Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 79749 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 399(@200wpm)___ 319(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79749 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 399(@200wpm)___ 319(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
I'm never Nolan Parson, the man who got his nickname because of the risks he took in a city in the Jordan Valley of Palestine.
That man only exists in an oversized cabin tucked away in the Smoky Mountains that he shares with more than a half-dozen other men without real names.
I drop my pity-party attitude off when I leave the sedan behind in Roanoke.
I don't have any clue what I'll do once I get to Boston. I've relied heavily on the intel provided by others to get shit done over the years, and this isn't a situation I plan on getting any of the guys back in Tennessee involved in. These are ghosts from my past sneaking up, making it my responsibility to deal with, but it does leave me a little unprepared going forward. It isn't the first time I'll have to be resourceful, and if I have any luck and manage to make it out of this alive, I know it won't be the last.
Despite committing fully to seeing this through, I can't help the feeling of betrayal inching its way inside of me with every mile of distance I put between myself and the cabin.
It bothers me so much, that sense of brotherhood that had been forming in recent weeks, that I swing by a store, purchase a burner phone, and make a call.
"It's something from my personal life I have to take care of," I explain to Hemlock.
"I understand that, brother," he returns, making me feel a little more guilty.
I can't imagine what that man has been through in his life.
"Do you need any help?"
"No," I answer quickly.
"You'll let me know if you do," he says, offering even though he knows there's a very real chance I'll never take him up on it.
I appreciate the speed at which he offers it despite not knowing exactly what I'm getting mixed up in.
"I don't want to compromise Cerberus," I confess.
"Maybe there's a different way to handle all this," he says. "Just lay it out for me. We could get something together in a few days. Take care of it the best way it can be handled."
"This is something I have to do on my own," I assure him. "But I appreciate the offer."
I hang up the phone, dropping it in the nearest trash can before getting back into the car to finish the fifteen-hour drive to Boston.
Chapter 6
Aspen
I pull in a deep breath, wincing when I press the makeup sponge against the lump on my cheek. It's only been two days since Damien caught me snooping through his office, but canceling my standing appointment at the salon would only be a sign of defeat. I have no doubt my husband would see that as one more way I've disappointed him.
He doesn't want a woman who cowers or cries. He wants a woman to stand there and take his abuse like a man, turning the other cheek and being brave. I know from experience that crying and begging him not to hurt me is the opposite of what he wants.
I've perfected my ability to cover bruises over the years. I've managed to use contouring to make my face look less swollen. There's only so much I can do about a split lip, but I do my best by covering it with the bright red lipstick I always wear when I leave the house.
Looking good for Damien is non-negotiable. I can't leave the house without looking like I spent hours on my appearance. I'm a reflection of him, and if I look bad, that makes him look bad.
Other than the trip to the salon, I only leave the house when he needs me on his arm, and that's usually when he's trying his best to look like a legitimate businessman and not the scum of the earth like he really is. Dad always had legitimate business sprinkled around town. It's impossible to stay off the IRS radar if you don't have businesses to launder money through, after all.
Damien seems less willing to put on a show like my father did, and I know that endangers the organization. The best thing that could happen would be for the authorities to arrest him, although that probably wouldn't make me safe either. If he's killed, I imagine I'd be next. Those wanting to take over wouldn't leave an heir alive, and that's why with his more volatile behavior recently, I have this urgency to find Eli and get away from it all. We're in danger not only from Damien but also the men who want to take him out.
There's no happy ending where anyone would accept a woman taking over a crime family, with the exception of Alessia Severino, head of the Severino crime family in Chicago. But she's probably more brutal than even her blood-thirsty brothers were.