Page 24 of Tormented Diamonds
Twenty minutes and a fourth of a bottle of whiskey later, I’ve filled him in on everything from when and why I called Owen, to what we discussed, glossing over the part where he confessed about the whole Toscano/fed thing.
Gianni takes it all in with zero emotion. After a few moments of heart-thumping silence, he stands and discards his empty glass while shrugging off his suit jacket. “Then, I suppose I should thank you for helping Becca inmy absence. However, it’s late, and three’s a crowd, Henley. You know the way out.” He tosses his jacket on a chair and holds his hand out toward me, the look in his eyes daring me to argue.
Considering our history, I’m not sure if that’s supposed to be a deterrent or incentive.
However, with everything that’s unfolded in the last few hours, I decide it’s in my best interest to not churn calm waters. So, I rise and take his hand. Without a word, he turns and stalks toward the staircase, his grip so tight I have no choice but to follow.
“Actually…” Owen calls out. “I have an update I think you need to hear.”
Shit.
We come to an abrupt stop inches in front of the first step, the toned muscles in Gianni’s back stiffening as he tips his head back. “Fine. Let’s step outside.” Dropping my hand, he lowers his chin, leveling his eyes to mine. “Wait for me upstairs.”
Not this again…
“You’ve got to be kidding,” I sputter, moving in front of him before he can take a step. “I’m in this just as deep as either of you. I refuse to be sent away because I’m a woman.”
“This has nothing to do with you being a woman.”
“Yeah?” Tilting my head, I allow my mouth to spew attitude I know is only inciting a storm. “If I had a dick, would you say the same thing?”
His eyes darken with warning. “If you had adick, none of this would’ve happened.”
“Whoa, come on, you two…” Owen intervenes, eyeing the door like he isn’t sure whether to diffuse the situation or break for the exit. “Arguing won’t make this any better.”
“Christ, I’m too goddamn tired to fight you both,” Gianni groans. I hide my smile as he reclaims my hand and leads me back into the foyer. “What have you got?”
“I’ve been looking into Henry’s burner cell, but the bastard covered his tracks pretty well. There are no programmed numbers, and the call history has been deleted.”
“Can it be recovered?”
He shakes his head. “Not without a warrant, and only by the cell provider. While my badge carries some authority, I’m not a federal agent. I have a lot of eyes on me right now. I can’t draw any more.”
That’s putting it mildly. A few days ago, Gianni decided it would be best for all involved if Owen stepped out of the shadows and reclaimed his judicial halo. Ever since, Owen has been interrogated within an inch of his life and has lived on the wrong end of “big brother’s” scope.
But he doesn’t look bothered by it at the moment. In fact, he looks kind of smug.
“There’s something else,” I blurt out.
Owen nods like a proud parent. “I have a friend in Quantico who owes me a favor, so I asked him to keep a watch on the number in case it activates again. Saddler’s phone lit up about two hours ago, and he triangulated the signal between three cell towers.”
Gianni’s flat expression gives nothing away. “Where?”
“Teaneck. I pulled Henry’s personnel files and did a deeper dive into his background. The only family he had was a single mother who died a few years ago in Brooklyn, no other family or siblings,” he says, rattling the information off like he’s reading a meter report. “Looks like a real low-income upbringing. He didn’t have it easy.”
How fucking tragic.
“Did cross-referencing him with Cillian Doyle produce anything?” Gianni asks.
I blink. “Cillian Doyle?”
He turns that dark gaze my way. “The real name of our latefriend, Dice.”
I stiffen.The man I condemned to death for a crime he didn’t commit.I hug my arm to my chest, the ink on the inside of my wrist burning at the memory of his fiery fate.
Owen clears his throat. “Unfortunately, no. If there’s a connection, I couldn’t find it.”
“Keep looking,” Gianni instructs crisply. “My father was way too paranoid to send a dirty badge to his dirty link and trust they’d toe the line and keep their mouths shut.”
