Page 120 of Forbidden Wish

“With that audience? Good luck. If she draws attention to herself and doesn’t get out of there, it’s over for her. And probably for us, for anyone who knows more than they should.”

“I wasn’t paying enough attention. I can’t remember if she had bruises.”

“Can’t have been anything major if you recognized her picture. It was dark, shit was going on, I don’t remember seeing her at all.”

“Why would she be there?” she murmured to herself. “Why Hustle?”

“There’s all kinds of explanations why she might’ve been there.”

“So if we go tonight, we could see her there again. Maybe get closer. Ask questions.”

“And then what? You want to steal her?” His head shook. “You already took from the Manzanis once. That shit doesn’t go over well. Families like the Manzanis have long memories. And in Hustle, there’s a hundred guys, maybe two hundred, all ready to shoot wherever Vex points.”

“He wouldn’t shoot you.”

“Bet your ass he would. Getting shot or dead is not what worries me.”

“What worries you? Having to fight that many guys? I wouldn’t—”

“You starring in Silvio’s next movie.” Gravity thickened the air. “Carlyle was ground zero and we fucked that operation last night. You think Silvio just let the girls ride off into the sunset? No, they’re working. Probably harder now there’s a hotel to rebuild.”

“Only now we don’t know where,” she murmured. “Would Vex have—”

“Vex has his own problems. Silvio wouldn’t think anything of taking from his boy. He owns it all, no matter what it says on the deed. Fuck knows where the operation moved to or if your women are with the regular girls. But if Silvio’s stomping over Vex’s shit, guaranteed that boy’s about ready to explode. Someone will take heat, the full force of it, and it won’t be us. We’re staying out of the firing line. Vex is unhinged, reason does nothing. If he wants you dead, you’re dead. With him, it’s the flip of a coin. No one knows who they’re going to get. Sometimes he’s playful, sometimes he’s psycho. He’s lived his whole life satisfying his whims and has no reason to help us out. Even to tolerate anyone asking questions.”

One person would be able to extract information from Vex, potentially, without getting dead. Her eyes closed. Shit. She couldn’t ask more of Sersha. The danger. The risk. It was too much. How bad did she need to know? The only way to save Yvonne, and the other women held against their will, was to first know their location.

“Do you think there’s a chance, any chance, Yvonne Ingham is still alive?”

His lips thinned before he moistened them. “A slim one. Very slim. A wafer-thin chance.”

“Will Silvio let her go? Her and the other women he’s abducted, will he let them go if we agree to his deal?”

“To write the story his way? To point the finger at his fall guy?”

“Which has to be Bryan, right? That’s why he was the only one on the tape. They want to frame him for this.”

“Could be his deal.”

“Would anyone agree to being set up for something like this? Sex crimes? Snuff movies? In prison, sexual predators—”

“For the Manzanis? The guy doesn’t have to be willing. Silvio says it’s true then it’s true. You do what you’re told or they replace you. Permanently.”

Was that supposed to justify Bryan’s actions? Any of the men’s actions?

“Don’t,” she said, shaking her head, sinking against the seat. “I will not feel sorry for him.”

“No one asked you to feel sorry for him. Silvio doesn’t answer to anyone. His strategy is his own.”

“So maybe Bryan wasn’t smart enough to read the writing on the wall?”

“Maybe.”

“He must’ve known something was up. Being asked to seduce those women, to lure them to wherever he wanted them to be… He got them to trust him. Was seen in public with them.” Maybe. “How could he miss what that would mean evidentially if they got caught? Isn’t it obvious?”

“For you, maybe. For me. A lot of these guys don’t think about what comes next. Silvio Manzani, the don himself, The Director, has a job for you. Chances are the guy thought he was in the Major League. Impressing the boss. Headed for bigger things.”

Could anyone be that naïve? Though intellect wasn’t a mandatory quality for pawns or goons.

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