

  Iris was a mess by the time she got to Jay’s car. Her feet were bouncing around wildly, her laugh was way too loud, she was visibly disturbed with herself… the woman is not cut out for lying, let me tell ya. Her brother, Jay, kept looking back at her with eyebrows creased, confused. Anybody would be. She was acting like a nutcase.

  Nutcase? Jesus, she’s rubbing off me.

  Anyway, I knew I had to do something or she was gonna have a full meltdown over lying to her brother. Part of me was a little annoyed, but a bigger part of me found it refreshing? No. Adorable? Eh. Pure? That’s it. Pure. I’ve always strived for that level of integrity, but never quite reached it. For her, it’s effortless.

  Knowing I had to do something, I captured her hand in mine.

  “Iris,” I whispered in her ear, “calm down.”

  I stroked my thumb over her palm once and pulled away, but not before feeling her shiver. I felt my eyes darken with lust, so I carefully slid to the further end of the seat and stayed quiet while her brother assessed us and Iris had an internal war with herself over, I’m guessing, a whole load of things.

  That car ride just came to an end. So here we are, standing outside a small ranch in the literal middle of nowhere. I wasn’t wrong in my assumption of her. Every couple miles is a new house with a few run-down, wooden shops intermingled in between them, but that’s about it.

  Her home is, again, what I expected. A small, red-brown home with more acres than the eye can see and an abundance of farm land and cattle. It’s small town country living at its finest.

  Iris is practically vibrating as Jay jams his key in the door, continuously throwing puzzled looks back at her.

  “Everyone’s excited to see you, Nemo. Maybe quit acting like you’re torn between excitement and the idea that we may murder you?”

  She gives him a very wobbly smile.

  “Mmmm, yes. Good idea. Not scared. J-just nervous. Okay, yep. Um…”

  She looks to me, knowing she’s rambling, but unable to stop.

  “Jay, can Iris and I talk for a second?” His eyes widen. He looks to his sister.

  “Iris, what’s wrong?”

  “Nothin’ Jay. It’s not you.”

  She gives him puppy dog eyes. I smile, knowing that any man who is halfway decent couldn’t say no to those eyes. She’s too damn cute for her own good.

  “Fine, sis, but talk quick. I’m willin’ to bet you’re going to have several men bargin’ through this door any second.”

  “Thanks, Jay.”

  She smiles at him. He doesn’t return it. He looks worried sick about her, but still listens and slips inside, leaving us alone on the rickety wooden porch.

  “I can’t do this!” She whisper-screams, whirling on me when Jay leaves. “How do I lie to th-them? King’s gonna see right through me. Oh my gosh, oh my gosh!” “Iris?”

  “I… I’m gonna faint. I can’t tell ‘em where I’ve been. I don’t have answers for ‘em. Derek,” she squeaks.

  “Listen, hun, they love you. Even if they know you’re lying to them. They’ll still love you, and that’s the worst case scenario.”

  “I
don’t know how you stay undercover. I’d die.”

  “Yes, you would,” I laugh. “Instantly.”

  She nods and giggles. It’s still shaky, but it’s better. Much better.

  “Iris,” a deep man’s voice echoes from the doorway.

  Iris’s body slumps before she sprints towards him.

  “Pap!” She screams.

  Her arms wrap around the shorter, tanned man.

  “I missed you so much.”

  He wraps a wrinkled arm around his daughter. “Missed you too Iris Jane.”

  She squeezes one last time, before reluctantly letting go. As she does, a large man appears behind her father. I instantly know this is Kingston, the brother she constantly refers to like he’s some kind of family head. He’s tall. Not as tall as Jay, but still an extremely large man. He’s got dark blond hair that sits at the same length from head to facial hair. Light scruff on the face, and a slightly grown-out buzz cut up top. It’s his eyes, however, his eyes that get me. He’s got the same intense, all-knowing look that Lacey does. His eyes are more blue-grey than strictly blue, but still, it momentarily disarms me. He’s got a couple tattoos on his arms, but I can only make out one. It’s a date. A date I noticed Jay had tattooed on his body as well. I’m not a betting man, but if I were, I’m willing to bet it’s the date Carson died.

