The Gambler

by Silver, Jordan

  “Well your shield works.”

  “What? The fuck does that mean?”

  “The house just took a hit, Bonata just signed his death warrant.”

  “Stefan…”

  “Save it, it’s done. Tonight, if I have to crawl into his mother to get him he’s a dead fuck.” He was so pissed he forgot not to cuss in front of her.

  “Well, you’re breathing fire so I guess you’re alright. I’ll get the guys together, you know where he is, which house?”

  “Not yet but I’ll get on it. Doesn’t he usually run to his hideaway on Shelter Island after a strike?”

  “That’s his usual MO yes, but I think too many people might be wise to that by now.”

  “We’ll see, these gangster types aren’t always the smartest tools in the shed. Talk to ya later old man I’ve got shit to do.”

  “Don’t move without me.”

  “We’ll see.” He hung up the phone and booted up the computer. He didn’t hear the tinny sound of the cartoon playing on her little toy, so he figured she was preoccupied with one of the one hundred games he’d downloaded for her.

  She didn’t seem to be even minutely affected by the explosion and near death experience, from just a few minutes ago, and once again he wondered at such complete innocence. God has a strange sense of humor. He snuck in a few of his special elite amongst mankind, only mankind has such gigantic egos they think they’re the ones a step above. He knows and is convinced, that nothing could be farther from the truth. To be as innocent and free of the usual rigors of life must be one hell of a thing.

  He put in a few calls to see if he could pinpoint where the head of the Bonata family was hiding out. He wasn’t one to waste time with middlemen and muscle. Somebody put a hit out on him; he went right to the source. Otherwise it’s like being attacked by a snake and cutting off its tail. Doesn’t the shit grow back or some fuck? Same thing goes with a hit. You can end all the muscle that comes after you, but the one who really wants you gone is still breathing. As long as that’s the case your life will always be in danger.

  The fact that they keep attacking with her there, meant that he was going to get up close and personal. He’d only been planning to blow the fucker away, with maybe a handheld rocket, or some other high-powered weapon that would get the job done, take out a few assholes at once. Now, because the fuck showed no respect and was willing to endanger his woman in the process, he’d crossed a lot of fucking lines. For that, he needed a Colombian or a Russian, best way to send a message to whatever fuck took the asshole’s place, that Stefano Andros was not to be fucked with.

  She was being so quiet he kissed her hair in thanks. For once she wasn’t peppering him with questions. Not that he minded, but right now he needed to concentrate on what he was doing. These idiots will be expecting him to retaliate, so the element of surprise was out. What they may not expect is a full frontal attack, which is something he specialized in. But first, he had to get eyes on Bonata. Her brother, he’d deal with later, the fucking worm.

  She turned the screen of her iPad or what the fuck ever the sales lady had called it, for him to see. Too many fucking gadgets and shit, that’s how people were getting tripped up and landing their ass in jail. Why the fuck would you want a record of your criminal activity, or some fucking toy that could pinpoint your every move? Shit just didn’t make sense. He was prepared to play whatever game she was showing him, as long as it would keep her happy, even though he had shit to do.

  “What’s this baby?” He frowned at the screen that seemed to be a jumble of numbers at first. Then something about a few of them caught his attention. The first four digits were uniform, kind of like the visa and master-card thing, how they all started the same. Only these numbers looked familiar for a whole other reason.

  He typed them into his secure handheld just the same as when he’s typing in his own numbers that start with those four digits. “Fuck baby where did you get this?”

  “Jenna good?”

  “Oh fuck baby.” He grabbed her so hard and held on so tight, it was a wonder he didn’t crack a rib. If he were a crying man he would’ve broken down at that point, because what she had just revealed answered the question that had been plaguing him.

  It wasn’t him they were trying to kill, it was her. She’d just given him the account and security numbers for the crime family’s offshore accounts, along with the passcodes. There were other numbers on the screen that he’d have to figure out what they went to but…

  “Fuck baby, what did they do to you?” He had no doubt that they’d been using her for something, there was no other way that she could’ve had access to that info. But why try to kill her? It didn’t make sense. Why not just move the money? He added a couple more of the numbers she had on the screen into the search engine. At first glance he had no idea what the fuck he was looking at, and then he saw the seal…

  His blood ran cold and his first thought was to grab her and get the fuck gone. What the fuck had they been doing with her? Did her family know, her mother? He had no doubt her fuck of a brother probably knew about the Bonatas using her like this. First things first, he had to move the money. He wasn’t sure why the assholes hadn’t already, or at the very least changed the codes, but he wasn’t going to question it.

  It wasn’t that easy moving that much cash all at once. He spent the next thirty minutes orchestrating it, while she went back to playing her games. Like she hadn’t just given him the codes to get into the fucking DHS database along with everything else.

  He knew she could have no idea what she’d been doing, the question is why the fuck was Bonata messing around with that shit? He got an idea as his mind tried to make sense of it all. There was no way she should know these things. There had to be something that he was missing. Getting up from under her, he sat her back in the seat. She was so preoccupied with her game she didn’t fuss. Though she did pick up her head long enough to make sure he wasn’t leaving the room.

