Chapter 15 #2
"You do, don't you, Lola?"
I twist a finger in my hair, my skin radiating heat. "Not for a very long time."
"That's criminal." She sounds scandalized.
"Things have been...complicated."
Ruby mutters something I don't catch, but when she speaks, her voice is softer. "If a man's interested, a little silence won't deter him. So, relax. It hasn't been very long. Okay, I'm running late to my Pilates class. I will see you tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow." I disconnect the call.
I'm sure she is right. Alex will contact me eventually.
I hope.
The first box tires me out. It is just full of junk and some old receipts, an old stuffed toy I think might have been my first, but it is so beaten up.
I know Mom probably slipped it in here, as Dad wasn't sentimental like her.
At least, that is what he said. My memories are mostly vague, but some are so clear.
I was six when she died.
But the bear is junk.
Still, I add it to the tiny pile, tape up the box, and with a marker write 'junk' on it.
Ruby's comments about Enzo haunt me.
She is right in how hot he is, how he can make a girl pant and swoon.
He is not doing a thing to make me do that, and yet...I—
I stand up.
I don't want to work for him longer than I need to, and I need to know either how dirty he is or how clean he is. And that leads me to Silas.
Of course, I don't want to bug him with his research into Enzo. Maybe he is onto something huge. Maybe...
Oh.
Oh.
I rush to my phone, fingers shaking. "Please be there, please..."
My heart thuds hard.
Yes.
One word in my contacts.
One name.
And to me, it is pure gold.
Silas.
I saved his number.
I let out a shaking breath.
And I dial.
I'm not really sure what I'm going to say. Maybe small talk about the weather, where he's at on the report, or just cut to the chase and ask for Alex's number.
"Silas."
My throat squeezes tight as my mouth goes dry, but I force myself to speak. "Hi Silas. This is L-Lola...A-Alex's friend."
"Hey, Lola."
I imagine him like a Sam Spade character, a gumshoe, chain-smoking and drinking hootch. A hat on his head and suspenders that hold up his old-school pants. His shirt sleeves would be rolled up, and he's hard-bitten, a gleam of knowing in his eye.
And there, in the back of his head, is a woman he is in love with who will break his heart again—
I stop.
Swallow.
This is the real world.
He might sound like he is a sexy, hard-nosed PI, but he is probably older, fat, balding, with a wife and kids.
A keyboard clacks, and he says, "I was just about to email you the check on this Enzo."
"Oh, thank you. What do I owe you?" This is just what I need. Not only do I feel better confirming I owe him nothing, but since Alex said he would cover it, I can bring him up.
And if Alex goes back on his word, me asking is the right thing to do.
"Nothing. Blatt has it covered."
Who is Blatt?
But then it clicks. It is Alex's last name.
"Are you sure?"
"It is all paid up."
"D-do you have Mr. Bl—" Nope, I can't call Alex that. "Alex's number?"
"You don't have it?"
"I did, but I had a phone mishap and lost it. I was wondering if you could give it to me?"
He hesitates, which I don't expect.
"Is there a problem?"
"I can't really just hand out numbers, even if you had it. Protocol, you know?"
Honestly, I don't. But I say, "I do. Well...do you think if I give you permission, you can give him mine? Which he has... Never mind. Do you think, if it is not too big a favor, you could pass a message to him, asking him to contact me, that is...that is, if he would like to?"
"I can do that. And you should have the report. Let me know if there's anything you want to clarify."
When we hang up, I get my beat-up laptop and sit on the sofa.
My pulse throbs as I open the email and then the document.
It seems thorough.
When he was born, where. His mother's name. Lyndall, his sister. His addresses. It even has his college.
His father is connected to the mafia. The whole family seems to be, but I knew that. There aren't any arrests for either his father or Enzo.
In short, there is nothing I can use.
He even did business at college and knows Louie. Usually, according to the report, he helps struggling businesses and often stays in the shadows. Though sometimes, he will step forward.
It doesn't outright say it, but it hints at what he is doing here.
Crap. Maybe there really is no ulterior motive to Enzo.
And perhaps I just let the view of him I got as a girl color who he is now.
There doesn't seem to be a link between his work and his father's.
Then again, would there be? Even a great PI can't spend a few days digging up everything on a mafia family.
I'm not wrong about Enzo. The whole family is bad news.
No matter what this says, it is not the whole story.
Sure, he works in business, but what about everything else he does? The meetings, the fact I don't have access to most of the things a personal assistant would?
It doesn't matter that I'm only helping him out with light duties.
I can't trust Enzo.
I'm sure of it.