35. London
Chapter 35
London
" I need a gun," I say to Seven, knowing he might be the only person to help me.
Archer will do everything he can, but there's only so far he's willing to go and at the end of the day, I have to take care of myself.
"What kind?" Seven drinks straight from a container of orange juice and puts it back in Archer's fridge.
"I…I'm not sure."
"What do you need it for?"
"To kill someone." I swallow harshly. Is he going to judge me? Is he going to tell Archer the second he's back?
"Cool." Seven lowers his elbows onto the island in Archer's kitchen and taps his tattooed finger to his chin. "Something small, probably. Are you trying to conceal it?"
"Yes."
"Let me see your hand." He reaches out, grabbing hold of my palm and examining it. "Yeah, you're going to need a .380. No way you could handle much more than that on a whim. I'd opt for a revolver, too, so you don't have to worry about the slide getting stuck on anything. But…if you want a hammerless one, I'd opt for a 38 Special. Pretty sure Smith & Wesson has one. When do you need it by?" Seven looks up at me, running his tongue over his sharpened canine tooth.
"When can you get it?"
Seven shrugs. "Today, probably."
"Archer can't know about it."
"I figured, otherwise you'd be asking him." Seven leans back, his arms across his chest and tugging his dark faded t-shirt up, revealing even more tattoos on his stomach.
"Why would you help me? I ask him.
"You caught me on a good day."
"Thank you," I tell him, truly meaning it. I'm not convinced I'm going to go through with it, but if I do, I need a weapon that is deadlier than the switchblade Archer gave me.
"Put in a good word for me," Seven says. "With Grace."
"She's never going to go out with you." I shouldn't be saying this to him right now but he has to know the truth.
"Doesn't mean I'm going to stop trying." Seven grins at me. "I'm a rather persistent man."
"Seems like everyone in your family is."
"It's not often we don't get something we want. When you grow up with nothing, you end up getting greedy. What about you, firecracker? Did you grow up with nothing?"
"Actually, the exact opposite. My father was wealthy, but he was a sick bastard."
"Ah, right. The dead dad who killed your mom."
"Yeah."
"Sounds like you had nothing, too, then."
I guess I hadn't thought about it that way until Seven pointed it out. I may have had access to money, but I never knew family, not really. I never have, and with the way my life is going, I never will. Ricardo made damn sure of that. I was born alone, and I will die alone, especially if I do nothing to stop the pattern of being owned by a man. If it's not Ricardo, it's the next sad sack of shit who thinks he has a claim over me. I'd rather die than live another day under the thumb of a man.
"Who was he?" Seven asks. "Your dad."
I meet his gaze, not sure which eye to focus on, the blue one or the green one. "Ricardo Gardella."
"You're fucking with me."
I shake my head. "I wish I was."
"Damn, that sucks. I thought I had it bad. That man was a sick fuck."
"You knew him?"
"He's tried to merge with us over the years, wanting to get a foothold on the East Coast. We never did. August would have never allowed it. Especially after Ricardo killed Archer's girl. August is the moral compass of us all." Seven rolls his eyes. "Uptight prick, if you ask me, but no one did. He's the decision maker, having the final say in anything we do as a whole. But hey, he's usually right, so whatever."
It's interesting to hear Seven's perception of his brothers since I've already heard some from both Archer and Leo. Grace has had her input, but she only knows them from the outside.
"What about Ivy?" I ask him.
"Uh, my annoying sister." Seven goes to the pantry where the alcohol is, taking a look and closing the doors after grabbing a bag of chips instead. "She keeps us all in line, me more than them. She's August's right-hand woman and the face of our empire." Seven pops the bag open and shoves a few chips in his mouth, pausing and holding it out to me.
"I'm good," I tell him and hope he continues. Typically, he's in more of a manic state, but today he's articulating himself well and doesn't appear to be as unhinged as he usually is. It's refreshing, honestly, but I have a feeling it won't last. The second he finds out Grace is dating or even talking to someone, he'll probably revert to psycho Seven.
"Your dad, though, that sucks." He finishes chewing and barely swallows before starting again. "Come to think about it, I think I heard from him, like, six months ago. Something about a deal, he was trying to sell something…" He zones out for a moment. "Oh right, a daughter. He was trying to marry her off to the highest bidder."
I force a smile and wave my arms. "And here she is."
"No shit, that was you?"
I nod slowly. "In the flesh."
"Wait, I think he said she was a virgin. He kept saying it like it was his selling point."
This time, it's me who rolls my eyes. "He was just a disgusting pig who thought that would help him get more money."
"It wasn't true?"
"Not that it's any of your business, but no, and my father knew this. He killed the guy I lost my virginity to when he walked in and found us getting dressed after hooking up."
"Brutal."
"Yeah. He killed the next guy, too."
"Shit, that's ruthless." Seven eats another handful of chips, his mouth still full when he says, "This dude you're wanting to kill, he's the one who bought you, isn't he? That's why you're here, hiding out with a fake name."
I can't quite tell whether Seven is asking for confirmation, or simply stating that he's pieced it together. Still, I give it to him anyway. "Yeah, but if you don't mind, I'd like to keep it a secret a little longer."
"I'm good at keeping secrets," Seven announces and taps his head. "It's like a vault in here."
"Would you like another one?"
"Would I? Are you kidding?"
"She's not dead."
His brows pinch together. "Who's not?"
"Madison—Archer's girl." Calling someone else Archer's girl turns my stomach, but I have to come to terms with the fact that I can't keep him and that I can never be Archer's.
"You're shitting me."
"Nope. That's where he is right now."
Seven's eyes widen. "You let him go? What the hell is wrong with you?" He tosses the bag of chips on the counter and latches onto the countertop, staring right at me. "Dude was so heartbroken he abandoned his family, and you gave him permission to walk out of here and be with her? You’re either wickedly confident or completely out of your mind."
