36. Angelo

Chapter 36

Angelo

I feel like I have ten consecutive hangovers. My skull pounds and my throat's a raspy mess. The wire cut across my neck is an ugly gash, and I wear it proudly. Let the bastards stare. I waltz into Cage the following day and I feel the eyes on me right away. I'll wear my wounds like jewelry. Glittering and blood red.

Bianco and Quinn men enter in my wake. The bouncers say nothing. I think they're too afraid of what happened to Skinny to open their mouths at this point, and I can't blame them. Cage is still running, it's still ticking along, even though I doubt Tommy's been in contact with anyone here. The place isn't very crowded, but it's still early in the day.

I find Rodrigo in the manager's office. He's sitting in Tommy's chair watching the CCTV monitors with a grim stare, his eyes hollow and staring off into an unimaginable distance. He focuses on me when I close the door with a click and swivels in my direction.

"Mr. Bianco," he says, spreading his hands. "I take it you're in control of the club now?"

"That's right," I say, running my finger down the front of Tommy's filing cabinet. "I'm going to comb through this place. Every folder, every piece of paper, all the computer hard drives, everything. We're going to interview all the employees. We're going to find out every secret, every stain, every broken rule. This can go much easier on you if you're up front with me from the start. Do you understand?"

He nods once. "What do you want to know?" he asks.

I appreciate a man like Rodrigo. He's effective, judicious, and his loyalties are flexible, given the situation in which he finds himself. That's a kind of practical survival I can get behind.

"The third floor. Tell me everything."

Rodrigo sits with his back straight and his hands folded in his lap, and he starts talking.

It started two months after Tommy took over. The third floor was more club space, but he had it converted into private rooms, and began catering to specific sexual needs. The girls came soon after, girls Rodrigo didn't know, many of whom did not speak English. He didn't ask questions at first, but soon he heard stories. Small towns in Serbia where men offered poor girls a lot of money to move to America for the chance at a better life. Only to find themselves trapped in a terrible situation. The girls came and went, and Rodrigo never asked what happened to them, but he knew. Everyone on the third floor knew. Money sloshed around that place, filling pockets and bank accounts, and it kept mouths shut, but it was hard to ignore.

"That's why Cage has been so profitable." It confirms all my suspicions and more. "Did Tommy ever talk about the Famiglia?"

"I always assumed the Biancos were aware of the arrangement." He fidgets in his seat and I believe him. "It was never for me to question either way."

"Do you know who he was working with?"

"Foreign men. I think Russians and Serbians."

"I need names and locations."

He nods and gestures at the filing cabinet. "I'll dig out what I can."

"Good." I lean back and study him. "Now you have a decision to make, and it won't be an easy one. You worked as Tommy's top manager for years, but Tommy's gone now, and he won't be coming back. You can either help me turn Cage around and get rid of anyone still loyal to him, or you can walk out that door and never come back. You'll have to leave Chicago, but it's a small price."

Rodrigo doesn't seem surprised. It's the deal Roc wanted, but this time I'll actually honor it. This man may have been complicit in the trafficking and Tommy's schemes, but he was only doing his duty, and I still believe he can be an asset.

"I'd be happy to keep working for the Bianco Famiglia," he says after a pause, which I appreciate. It's not a small decision.

"Start by giving me all of Tommy's known locations, especially the secret ones. And I need to know anything you can tell me about Serena."

"His girlfriend?" Rodrigo shrugs a little. "She's just a girl. Pretty and smart, but an addict. I don't think she knows much of his business."

"Write it all down anyway." I knock my palm against the cabinet. It makes a low boom. "And starting now, the trafficking is over. Any girls still upstairs will be offered a choice. They can keep working here as legitimate employees, or they'll be paid out for their time, given a bus ticket to wherever they want to go, and sent on their way."

Rodrigo clears his throat. "Ah, there are certain, uh, deals already in place, with important people?—"

"Cancel them. I'll deal with the fallout."

"Very well, sir."

"I want everything I asked for done by the end of today. Do you understand?"

"I'll get started now."

"Good. And Rodrigo? Stay loyal to the Famiglia and we'll get along just fine."

"That's my plan."

I leave the office. I'm not positive he's going to be smart, but I think he'll do the right thing. He's a survivor, after all.

The sky stretches over the oasis like an endless blue ribbon. Claudia's palm tenses against mine and I squeeze back. She smiles at me, head tilted, sunlight streaming through her hair, and I marvel at how good this feels. I never pictured myself going for a walk hand in hand with a woman before, but now that it's Claudia, it's like this fits perfectly.

I'm a murderer. I'm a thief, a gangster, an ex-con. I'm also holding hands with a beautiful woman and thinking about bringing her back to my house so I can fuck her senseless.

"I wish I had seen their faces," she says as we reach the end of the block and start back. I feel the eyes of Bianco soldiers watching our every step. "I mean, I bet nobody imagined Tommy would end up on the run like this."

"It honestly went pretty smooth. Most people don't care who their boss is, so long as their job is secure. Rodrigo's making a list of anyone that might give me trouble and I'll let them go, but otherwise I don't plan on shaking things up too much."

