22. Layla

Chapter twenty-two

Layla

G roaning like a petulant child, I stomped into my office three days later. We had spent the past two days going through files and had more to go through today. My other Capos cleared their background checks, which I had expected, and were coming daily to help, but there were still many people to investigate. So far, we have found five more recent hires who looked suspicious, and two who had been with my father for some time were definitely guilty. I hadn’t decided yet whether I wanted to use them or just kill them outright.

As I did every morning after breakfast, I called the hospital to check on Keith. So far, he had been holding steady, but he still hadn’t woken up. I found this particularly concerning, but the doctors didn’t seem worried.

“Good morning, Annie,” I said when the morning nurse answered. “How is Keith doing today?”

“He’s awake!” Annie gushed. “He woke up late last night, and when they told him that you were calling daily, he ordered us to put you through immediately the next time you called. Hold on one second.”

I was elated as I waited for Keith to get on the phone. “He’s awake!” I yelled when Zach walked through the door. His beautiful face split into the biggest grin as he ran to get the others.

“Boss?” Keith said.

“Keith! Oh my God, am I glad to hear your voice!”

“Put him on speaker,” Zach said as he returned with the others, including Cordy.

“Keith, hold on one second while I put you on speakerphone. The guys and Cordy want to talk to you, too.” I pressed a few buttons to transfer the call to the conference phone. “Ok, Keith, you’re on with everybody.”

“Hey, everyone. How are you all?” he asked.

“Hey, Keith!” Colt said. “Forget about us. How are you feeling?”

“I could be worse,” Keith admitted. “I’ll be honest; I thought I was a goner. Imagine my surprise when I woke up in a hospital bed.”

“We owe you big time, Keith,” I said.

“Yeah, man,” Zach said, “You really saved our ass.”

“And we’re not just saying that,” Drew added. “If it weren’t for you, we would be dead.”

“They’re right, Keith. We do owe you. Anything you want, it’s yours,” I assured him.

“What the hell happened?” Keith asked.

“Kadence’s partner was in Anton’s pocket,” Tyler replied. “The whole thing was a set-up.”

“Did you kill the bastard? Is Kadence ok?”

“She escaped and is lying low for now. She’s planning on handling the partner herself.”

“When do the doctors think you can leave the hospital?” Cordy asked.

“I don’t fucking know,” Keith growled. “They won’t give me a damn answer. I’m not bleeding anymore. I’m conscious. I can walk. I don’t see what the damn problem is.”

“You mean besides almost bleeding to death and going into a coma?” Drew asked.

“I can rest at home just as easily as I can rest here,” Keith argued. “You said I can have anything I want, Layla? Get me the fuck out of this damn hospital.”

“Consider it done,” I replied.

“Layla!” Colt scolded.

“What? I told him anything, and I will make it happen if that’s what he wants.”

“He can stay at the house,” Cordy said. “I’ll nurse him back to health better than those nurses and doctors will.”

“See!” I said, gesturing to Cordy. “He’ll be well cared for, and I’ll make sure Doctor Rueben comes out to check on him frequently. The hospital isn’t secure, Colt. If Anton finds out he’s there, he could send someone to finish the job.”

I knew I had his agreement when he closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. That was his “Layla drives me fucking batshit crazy, but I’m going to give her what she wants because she’s always right, looks pretty, and sucks a mean dick” look. Or so I assumed.

“Fine, but only if the doctors agree to release him. We are not breaking him out of the fucking hospital, Layla,” Colt warned.

“Would I ever do a thing like that?” I asked, batting my eyelashes.

“Yes,” Colt, Cordy, Drew, Tyler, and Keith said at once.

Zach grinned at me. “I’d help,” he chuckled.

I had to grin back at him because I knew it was true. Zach frequently encouraged my crazy.

“Then it’s settled,” Cordy stated. “But I’ll warn you now, Keith Simmons: If you overdo it or don’t follow my instructions, I will beat you with my spatula.”

“Cordy is so kinky,” Zach teased.

“Yes, Ma’am,” Keith replied, his voice getting a little husky, making Cordy turn pink. This was an interesting development.

“Ok, Keith. We’ll let you go so I can talk to your doctors. Try not to get into trouble in the meantime,” I said.

“I’ll do my best,” he replied.

“Yeah, or you might get Cordy’s spatula,” Zach snorted. “Ouch!”

Cordy whacked him a second time, making us all chuckle.

“I’ll see you guys soon,” Keith said.