  He walked to the safe on the wall and with his back turned, put in the combination. Without making a big deal out of what he was doing, he closed the safe and walked back to the chair, lifting her back into his lap. She was concentrating very hard on something, her eyes no longer on her toy but off in the distance somewhere.

  Then she got up from his lap and retraced his steps. He held his breath when she started turning the dial on the safe. Part of him wanted her to succeed, and another wanted her to fail. It hurt his gut that the low life fucks, if what he was thinking was true, had used her so abhorrently.

  He wasn’t too surprised when the door flew open. “Garrett.” He yelled for the other man, never once taking his eyes from her.

  Garrett came on the run. His boss sure was doing a lot of yelling these days. Usually you couldn’t get a peep out of him, but since he’d brought the girl home, he was a regular chatterbox. He wasn’t complaining though, it was a nice change from the predatory look the other man always wore, that left you wondering from one minute to the next if he was gonna cap your ass. He much preferred this more affable, relaxed Andros; it made his job easier. It wasn’t easy protecting unsuspecting fools from the man’s volatile temper.

  “Boss?”

  “Grab the mother.”

  “Huh?”

  “I didn’t stutter, send Vito, I don’t care what he has to do.” Garrett turned to go carry out his orders.

  “Garrett, tell him I need her alive. He can nix everyone else if he has to.” He kissed his flower’s hair as his mind raced with the ramifications of what he’d just seen.

  When had she been at the DHS to learn the combinations? The bank info was easy; obviously she’d memorized them somehow, but what about the ones that didn’t belong to the Bonata family? And there were still the other codes and shit that she’d written down.

  He picked up his handheld where he’d transferred the info from her toy. The unrecognizable numbers didn’t ring any bells. It was a long shot, but he figured she was the one who wrot
e it, and he knew better than most not to underestimate her. His sister had amazed him everyday of her life, he expected no less from his Jenna.

  “Jenna, baby, what’s this?”

  He wrote out the numbers and letters that looked more like some sort of code than an account, on a piece of paper on his desk. She studied it for a second before taking the pen from his hand.

  He watched as she rearranged the digits in her painstakingly slow, yet meticulous way. Still he didn’t know what the fuck he was looking at. Then she turned to his computer keyboard and typed something in. On the screen a stately looking woman came up, the caption said Senator Cathleen Winthrop.

  The name didn’t ring a bell and he was none the wiser. He printed out a copy of the senator and studied it. Then she took the printout from his hand and drew something dead center and he finally got it. “Who Jenna?” His heart was racing in his chest as he awaited her answer.

  None of this shit was making any sense. She wouldn’t talk unless he asked her the right questions, and how the fuck was he supposed to know what they were, if he didn’t know what the fuck was going on? He knew one thing. This senator Winthrop whoever she is was a target; if the circle with the hole over her heart that Jenna had drawn meant what he thought it did. He’d seen enough targets to know what the fuck that sign meant. The question was, how the fuck would an innocent like her know anything about it?

  She didn’t answer his question, just went back to her game, as he tried to decipher the shit she’d written. The phone rang and he picked it up when she jumped. “It’s okay baby just the phone.” She looked at the phone like it was a snake about to strike and once again he got the feeling that he was missing something.

  “Andros.”

  “The girl or your grandfather. You got four hours.” The phone went dead.

  He called gramps right away and got no answer. No way, there’s no fucking way they got the drop on gramps.

  Jenna started rocking back and forth on his lap and he felt out of his depth for a split second.

  He couldn’t fly off the handle the way he wanted to, because that would only scare her and she’d had enough for one fucking day.

  He called Garrett and Jameson into the office and told them what was going on. The others were soon scattered around the room, as the men tried to figure out where the old man could be being held.

  Even though he insisted on security for his heir, he himself was a solitary creature. So there was no one to call to find out how, where, or when. He’d already put the bead on Bonata’s usual hidey-holes but which one? If they strike the wrong one, it could mean life or death for the old man.

  “Angel drive.” She was back to dishing out orders again. He’d almost forgotten that she was there, as they threw around ideas of what moves to make. He wasn’t about to sit around and wait on them to call back; because there was no way in fuck he was making the trade.

  What they didn’t know, was that she was more than just someone he’d rescued like he’d done so many others. There was no way he was ever giving her up. And since gramps came in a close second, he guess they were pretty much all fucked.

  “Drive where?” He hoped she wasn’t about to have another melt down if she didn’t get her way. But she just stood from her chair, gave him a look, and walked out of the room. “Let’s go.”

  Chapter 12

  The men followed him out of the room as he caught up to her. “Wait baby.” He let the guys walk out ahead of them, to be sure that the coast was clear, before shielding her under his arm as best he could. When they made it to the car, she sat next to him in the back, while Garrett and Jameson hopped in the front.

  A lot of things happened at once. First she put her hair up. It wasn’t that she put it up; it’s the way she did it. Methodically and with precision, as if she’d done it a hundred times before. He took note of it, because he swore if she’d had a cap handy, she would’ve pulled it down to her brows and then don some shades or some shit. Maybe all this activity was making him loopy or some fuck, because he was seeing things.

