Crew

C rew wasn’t sure that opening up the cold case was a good idea, but who was he to argue with his boss? He was a nobody, but that worked for him. As an undercover detective, he needed to be inconspicuous and fly under the radar. That was exactly what he planned to do about this case, and if he was lucky enough to find anything to take back to his boss, then great.

He followed Ross and Zane back to a small office that had an oversized desk sitting up against the wall and a sofa that took up an entire wall in the room. The office was nothing like the opulent lobby. The paneling on the walls gave the feeling that whoever decorated the office had done so in the 1970s.

“Do you want something to drink?” Ross asked him. “The pizza will be here soon.” Ross pulled a bottle of whiskey from the shelf behind the desk along with four glasses.

“I’m on duty,” said. “And with that, I guess we should make this all legal,” he said, pulling his badge out of his jacket pocket. “I’m Detective Montgomery and I’d like to ask the three of you a few questions about the death of Susan O’Hare.”

“Who?” Leo asked. The poor guy looked about as lost as the hot guy who ran into him in the lobby.

“Susan O’Hare,” repeated as though saying her name again would explain everything to Leo.

“I’m still lost,” Leo said. “There was a murder in this club and our fathers never mentioned it?”

Ross’s smirk was firmly in place again as he looked at his husband. “Babe, my father kept this place a secret from me until after his death. Do you honestly think he’d mention a murdered girl in a club he kept hidden from my family?”

“I guess not, but I’m trying to figure out why my father wouldn’t tell me about the murder,” Leo insisted.

Zane sunk into the sofa and yawned. “Your father didn’t tell you shit,” he accused. “Tony was never a very forthcoming person. Why would you expect him to share something like a murder at his place of business?” Zane said.

“You know, for a silent partner, you sure do have a lot to say, Zane,” Leo grumbled.

“Okay, we can pick at each other later. Let’s answer ’s questions so that we can enjoy the rest of our night,” Ross insisted.

“Always the voice of reason,” Zane teased.

“Naw,” Leo drawled, “he’s just bossy as hell.”

Ross winked at his husband, smiling his wolfish grin. “And you wouldn’t have me any other way,” he said.

Leo sighed and smiled back at his husband. “You’re right,” he breathed.

looked between the two of them and cleared his throat. He felt as though he had just witnessed something that he shouldn’t have. He pulled his small note pad from his front pocket, along with a pen, and sat down on the sofa next to Zane.

“So, the three of you didn’t know Susan O’Hare?” asked, trying to get back to the reason for his visit.

“Nope,” Zane said, “but that doesn’t mean that our fathers didn’t know her. How long ago did you say that she was killed?”

“A year ago,” said, “on June 29. Were any of you spending time in the club last year around that time?” He watched the three men closely, trying to see if any of them had a tell when lying, but he saw nothing.

“I didn’t even know about this place a year ago,” Ross insisted.

“Me either,” Zane chimed in.

“I knew about it, but I never came here. In fact, I thought that it was kind of weird that our fathers bought this place,” Leo said. “I mean, just thinking about them ever coming here grosses me out.”

“Agreed,” Ross said. “So, how did this girl die?” wasn’t sure how much information he should disclose to the new club owners. They were all suspects until he could rule them out, and he hadn’t done that yet.

“She was found in a private room with her throat slit,” admitted. He left out the part about her being about five months pregnant. He had to get his papers from the judge, approving her body to be exhumed, before they’d have any real answers as to who the father might be. There was no autopsy done after the police found her body, and that had always troubled him. Someone had to have paid off the officers in charge—someone powerful enough to have pull with the police commissioner at the time.

“Jesus,” Zane whispered, “and, you have no leads?”

“I was just put on the case, but until now, no one can figure out a motive or find a suspect in the case. My boss is trying to keep it from becoming a cold case, but without the information that we need, I can’t stop that from happening. Would either of your fathers be willing to speak with me?” asked. “For some reason, they weren’t questioned the first time around. It was almost as though the case had been swept under the proverbial rug.” Leo and Ross looked at each other and knew that they were going to give him a fight about dragging their fathers into his investigation. There wasn’t a reasonable excuse as to why their dads weren’t questioned in the first place. He wasn’t sure if it was faulty police work or if the notorious mobsters had paid someone off to keep their names out of the investigation.