It took me the rest of the morning to get the doctors on board. First, they wanted to run a host of new tests, which I supported. Then they insisted that hospital security could keep him safe and that discharging him wasn’t necessary. After more back-and-forth between me and them, during which I yelled and made endless threats, I finally called Doctor Rueben, which I should have done initially.

Within fifteen minutes, he transferred Keith to himself as a patient, looked over his tests, and told me that as long as Keith remained in bed, he was free to come home. Drew and Tyler went to pick him up. I wanted to go, too, but I got outvoted. Instead, I helped Cordy set up the spare bedroom in her apartment. It was on the ground floor, and this way, she would always be nearby if Keith needed anything.

When Keith got back to the house, we rushed to greet him.

“No need for all this fuss,” he grumbled as they helped him up the front steps. “I already told you I was fine.” He looked a hell of a lot better than he did the last time I saw him, but he still looked like shit.

“Straight to bed,” Cordy ordered when he stepped inside. We all hovered around him as he went through the kitchen to Cordy’s apartment.

Once he was settled in bed, he looked around. “Where’s Sean?”

We all went silent, and he looked at each of us in confusion, one by one. “What happened?”

“Sean’s dead,” I told him.

“Aw hell, Boss. I’m so sorry,” Keith replied. “Anton will get what’s coming to him. You’ll see.”

“I killed him.” Keith’s stunned look pushed me to explain. “He was behind my kidnapping. Thought it might convince me to leave all of this behind.”

“I see,” Keith said, his expression darkening. “Then I’m glad that you did what you needed to do.”

“Ok, that’s enough business talk,” Cordy announced, clapping her hands together. “Everybody out. You all have work to do, and our patient has some healing to do. Did they feed you before they released you?”

“No, ma’am. Just breakfast this morning before Layla called.”

“Good. I have a pot of chicken noodle soup cooking on the stove and a loaf of freshly baked bread resting.” My stomach growled, and Cordy gave me a knowing look. “I also have a pot of potato soup on the stove. I will let you know when it’s time to eat. Now, shoo.”

T he rest of the afternoon was uneventful as we continued to sift through our files, searching for spies. When my office phone rang, we all jumped and stared at it for a few more moments before Tyler leaned forward and answered it on the conference phone. Who the hell was calling the landline?

“Hello?” Tyler asked.

“Yes, good evening. I have Seamus O’Halloran calling for Miss Layla Romano,” the person on the phone replied.

I exchanged alarmed looks with my men sitting around the table. Johnny had gone home early since his daughter had a ballet recital, but everyone else was still there. Seamus O’Halloran was the leader of the Irish Mob in Boston. He and my father had been friendly, and it had been a visit to meet with him when I had met Sean for the first time. The fact that he was calling now did not bode well. The last damn thing I needed was a problem with the Irish.

“Speaking,” I replied.

“Wonderful. Let me transfer the call to Mr. O’Halloran. Just one moment,” the man replied.

Tyler reached forward to mute the mic. “What the fuck does he want?” he hissed.

“No idea,” Colt replied, “But we’re about to find out.”

“Hello? Layla?” O’Halloran said

“Yes, I’m here,” I replied.

“First, let me offer my condolences on your father’s passing. I always liked Joseph Romano. He was a good man,” Seamus said.

“Yes, sir, he was. Thank you for the flowers you sent,” I replied.

“Now, to the unfortunate reason for my call. I’ve been made aware of some things that have happened in Atlantic City that concern me,” Seamus said.

“And what would those be?” I asked, as my already uneasy feeling about this call grew stronger.

“Well, the first would be the rumor that you killed Anton Kandicci Sr. Is that true?”

“It is. Junior had the opportunity to trade places with him, but he chose not to. As much as it pained me to do so, it was necessary. Anton Jr has taken plenty of lives, including my father’s.”

“And what about Sean Haggerty? What is your explanation for his death?” My eyes flew up to meet Colt’s. There was no doubt in my mind now that Anton went running to Boston for backup. Fucking pussy.

“Sean betrayed me to Anton,” I replied. “Though, with all due respect, I’m struggling to figure out how what happens in my city is any business of yours.”

“Killing the head of another family and a member of mine makes it my business,” Seamus responded without malice or anger. “Holding a gun to my men during a civil meeting makes it my business.”

“I think we’ll have to agree to disagree about that, Seamus,” I replied, my anger growing. “Sean held a high-level position in my organization, and the Kandicci family is in my city. The incident with the gun happened with Sean and was a necessary precaution due to the hostilities expressed by his former men.”

Seamus chuckled. “Your father did always talk about how much spunk you had.” I rolled my eyes. I was growing tired of all these old-timers telling me what my father did or didn’t say, as if it was supposed to bring us closer.

