Game(61)

Fiore had accidentally shot Zander.

There was a few seconds of some kind of calm. That was Finn’s only chance to do something. He rushed forward and grabbed Fiore. He put Fiore against the railing and then over. The last I ever saw of Fiore was his feet going up and over the railing, wearing the most expensive pair of leather shoes, probably worth more than anything I had ever owned in my life.

“Finn!” someone shouted. A woman’s voice. “Finn! Now!”

Finn put a hand out and looked at me. His face was swollen, a little bloody. But he was still sexy. Still beautiful. Still the man who had taken me, changed me, saved me, and loved me.

“It’s okay,” he said. “Trust me.”

“With my life,” I said and took his hand.

We ran through the smoke, dust, and the darkness… together.





45.


(Finn)



The man was as tall as me and twice as thick. A hearty mix of fat and muscle, but it was his face that was terrifying. His jet black hair had a perfect hairline and it met with a face that seemed as though he had never smiled in his life. Features so well defined that I couldn’t imagine this guy ever being younger. It was like he was created to be this guy, right here, right now.

“Finn,” he said with a deep voice.

I felt Shayna squeeze my hand. We were in a house. A really big house. A really nice house. I told her to trust me and trust whatever happened, but I hadn’t seen Mara since she helped us get into a black SUV from the fight. So I didn’t know what to think.

The large man shut the office door.

It was just the three of us.

He stood with his hands at his sides. “You understand my position, I hope.”

“I’m not even sure who you are,” I said.

“You can call me Pete.”

“Is that your real name?” Shayna asked.

“Does it matter?” Pete replied.

“I guess not,” Shayna whispered.

“Come. Sit.”

We sat in chairs across from Pete.

He sat and folded his hands. Seeing him like that brought on a new reality. This guy was higher up than Fiore was. This was one of the guys who made decisions for Fiore’s entire family. Christ, this guy was Fiore’s family.

“First thing,” Pete said, “I want you to know that under other circumstances you’d have been long taken care of, Finn. To have an Irishman in my office? What’s the world coming to? But I suppose every man can turn an eye even once in his life.”

“I appreciate that,” I said.

“Let’s talk about Fiore,” Pete said.

A moment later the door opened and Mara came in with her mother, Marie.

“Shayna?” Mara said. “I need you to excuse yourself. Use the restroom. Wash up.”

I nodded to Shayna.

We were in no position of argument.

Shayna rose up and Mara smiled at her. I wanted to feel comforted, but I couldn’t.

Hell, I even stood up and faced Marie.

“Oh, Finn,” she whispered. She tightened her lips. I thought I was about to get shot.

“Is he okay?” I asked. “Fiore?”

“You still care about him?” she asked.

“I don’t know. He killed my best friend. He wanted to kill me.”

“We know the entire story,” Pete said. “Fiore was an ill man. He had a hit put on his own son-in-law and it went wrong. We’d been watching him for a long time. Working with Zander. As long as it was contained and controlled, we were okay.”

“You lived like that?” I asked Marie.

Tears filled her eyes. “What choice did I have?”

I looked at Pete. “Now what?”

Pete pointed to the chair. I reluctantly sat again.

“We knew the lines were getting blurry. Poor Mara had been fighting hard for her father to get help. I never thought I’d see him go as far as he did. With yourself, Finn. With Shayna. We had been making arrangements to truly settle the murders of Antonio and baby Luca, but the more we watched Fiore and Zander, it was time to act. Mara was supposed to get to your cabin before the explosion. To stop it. But she couldn’t get there in time. Forgive my harsh words here, but thankfully someone else was inside the cabin that helped to buy us time.”

I leaned forward and slammed my fist to the table. I didn’t care who this guy was. “You listen to me. Thankfully? Someone else? No. That man in that cabin had a name. His name was Cormac. He was a goddamn brother to me. He was my best friend. He didn’t deserve to die like he did.”

Pete gently waved a hand at me and nodded. “I understand. Let me just start by saying this, Finn. Your cabin will be replaced, on me. A different location. The remains of your best friend will be taken care of. I can assure you that Fiore will never be a problem again. He is getting the proper help he should have after the death of his grandson.”

I looked at Marie and she hung her head, openly weeping.

Mara stood tall and beautiful, trying to be like stone.

Getting the proper help…

I had been around long enough to know what that meant.

Fiore was dead. And not by me pushing him over the railing.

“There’s something else, Finn,” Pete said.

“What?”