Archer told me not to worry but it's hard when Seven is freaking out the way he is.
"I don't control Archer," I tell him.
"Not for long." Seven rocks his head back and forth. "I never liked her."
"Why?" I wait anxiously for him to give me dirt on Madison to hopefully settle my nerves about Archer being with her.
"Oh man, where do I start? Let's go with the fact that she was sleeping her way around the Manor, looking for anyone to bunk up with to take care of her ." Seven uses air quotes on the last four words. "Thought we were going to go to war with the Manor brothers back then. Madison was doing this back-and-forth shit with Blake and Archer. God, it was fucking nauseating."
"Blake Manor?"
"Yeah, what other Blake would I be talking about? Keep up, firecracker."
I want to ask him more questions, uncover more of what Madison was like with them, because I only knew the version of her that was involved with my father, and the one that shot me in the fucking stomach, but before I get a chance to, the door to Archer's apartment opens and Archer steps inside.
Seven slaps the counter next to me on his way past, and whispers, "I'll keep your secret, don't worry." He moves into the open space and approaches Archer. "How's my favorite brother?"
"Don't start with me, Seven. I can't handle your shit right now." Archer walks right past him and into the kitchen, opening a cabinet, getting a glass out, and filling it halfway with water. He drinks it, not even acknowledging me until he's done. "Hey."
I sit there, in the same place I was having a conversation with Seven and attempt to not let my mind consume itself with all the things Archer isn't saying. Like how it went with Madison. If they're getting back together. If he's choosing her over me.
But even if he did, it doesn't matter, because I'm choosing me over him, and if he knew that, he'd hate me more than he already does.
Seven leans against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest, one leg kicked out behind the other. "You done being an asshole yet?"
Archer sighs and leaves his glass on the counter, a sure sign that he's distressed. "You're right. I'm being a dick. I need your help."
"Holy shit, I never thought I'd see the day when Archer fucking Sin was asking for my help." Seven grins from ear to ear, showing both of his sharpened canines. He winks at me and starts toward Archer. "What do you need, big bro?"
He follows Archer over to his computer where Archer drops down into his chair.
"I need anything you can find on Joe Vito. I need dirt. Not who he's fucking, but who he's fucking over. I want a list of all his enemies and his closest friends. I'll work on combing through his business dealings. I need you to handle anything you can think of that would provide me with even the slightest bit of leverage. I don't care who you kill to get it. I know we've beat this Manor brother thing to death, but I need something on them, too, preferably against the treaty." Archer rubs his temple. "And I need it like yesterday."
"I make no promises, but I'll do my best." Seven glances at his watch. "I'll be over tomorrow with anything I can find."
"Can you stay sober that long?" Archer leans back in his chair. "Sorry, I have to ask."
"You're a real prick, you know that?" Seven leaves it at that and walks across the room, offering me a parting nod as he slips out the front door.
I climb off the stool and go over to Archer but keep a little bit of distance between us. "For the record, he looked right in the liquor cabinet and chose a bag of chips instead."
"Really?"
"Yeah. And he was making coherent sentences the entire time he was here. I don't want to assume I know anything about him, but I think he was sober today."
"That's good." Archer runs his hand through his hair and intertwines his fingers behind his head. "That's really good."
"Are you going to tell me how it went or do you enjoy making me beg for information?" I hate that I want it but I can't stand not knowing the truth, regardless of how things end up with us.
"Right, sorry." Archer doesn't meet my gaze, instead, he stares off blankly into the distance. "It was so weird seeing her. It was like seeing a ghost."
"Yeah, it was." A ghost that shot me.
"She explained why she did it. Said she never meant to hurt me."
I chew on my lip, waiting for something to give me a fucking clue as to where his head is at with all of this.
Archer releases his hands and scoots his chair forward to grab onto me and pull me into his lap.
"What are you doing?" I ask him skeptically.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Archer wraps his arms around me and looks into my eyes.
"What?" A lump forms in my throat.
He slides a hand up under my shirt, his touch warm against my bare skin. Archer traces his finger along the outline of the jagged scar on my stomach, the scar left behind by my father when he fully intended on killing me—when I thought he killed Madison.
My lips part but I can't find any words.
"I should have never held you accountable for your father's actions. I should have stopped to think about how difficult it was for you to live with that monster." Archer's gaze darts to my lips, back to my eyes. "I don't blame you for not telling me, London. Especially not now, not knowing the truth."
"She told you what happened?"
"Some version of it. I don't know how much was real or not, and I don't know if I want to make you relive it just to fact-check her."
My mind races, the memory flooding in without my consent. Chest tightening, I hate that Ricardo still has this effect on me, even in his death.
"How are you so strong?" Archer tucks a strand of hair behind my ear.
"I'm not strong."
"You lived your entire life with him. London, you're covered in scars, and I can only imagine the ones that don't show, the psychological warfare he put you through. It isn't right. I'm sorry you ever had to go through that." He pauses. "Never again. I promise you, never again."
"Don't make promises you can't keep, Archer."
Archer runs his thumb over my cheek and cups my face in his hand. "If it's the last thing I do, London, I swear to you, I will not let your father haunt you.I will not let Vito take you. I will die before that happens."
"How are you going to keep your promise if you're dead?"
"Just trust me, please." Archer leans closer, putting his lips to my forehead, kissing softly, then pressing another on my nose, each cheek, and finally, my mouth. "Trust me, London. I've got you."
I kiss him back, knowing damn well I'm being selfish. Archer might think he can handle this situation but there's a reason the Joes and the Ricardos of the world get away with shit like this, and no matter what he does, the only way out of this is if someone dies.
I just haven't figured out which one of us that is yet.