Chapter 5
Chapter
Five
ARIANA
“ Y ou can’t just walk in there uninvited, Ari.”
The only reason Bastion is in the driver’s seat beside me is so I know he won’t go tattle to our dad. But I’m sick of listening to him, and I’m this close to sending him back home.
“Watch me. She wants her money, or she wouldn’t have made an example of you last night. It’s not going to do her any good to kill me on sight.”
I sound more confident than I feel. There’s no way for me to know how Uma will react. I’ve never actually met the woman, though I’ve seen her at a distance when some of her goons came into the bar where I work and dragged someone off a bar stool in front of me. I never saw him again, something I push out of my mind the minute it flickers.
I had to call in sick at the law firm today to be here, and I plan to make it count even if my hand shakes when I reach the car door handle.
Bastion grips my arm before I can exit the car. “I should come with you.”
I give him a small smile and shake my head. “No, I’ll take this one.”
He smiles, and my heart warms because I haven’t seen him look at me like that since before I told him and Dad I wanted out. “It’s good to have you back on the team.”
I barely suppress an eyeroll and don’t mention that once this situation is fixed— if it can be fixed—I’m back on the bench.
As I get out of the car, my breath catches from the sensation of being watched. I have no doubt that Uma is already well aware of my visit. The cameras aren’t in obscure places, hidden from view. They’re in spots designed to make it abundantly clear we’re not alone.
I have no idea where her home is, but everyone around here knows where she runs her business. At least anyone with any kind of tie to the criminal world. So I approach the rundown warehouse she does business out of. When I reach the metal door on the side of the building, I knock, then step back, swallowing past the dryness in my throat.
The door creaks open, and a big burly guy with a shaved head and a scar down his face stands on the other side. He doesn’t say anything, just grunts and lifts his chin at me. I take it to mean he wants me to say who I am.
“I’m here to see Uma.” Though I do my best to project confidence, I’m not sure I succeed. I’m way out of my element but showing any kind of weakness to her would be a mistake. So I plan to walk in here with big dick energy I don’t actually feel and hope it gets me somewhere.
“She’s not expecting anyone.” He starts to shut the door, but I put my hand on it.
“I need to see her. It’s important.”
He gives me the once-over before jerking his head to the side. A gesture I take to mean come in. Whether it does or doesn’t, I step inside, and I’m no more than two steps from him when he brings me to a stop with a meaty hand on my elbow.
“You don’t go in until I pat you down.”
I glance down at my skintight short-sleeve shirt and leggings. Where the hell would I hide a weapon? But it’s probably not about making sure his boss is safe and more about the intimidation factor, so I spread my legs and hold my arms out from my sides. “Have at it.”
He starts at my ankles and works his way up my legs, making sure to pay extra attention to my ass and my breasts, but I don’t say anything. I merely suck in a breath, knowing full well this is all part of his plan to scare me.
When he’s finished, he grunts and walks forward. I assume he wants me to follow.
He leads me through the warehouse, but there’s not much to see. There’re a couple shipping containers and some other boxes, but nothing worth noting. When we arrive at an office in the back corner, he raps on the door, and a muffled, “Come in,” sounds from behind the door.
He swings it open, and I get my first close-up look at Uma Delvecchio. Her black hair hangs past her shoulders, and her dark eyes take me in with a hint of amusement. She props her legs up on the desk in front of her, crossing her ankles.
Unlike the rest of the place, her office has been decorated to the nines with a polished marble floor and sleek black furniture. It feels more fitting for the woman who’s studying me intently, wearing designer everything, than the rest of the warehouse.
“Ariana, to what do I owe the pleasure?” She arches a perfectly shaped eyebrow.
I step past the beast of a man, not sparing him a glance. “You know exactly why I’m here. Let’s not play games.” I sit in the chair across from her desk without waiting for the invitation.
Her eyes spark, and one corner of her mouth lifts. Her expression reminds me of a cat who’s found a new and entertaining mouse to play with.
“Nothing comes to mind.” She grins, looks at the guy still standing at the door, and nods.
He doesn’t say anything, and I hear the door close behind me.
Uma settles her eyes back on me. She’s intimidating. I can feel her sizing me up, looking for cracks in my armor.
I decide to get right down to the problem. No sense beating around the bush. “I want to know what I can do to get you to back off.”
“Well, that’s simple.” She holds her hand out in front of her, studying her cherry red nails. “Pay me my money.”
I hold her gaze. “You know that’s not possible.”
“Then I guess your dad shouldn’t make promises he can’t keep.” She arches an eyebrow.
She’s not wrong, and we both know it.
“Give us some more time to come up with the money.” I hate the pleading note to my voice.
She appraises me, and her legs drop from the desk to the floor as she straightens in her seat. “Us? Rumor has it you left the family business.”
