After greeting Finley, Cain got everything in position for their guests. For the moment, Finley would stand among her and Remi’s guards so she could observe. Cain had no idea who the players were, but Finley had at least half the equation. At least, she hoped she had half the information, because if someone other than who they anticipated showed up, this charade would have to continue.
“No matter what, you stay over there and don’t say a word,” she said to Finley as a car approached the building.
“Boss, we’re ready,” Lou said after finishing a call. There were some tense moments as Lou and the others disarmed the muscle their guests had brought with them.
“I thought you offered your friendship?” Yury—at least that’s who she guessed he was—scowled at her.
“I start most friendships with as little weaponry as possible. If you object, then you can leave.” She pointed to the door with a smile. “In my house, we follow my rules.”
Yury nodded, then, as if he owned the place, waved her over to the chairs that had been set out. The woman with him sat like a trained seal.
“I’m Cain Casey,” she held her hand out, “and this is my friend Remi Jatibon. Remi’s my business associate as well, and she’s here to help.”
“Yury Antakov,” he said, accepting her handshake. “This is my wife, Valerie.”
“I’m sure you’ve got plenty on your mind, so what can I do for you?” Cain asked as they all sat.
“I am sure the most important thing in your life is your children,” Yury said, his head slightly tilted, giving him an air of sincerity. “Am I right?”
“My children, my wife, my entire family. Yes. I’d think anyone with an ounce of honor would feel the same way. Does this have something to do with your family?” She wanted to get to the point before the night was done.
“My daughter Nicola, like you, married a woman she loved. They had three children. At Nicola’s passing, this woman cut us from their lives.” Valerie only nodded as Yury spoke.
“Do you mean Nicola Eaton? I met her a few times but never had the pleasure of getting to know her well.”
“I thought it best to change the name once our business was established, but the Antakov name still demands respect on the street. I am sure you understand that as well. My daughter-in-law, Abigail, does not. My wife cries for wanting these children in our lives, and this woman spits in her face.”
Cain nodded, glancing briefly at Finley. Her cousin appeared ready to strangle Yury and Valerie simultaneously, since her shoulders seemed tight, her fists were clenched, and her mouth was set in a thin, grim line. “What reason does she give?”
“I don’t like talking about it,” Valerie said, her impatient tone belying her role as the wounded grandmother.
Yury lifted his hands, palm up, and gave her another altar-boy head tilt. “My daughter’s children have a right to grow up with the knowledge of who they are.”
“This woman, Abigail, doesn’t want that?” Remi asked.
The viper in Valerie broke its restraints. “Abigail was Nicola’s mistake, and she’s too weak to raise Antakov heirs. We need them back, and my husband’s giving you an opportunity for easy money if you help us,” Valerie said, her eyes only on Cain.
“I’ll help, but I’ll do it from friendship. You won’t owe me anything,” Cain said. Yury was cold-blooded, but nowhere close to his wife’s league. If their relationship was supposed to be a balance, the scale of cruelty tipped more toward Valerie. Cain took down their contact information and escorted them out.
“You’ll help them for friendship? Are you fucking kidding me?” Finley vented because she’d let them leave, and Cain thought it was a hell of a time for her Casey genes or nature to come out of hibernation. “Those animals want Abigail dead and want to raise her children to become pimps. They make a lot of goddamn money doing what they do, but that’s all they are. No expensive suit or impeccable manners are going to cover up the smell of shit on them.”
“Stick with what you know,” Cain said, holding her hand up to forestall Finley’s anger. “You understand what has to happen. I couldn’t let that take place here. They need to be seen somewhere else so this doesn’t come back to us. Think about the ramifications. These kinds of people don’t work in a vacuum.”
The reality of who these people were dawned in Finley’s eyes as she stared at Cain. This was real and very scary. Finley couldn’t hide behind the computer screen Cain knew was her normal job. “They’ll never stop coming after Abigail, will they?” Finley’s fire seemed to dampen in the cold reality of what she faced.
