18. JOEY
JOEY
I met Ben at the diner in town. We sat in the back booth together, the one no one ever bothered us in. I slid him the cash for his next installment and leaned back against the cracked vinyl seat.
“What’s the update?” I asked, not wasting any time.
Ben glanced at the wad of bills, then tucked it into his jacket pocket, smirking as he reached for the menu. “Not even gonna let me order something to drink first?”
“They know not to come over here unless I call them, and I’m not calling them unless you’ve got something to say.” My voice was cold and flat, straight to the point.
He sighed, closing the menu with a snap. “You really know how to kill a mood, Joey.”
“You’re still alive, so start talking.”
Ben’s smirk faded as he gave me a long, annoyed look, but he knew better than to push too far. “Alright,” he said. “It would appear Adriana’s husband is being nursed back to health. The hospital staff I interviewed say he had a long road ahead, but he’d make a complete recovery. ”
That got my attention. I straightened up. “What the hell do you mean, nursed back to health? What happened to him?”
“Good question.” Ben scratched at the stubble on his chin. “Turns out someone shot him. Took two hits: one to the shoulder, one to the abdomen. Shoulder’s just a graze, but the abdomen? Let’s just say he’s one lucky bastard. The shooter was an amateur, though. Close, but no kill shot. Still, they meant it. There was intent behind those shots. Whoever did it didn’t want him to live through it. Whoever did it thought they killed him.”
The implication hit me like a brick. “You’re saying it was Adriana.”
Ben shrugged one shoulder. “Just a hunch. Everyone’s innocent until proven guilty, I suppose.”
I wanted to dismiss the thought, but it wasn’t easy. Adriana didn’t seem like the person who’d pull a trigger, but perhaps that was why she was always so jumpy. Perhaps she thought she’d finished the job and got it wrong. And if this guy recovered, she’d be right to think he’d come back angry. Real fucking angry. And ready to finish what she failed to. One thing this life has taught me is to make sure you finish the job if you go in for the kill. Otherwise, it ends badly. Real fucking bloody, too.
“Has he talked to the cops?” I asked.
Ben leaned in. “Not much. He’s in the hospital still. Cops were called to the house when neighbors heard the shots. They found him bleeding out on the floor. Neighbor says a woman and a kid came running out scared, carrying bags, and took off in an old Chevy 150. They’ve patched him up, but since he woke up, he’s been keeping his mouth shut while he recovers. Apparently, he’s got a bad gambling problem, which might just save her in the end.” Ben watched me, amused at my silence. “It’s a matter of time, Joey. He’s going to talk, and he’s going to tell them. And the cops over there in Newark? They aren’t gonna let it slide. Especially not for a guy like him. She’s in deep water. Unless...”
“Unless what?’
“Unless The Shark comes out to play and cleans up the murky waters.” His eyes darkened. My jaw tightened. I’d never let anything happen to Adriana. “The question is, does she trust you enough to have you take care of what she failed to do?” Ben raised an eyebrow.
“She’ll trust me,” I said, though part of me wasn’t so sure. “She doesn’t have another choice.”
Ben sat back, crossing his arms. “Fair enough. But you’d better move fast. It’s only a matter of time before someone from Newark starts sniffing around in these waters.”
I narrowed my eyes on him. “And that’s where you come in, Benny. I need you to handle it.”
He chuckled, shaking his head. “That’s not my jurisdiction, Joey. I can’t just walk into Newark and tell their cops to back off without them suspecting me of something. And if I go down, then we all go down.”
I leaned in close enough to smell the stale coffee on his breath. “Make it your jurisdiction,” I said, “if you know what’s good for you.”
Ben stared at me for a long moment, then nodded once. “Alright,” he muttered. “I’ll see what I can do.”
“Good,” I said, sitting back, my mind spinning. Adriana didn’t realize how much trouble she was in—and now, neither did I.
The first thing on my agenda was Gino’s. Quick . That car had to disappear, no questions asked. That part would be easy—almost too easy. But the real challenge? That would be prying that gun out of Adriana’s palm. Because if anyone found it, it was over. And I couldn’t let her go down.
What the hell was she thinking, carrying around something like that? She wasn’t cut out for this. She wasn’t like the rest of us—she was too good, too innocent. I had to make sure she didn’t get dragged into my mess.
I couldn’t let her pay the price for this. Adriana deserved more than that. She deserved to be free of all this. And if I had to risk everything to protect her, I would. No question. But first, I had to get that gun out of her hand. Because if anyone found it, no matter the reason, there would be no turning back. And I wasn’t about to lose her over something I could control.
Gino’s garage smelled like motor oil, gasoline, and cheap cigars. Gino stood under the hood of some old Cadillac, grease smeared up his arms, sweat glistening on his forehead. “Let me get you the keys to that Chevy you brought over,” he muttered, wiping his hands on a rag.