  His eyes immediately find mine. I immediately stand taller as I’m trained to do, but damn if I don’t want to step back a bit.

  “Let’s take this inside,” he says, voice neutral, looking back at his sister.

  Iris rolls her eyes and smiles softly.

  “Stop being scary King and give me a hug.”

  His hard face softens slightly as he slowly wraps an arm her.

  “Missed you, sis.” Some of Iris’s anxiety and excitement fade. I watch as sadness creeps in. King’s probably her protector. Hiding what happened to her, not being able to reveal it in his familiar blanket of protection, has got to be brutal.

  “I missed you, King.”

  Sensing her unease, he swings a second arm around her, wrapping her up safe, and holds her for a moment. When she relaxes, he lets go and pats her back.

  “Everyone inside.”

  Well, yes sir. Despite my thoughts, everyone just seems to listen to him, and shuffles inside.

  Once we’re inside, I shrink into the background, but King’s eyes follow me from the other corner of the room, arms crossed over his chest.“Nemo!”

  “Hunter!”

  Iris runs at another man with shoulder-length, dirty blond hair and small, brown eyes. Like his other brothers, he has a strong, muscular build. He’s not as chill as Jay, but not as intense as Kingston. Every facet of him is a cross between his older and younger brother.

  They go through the “I missed you” routine, but my mind is distracted. Seriously, what the hell is up with the Nemo thing?

  “Baby.”

  A small country woman with soft gray hair pads out of the kitchen. Iris practically melts into the floor.

  “Mama!”

  I see Iris start to shake when her mom hugs her, like she’s ready to cry, but knows she can’t.

  “Can we ask questions now?” Kingston barks into the silence.

  Iris stiffens and pulls away from her mom.

  “I just got home, King.”

  “Let’s give her five minutes,” Jay cuts in. King glares at him, before turning to cock his head toward her finger.

  “What happened?”

  “Really, now is not the…” “I’d like to know, too,” her father cuts in.

  “I’d like to know about the man in the corner of our livin’ room,” her mom muses, humor dancing in her eyes. Her mom turns to smirk at me. There’s a warmth in her eyes. I smile back at her. Her mom is by far the warmest one here, other than Iris, of course.“I-I-I can ex-explain,” Iris stammers.

  “You know what!” Her mom intervenes with a clap of her hands. “Surprise first. We haven’t seen Iris in a while, King,” her mom narrows her gaze at him. She’s the first one to stand up to the guy. “Leave your sister and her friend alone for two seconds. There’s plenty of time for answers.”

  “Surprise?” Iris squeaks, eyes lighting up.

  “Hunter, sweetie, can you get the door for me?”

  The man dressed in all black pushes off the wall and goes to a door on the left side of the room.

  “Ready, Nemo?”

  Iris leans forward on her toes and nods. Hunter grins and throws the door open. In a flash of color, the room is filled with women’s screams and a girl dressed in an indiscernible amount of color comes running at Iris.

  “B!” Iris screams.

  “Iris!” The girl screams back.

  She crashes into Iris at full speed, sending them both toppling back. They hug as tightly as a human possibly can and rock back and forth.

  “I missed you, oh my goodness! You little b-otch, you left me!”

  “I’m sorry,” Iris cries. “I missed you, Blythe.”

  “That’s her best friend in the world,” Jay mutters in my ear. “They are like sisters, but closer.”

  “I see that,” I laugh. Wow.

  I take a second to check out Iris’s best friend. Blythe is curvy, clad in clothes that literally make no sense: floral skinny jeans, a striped black and purple top, and to top it off, combat boots with an inhuman amount of bracelets and necklaces.

  The girls finally pull apart, but I notice Blythe grips Iris’s forearm in a show of support, sensing a storm coming.