“I hate to tell you this,” Ross said, “but our fathers are both dead.” He had heard something about Leo being held and questioned for his father’s death, but he hoped that Ross’s father was still alive. Without either of them, his case was dead in the water. The last thing wanted to have to do was go back to the office to tell his boss that he couldn’t find out anything.

“I’m sorry,” said. “I had heard rumors about your dad, Leo, but I didn’t know about your father, Ross. My condolences to you both.”

“Thanks, man,” Ross breathed.

Zane cleared his throat, garnering their attention. The guy was so quiet that almost had forgotten that he was still in the room with them. “How do you and Ross know each other?” he asked. wanted to ask him why he wanted to know, but Ross had already started telling the story about how they went to high school together and how they both hated each other until their senior year. That’s when they started hanging out at parties and got to know each other. decided that Ross wasn’t the complete jerk that everyone said he was, and that’s when he started to really like the guy. They had stayed in touch over the years, even though they weren’t as close as they were as kids. Zane nodded as though he was good with Ross’s explanation.

“How about your dad?” Leo asked Zane. “Do you think that Bobby would know anything about the murder?”

Zane shrugged and noticed that he seemed a bit nervous. “No clue,” he said. “My father and I haven’t seen eye to eye lately. Ever since both of your fathers passed, he’s been kind of distant. He’s teaching me the ropes to one day take over the family business, but we don’t exchange small talk.”

“I’m guessing that you both have taken over for your fathers,” asked. Ross and Leo nodded, and Zane just shrugged leaving to try to figure out what the hell that meant. The Ballerini, Capo, and Marino families were well-known mafia families. If the three guys in the room with him had taken over for their fathers, that would mean that they were playing on the other side and that would need to keep his eye on each of them. Although, he was pretty sure that keeping an eye on Zane Marino wasn’t going to be much of a hardship since the guy was just his type.

“Would you give your father my business card and tell him that I’d like to schedule a meeting with him? I’ll take just a few minutes of his time,” said. He handed Zane his card, letting his fingers brush over his, and loved the little hitch in Zane’s breath that he elicited. Yeah, he was just ’s type.

“I’ll try,” Zane promised.

“Great,” said, turning to leave the room. He turned back to face the three men again, knowing that what he was about to ask them wasn’t going to go over well, but he needed more intel before going back to his boss. “Oh, and I’d like a membership to your club,” he said. “I’ll need to go undercover, and I’d appreciate your discretion about my true identity.”

“Um, sure,” Ross said. Leo shot his husband a look and knew that he wanted to deny him access to their club.

“Do you think that’s a good idea?” Leo asked Ross. “I mean, we pride ourselves on keeping our members safe and if is stalking them, asking questions about a murder that happened a year ago, how safe will they feel?” almost felt bad about his request, but there was no other way to find Susan’s killer.

“How long will you need to be undercover?” Zane asked. wanted to ask the guy if he was a member too, but he didn’t want to seem too forward or personal.

“As long as it takes,” admitted. “Honestly, there is no telling when it comes to cases like this. If you’d like, I can give you weekly reports to let you know if I have any leads,” he offered.

“That would be great,” Ross said. “You’ll be reporting to Zane. He’s looking for a project around here.” Ross and Leo chuckled, and wondered what that was all about. “I’m sure he’d be willing to give you a tour too, if you have time.” Zane shot Ross a look and didn’t miss the way he mouthed, “Fuck off,” to both him and Leo, making them laugh even harder.

“I’d appreciate a tour. I need to be familiar with the club. I’d also like to see room three,” he said. “I know that there won’t be any evidence left after a year, but I’d like to compare the crime scene photos with the actual room.”

“No problem,” Zane agreed, “just follow me.”

started for the door, keeping up with Zane who seemed to be in a hurry. He thanked Ross and Leo as he chased Zane out of the office, staying hot on his heels. “Try to keep up,” Zane growled back over his shoulder. wasn’t sure if he was being tested or what, but he was sure of one thing. He was up for any challenge that Zane threw his way.