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9

Brandon

Sagehadbeenavoidingme since our argument in her apartment. That hadn’t stopped me from monitoring her. Two years ago, I’d tapped into Vixens’s security cameras during my investigation into Janie’s disappearance. Now, I monitored them for a different reason. And apparently, I was a masochist, because watching Sage sling drinks at that sleaze-infested club was becoming an addictive torture.

Seeing those assholes ogle and grab at her made me want to punch a hole through my computer screen. I also worried Sage might lash out if they got too handsy. Couldn’t blame her, but that would draw unwanted attention and trouble she didn’t need.

After she’d kicked me out of her apartment, a quick search of the name Sage Allen brought up pages of results about a drive-by shooting three years ago. I cursed myself for not doing it sooner, but long ago, I’d made a conscious decision not to meddle in the private lives of family and friends unless asked. I never wanted to blur those lines and complicate a relationship by knowing things I had no right to.

After learning what had really happened to Sage, I was more determined than ever to make things right for her.

Because of the shooting, she’d almost died. The bullet that had torn through her thigh nicked the femoral artery. A fatal wound if a nearby ER nurse hadn’t staunched the bleeding. A heaviness weighed on my chest thinking of her lying on the sidewalk, scared, alone, and in unimaginable pain. Her boyfriend dead beside her.Fuck.

It made sense now why she’d risk spying on Vixens and why she’d switched majors to criminology. Sage wanted payback. Not only against the shooter, but against the entire Wolf Street Mafia. She might have recovered from her physical wounds, but the mental ones were still fresh, and this was how she chose to heal them.

I respected the hell out of her for that, even if it drove me to clutch my hair with worry. Sage was brave and stronger than I’d imagined, but these men were no ordinary foe. The thought of her in their clubhouse was almost unbearable.

A surge of protectiveness overcame me. I wouldn’t let them hurt her again. Not Dante. Not the Russian. No one.

I had to do something about her situation, fast.

A breakthrough. Finally.

I’d spent most of the week hunting for something,anything, to use as leverage to get Sage out of her deal with Dante. It came down to finding what he wanted more than her. Something I could trade so we could all walk away satisfied. Then Sage would be free.

While scanning the Mob’s communication channels, I found the bargaining chip I’d been looking for. An open catch-or-kill contract for a man named Justin McKenzie. And the reward was phenomenal. One hundred grand was on offer for tracking down the rogue Mafia drug runner. My plan was to bring him in, hand him over, and waive the reward in exchange for Sage.

Even though McKenzie sounded like human trash, I wasn’t interested in killing him. That was Shep’s game. My ex–Team Zulu brother-turned-hitman would’ve seen the contract because he often did jobs for the Mob. It could be a problem if he wanted it. My only option was to reach McKenzie faster and haul him to Vixens.

Franky Russo, Mafia boss and Dante’s uncle, must be eager to track down McKenzie. The huge fee reeked of desperation. Would bringing him in be enough? I hoped so because I had little else to offer. And since hit contracts like McKenzie’s always came from the top, it was time to call the boss.

Franky answered on the third ring.

“Who is this?” The Mob boss had the articulate voice of someone raised with a silver spoon in his mouth. He hadn’t been. From my own investigations, I knew he’d had a rough early life filled with tragedy and death. Nowadays, Franky Russo was a well-regarded citizen, philanthropist, and business owner. Very few knew his true identity as the ruthless boss of the Wolf Street Mafia. But with my hacking skills, I could uncover a lot about a person.

“My name is Brandon Lewis, and I have a proposition for you.”

“How did you get this number?”

“I have certain abilities that allow me to find just about anything. Including Justin McKenzie.”

A beat of silence. “In that case, I’m interested in hearing your proposition, Mr. Lewis.”

“I’ll bring McKenzie to you. Instead of payment, I wish to have a friend released from your employment. Dante has her waiting tables at Vixens and has taken an…interest in her.”

“If the woman is one of Dante’s pets, it will take more than a monetary gesture to free her. My nephew is a very wealthy man.”

I was afraid he’d say that.

He continued. “But bringing in McKenzieisimportant to me. I may be able to sway Dante if you can sweeten the deal.”

Bingo. “What is it you need?”

“If I needed anything, I’d simply acquire it. You seem like a resourceful man. Find me something I don’t know I need, and we’ll talk about releasing the girl.”

He hung up, which was probably a good thing because I was about to lose my shit over his annoyingly vague demand. What was I supposed to give a man who could take whatever he wanted?

I had two days to come up with something because once I delivered McKenzie to Franky, Sage was coming with me whether Dante liked it or not.