Cruel Betrayals (Savannah Sharks Hockey and Mafia #3)

Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

JOSEPH

I pace in front of my car, walking from one end of the restaurant’s gravel parking lot to the other.

He’s late.

“I hate when fuckers are late.” I grumble to myself as I glance down at my dust covered shoes.

Fucking gravel. Who doesn’t have a paved parking lot these days?

The meeting should have started fifteen minutes ago. He might be a highly recommended private detective, but my time is worth more than his.

I can hire three or four average private detectives for the price I agreed to pay him. I get back in my car when a black 1967 Chevy Impala pulls into the parking lot, looking like they are auditioning for an episode of Supernatural .

A short, balding man steps out of the car wearing a too-tight pinstripe suit that costs more than his car.

I scoff to myself. He clearly thinks highly of himself and tries to use his expensive clothing as a bargaining chip, but it won’t work on me. Getting out of my car, I make my way over to him.

“Are you Joseph Marino?” He asks as he gives me a once over.

“I am.” I hand him the envelope containing everything he asked for.

“Is this her picture and information I asked for?”

Is he serious? What else would be in the envelope?

“Yeah.” I bite my tongue to keep from insulting the man.

He flips through her photograph, a picture of her car, and any and all information I could get on her. Surprisingly, it was a lot harder than I thought it would be.

Dad’s been in a mood since our argument and has been in his home office all week. His office at the arena has been locked, and I don’t have a key. I’m sure I could pick the lock or even get a copy of the key, but I didn’t want to risk Francesca or Alexandra seeing me.

“So, Alexandra Ferguson is the woman you want me to look into?”

“Yes.”

“And she works at the Savannah Sharks arena as an assistant to your father, Arturo Marino?”

“Yes.” I reply dryly. All the fucking information is in that envelope. Why is he asking me?

He hums for a few moments before shoving all the papers back into the envelope. “Why do I need to follow your father’s assistant?”

I narrow my eyes at him. “Because that is what I’m paying you thousands of dollars to do. Do you always question your clients like this, or is it because of my family name?”

His expression doesn’t change. It’s like he isn’t surprised to hear me question him. “What are you hoping I find? What is the end goal here? Do you want to know where she goes and who she talks to, or are you wanting more of a deep background check and financial summary?”

“Anything and everything. I want to know who she talks to, where she goes, and what she does. I want to know where she grew up, who she dated, and any enemies she may have. She’s hiding something, and I want to know what it is. Given my family name and the nature of our work, you can understand why we need complete honesty and loyalty.”

“Absolutely. I understand. Nothing we talk about and nothing I discover will be shared with anyone except you.”

“Good. Then I expect a full report in forty-eight hours.”

His eyes widen slightly, but his expression doesn’t change. “I’ll be in touch.”

He spins around and gets back in his car and leaves without a backward glance.

Now, I just have to wait. In two days’ time, I will know what Alexandra is hiding. My heart constricts with pain as if it’s protesting the thoughts swirling in my head.

I don’t want her to be hiding anything from me, but she’s not acting like herself, and I need to know why.

Did an ex-boyfriend suddenly show back up? Did she have a sudden change of heart? If so, why?

I roll my shoulders, stretch my neck from side to side, and climb back into my car. Now that I have that situation taken care of, there’s one more thing I need to do today.

And I need backup in order to do it.

Rhett and Spencer are busy with their women tonight, but I know they’d help me in a heartbeat. I just don’t want to hear the judgment in their voices. I need someone that will keep his opinions to himself.

I grab my phone and call Gage as I drive out of the parking lot. He answers on the second ring.

“What’s up, Joey?” His tone is cheerful and happy but cautious, like he knows I’m about to fuck up his entire night.

“Are you at your apartment?”

“Yeah. Well, I’m downstairs in the recreational area with some of the guys. What’s up?”

I cut straight to the chase just in case he put me on speakerphone. “Right now, I need someone I can trust.”

I hear him tell the guys he will be right back before asking, “What do you need? What’s going on?”

That’s a loaded question. I need Alexandra. I need my family to be a family again. I need to get rid of the Rossis and the Reapers.

Breaking for a red light, I say, “I know you know about my family being in the mafia and some of the guys working for us. I need someone to come out with me for a couple of hours on a secretive mission. I’ll explain in a few, if you are available.”

Of course, if he agrees, then he will be a part of the family. This will be the start of his new life. A life of servitude, as Uncle Tony would always say.

“Yeah, I’m available. Do I need to get anyone else?” His voice lowers to a whisper.

“No, just you. I don’t want anyone knowing we are going out. Not even the guys. Make up a story and meet me out back.”

I end the call and pull around to the back of the building. Gage jumps into the passenger seat with a shit-eating grin on his face.

“What did you do?” I ask as I drive away from the apartment building.

His expression falls. “What do you mean?”

“You look too happy right now.”

Has my life really turned into this? Am I so miserable that I don’t want to see my friends happy?

“I just have a feeling we are going to have a great time tonight.”

“That’s one way to look at things.”

“So what is this secretive mission we are going on?”

“Have you heard about the vigilante gang called The Reapers?”

“Yeah, they are supposed to be some super secretive gang that no one knows who they are. They are like the Illuminati. We all know they exist, but we don’t know who they are.”

I raise an eyebrow. “The Illuminati? Really?”

I’ve never taken him to be a conspiracy theorist.

He shrugs and laughs. “What can I say? I love a good conspiracy theory. I love going down the rabbit holes. You never know what you will uncover.”

I roll my eyes and shake my head. “Anyway, back to The Reapers. An informant told me about an underground bar that The Reapers hang out in.”

“And you want to go in there and knock some heads together?”

“Yeah. I’m itching for a fight, and I know I don’t have to worry about judgment coming from you.”

