Page 15 of Veil of Smoke

Rita leans back, resting her glass on her knee.

“Word is Corradino’s been sniffing hard around Dock 7,” she says. “He’s asking questions. He doesn’t like surprises, and that ambush? That was a mess.”

“I killed his guy.”

“I know. That’s why he’s pissed.”

I rub my temple. “Someone’s feeding him information.”

“You got a leak?”

“Not from my side.”

“You sure?”

“No.”

Rita stares at me a long beat. Then sighs. “Jesus. Who’d you piss off this time?”

“Probably everyone.” I set my glass down. “You think she’s bait?”

“No. But you’re asking like you want her to be.”

“She complicates things.”

“Then clean it up.”

“I don’t know if I want to.”

Rita’s gaze sharpens. “Dario.”

“She didn’t look away.”

“She didn’t understand what she was looking at.”

“She’s still standing.”

“She shouldn’t be in your world at all.”

“She already is.”

Rita flicks her cigarette into a nearby ashtray. “You don’t save people like that. You drag them down with you.”

“She walked into it.”

“She walked into a trap.”

“Same thing.”

Rita leans forward, voice lower. “What is this really about?”

I hold her eyes. “She looked at me like Massimo did—like she already knew this life would never let her leave clean.”

That quiets her.

She looks down at her hands. Then nods, barely.

“Massimo was different.”

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