I don’t know how she knows that—whether my brother or dad alluded to it—but it doesn’t matter. She probably knows everything about us. You don’t get to where she is without properly sizing up your competition.
“I find myself back in. At least until this matter is resolved.”
She nods knowingly, as though there’s something I’m not saying but don’t need to because she knows me so well. Even though this is our first face-to-face.
“Why not leave your father to face the consequences of his own actions?”
“He’s my father,” I say. Plus, you’ve made it clear that Bastion and I will be collateral damage. But I don’t add that.
“Loyalty. I like that. I could use that…” She lets the unspoken invitation hang between us.
I shake my head and fist my hands. “Not interested.”
“Are you sure?” She gives me the once-over. “I could use someone like you. Young, beautiful, beguiling. Men never give us women the wide berth we deserve, do they? They constantly underestimate us. How do you think I got where I am?”
“The way I hear it, you betrayed your mentor, killed him, and then filled the void.” The words fly out of my mouth before I can stop them. I stiffen in my seat, waiting for her reaction. For all I know, she has a gun under that desk, and for insulting her, she’ll put a bullet in my head.
To my relief, she laughs. “Oh, I definitely like you. Maybe I should wipe your dad’s slate clean in exchange for having you come work for me.”
My stomach lurches. “Not happening. Now will you give us more time to come up with the money or not?”
She stands from her chair and places her palms on the desk, leaning closer to me. The fa?ade of an amused villain is gone. Now she looks like a sociopath. There’s zero emotion in her eyes. “Not a chance. A deal is a deal, and a debt is a debt. You have three months to get me my money or face the consequences.”
My jaw hardens, and I force myself to hold in the panic wrapping around my throat like barbed wire. I stand from the chair. “Fine. You’ll have your money.”
Though I have no idea how.
“How are you going to come up with that kind of money?” Her head tilts, and the movement looks so animalistic that I suppress a shiver.
“That’s not for you to worry about.”
She grins and her eyes dart to the necklace around my neck—the one thing my mother left me before she took off. My hand flies up to cover it.
“That looks like it might be worth something. Why not hand it over? I’ll put it toward what your father owes me.”
I shake my head. “No way.”
Her grin intensifies, and I realize that I’ve made the mistake of letting her know that this necklace means something to me. That it’s not some costume piece, but it holds sentimental meaning. Sometimes I question why, given that I barely even remember my mother.
Uma holds her hand out between us. “Hand it over.”
My fist tightens around the gold locket. “I said I’ll get you your money. We still have three months.”
“Consider it collateral. If you give me the money you owe me, you get it back.”
We stare at each other for at least a minute, and it’s clear she won’t back down. Anger boils my blood because she’s only doing this to make me suffer, to see me squirm. Not because she really wants the necklace.
Jaw tight, I unclasp the necklace and hand it over. My stomach sinks when it drops into her waiting palm. I turn and walk to the door.
When my hand is on the handle, she says, “And don’t even think of trying to bolt. I’ll find you.”
Without responding, I whip open the door and walk with purpose through the warehouse. I just want to get the hell out of this place before the walls close in on me.
No one confronts me as I make my way to the door I came in through and head back outside. My brother’s eyes widen when he sees me and relief pours over his features, his hands tight around the steering wheel.
I whip open the passenger door, get in, and slam it closed. “Go.”
He doesn’t say anything to me. Just flicks his gaze in my direction every so often until he finally pulls the car into the parking lot of a fast-food place. “What happened?”
“We’re fucked, that’s what happened. Dad screwed us.” I squeeze my eyes shut, finally calming my breathing and heart rate.
“She won’t give us more time to come up with the money?”
His use of the word us reminds me of what Uma said, and my anger flares at my dad for dragging me back into the life I’m trying so hard to leave.
“No. She made it clear there will be no deals.” I blow out a breath. “What are we going to do?”
I turn my head to look at Bastion and nearly wince when I take in the swelling and bruises on his face. I can’t bear for him to go through another beating or worse, torture.
Plus, I’m lucky I haven’t received the same treatment yet.
He stares at the roof of the car. “No idea.”
I think back to what my dad said about the billionaire I rescued. Maybe I could try to get some money out of him for saving his life. But the problem remains that there’s no way to prove it was me. I’m sure I’d be one of a bunch of gold-diggers trying to cash in.
My hand goes to the locket, to finger it while I think, but my chest is bare, a swift reminder that Uma has it. “I’ll figure something out. In the meantime, you make sure Dad doesn’t get himself into any more trouble.”
“Yeah, okay.” He’s quiet before he rolls the back of his head on the headrest and turns to me. “Thanks for not leaving me to deal with this on my own.”
I squeeze his hand. Bastion can drive me crazy most of the time, but I’ve always had a soft spot for him. He didn’t stand a chance after the situation he left so young, ending up on the streets, then having my dad influence his path.
“That’s what family does.”
He and my dad may not be perfect, but they stuck around. And that counts for something.