"That's good. I mean, mostly everyone's nice there."

"Mostly?" I pull her against me. "Was someone mean to my girl?"

She laughs and pushes me away. "It's not like that."

"Come on, baby, give me a name."

"Kayla. But honestly?—"

"That bitch is fired." I grin viciously. "And I'm giving her a terrible recommendation."

Claudia laughs, shaking her head, and tries to convince me not to be vindictive, but fuck that. Her enemies are my enemies now.

"I think I'm done working there," she says as I put an arm across her shoulders. "I mean, I never really liked it anyway."

"You can stay, you can go, but you're not allowed to dance in that fucking cage ever again. I will not have my woman ogled at by rich assholes."

"Oh, yeah? What if I want to be ogled?"

"Then I'll lock you in your room until you learn to be a good girl."

"You're such a prick." She's smiling at me, and I'm smiling back, and I lean down to kiss her.

"No, baby, just a little possessive."

"Aren't you supposed to be confident and sure of yourself?"

"I'm both of those things. And I also can't stand the thought of another man getting anywhere near you, so here we are."

"Luckily, I'm done with the nightclub scene." She elbows my side gently and leans her head on my shoulder. "Now I have to figure out what's next."

"You don't need to rush."

"I mean, I need a job if I'm going to pay rent."

I pause and pull her close. I stoop down and kiss her softly. "You don't have to pay me rent."

"I'm not living with you forever, remember? This is supposed to just be until we find Tommy and I'm not in danger anymore."

"What if it's for longer?" I tilt my head, studying her reaction. She chews her lip, but doesn't seem upset. "You could stay, if you wanted."

"And what would that mean for us?" She presses her palms against my chest. "Are you asking me to move in with you?"

"Let's stop pretending like this isn't something." I brush my hand against her cheek and kiss her. "I want you all to myself, Claudia. So yes, I'm asking you to move in, and I'm telling you that we're together."

She struggles not to smile and it's the sexiest goddamn thing I've ever seen in my life. "I guess I could make that work."

I let out a soft growl. "Don't play around right now."

"Fine. Okay. We're together."

"And you're moving in with me."

"We'll see." She's grinning openly, and now I know she's fucking with me for fun. "You'll have to earn it."

"I think I know how I can start." I grab her hand and drag her back to my place. She laughs, hurrying to keep up, but we get intercepted on our way to fucking like crazed, sex-addicted maniacs by my mother.

Which really dampens the sexual tension.

"There you two are. I was just knocking on the door." My mother breezes over like a willow tree. She's got gray-and-brown hair, grayer these days, kept long and tied back. She favors loose skirts, loose tops, and generally has a wholesome aging hippie vibe these days, though I remember when we were younger and she ran the household like a Prussian general. Time and age softened her up.

"It's really nice to finally meet you," Claudia says, shaking my mother's hand.

"I planned on bringing her around, but the timing never seemed right." I feel guilty for keeping Claudia to myself, except I'm still coming to grips with our relationship and I haven't wanted to expose her to the madness that is my full extended family.

"The timing's great right now then. Don't worry, I'm not going to keep you two long, it's just that Elena told me you had a houseguest and I wanted to introduce myself." Mom beams at Claudia. "Please, call me Freddie. You'll have to have dinner with everyone this weekend so you can meet Angelo's father."

I think of quiet, surly Dad, thinner than he's ever been, a ghost of the man he once was. A part of me doesn't want him anywhere near Claudia, but I have to admit, he's been better lately. Shorter, kinder, like he's trying to make up for being a prick most of his life.

"We'll be there," I say, a little reluctant.

"I wouldn't miss it for the world, even if Angelo tries to bail." Claudia rubs my shoulder, and I can tell that line impresses my mother.

"Wonderful. Well, I'll let you two go, but stop by anytime. I'm right over there." She points to her house before heading off again, breezing down the block and waving to all the guards. They wave back, infatuated.

"She seems nice," Claudia says. We're moving to my house, and I tug her close to my side.

"Nice is a little too simple a word, but yes, my mother is okay."

"I'm fine with this, you know." She pauses once we're on my porch, before we head inside. "I don't mind that you haven't introduced me yet. I mean, we just agreed that this is a thing two minutes ago, but I get it. When you're ready, I'm ready."

I pull her into my arms and kiss her, and all thoughts of my parents and sisters and brothers get obliterated. Claudia's taste floods my mouth, and I kick open the door and drag her inside.

"You know what?" I slam it closed behind us and lock it. "I have nothing to do for the rest of the day."

"Oh, really?" She walks to the steps, hips swaying, and pulls off her top, letting it fall. I stare, heart racing, as she ascends the steps. "How are we going to fill the time?"

Her bra unhooks and drops. I stare at her sexy as hell back and catch glimpses of her breasts and her hard, pink nipples, and my cock's raging against my pants. She stops at the top and looks back at me, smiling and beautiful, cheeks red, one arm covering her chest.

"I have ideas," I say, going after her.

"Good ideas?"

"No, baby. Very bad ideas. Disturbing, disgusting, filthy ideas."

"Even better." She hurries into my bedroom, and I chase after.