“No. Not even if you have enough to put them away for life.” Cain couldn’t sugarcoat the truth or take a lot of time to decide the logical next step. That pained her because that type of decision changed your life and, in Finley’s case, would perhaps prevent her from going back to the job she loved.
Forty minutes later, Finley seemed at peace with the only real choice that would keep her new family safe.
“Are you sure?” Cain asked one last time, since Finley had been quiet for the entire ride into the city. Finley nodded, so she reached in the backseat for what she’d brought with her.
“Yes, and that’s why you don’t have to stay,” Finley said as she accepted the tommy gun that had belonged to Cain’s father. They were parked not far from the building that housed the Hell Fire Club, waiting for Yury and Valarie.
“It was Da’s. It’s unregistered, and when you’re done, it’ll go back into mothballs. I just thought if you wanted to be sure, this’ll guarantee it.”
She saw the car with Remi and her people pull away, getting in front of the Antakovs’ vehicle, so she followed and lowered the passenger-side window. Yury and Valerie turned toward them as every member of their protection went down from the hail of bullets from Remi’s vehicle. If Finley froze, Lou and Katlin were right behind them, but that didn’t happen. Finley opened fire, hitting both her targets repeatedly.
Cain drove calmly away, leaving their targets where they landed, and kept going until they reached the spot Lou had scoped out for this. Once they were out of their vehicles, Lou and the others scrubbed them down before they torched them. Finley seemed okay, but it’d take a few days for the shock to set in. Maybe by then she’d be ready for the new life that awaited her back with Abigail and her family.
“I owe you, Cain,” Finley said as she embraced her.
“You’re my family, so we’ll never have debts between us—never.”
*
The quality of the gate kept the numerous agents Joe had brought outside until he threatened to blow the hell out of it. He shoved the warrant through the wrought iron, almost slapping the guy on the other side in the face with it. “Open it now, or I’m cuffing you as soon as I open this gate with a grenade. Then I’m going to bulldoze the front door so you can explain it to your boss.”
Of all the things that bothered Joe the most about this job, it was the smug smiles all these wise guys wore. The guy still stared at him, moving only after his phone rang. He listened for a moment, then pressed a button and the gate unlocked. Joe needed to get inside before Cain could make it home in time to establish an alibi.
The goose chase had ended in a gunfight downtown that had left eight people dead in front of some building that mostly held oil-field companies. Joe and the others concluded that Cain had somehow shaken her surveillance, then killed a bunch of people for whatever reason. He’d moved fast as soon as the call came in, wanting to be in place when she came slinking back with some flip response as to where she’d been.
“Joe, I’ve got your back but go easy. If she feels cornered, this might end badly,” Shelby said, glancing at her phone every so often. “Let’s see who exactly this hit took out.”
“Cain isn’t going to rush out guns blazing with her family in there. I came prepared this time and got a warrant ahead of time.” He gestured for the other agents to circle the house. “Get out back and cover all the doors.”
He unholstered his weapon and moved to the house but stopped short when the door opened. The older woman who appeared in the doorway wrung her hands in distress, so he slowed, his gun pointed at the ground.
“Can I help you?” the woman asked.
He flashed his credentials, hoping the large letters of FBI would get her out of the doorway. “Please step aside, ma’am. We have a warrant to search this house.”
The woman hesitated but stepped back to let him pass.
“Try the office first,” Shelby said, pointing to the hall at the other end of the foyer.
“Can I ask what you’re looking for, or is it a secret?” The voice at the top of the stairs made Joe spin around, and he had to fight his instinct to lift his gun. “You’ve got a warrant, but I still have a right to know what you’re here for.”
“We’re searching for evidence from an altercation tonight,” Shelby said, moving in front of Joe.
“I don’t know if it was you two, but someone followed me when I came home.” Cain came down in a robe and bare feet. “Did someone get in a fight in my yard?”
