Page 86 of Beautiful Villain

My phone rang. Immediately my hackles were raised. “Vassily. I take it you have some information.”

“Yeah. Rory O’Leary was the dude you were looking for. Kevin O’Connor and Parker Shay were nobodies as far as I can tell,” Vassily stated.

“And Rory?”

“Well, his dad used to be the head of the trade council. He was pushed out, but that was four years ago. Might mean nothing.”

I laughed. “It could also be a reason for revenge. What did he have to do with the trade council?”

“He was popular, served on the nominations committee.”

“That means shit.”

“Wait a minute. There is an election coming up and guess whose term is up?”

“Michael Walsh.” Fuck. It was all about revenge but not against us. “Why was Rory’s father pushed out?”

“That I don’t know, but I do have another tidbit of information you might be able to use,” he continued. “That stolen car carrying Rory and his buddies that night? Guess who reported it missing?”

“Keep talking.”

“Jeff Parker.”

I moved closer to Alexei, my fury just increasing. “Parker, huh?”

“Yep. It’s getting far too interesting,” Vassily said, laughing.

“I’ll say.”

“I’ll call you if I find anything else.”

The call ended; I took a deep breath.

“The snitch is Parker.”

Alexei opened his eyes wide, immediately shaking his head. “I won’t buy it. I check my employees every four months. He’s had no payments made.”

“Gambling debt?”

“The man is a born-again Christian, for fuck’s sake. He had a wife and two kids. What the hell does Vassily think he knows?”

“Candy was attacked and abducted, which is why she’s now under my protection. The car involved was stolen. Guess who it belonged to?”

Alexei snorted. “Jeff reported his car stolen from his house over a week ago. Don’t go there, Kirill. He wouldn’t be that stupid. It was legit. He was very upset.”

I gave him a hard look as I thought about what had transpired. “Who was the man in the construction office with him the other day?”

“You mean Mikhail? I hired him a few months ago. His background, his bank accounts all check out. I think they knew each other before on another jobsite. He’s a good worker.”

What I’d also learned in my life was that the most dangerous threats were the ones that you least suspected, including those designed by friends. Which is exactly what Valentin had been getting at.

“Was he connected to the union? Rory O’Leary was the man who abducted Candy. He was the son of the past president of the trade council.”

“If you’re insinuating Mikhail is involved somehow, I’m not certain what he could gain,” Alexei responded.

“Maybe nothing unless he’s working for the Irishmen. Maybe his payoff is coming later.”

“Wait a minute. O’Leary. Patrick O’Leary. I had run-ins with him building the first casino five years ago. The man killed himself after he was forced off the council. Because he was accused of being tight with the Irish mob.” He lifted his head, curling his upper lip. “We need to make a connection to—” When he stopped short, I could see the rage forming in his eyes. “I think know who our snitch is.”

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