He doesn’t hesitate to answer. “I’m always down for a bar brawl. Say no more.”

A smile grows on my face. “That’s the answer I was hoping for. I also have plans for the Rossi estate, but I need time to gather all the supplies for that mission.”

“Well, you can count me in on that one, too. I promise not to go overboard.”

“Tonight, you can go as hard as you want. Just get back to my car as soon as you can if shit hits the fan, because I will leave without you.”

“Hey, I can take care of my own. Why do you think I have all these muscles?” He flexes his arms, showing off the years of hard work.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” I say as I turn off of the main road to take the smaller, lesser known back roads.

“Don’t be jealous. You’re finally catching up. Within a year, you’ll be where I am.”

Yeah, only because I’m sexually frustrated and refuse to beg Alexandra. At least until I find out what she’s hiding. I’m not above groveling and begging, but I need to know what she’s hiding first.

I follow a police officer past the park and through the historic district. He finally turns off into the back parking lot of a small pub, and I slowly ease past him.

He stares at my car longer than necessary before turning around.

“Whew.” Gage pretends to wipe his forehead. “I just knew he was going to come after us.”

“He thought about it, but I’m the only one in this town with this car, so he must know it’s me.”

“I guess it’s a good thing the police don’t really mess with you.”

“That’s because we pay their salary.”

He leans forward in his seat. “You what?”

“My family donates a hefty sum to the local police department.”

“So, you bribe them?”

“Bribes are illegal.” I grin and glance over at him. “We contribute to the betterment of the city.”

He chuckles and leans back. “I guess I’ve got a lot to learn about your family and what happens away from the public eye.”

“You have a lifetime to learn.” I say in a serious tone.

It’s true. He has the rest of his life to learn about the customs and traditions of a mafia family.

I slow down as we pass in front of the bar. The windows are blacked out, so there’s no way to see how many people are inside. There isn’t anyone lingering on the sidewalk in front of the building.

“Maybe they are around back or inside.” Gage says from the passenger seat.

“Maybe. Or maybe they were tipped off.”

If they were tipped off, heads will roll. I’m not tolerating traitors.

I park a block away from the bar in a diner’s parking lot. The cook is outside smoking a cigarette. His eyes widen as I hand him a couple of hundred-dollar bills.

“Make sure no one fucks with my car. If they do, I’m coming straight for you, and trust me when I say that I will hunt you down, so don’t run off. I’ll be back within the hour.”

He glances down at the money in his hand before looking at me and then Gage. “Yes, sir. I will keep your car safe.”

When we are down the street, Gage laughs. “I’m pretty sure the kid thought you were pranking him. You give him money and then threaten to hunt him down.”

“Yeah, well, he better keep my car safe because we need a way home.”

We get to the bar and walk up to the solid wooden door.

“Oh, I forgot to ask, are you carrying?”

“A gun? No. Why would I be? You said a bar fight, not a shootout.”

I give him my back up gun. “Sometimes, they are one and the same, but we’re going to try to stick to our fists.”

He tucks the gun into his waistband and gives me a nod. “Let’s do this.”

Not bothering to turn the doorknob, Gage rears back and kicks open the door. It breaks the door frame, rips the hinges off, and splinters into pieces.

“Effective.” I push past the broken door and step inside.

All conversation stops as everyone turns to look our way. There are only a handful of people lingering around the bar.

A couple of men are playing pool and a couple are throwing darts, but it’s not full of Reapers, like the informant made it seem.

In the back corner of the bar, away from all the action, there are two Reapers dressed in all black. Their bright green eyes and the fact that they are wearing ski masks inside give them away.

“Is that them?” Gage whispers.

“Let’s find out.”

I clench my jaw and head straight toward them.

The two men stand as Gage and I get closer. Gage cracks his knuckles, a clear sign that he’s looking forward to the fight just as much as I am. The two Reapers put down their bottles of beer and walk toward the middle of the bar.

Gage doesn’t wait. He marches over to them and throws the first punch. Both men swing at Gage, landing one punch to his side and another on his stomach.

I pull one man off of Gage and throw my fist at his face. I put everything I have into this punch. My fist connects with his jaw in a loud crunch. If his jaw isn’t broken, it’s a miracle.

He lands a punch on my stomach and my cheek, but I retaliate and land two on his stomach. When he hunches forward, I drive my fist up to his mouth.

He spits at me, his blood lands on my shirt.

“Fucking asshole.” I grab the front of his shirt with one hand and reach up to grab his ski mask with my other hand.

Someone clears their throat behind me. Before yelling, “Hey, Marino!”

The four of us stop fighting just long enough to turn around and see who it is. Three more Reapers are standing behind us with their arms crossed and pissed expressions on their faces.

“I’ve waited way too long to get a piece of you, Marino. Leave the rookie alone and take on a man your own size.”

The voice sounds familiar, like I’ve heard it recently. But where? And who are these men? One thing is certain, by the end of tonight, I’ll know who’s behind the mask.

I glance at Gage. “Are you good for a few more rounds? I’m feeling a second rush. It’s about time we expose the Reapers for who they really are.”

Gage grins. “Hell yeah, I am. I’ve got years of pent up rage to get out of my system.”

The Reaper cracks his knuckles as he glances at the two men standing on either side of him. “The only ones that are going to be exposed tonight are you and your criminal father. We are going to eliminate the mafia families and take back our community.”

“In your dreams, coward.”

Even if they run me, Francesca, and Dad out of town, they will still have to deal with Giuseppe Rossi, and Uncle Tony and AJ.

The mafia is here to stay. Cowards who have to hide their true identities do not intimidate us.

A sinister grin forms on his face. “We will see who is still standing at the end of the night.”