Page 75 of Burn this City

“Based on what?”

“Seems a Dommarco associate went missing. I checked with our guys, and it wasn’t us.”

“Cassaro is like any old man—jumping at shadows. Rausa hasn’t been a problem for years.” Andrea zipped up and flushed.

“I know that, but I still checked with some people and … I don’t know, Andrea, but I’m getting uneasy.” He half turned and saw Andrea admire himself in the mirror, running a hand through his hair, then baring his teeth as if to check he had nothing stuck in them. “We should deal with him.”

“So bloodthirsty all of a sudden.” Andrea paused with his grimacing and met Jack’s gaze in the mirror. “You figure you’ll need Dommarco’s okay for that?”

“If I get yours, I’ll make the case to Cassaro and Guy Dommarco in person.”

“Wouldn’t want to disturb the peace too much?” Andrea’s sing-song could have been playful, but Jack placed it as mockery.

“If bodies drop, they’ll get restless too. And Rausa’s still a boss.”

“So old-fashioned. If they let you run this city, you’d have a Commission up and running within days, including a fucking board of directors.” Andrea took the door handle and slapped Jack on the shoulder.

“Rausa will target you first. I understand there’s bad blood between you.”

“And that has you spooked?” Andrea had been about to open the door, but then faced Jack again and grabbed both his arms. “Enough that you want to have him killed?”

Slippery son of a bitch.“It’s a threat I can’t completely assess. I wasn’t present while a lot of that history was written.”

Andrea frowned as if having to focus to remember, but he couldn’t possibly be that drunk, could he? “He had some axes to grind, never wanted a part of the peace talks, then fucked off to sulk. Nothing much there.”

“What happened?”Give me something, Andrea.

“Eh. He couldn’t protect his own fucking wife, that’s what happened. So what. If he makes the wrong move, we’ll finish him off, but not tonight. I got something better to do, and so do you.”

Nobody ever asked who had committed any particular murder, it just wasn’t done. The same way, once tonight was finished, Sal, Enzo and Jack would never mention to anyone why Silvio Spadaro had been in town. Even with Andrea, it was rarely necessary to be so blunt. But this was Andrea’s club, his party, and not a clueless witness within earshot.

Jack was Andrea’s right hand, the one man hehadto trust. One final push, then.

Who killed his wife? Did you give the order?”

Andrea placed an arm around Jack’s shoulders, and for a long hot-cold moment, Jack couldn’t parse the touch. Although he knew Andrea well after all those years, he had no idea whether it was friendly or threatening, and maybe even Andrea didn’t know one from the other.

“Ask Vic. He has the story.”

Jack was about to protest or plead, but Andrea placed a finger on Jack’s lips. He shuddered because the touch was way too intimate—and Andrea still hadn’t washed his hands.

“No more business tonight, Jack, come on. Relax.”

It couldn’t be clearer. As much as Jack hated it, he had to retreat and hope that he could make Vic Decesare talk instead.

“Sorry. I just like having all of the puzzle pieces.”

Another pat on the shoulder. “Yeah, good man. Now let’s go back or people might get ideas.”

Jack remembered the proper response was laughter, not freeing himself and looking horrified. “I like you, Andrea, but not that much.”

When they returned to the guests, the temperature had risen—a couple of the girls were still dancing, others were sitting between the guests, drinking, laughing, and getting quite touchy-feely. Opposite of the men, Spadaro was kissing one of the other girls, a blonde in a short white skirt, whose top had ridden up to reveal her tanned belly. From the way the girls kissed, Jack felt both Spadaro and her were definitely into each other, or at least into this.

Next to him, Andrea stopped and watched the show. Spadaro seemingly had no attention for Andrea, but her fingers moved along the insides of the other girl’s thighs as she opened them. The blonde’s lids were heavy though she briefly became lucid enough to look at Andrea, and then she moaned.

“I think I’ll have both of them. Your girl can lick my balls while I fuck that one.”

Knock yourself out,Jack thought. “Go for it.”

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