“Nah. I’ve got another favor,” I began, his eyes studying mine, confusion written all over his face. “That car has to disappear. Tonight .”
He sucked his teeth, glancing toward the car. Adriana’s car. The one that needed to be erased from existence. “You want it dumped?” Gino asked.
I shook my head. “No water, no fire. I need it crushed. I need it gone .”
He let out a long breath, nodding. “Alright, alright. I’ll take it to Mancini’s yard, get it in the press before sunrise.”
I walked up to him, close enough that I got dizzy from all the gasoline he was covered in. “No parts left over, no scrap sold off. This ain’t about money. This is about cleaning up a problem. You get rid of the whole fucking car like it never existed or we’ll have a big problem.”
He nodded fast. “Yeah, Joey. I got it. No trail.”
I studied him for a second, then pulled a thick wad of cash from my coat pocket and slapped it onto the workbench. “For your troubles.”
I turned and walked out, leaving Gino with the car, the cash, and the weight of knowing that whatever was tied to that car was best left buried with it.
I leaned against a brand-new 1959 red Chevrolet Impala parked outside my wholesale car lot, its polished surface glistening under the afternoon sun. Paul strolled up, coffee in hand, his pinstriped suit looking sharp as always. His smirk widened as he caught sight of the car.
“Damn, new wheels? I like it, Joey!” he exclaimed, giving an approving nod.
“Nah, not mine. It’s for Adriana.”
The grin slid from his face as he cocked his head, one eyebrow arched. “Adriana?” he repeated, studying me like he was trying to solve a riddle.
“Yeah,” I confirmed, fishing the keys from my pocket. “I need you to take it over to her place for me. I’ve got some business to handle.”
The business? Plotting out how the hell I would confront Adriana.
Paul let out a low whistle. “Hold up. You’re giving her a car? What the hell happened to Gino fixing hers up?”
“Her car’s a death trap.” I shrugged. “It’s not safe for her or the kid.”
That earned me another smirk, this one sharper, sizing me up. “Ah, I get it now. The knight in shining armor, swooping in to save the day, huh?”
“Knock it off, Paul. It’s not like that,” I said. On a normal day, that would have caused me to grin. Not today. Not with all the loose ends I had to tie up.
“Sure it’s not,” he shot back, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Just a charitable act, out of the goodness of your heart, like the good, law-abiding citizen that we all know you to be. If that’s the case, then I’m the fucking Pope.” He chuckled. “Come on! You don’t hand out new rides to just anyone. This has everything to do with whatever is going on between you two. And I don’t know why I’m not in on it. I’m your brother, you know I’ll have you back.”
I stared at him. “She’s got a kid, Paul. That changes things.”
He nodded, lips twitching like he was fighting back laughter. “Ah, it’s for the kid. Right. Has nothing to do with the fact that you can’t stop thinking about her. I mean, half the town’s noticed your car parked outside her place more nights the past few weeks. I’ve had people ask me if you lived there.”
“You’re out of line,” I said. “What I do is nobody’s business but mine. I don’t need to explain myself to this town. This is my fucking town. I’ll do what I please.”
Paul held up his free hand, the other still gripping his coffee. “Okay, okay, no offense meant. Just saying—you’re not exactly subtle.” He paused, leaning closer as if to make his point.
“I’m just looking out for them, that’s all.”
“Of course you are,” he said, unconvinced. “And next week? What’s the plan—buying her a house? Maybe a ring while you’re at it? Will I be the best man at the wedding? Godfather of your children?”
His words stung because they weren’t far from the truth. A house, a ring, a life with Adriana and Antonio—those thoughts had been creeping into my mind more and more lately. But it wasn’t that simple. I had Renee and Vincent breathing down my neck. If I didn’t play my cards right, they’d play for me, and it wouldn’t be a game I’d survive.
Adriana must have been holding onto the gun she thought she’d use to kill her husband. If the cops came looking for her, they could never find that gun. Not in her hands, not anywhere near her. But that didn’t change the bigger problem. I still had to finish what she started. I had to take care of her husband. She’d tried to kill him, but she hadn’t finished the job. I would. I had to. For her. For us.
There was no backing out now. If I was going to protect Adriana, if I was going to get her out of this mess, I had no choice. I couldn’t let him live to hurt her again. And if that meant finishing the job myself, then so be it. I had enough blood on my hands; another man wouldn’t keep me up at night. Certainly not a man who had already put his hands on someone so precious.
“You done? Or do I need to find someone else to deliver it?” I barked.
Paul chuckled, raising his hands in mock surrender. “Relax, Joey. I’ll take care of it.” I tossed him the keys, not bothering to say thanks. I heard him laughing softly behind me as I headed to my car.