| |
––––––––
“COME OUT WITH ME TONIGHT.”
I looked up from the book I'd been trying and failing to read and found Warren frowning down at me. We'd been stuck in the house all day, each of us glancing out the windows every time we passed them, and I was feeling edgy and cooped up. I thought he probably had it even worse than I did. After all, he was used to being out in the world doing things rather than stuck in a house.
But without even talking about it, I thought we both felt the same way: that being out there in the world right now was dangerous. We didn't know what Tony and Mark had planned next, but we knew that they were gunning for us. And out there, we might not see them coming.
At least if we were in the house, we'd have the home field advantage. So to speak.
“Do you think that's a good idea?” I asked. “I mean, don't you think that makes us sitting ducks?”
Warren's face darkened, but then he shook himself, looking like he was intentionally forcing the thought down. “Maybe. But that doesn't mean I'm going to accept it. I don't like hiding in the house just waiting for them to make their move, and I'm guessing you don't like it any better than I do.”
I shut the book and set it to the side. “I don't.”
He reached out and took my hand, pulling me out of the chair and into his arms. “Then let's go out tonight,” he said quietly, staring deeply into my eyes. “Let's go out there and show Tony McCarthy that he doesn't scare us and that he's not going to keep us from doing what we want.”
I stifled a grin. “Honestly, I'd say we also need to show Mark McCarthy.”
He shrugged one shoulder, but I could see his mouth curling up in a grin. “Maybe. But I find that I hate Tony more. He's the one I really want to piss off.”
I laughed at that and nodded, wrapping my arms around him and burrowing into the space between his shoulder and his neck. Was I worried about going out there and inviting Tony and Mark into our business? Yes.
But Warren was right; I didn't want Tony thinking we were scared of him. Because we weren't.
And having Warren by my side made it a whole lot easier to remember that.
***
WE WENT TO THE BEST restaurant in town, and though it didn't have anything on any of the restaurants in Chicago—or even some of the larger towns around here—we got dressed up and pretended that this was a big deal. Warren opened the door for me and ushered me in like we were going to a big, fancy place, and I curtsied at him and walked through the doors, all smiles and butterflies at the way he was treating me.
The whole place went quiet as soon as I stepped in, though, and that eliminated both the smile and the butterflies.
I glanced around at the people inside and saw that they were all staring at me and Warren, their eyebrows lifted and their mouths caught open as they stared. The place was dead quiet... and then suddenly broke out in a flurry of whispers, people turning to each other and hissing some things that I couldn't quite hear.
Though I guessed I didn't really have to hear them.
Everyone in town knew I'd been dating Tony, and they had to have noticed when I suddenly disappeared. Most people would know that my mom had been in an accident and I'd come flying home, and further, that the house right next to mine had burned down not long after that.
Who knew what sort of rumors Tony himself had been spreading about me in my absence and now that I was home. Sure, I'd been raised in this town and knew almost everyone by name. I'd grown up with their kids and gone to their houses for cookies and lemonade. But Tony and his dad were the money in town and had probably paid off everyone who'd take payment. They employed a lot of these people.
They had the power. And if they said I was no good or that I was causing trouble for them, people were going to believe it.
I stared at men and women I'd known since I was a girl and watched as they whispered to each other about me. And I met each of their eyes and stared at them until they looked away, flushes rising in their faces and their shoulders slumping a bit.
Good. I hoped they felt guilty. I hoped they felt stupid for saying whatever they were saying and maybe even believing it. And I hoped they knew that I didn't care what they thought. I had just as much right to be in this town as they did, and they couldn't make me feel bad for coming home when my mother needed me.
Warren reached down and took my hand, squeezing it slightly like he knew exactly what I was thinking, and then we walked forward and told the hostess that we needed a table.
“For two?” she asked hesitantly.
“Obviously,” Warren returned.
She jumped a bit, but then nodded and collected two menus from behind her stand. We followed her to a corner booth and slid in, turning toward each other the moment she was gone.
“Well, this is awkward,” I said quietly.
Warren just chuckled. “They should be the ones who feel awkward. Can you imagine being stupid enough to believe whatever it is Tony and his dad are saying about us?”
“You think it's about us?”
“Of course I do. You don't think you're the only one they're talking about, do you?”
When I didn't say anything, he chuckled and leaned toward me, pressing a soft kiss to my lips.
