Page 21 of Kiss of Death
Gia’s gaze shifted to Sofia for her to continue the conversation. Sofia wasn’t sure how much information she wanted to give these ladies. She didn’t want them spooked or running to the cops thinking it would help.
Sofia cleared her throat. “Most of you don’t know me, but I’m sure you remember my father’s name, and if you had access to a TV in recent weeks, you have seen my face.” Sofia smirked remembering her eventful homecoming. “My name is Sofia Barbati, and I own part of Tres Bellas.”
Sofia purposely dropped that information to gauge the reactions of the women sitting in front of her. A few of them seemed to have made the connection of her last name, but the part owner information seemed to get a few shocked looks from all the women except Ivy. She tried to look surprised, but it seemed rehearsed, like this wasn’t the first time she was hearing this information.
The pieces to the puzzle Sofia was putting together on Ivy started sliding into place, but she was still missing parts and some pieces didn’t fit so neatly together. She wasn’t one to give people the benefit of the doubt, not with the nature of her business—when it’s life or death, you always assume the worst. But something didn’t feel right, and it frustrated Sofia that she couldn’t figure out what it was.
“My name draws a lot of attention, sometimes unwarranted. We discovered something that would give us cause for concern, and unfortunately, it involves all of you here. As a precaution we are going to have someone keep an eye on you ladies.”
One of the other girls spoke up. “Meaning what exactly, and if it’s that much of a concern, why not just go to the cops?” From Gia’s notes, she was one of the other new hires. She seemed a little skittish, which in turn made Sofia nervous. She didn’t need this girl quitting and running straight to the cops. She wanted to stay off their radar as much as possible, which was already proving difficult.
“Cops aren’t always what they’re cracked up to be. Not everyone who puts that badge on is a good guy. They’re just as corrupt as the criminals on the street and with a higher price point.” Sofia answered her question as honestly as she could. She remembered growing up how many cops were always at her father’s house for cookouts, birthdays, and everything in between.
The girl blanched but nodded in understanding. Sofia looked over at Otto, letting him know he was up to continue the conversation. Some of his crew were going to keep an eye out on the girls until Bruno and Boris were dealt with. Otto introduced his crew to the woman they would be protecting, and Sofia crossed her arms over her chest, curious to see how Otto was going to divide the protection for Gia, Mary, and Ivy.
Otto paused, and he looked at the three guys he hadn’t assigned to anyone yet. He pressed his lips together as his gaze bounced between Gia and Mary. “D, you’re with my sister.” Otto started but was interrupted by the sound of Gia sucking her teeth.
“I wasn’t one of the girls on the hit list. I don’t need a babysitter.” Gia crossed her arms over her chest.
“For my sanity, please. You’re not any safer than me or Sofia here. Better to have the extra eyes on you, okay? Eric, you’re with Mary and I’ll take Ivy,” Otto continued quickly before Gia said anything else.
Sofia coughed out a chuckle, not surprised at all at how he divvied up the protection. She wondered if both him and Ivy realized how much of a couple they already appeared to be from the outside. Otto was attuned to Ivy in the same way Dom was attuned to her, but they had years between them that the distance only amplified. Otto didn’t know Ivy, and it made Sofia wonder if he was being led by his dick when it came to her.
She grabbed Otto and pulled him off to the side, making sure she kept her voice low. “I want to ask what’s going on between you and Ivy, but I feel like you probably don’t even know yourself. Be careful here, Otto.” Her gaze shifted behind him to Ivy who seemed a little too interested in the conversation they were having. “Wolves like to hide in sheep’s skin to penetrate the flock before they attack. Keep your big head in charge and not your little one when it comes to her because if she does more than breaks your heart, I’ll break her neck before I break yours.”
Otto pulled up to Ivy’s apartment building. She was grateful she didn’t see any of the usual guys hanging out front, though with the way her mind had been going since this morning, she doubted sleep was going to happen for her. The car ride had been unusually quiet on the way over, and she was thankful for it. Ivy didn’t have the energy to pretend right now.
