17. Emilio
“ F ind a maid, or even the fucking chef. I need someone to watch Cole,” I instruct Benjamin, after an hour of having much-needed time with my adopted nephew. Thankfully, he’s already tuckered out and taking a nap from being rudely awakened in the middle of the night.
When Benjamin slips out of the room we have set up for Cole, I drop my head and try to pull myself together. We’re being targeted—and how the fuck am I supposed to be as good as my Master at this? I feel like there hasn’t been enough time to learn this shit. Hell, Roman has fucking years on me. He grew up with it. The pain echoing in my heart tells me there would never be enough time. Not when I’ve lost my center, my entire reason for being.
A maid slips in quietly and curtsies to me, which is fucking bizarre as hell. They didn’t do this shit to Master. Whatever . I stand up from the rocking chair and let her sit down. I stride out of the room, meeting Benjamin in the hallway. Neither of us say a word until we get to Master’s office.
“Status report?”
“Jenna is still working on getting our men out. Keegan is waiting to find out if he needs to wake up a judge, but Jenna doesn’t think so. We pay her enough that she should be able to handle this. Then again, we paid the cops, too.” Benjamin cringes as he meets my blank stare. The energy pulsing around me feels like a hurricane, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it—not that I’ve tried. My fury is too high to give a shit.
“What about Marcus?” I snap out, only to be interrupted by a ping from Benjamin’s phone. I growl at it wordlessly, not needing any more distractions.
“Uh, good news on that front. Kind of. He found the cop. And the judge. But there’s bad news. Both are personally on the payroll.” I raise my eyebrows at that. Something is dead wrong.
“We can’t do shit about a judge. Not right now. It’s too dangerous if people we’re paying are coming after us. The cop though… I’m sure we can figure out a way to redirect suspicion there. Tell Marcus to pick him up.” I glance at my watch, pleased that Marcus made it within the two-hour mark. I may hate being the Boss, but at least I know how to encourage the other Boys.
Benjamin looks like he’s about to say something. The hesitation pisses me off, but finally, he nods and messages Marcus back. It doesn’t take long before a response rolls through. “Where do you want them to take the cop? Back here?”
“Hmm…one second.” I grab the desk phone and dial a number I’m way too familiar with now.
“ Do you have any news? ” Roman answers. Neither of us need greetings anymore, not with this shitstorm.
“I have the cop who signed off. We know who the judge was as well. Both were on our personal payroll. Marcus is picking up the cop. I had a thought… Would Tennant like to use him for training? I’ll send Benjamin your way with Marcus and our captive.”
Roman goes silent, and I can only imagine he’s checking in with his people. I glance at Benjamin while I wait for an answer. His eyes are wide and his jaw drops. I’m sure he didn’t expect me to drop him in the deep end like that, but fuck knows this is the best time to do it. Not to mention, Tennant is one of the most skilled interrogators I know. Perhaps even the best, as right now, my own emotions are too close to the surface.
“ We’ll take him. Tennant likes presents. Send them our way. A word of warning… Tell Benjamin, Tennant won’t take it easy on him, even as an ally. He’ll likely hit harder because of it. ”
Grunting my understanding, I agree with the philosophy. “Thank you. Please make sure Tennant doesn’t kill my Second, and I’d prefer him to not lose any appendages.”
Roman just laughs before the phone is disconnected. Twisting my lips into what I hope is a smile, I try to encourage Benjamin. From the way he tenses, I’m certain I’ve failed. Neither of us say anything until Marcus arrives.
When he steps into the doorway, exhaustion is etched all over his body. His hair is in disarray, as if he’s run his hands through it repeatedly. Everything about him screams frustration. I know I pushed him hard, but we needed the answers.
“I have him. He’s wrapped up tight in the back of my SUV. What did you decide to do with him? Should I drag him in?”
Shaking my head, I gesture to Benjamin. “No. With the police breaking rules, I don’t want him here. Not to mention, I think it’s best to use him as a learning experience. You’ll be heading to the Amato’s. Tennant will take the cop for practice with Benjamin. I’m sure advanced interrogation techniques will be fun, if nothing else.”
My attempt at joy falls flat with Benjamin, but I shrug. Sometimes things need to be done. Learning violence is always necessary—and fun. Hopefully, Benjamin can make it out without any injuries. From Roman’s warning…that does not sound likely.
I wave both of them off. Benjamin stands up and follows Marcus out without a word. I cringe, knowing I’m going to hear all about this from my best friend later.
I swivel around and stare at the Family motto. I’ll make Master proud. After all, it’s Courage. Loyalty. Victory. Benjamin has the loyalty, now he needs to find the courage to cut his enemies down. If Tennant can give him that? I’ll thank him.