“Boston has nothing to do with this war and should be careful about the level of involvement they take in it,” I replied.

“Is that a threat, Layla?” he asked softly.

“Anton isn’t the only one who knows how to reach out to other families for help, Seamus. This war between Anton and myself can stay just that, between us. If you make it bigger, I will be forced to call in some very old favors. My father was well-liked, and I’m sure others will be upset to hear about the circumstances regarding his death. New York is only a short drive away, after all.”

“I like you, I really do,” Seamus chuckled. “What’s more, I respect you. When I respect someone, I like to look the man, or in your case, the woman, in the eye when doing business with them. You can tell a lot by looking in a person’s eyes. I would like to meet to discuss this further. Meet me tomorrow morning at Collis P. Huntington State Park in Connecticut. I feel we should avoid New York, don’t you?”

“I have no reason to avoid it,” I replied.

Seamus ignored my sass. “There is a statue of wolves where we can meet. Why don’t we say nine in the morning? I’ll bring the coffee, you bring the bagels. We’ll have a nice breakfast and decide what we will do about our little problem.”

We both knew that I didn’t have a choice: meet and hopefully smooth this over, show up and die, or don’t show up and definitely die. I didn’t doubt for one second that Seamus would send his men for us if he thought it necessary. However, I wouldn’t let him walk all over me at this meeting either. “What kind of bagel do you want?”

“Onion with cream cheese would be lovely,” Seamus replied.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, then,” I said.

“I’m looking forward to it. Enjoy the rest of your evening.” Seamus hung up, and we stared at each other silently for a few seconds.

“I guess we know where Anton went,” Drew finally said.

“It’s a three-and-a-half-hour drive up there,” Tyler said, checking his phone. We’re going to have to leave early.”

“Why don’t we just take the chopper instead?” Zach suggested. “It would be faster, and then we could make a quick getaway if necessary.”

“Did we get it back from Tuck?” I asked.

“Yep,” Drew replied. “And not a scratch on her.”

“Then I’m all for flying over driving,” I replied. “That means I get to sleep later.”

I looked at the other capos. “You guys keep an eye on things while we’re gone. We will keep you updated as the situation unfolds.”

“Just be careful, Boss. You could very well not return from this meeting,” Kyle cautioned.

“And if I don’t go, we won’t be long for this world,” I replied.

“Maybe you should take more backup,” Danny suggested.

“If I come heavily protected, it will seem aggressive. We’re just going to have to trust that we can come to some sort of an understanding. Boston’s involvement in Atlantic City matters won’t go well in New York; Seamus knows that. Why he is even entertaining Anton, I don’t know, but we’ll find out in the morning.”

“Do you want to bring Dash and Dire?” Colt asked.

I sighed and chewed on my lip as I thought about his question. I always wanted to bring them, and they certainly offered a level of protection that made a person think twice. But I also didn’t want them to get hurt, and bringing them with me to this meeting was putting their lives at risk. “Unfortunately, I think I’ll have to leave them at home. If Seamus or one of his men killed my wolves, I’d have to go nuclear on their asses, and that won’t be good for anyone.”

“That’s probably a good call,” Drew agreed.

“Ok. That’s settled. Why don’t we call it a night? We’ll meet back here tomorrow afternoon to continue going through these files if we’re still alive. Part of me hopes we aren’t just so we don’t have to anymore,” I joked.

“Not funny,” Colt replied.

“It was a little funny,” Zach snickered.

T he next morning, when we woke up, Colton was gone. “I don’t understand,” I said to Tyler as I read over the note Colt left.

Hellcat,

I had to take care of something. I’ll meet you there. I love you.

- Colt

“What the hell could he possibly have to do that had to happen this morning?“ I demanded.

“You know as much as we do, Layla,” Tyler replied.

I narrowed my eyes at him and then looked at Drew and Zach. “Somehow, I don’t believe you. There is no way Colt would go off on his own without giving someone a better explanation than this garbage note.”

Zach shrugged, and Drew had a hard time meeting my eyes. When he did, I could see the war within them. Something was fucking up, and nobody was going to talk.

“Fine. Keep your secrets for now. I don’t have the time to beat them out of you,” I huffed as I finished getting dressed.

“Do you trust us?” Tyler asked, pulling my back against his chest.

“Yes.”

“Do you love us?”

“Yes.”

“Then let it go, love. All things will be revealed in due time.” He kissed my neck and released me, leaving behind a growing sense of dread.

What the fuck were they up to? And why did I feel like it was going to change everything?