“This dumb act on your part is getting old,” he said, holstering his weapon. He’d never seen Cain dressed so casually, and he was irritated that it made him uncomfortable. “You’ll need to come in and answer some questions about tonight. This can go easy, or it can go otherwise.”
“I’m familiar with the otherwise.” Cain spoke softly, her expression giving away nothing. She seemed to be looking behind him so he couldn’t help but glance back. The young agent appeared almost fearful, judging by his pained expression, and he remembered this was the kid who’d delivered the envelope from Cain to Annabel. “You got me out of bed, and my attorney will be here shortly so I’m not going anywhere. My wife’s expecting, and since you waste your days watching me, you should know that.”
“If I want you to come in, you’re coming in,” he said. For once, this was in his power to do. “I’m not sure how you beat me back here, but we both know you’re responsible.”
“I don’t need to put special in front of any title I might have, Special Agent Joe, to know that if you have or have ever had proof, you wouldn’t need to ask questions. Questions are like worms. They’re bait that you cast out and wiggle to make themselves enticing. But I’m not your ordinary stupid fish.” She moved away from them to the closest room at the front of the house. At the living room’s center was a small table with two dolls sitting around it. Judging from the china tea set, Hannah liked to play here. Cain sat on the sofa. “What did I do now?”
“Any bait-wiggling will happen downtown.” Joe ignored her gesture inviting them to also sit.
“Actually, my client has been home all night,” Muriel said as she entered and sat next to Cain. “After a meeting earlier tonight, Cain returned here, and the others went their separate ways. Those associates are still out celebrating a few things talked about at that meeting, so unless a quiet night at home and a few beers with friends have become a crime, my client’s not going anywhere.”
“We’ve got a lot of people dead on the street, Counselor. As you should’ve learned on the first day of law school, that’s a crime.”
“Joe,” Shelby said, “give me a minute outside.”
He pointed at Cain. “Don’t move.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Cain said.
Her smile infuriated him, and he jabbed his finger in the air to punctuate his words. “These people who were killed are the type that won’t be forgotten. Local and federal law enforcement will be under pressure to solve this case, so it won’t go easy for you. Think about that.”
“Listen—” Shelby said once they were in the yard.
“We need to start looking for a connection between the Eatons and Casey.” He talked over her, but Shelby kept her tone even.
“We need to get back to the office, so take a breath and calm down. The Eatons aren’t what they seem, and our office is raiding a place called the Hell Fire Club right now. Agent Hicks said a group from the New York bureau is here with information about all this. Tonight might be a gang war, but it’s got nothing to do with Cain.”
“What do you mean, the Eatons aren’t what they seem?” He rubbed his forehead even though his neck hurt. If he’d jumped the gun, Cain would throw his attitude back at him a hundredfold.
“The agent from New York has some extensive files for us to go through. I doubt we’ll be the ones to investigate the case, but Hicks wants us to be sure.” She stared at the house and cleared her throat.
Joe turned and exhaled when he saw Cain walking toward them.
“Are we done? I love when you guys visit as much as a root canal, but I need to get back upstairs.”
“We’re done for now.” Joe hated admitting that. “But don’t leave town.”
“I guess I’ll have to cancel my trip to Transylvania for my fang-sharpening visit,” Cain said. Her smile held no humor and her eyes turned cold. “Next time you feel like fishing, Special Agent Joe, pick another pond. Not all bad roads lead to my door.” The yard filled with a lot of big guys as Cain returned to the house. They obviously were to be their escort out.
Joe knew he’d blown any future opportunity to get back inside the Casey gates. Muriel would make it much harder to get another warrant. “You really think she wasn’t involved?”
“I can’t read her mind, but Cain doesn’t exploit women, and that’s what this is about,” Shelby said. “Cain concentrates more on exploiting the government and guys like us.”
“Her luck can’t last forever,” he said, waving all their people out.
“I wouldn’t take that bet,” Shelby said. She looked up and found Cain staring at them from the upstairs windows. “Whatever we may think of her, she seems to be blessed with an abundance of luck.”
“Maybe we should ask her to share.”