Page 32 of Velvet Betrayal
Tristan snapped his fingers, the tiniest signal, and someone in the restaurant snapped to attention. “Where do you go to school?” he asked. “And remind me of your name?”
I didn’t want Tristan Callahan talking to my daughter. But there was no stopping it. If anything, he might be the only reason we survived this.
“Her name is Rosie,” I said. “She’s in second grade at Tynan. She likes art, and YouTube, and unicorns and bunnies. She loves books. You are not to talk to her outside this room, ever.”
“Of course not,” Tristan said, already bored with the warning. He turned back to Rosie. “Do you like horses?”
She cocked her head. “Only the tall ones. Ponies are boring.”
He grinned, wolfish and genuine. “Me too. Did you know racehorses can run faster than cars on some Boston streets? My daughter and I go to the track sometimes. My son isn’t as interested. I’ll tell Kieran to take you, if you ever want that. Would you?”
“That sounds fun!” Rosie said.
Fuck…he knew exactly what she was doing. She was already warming to him, eyes bright with the kind of delight she reserved for magicians and troublemakers.
Breakfast arrived all at once—plates set down in a blur by staff who looked like they’d rather be anywhere else. Tristantook his eggs without comment. Kieran watched his brother over the rim of his mug, reading every move. I scanned the room for shadows, for anyone watching us too closely.
Tristan sipped his coffee, then looked at Kieran. “So. You think there’s a contract on Ruby.”
He said it like he was asking about my mortgage, like I wasn’t even in the room. It annoyed me; made me feel like these men were playing games with my life. I wanted to fight back, stand up for myself…but I had to admit that there was nothing I could do.
My lifereallywas in their hands now.
“I don’t think it,” Kieran said. “I know it. There’s proof.”
I stabbed at my eggs.
Tristan gave me a bemused smile.
“And you?” he asked. “What do you think?”
“I think…” I paused. “I think there’s a good chance the person with a contract on my life isyou. Or someone like you. Someone who’s never had a woman say no to them.”
His eyes narrowed. “If I wanted you gone, you wouldn’t be sitting here. But you know that already. So let’s move on.” He laced his fingers together. “This freelance operation—The Crew, right? If someone from that app went after you, I certainly didn’t hire them.”
“Why should I believe that?”
“Because our business is based onaccountability,” he said. He took a bite of his eggs, as if he wasn’t discussing how he orchestrated mob hits. “I can’t build clout or form relationships if I’m using anonymous gunmen to make threats and carry out…”
He glanced at Rosie and plastered a smile on his face.
“...cleanup work.” He shrugged. “No one in our line of work would either—no one who runs their business on the same model.”
“So who would it be?” Kieran asked. “Some family from out of town?”
“I don’t think it’s family related at all,” Tristan said. “No…this is someone outside the city’s natural order. Someone whose money stays quiet even after the noise is gone. But you understand—my incentive to help you is pretty limited.”
He looked at Rosie then, like she was a magnet. Kieran’s jaw flexed. My coffee tasted like metal.
“I don’t want your help,” I said. “I’m here because of your brother.”
Kieran sighed. “Look, this app thing is a real problem, and she can be leverage with the DOJ.”
“Isn’t the DOJ after you?” Tristan asked.
I swallowed. “I have information from Special Counsel Lucy Darnell. But I’m not giving it to you unless you guarantee our safety. Mine, and my daughter’s. Not just from you, but from everyone.”
“You want the Callahan syndicate to protect the sitting DA of Suffolk County.”