It was funny how much not talking to her sister had affected her. She was internally ready to beg for help to get her and her sister out of this situation, and as Ivy looked at Otto out of the corner of her eyes, she was willing to tell him everything. She could taste the words forming on her tongue—they came at her like a freight train, but she quickly swallowed everything she was so desperate to scream, hoping someone would have the answers for her.
If she told Otto what was going on, there was a possibility he’d tell her to fend for herself or it would somehow tip Bruno off. She couldn’t deal with either option because they both left her and her sister dead and everything she did would have been for nothing.
Ivy put her hand on the car door wondering if Bruno was sitting in her apartment again and if Otto was going to stay in his car all night to watch her building. She didn’t pay attention to much after Sofia told the girls at Tres they would all need a bodyguard of sorts. She didn’t say why, but Ivy knew the truth and that she was partly responsible for it.
Ivy hated that she had to always pick between someone else’s life and her sister’s or her own. It was easier when they were strangers and she didn’t let her mind wander to the people who would miss them when they were gone, but then there were people like Mary. She’d been kind to Ivy, and it almost killed her knowing she was one of the women Bruno would probably target to get his point across. Ivy pictured that sweet woman beaten and bound to the stage as Desiree had been, and Ivy had to wrap her arms around herself to keep from sobbing out loud.
You’re never going to make it to the end of this if you don’t get a handle on your emotions. Eve needs you to be stronger than this.
“Are you okay?” Otto’s deep timber and the way his hand landed on her knee, giving it a tight squeeze, sent a different kind of sensation through her body. This man and his uncanny ability to touch her without pain but only reassurance or even pleasure satat odds with what she was accustomed to. It made her want to lean on him, her body practically begged for it, but the more she stayed wrapped up in his orbit, the harder things were going to be for her.
He asked her if she was okay and she wasn’t. She couldn’t remember the last time she had been okay, and she didn’t know if that was something she’d ever be able to feel again. But that didn’t stop her from fixing her lips into a small smile and nodding her head. “I’m okay.” Ivy had been lying so much the words no longer tasted bitter on her lips.
OTTO GRIPPED THE STEERING WHEELwith one hand while his other stayed on Ivy’s knee. He heard the lie in her tone, and after his brief conversation with Sofia, he was starting to wonder what else she was lying about and why.
Sofia told him about the background checks Smoke had done on all their employees. She said nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but it looked almost too clean for a background check. Sofia told Otto everything they found on Ivy, and the one thing that stuck out for him was her file had no mention of any family.
Otto could come up with excuses for the discrepancy, maybe the sister she had told him about wasn’t a sister by blood or didn’t share the same last name. There were a dozen reasons for the discrepancy, and yet as he drove her home, that nagging feeling that had been at war with the part of him that wanted to dive into her—with no life jacket—had been persistent that something wasn’t right with Ivy.
He tried to hold onto that feeling for self-preservation, but the second he felt her mood shift in the car, the only thing he wanted to do was comfort her. It was pathetic when he actually thought about it. Nico had been quick to call him a sucker because his ex had easily wrapped him around her finger. He wanted to be the good guy for her and save her when she hadn’t needed saving.
A shrink would have a field day with him. They’d probably call it white knight syndrome and it probably stemmed from being the only boy in a household full of women and not saving his mother from herself. Whatever it was, it had him stuffing that nagging feeling into a box, knowing he was probably going to regret it later, to focus on the sad eyes and lying mouth staring back at him.
“You know you don’t have to lie to me and say you’re fine if you’re not. There was a lot to deal with tonight. I’ll still think you’re a badass if you tell me that none of what you heard and saw tonight was okay. It’s not supposed to be okay.”
Ivy placed her hand on top of his, and they intertwined their fingers together like it was the most natural thing in the world for them.
“You’re a good man.” She squeezed his hand right when he was ready to call bullshit at the idea. A good man wouldn’t put the people he cared about in danger.
“No offense, Ivy. You don’t know me well enough to make that statement.”
