38. Vinnie
38
VINNIE
M y phone buzzes, and I pull it out of my pocket.
It’s Raven.
I don’t think she would call without having a good reason.
“Go back in there with Serena,” I say to Mario. “I’m taking care of everything. If she agrees, you and she will be out of here by morning.”
“But I have to alert the?—”
“If you’re gone, I’ll alert everyone. They’ll have no choice but to do as I say.”
“Vincent—”
“I have to take this call. I’ll be back.”
Mario relents and goes back in with Serena. I close the door of the room and answer the phone as Renée comes back up the stairs.
“Raven?” I say.
“Oh my God, Vinnie,” she sobs. “I don’t know what to do.”
My heart lurches. “Raven, what happened?”
“It’s my father,” she gulps. “Someone shot him. In our own house.”
“What?”
That doesn’t make sense. He has the best security out there.
“Who? What happened?”
“I don’t know. Paramedics are taking him to the hospital now. He has a faint pulse, but the shot was in the head, Vinnie.”
Damn. A shot to the head would take him out. It must’ve just grazed his skull or something. But God, the blood. Head wounds are the worst because of the many vessels close to the skin’s surface. Part of my so-called education when Mario was grooming me to join the family business.
Who the hell would have done this?
Then again, he’s working with some dangerous people. Perhaps Bellamy got in over his head.
“Raven,” I start, carefully choosing my words. “You need to get out of there now. We don’t know if they’re coming back.”
“But Vinnie, I can’t just leave him. He’s my father. I have to go to the hospital with him.”
“You could be in danger there. Let the police handle this.”
“My mom is going in the ambulance with him. I’ll follow in the car.” She sobs even harder, her voice breaking. “Vinnie…I’m scared.”
“Raven, do not go to the hospital. Please. Stay put. I’m sending someone for you.”
“All right.” She gulps. “All right, Vinnie.”
As I hang up the phone, my mind races, spinning different theories and outcomes. Bellamy is no saint. Any number of people could have done this, but doing it in his own home? That takes a lot of balls.
I open the door to the room where Mario and Serena are waiting. Mario instantly sits up straighter.
“What is it?” he asks.
“It’s Bellamy,” I say, straightening my jacket and turning for the door. “Someone took a shot at him.”
Mario’s eyes widen in surprise. “A shot? At Bellamy?”
“Yeah. I have to go.”
He narrows his eyes. “Your loyalties lie elsewhere, Vincent.”
“Damn it!” I nearly pull my hair out. “I’ll do my duty. I’ll take over the organization. You’re free now to be with your love. I’ve given my love up, but I have to protect her, Mario. I won’t let her end up like Serena.”
I leave then, hastily making a call to Elmo. “I need you to get on the horn and call your best man,” I tell him. “Closest to the Bellamy ranch. He needs to go pick up Raven. Then meet me at the secure location in San Antonio.”
“I’m on it.”
A moment later, I’m in the car with Fred and Elmo. “All set?” I ask.
“All set. Slade is on his way to her.”
“Slade?” I cock my head. “You sent someone named Slade?”
“He’s the best. He’ll get her there quickly and safely.”
“Good.”
“What’s up?”
“Someone took a shot at Raven’s father. Right in his own home. The cops are swarming right now, and I don’t have a clue who may have done this. All I care about is Raven. Getting her out of there.”
“I understand.”
My mind races as the car swerves through traffic.
“I hope Slade gets to her before the police lock everything down,” I mutter.
Elmo looks at me, a grim understanding in his eyes. “Don’t worry, Vinnie. Slade’s never let us down.”
Despite Elmo’s soothing words, my heart pounds like a jackhammer. Time seems to stretch and warp, every second crawling by at an agonizingly slow pace.
Eventually, we pull up to the secure location—an inconspicuous three-story building tucked away in a run-down part of town. From the outside, it looks abandoned—part of its disguise. Inside is a state-of-the-art security system and enough firepower to hold off an army.
As I step out of the car, Elmo reaches for his phone and reads a text. “Slade got Raven. They’re en route.”
Relief washes over me, but it’s short-lived.
“She safe for now, Vinnie,” Elmo says, clapping a hand on my shoulder. “Slade won’t let anything happen to her.”
I nod, trying to focus. We have to prepare for what comes next. Whoever shot Bellamy won’t stop there.
We enter the building and head straight for the operations room. Screens display live feeds from various locations around Austin while some show news channels reporting about Bellamy’s shooting.
“Anything?” I ask, scanning the screens.
“Not yet,” Elmo replies, his brow furrowed. “I’m monitoring police scanners and all of our sources. Nothing concrete so far.”
“Keep looking,” I tell him, pacing back and forth like a caged animal.
Hours pass with no break in the tension. Every minute seems like an hour, until finally?—
“Vinnie.”
I turn.
Raven. Two men flank her.
She runs into my arms.