Deep (Pagano Family #4)(31)

A vast television and an elaborate home theater and gaming setup took up most of the wall facing the sofa. The recliner was angled toward it, too. Brian liked the simple things—easy women, good beer, loud games, and louder movies.

“Talk to me about Monday.” Though Brian was only a soldier, much to Nick’s chagrin, he was Nick’s closest confidant. Nick wouldn’t break the seal of the Council sit-down, but he could and did tell him about the plan for taking Jackie Stone.

When Nick was finished, Brian nodded. “There a way to do this quiet?”

“Quiet enough. Ben and Marconi are buying some deaf ears. And, Bri—what I’ve told you is for your ears only. Speak to no one about it.”

Brian gave him a long, silent look. “Of course. Nick, I’ve been thinking about what happened—at Neon. About how somebody could’ve gotten around Jimmy to plant that bomb. Jimmy would never have walked away from his post.”

“No, he wouldn’t.”

“The only way he would have left is if he had somebody to cover him. Somebody he knew.”

Nick nodded.

With that, Brian put his good hand up and wiped it over his face. “Fuck me.”

“Don’t say more, not now. I’ll figure it out.”

“Yeah, okay.” He took a breath as if to clear those thoughts out. “I know I don’t have the right to ask, but I want in on Stone.”

“Forget about it, Bri. You’re clipped already. And this will be bloody. We’re pushing back on a drug cartel to get ahold of Stone. You’re off the clock until you’re whole again.”

Brian lifted his injured arm. “This is nothing. A week from now it’ll be less than nothing.”

“And your back? The burns?”

He shrugged. “Stings, not much more. Another week of healing and I’m almost good as new.”

“Almost. No, Bri. You’re on the D.L.”

Brian finished his beer and set the empty on the little table, nothing but a disc of glass around a floor lamp, beside the recliner. “Are you suiting up for it?”

He was asking whether Nick would be in the thick of the fight. “Church is my fight. You know that.”

“So yeah, then.”

“Yeah.”

“Since when have you gone into something like this without me?”

Never. Brian had been at his right hand long before he’d had a right hand that mattered. But he wasn’t going to risk him. His crew was falling apart. He needed his friend. “Brian. The discussion is closed.”

“I know I’m just a soldier, Nick. But you’re my best friend. Don’t leave me behind.”



oOo



Sam unlocked Nick’s door, did a quick sweep, then returned Nick’s keys to him and went out into the hallway, where he’d stand watch until he was relieved at ten.

Nick was f*cking sick of this level of security. Ben’s longsighted plan, brilliant as it was, could take weeks to come to fruition. Next week would only be the first skirmish in the new offensive. And in the meantime, since the bombing, it seemed Nick would be babysat everywhere he went. Fuck, even public restrooms got searched before he could take a piss.

Halfway through the act of closing his door, he stopped. Being alone in his apartment while a guard stood outside the door felt some distance beyond lonely. He thought about Beverly, just down the hall. He knew Donnie was still there, waiting to be relieved by the same guard who'd relieve Sam. He hadn’t been in the hall, though. Apparently Donnie was inside the apartment.

And suddenly, Nick was jealous. What were they doing in there? Hanging out? Donnie should have been standing outside the door, or sitting on the bench by the elevators and stairwell entrance. Period.

He came back out of his apartment. “Stay put,” he ordered Sam without turning to him. “I’m going down the hall.”

“But boss—”

“Shut it, Sam. Just going down the hall.”

He went to Beverly’s apartment and tried the knob. Finding it locked, as it should have been, he knocked. Donnie answered and had the sense to look immediately nervous. Nick noticed that he was chewing.

“What are you doing in here?”

He swallowed. “Bev said it was stupid to stand out in the hallway when I could keep her safer if I could see her. I thought that was wicked smart.”

“What did I tell you to do?”

He blinked. “Stand watch in the hall.”

Beverly was standing back a bit, holding a bowl of popcorn. Her television was on; he could hear it. He focused again on Donnie, who had gained a sheen of sweat across his forehead. Good. “You weren’t guarding her. You were in here having a f*cking date.”

Donnie’s eyes widened to caricature size. “Boss, no. No way. I was just doing my job, I swear.”

Nick did not lose his temper. He went cold, not hot. But the urge to let loose on this f*cker and beat him senseless was strong, making his arms ache. “Get out. Vinnie’s on at ten. You stay put in the hallway until he relieves you. And you worked for free today.”

“Okay, boss.” Donnie’s voice was shaking now. “I’m sorry I f*cked up.” He went out into the hall, and Nick shut the door in his face.

He turned to Beverly, still standing there, holding a white plastic bowl, half-filled with popcorn. She looked confused and angry.