  A moment of silence ensues and in that moment, Blythe and Kingston’s gazes clash.

  “Blythe,” King says flatly.

  Blythe lifts her chin. “Kingston.”

  Hunter smirks at the two of them, and instantly I know there’s a story there. One I’d just loveee to hear. I mean, the two people couldn’t be more different if they tried.

  King tears his gaze from her and back to his sister.

  “That’s done. Start talking.”

  Blythe scoffs, until her eyes find me. Then the questions arise, but she doesn’t get to ask them, because Iris starts to speak.

  “I was mugged,” Iris whispers, unable to look at her family. “They broke my finger and D-Derek saved me. He’s in the FBI. He saw it happenin’ and stopped them. He needed a place to go for a bit, so I invited him to our guest house as thanks. I figured y’all wouldn’t care.”

  She gets it all out in a breath, fists her shaking hands, and keeps her gaze locked directly on the floor.

  “You got mugged and all they did was break your finger?”

  King’s dark eyes home in on Iris’s shuffling form.

  “You’re an asshole!” Blythe gasps, hurrying to hug her friend.

  King ignores her. “Well?”

  “Apparently,” Iris mouths to the floor.

  King looks to Hunter, who nods at him.

  “It’s good to have you home, sis,” Hunter says. Then both men leave the room. I wish I could shut my job off, but I can’t. I narrow my gaze at the two men. It’s not a coincidence Carson died. I know it instantly. These men are more than just farmers.

  “Ignore him,” I hear Blythe telling Iris. “I know you love him, which is fine, but he’s a jerk.”

  Iris shakes her head and slowly lifts her gaze to me. Her eyes are so scared, so desperate, it breaks my heart. The tear stains on her cheeks make me sick, especially knowing the real reason for them.

  Her dad tries to make conversation with Iris. Once he realizes she’s not in the mood for talking, he turns to me. He asks about me, my job, my life back home, but I’m busy watching Jay and Blythe make eye contact, mischief in their eyes.

  “Gosh,” Blythe groans. “Iris looks awful. So tired.”

  “She does look pretty out of it,” Jay adds, smirking.

  Her dad scowls slightly, but her mom grins. She drags her grin to Iris’s father. The second he sees it, he lightens up a bit. You can feel the love and respect between these two.
/>
  “So what are you thinkin’, Blythe, sweetheart?”

  “Well, Derek still needs to get settled of course. How about Iris shows Derek his house?” I smirk and roll my eyes. Blythe is that best friend. This is all so cliché. After spending months undercover in the mafia, I truly have no clue how I ended in a country western chick flick.

  Iris’s cheeks turn flaming red at her friend’s antics.

  “You good with that, sis?” Jay asks, smirking as well.“Um, yeah. Sure. Yeah, I mean. I-I invited him.”

  “You sure did.” Blythe grins and winks at Iris. Iris groans and stomps over to me.

  “I’m sorry they’re so crazy!”

  Iris grabs my wrist with her dainty fingers and starts dragging me outside.

  “Hurry, please.” I chuckle as she pulls me from the house. The last thing I hear before Iris slams the door is her mother and father fighting.

  “I’m so sorry about them. They’re crazy. The whole lot of them. Psychos. I’m so embarrassed, I could die.”

  “It’s fine, Iris,” I laugh.

  She looks over her shoulder at me, still dragging me across the corn field.

  “You’re nice.”

  We don’t talk the rest of the way. It’s hot. I’m sweaty. I totally get why the people here dress the way they do. Unlike my time in the mafia, this life isn’t conducive to fancy clothes. Finally, we arrive at the house she was talking about. She was right. It is far. Thank God. That family is… a lot for those that don’t know them.

  “It’s not much,” Iris says, “and I’m sure you’ve had nicer, but it has a bed and a warm fire and blankets to snuggle with at night.”

  She looks back at me. The look in her eyes says and what more could you need?

  The simplicity of her mind. I just love it. Being with Iris is like breathing oxygen after being suffocated for a long time. She’s just refreshing.