  His guys were scrambling because there hadn’t been time to prepare for their little impromptu drive. He found himself actually taking his cues from her. She didn’t seem to sense any danger, so he relaxed just a little, as he settled back in his seat.

  What the fuck am I doing? He thought as he looked out the window? This was the dumbest fucking move he’d ever made. Still he couldn’t say no to her. Even if it means getting her killed you fuck? He fought his inner battle in silence as they pulled away from his home.

  She started playing with her toy and he was thinking, ‘shit, we’re in the middle of a war, gramps is somewhere probably getting the shit kicked out of him, and she wants to take a ride so she can play her game’. It never crossed his mind that maybe she’d had one of those things before. He figured she just brought it to play with while he drove around in circles losing his fucking mind. It wasn’t safe to, he knew that, but there was something about the way she’d ordered him to drive that just sounded like his girl knew something. What the fuck that was, is left to be seen.

  They took the tank because gramps had that thing tricked out with every security measure known to man. He figured if the fucks launched another rocket at their ass, at least they’d stand a better chance in this. The guys were on high alert because they didn’t know if the fucks were still around, or where the fuck they were. He had a car in front and two behind and still he’s thinking that’s not enough. He kept his hand on his piece under his jacket, out of her sight, just incase he had to pop one off en route.

  “Where to boss?”

  He almost snapped off Jameson’s head, but held himself back because she was there. How the fuck was he supposed to know? Wasn’t that ass there when she said ‘drive’? He was in the same boat as they were. He didn’t have a fucking clue. He did know that he’d lost his fucking mind coming out in the open like this, with eyes probably tracking their every move. Still, that something in her voice wasn’t to be ignored.

  “Just drive around I guess.” Maybe she just wants to drive around after the scare and whatever else that was back there. He’ll get that out of the way and figure out what the fuck to do about gramps at the same time. She passed him her toy while he was deep in thought and he barely paid attention, until he noticed that instead of one of her games, there was a map on the screen. He stared at it as the words started to make sense as they registered. Again he got that feeling like someone walked over his grave, whatever the fuck that means.

  “Gramps there.” She pointed at the screen even as she looked at him with intent in her eyes. In that moment she didn’t look like his sweet Jenna, she looked like she’d fuck him up if he didn’t do as she said.

  The fuck! He had that hoo doo feeling again as he looked down at the screen.

  There was an actual building with an arrow pointing to it. What the fuck? Just as he suspected, these fucking gadgets will get your ass killed.

  “Gramps is here Jenna?” She just nodded her head and started digging into the little purse he’d bought her the day before. He stared at her at a lost for words. “Jenna, baby, you are freaking me the fu…um, shit. You’re amazing baby.” He kissed her lips hard and she giggled and went back to digging in her bag for her candy bar.

  By now Garrett was staring back at the two of them dumbfounded. “It’s the place on Warren boys, let’s go.” That had been their third choice. He had no idea how she knew what she’d just told him, and for all he knew she could be wrong. But if she wasn’t, he had a lot of thinking to do when they got through this mess.

  He knew she was special the moment she’d called him by that name. ‘Angel’. Only one other person knew about that and she’d been gone for a very long time. Now he had a new fear. Whatever gift she had, people were willing to kill her to prevent it getting into anyone else’s hands but theirs. Either that, or she knew a whole lotta shit that could get people fucked. One way or another he was gonna have to get into her head
.

  “It would be faster if we fly, head to the airfield.” Shit, had she ever flown before? How the fuck was he gonna do this? If she wouldn’t get on the plane, there was no way he was leaving her in the care of anyone else. It would take them a good couple of hours driving to get to the place, and that would be cutting it too close. He figured he’d have to risk it.

  Taking her hand in his he said a silent prayer that she wouldn’t freak out on him. She was back to playing her game one handed while eating her candy bar. She looked so innocent then, like the beautiful creature she is. He knew there was something else going on here, something that he didn’t understand quite as yet. But his suspicions told him that she had been used. That just earned the fucks an extra bullet.

  He kept his hand around her as they made their way to the hangar where he kept the Gulfstream. She hummed under her breath, as she tinkered with that toy of hers, and he kept taking glances at it to be sure that she was playing her game and not about to blindside him again. For now it looked like she had no more surprises up her sleeves. Just as they were hitting the tarmac his phone rang.

  “Yeah Vito.”

  “I’ve got her.” Fuck, he’d forgotten all about the mother.

  “Put ‘er on ice…uh Vito, I mean keep her somewhere quiet until I get back. Just stash her in one of the rooms with eyes and ears.”

  “Sure thing boss. Can I gag her though? Because she hasn’t shut up once since I acquired her, and my ears are starting to ring from this shit.” What the fuck? Now I gotta deal with his shit, like I don’t have enough on my plate?

  “Fine Vito, but make sure the gag does not block off her air passage, I want her breathing when I get back. If you fuck this up you’ll never make it off the estate.”