“And why do you think you'd get all the attention, hmm? You don't think I'm just as important as you are?”
I... hadn't thought of it that way at all. “Of course not! I guess I just assume they'll be going after me.”
“Do I need to remind you that it was my house they burned down?”
I made a face at him. “And do I need to remind you that I was in it when that happened?”
He took my hand again. “Let's not talk about him. I'm taking his name off the list of acceptable topics for dinner.”
It was a good thought. Really, it was. And I would have liked to agree to it because my brain needed a break from all the thinking. The problem was, my brain didn't want to take a break. I wanted to know more about the girl who'd taken a restraining order out against Tony. I wanted to know what he'd done and how she'd gotten a court to agree to it. Where had she filed for it? What did it say?
And where was she now? Was she still alive? Would she be willing to help us if we found her?
If. That seemed like a big question. She'd managed to hide from Tony—I hoped—and Richard had said he couldn't find her. Was she just that good at keeping her identity a secret? Or was this something more sinister?
Had Tony gotten around the restraining order and killed her? Or done something to make her stay quiet?
I needed that girl if I was going to take him down. She might be the only one who'd managed to get a real police report on his activity—enough that she'd gotten a restraining order. But I didn't think I'd be able to see the order or the charges behind it unless she gave them to me. I needed to find her, and I needed to figure out what she had.
Maybe then I could take Tony down.
“I can see from the look on your face that you're failing at not thinking about Tony,” Warren said quietly, watching me. “So you might as well tell me what you're thinking.”
I bit my lip. Damn this face that couldn't keep a secret. Still, two heads were better than one, right? Maybe Warren would see an answer I hadn't seen yet. So I told him what I was thinking about the girl and the restraining order, and about the idea that she must have found a way into another city—and another police department—if she'd managed to get one.
“Which means there must be a police file on him,” I finished. “She might have the only record of police actually taking a statement. It might be exactly what we need to take him down. I know it's not the same as finding out what's going on with the shell companies and all that, but if we have proof that he was hitting someone other than me...”
“It could put him behind bars,” he finished. “But only if we have rock-solid proof and witnesses. And only if we can get all that without him finding out. This guy isn't going to be easy to take down, Lily. He's got law enforcement on his side, and I don't think he'll stop at much. He's used to getting his own way.”
“Which means we'll have to be careful, I know,” I said, nodding. “But I think we can do it.”
He slipped his fingers between mine and held them, the corner of his mouth curling up in the start of a grin. “I think we can, too.”
I just smiled back, the excitement growing in my veins. Because yes, this was scary and definitely dangerous. There was a very good chance that we'd fail, and that we'd get ourselves into trouble just for trying. Tony and Mark McCarthy were powerful men, and we were just...
Well, not powerful. Not at all.
But we were going to be working together, and at the moment, that felt like it was all we needed. I didn't know what was coming for us, and I wasn't positive how we were going to get to where we wanted to go, but as long as I had Warren fighting with me, standing there by my side, I thought I'd be okay.
I'd barely had the thought when a man I vaguely recognized but didn't know well slipped into one of the empty spots at our table.
I frowned at him, trying to decide how I knew him. I'd seen him around town but couldn't remember his name and had absolutely no idea what he did. He was from here, I was sure of that, but as to who he actually was...
“Can we help you with something?” Warren asked sharply. “This is a private dinner.”
The guy held up his hands in surrender. “I know, and I'm sorry. But it's safer to talk to you when you're in public than it is to go to your house.”
Warren leaned forward, a dark menace. “And why the fuck would you want to come to our house? Who are you, and what do you want?”
The guy leaned forward, his stance matching Warren's, though his face didn't take on the anger Warren was showing. “Frank Davis. Local sheriff. And I'd want to come to your house to talk to you about one Tony McCarthy and what he's doing in our town.”
Warren's glare didn't let up, though I noticed his mouth relaxed a bit. As for me, I didn't allow myself to breathe out. Not yet. The last time someone had approached us in public with the name Tony McCarthy on his lips, it had been to warn us to leave town.
I didn't know what this Frank Davis guy wanted, but if he was going to say we should get out of Dodge and hide, then he had another think coming.
“And what would you want to talk about, Frank Davis?” Warren finally asked.
