Page 79 of Sinful Bargains

“So tell me, officer—can you be trusted?” he asked.

Ben leaned back in his chair, his eyes never leaving Christopher’s. “My badge might not mean much to you, but it can open just about any door you need it to. It gets me information others can’t touch. And I’ve been doing business with Joey for a decade—I’ve made no mistakes. So, yes, I can be trusted.”

“Joey trusts you, but that doesn’t mean shit to me,” Christopher spat. “I’m not concerned with what’s been. I’m concernedwith what’s coming. This family’s built on trust and loyalty, and I don’t need someone who thinks they can play both sides.”

“Well, that’s great. Because I stand right where you need me to. I’ve been walking the line for years, and I’ve never crossed it. Not a single time. I’m trustworthy because I know where my loyalties lie.”

Christopher exhaled a cloud of smoke. “How am I supposed to believe that? You were supposed to be loyal to your badge, but you’ve done nothing but the opposite. How do I know you won’t turn on us, too?”

Ben leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table. “You don’t. You don’t know, just like I don’t know if you’ll decide tomorrow that I’m more of a liability than an asset. Trust is a gamble. But what you do know is my track record. Ten years, not a single misstep. Not one reason for Joey—or anyone—to doubt me. I don’t play both sides.”

Christopher’s eyes flickered between Ben and me before settling back on him. “Well, I suppose you’ve got a point. But just know this—one mistake, and there’s no coming back. You fuck up,even once,and you’re dead.”

Ben nodded. “As I should be.”

Christopher took a slow drag of his cigar. “And when I call for you, you come. No questions. You don’t work for Joey—you work for theGiordano Crime Family.”

I’d seen this conversation play out a hundred times before—loyalty being measured like it was something that could be weighed on a scale. Christopher was testing Ben, pushing him, but I already knew the outcome. Ben wouldn’t crack; he was made of steel.

I’d spent a decade trusting Ben, relying on him to walk the tightrope between law and lawlessness without falling. But Christopher didn’t know Ben like I did. Ben wasn’t just some disposable errand boy. He was a necessary piece of the puzzle.

Times were changing, and the rules had to change withthem. When I rose to my rightful rank, I’d be the one to make that happen. But for now, Ben and I had been given a second chance. We were too valuable to be disposed of—at least for now.

JOEY

When Ben gave me the signal that William had crossed over into Staten Island, a surge of venom coursed through me. Coiled and ready to strike. Paul and Marco intercepted him and spun him a story, claiming they knew exactly where Adriana was hiding after he’d gone around, asking if anyone knew where he could find her. They promised to take him right to her. He followed without question right into the trap I had waiting. Now, he was mine. And I was waiting and ready in the warehouse.

I stood, flexing my hands in black leather gloves, the seams stretching over my knuckles. My gaze locked on William, slumped and tied to a chair, his face a swollen mess from the “conversation” we’d had earlier. A thin line of blood trickled from his temple, staining the collar of his sweat-drenched shirt. “You made your choice, William,” I said. “No one puts their hands on Adriana and gets away with it.No one.”

He strained against the ropes, attempting to free himself. A bitter smile tugged at his bloodied lips. “You’d kill me over her?” he sneered. “Hate to tell you, but she’s just a stupid?—”

I struck before the word could poison the air, my fistconnecting with his cheek. His head whipped to the side, blood spraying across the ground below him in dark, jagged streaks.

“You’re not very smart, are you?” I growled. “I don’t let things go easily—not when the people I care about get hurt.”

He coughed, spitting blood, then smirked again. “You think you’re some kind of hero? You can’t save a whore! She’s always needed saving. You’ll find out?—”

The words hit like a slap, and I froze, my jaw tightening until it ached. I reached into my waistband and drew my small revolver.

“I’m afraid I can’t let this go,” I murmured, more to myself than to him. “I thought maybe I’d take the high road—let you walk if you signed the papers. But some stains only come out when you cut them out. Some messes don’t go away on their own. They need cleaning up.”

William’s eyes narrowed. “You don’t scare me,” he spat.

A cold smile crept across my face. “Good,” I said, tilting my head. “It’s more satisfying when you don’t see it coming.”

I pressed the muzzle against his knee and pulled the trigger. The crack of the gunshot echoed, followed by his anguished screams. He thrashed against the chair, his cries ricocheting into the air.

“That’s for Adriana’s tears,” I said, stepping back.

William gasped, his face twisted in agony as blood soaked his pants and pooled beneath the chair. His chest heaved, eyes wide with terror, as I lifted the gun again, this time aiming for his chest. I crouched, bringing myself to his eye level. His breaths were shallow, broken by the weight of pain and fear. “When you meet the devil,” I said, tapping the barrel against his sternum, “tell himJoey ‘The Shark’ Romanosends his regards.”

I didn’t wait for a response. I stood back and fired again, a deafening crack shattering the air. I unloaded every round into his body. I straightened, rolling my shoulders as if shaking off the weight of what had just played out before me. I’ll live with it.Whatever weight it adds to my conscience, I’ll carry it. Some people need saving, and some people need burying.

Paul and Marco took care of the mess. Ben would handle the rest—the falsified papers, the cover-up. William would disappear from the records, leaving Adriana a widow.

But not for long.

Adriana was always meant to be mine. I wouldn’t stop—not until the day she shared my last name. And that day was fast approaching.

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