Frank, an older guy with a handlebar mustache and eyes that looked like he'd seen way too much in this life, got even closer. “I'd want to talk to you about that police report you tried to file against McCarthy. About what he did to Lily here five years ago. And what he's been in our department talking about doing.”
I sucked in a breath, shocked at the blatant statement of information, and felt my body jerk. My eyes shot through the restaurant, trying to figure out who might have heard us and whether we could get out of there quickly enough to keep anyone else from being suspicious. Because right now we were sitting here with a local cop, our heads ducked together and our words quiet, and I knew how that had to look.
We probably looked like we were doing exactly what we were doing. Keeping secrets. Talking about someone who wouldn't want us to talk about him.
But the fact that someone else wanted to discuss Tony McCarthy and not just to tell us that we needed to be careful...
This sort of information was too good to pass up. Even if we were sitting in a public place looking like we were planning a bank heist or something.
“What do you know about any of it?” I asked quickly. “And why are you talking to us?”
Frank turned his gaze toward me, his eyes narrowed a bit. “I know Tony has a reputation for getting around the law, first off. I know he and his dad make payments to the police department that the department itself never sees. And I know he's been in the chief's office lately, talking up a big story about how he's planning to take Warren out. Get back into your life. Make you love him the way you should have loved him the first time you were with him. And that, Lily, is the sort of information I figured you should probably know.”
It was the sort of information that stole my breath right out of my lungs, to be honest. Not that I hadn't suspected he was doing all of that, of course, but there was something about hearing it said so plainly—with no hesitation—that made it even more frightening.
Warren's hand shot out and grabbed Frank by the wrist. “And why the fuck are you telling us? If he's paying the cops, that includes you. Why should we trust you?”
Frank's gaze didn't leave mine when he answered. “Because Lily here isn't the only girl he's hit. My niece dated him for about two weeks, and he did more damage to her in that time than any man should ever do to a woman. She's still scared of the dark.” His eyes swiveled over to Warren. “I've been waiting for a chance to nail him down, and I hear he's been threatening Lily. But she's not leaving town. Instead, she's got an ex-military guy for a boyfriend and a big dog she takes everywhere with her. Rumor is she's getting ready to fight back. And if that's the truth, I want in.”
I caught my lip between my teeth and stared from Frank to Warren. There was a rumor that I was going to fight back?
That was bad.
If that was true, Tony would have heard it, and he'd be doing everything he could to keep me from doing just that. But at the same time...
If it had brought Frank to my table and he thought he could help...
“So what if I am?” I asked. “That doesn't involve you.”
Frank's lips twitched. “It does. You just don't know it yet. I think I can help.”
I snorted. “How? The police department is bought and paid for. Even if you tried to do anything, your boss would stop you.”
He leaned even closer and said, “He can't stop me from taking a report on what he did to you. He can stop me from filing it in his department, sure. But he can't stop me from passing the information to friends who don't live here. Friends who won't be so shy about filing a report like that. Friends who might have heard about Tony and his dad and are looking for a way to bring them down a few notches.”
I stared at him for several long seconds, too surprised to find an answer. Because if he was saying what I thought he was saying, it meant he was willing to put himself on the line to take Tony McCarthy down. Take my statement and pass it to someone who would file it.
“You're offering us a paper trail,” Warren said, making it a statement rather than a question.
Frank nodded. “Sure am. And one that exists outside of our little town. So it can get to people who can actually do something about it.”
“Why?”
Frank shrugged. “People like Tony McCarthy think they can do whatever they want. They don't care who gets hurt. Just means they won't notice when those little people rise up to fight back. But it takes working as a team to take them down. I'm hearing you two are already doing the work. Figure you can use some more people on your team.”
It took me less than no time to decide that this was exactly the opportunity we'd been waiting for.
“What do I need to do?” I asked.
“Come to my desk Friday night at 9. I'll take your statement. Make sure it's on paper. And then I'll have a friend file it in the next town over.”
I didn't know if it would do anything. I didn't know if it would even matter. This was just my version of what had happened, and it could lead to absolutely nothing.
But the fact that someone else believed me—that someone other than us was willing to fight against Tony McCarthy—made me feel like a huge weight had just been lifted off my chest.
“I'll do it,” I said. “And anything else you need, if it means we take Tony McCarthy down.”
Just as long as we did it before he realized what we were doing and came after us.
