Page 89 of Hunt Me

“I thought you’d never ask. Connor O’Shaughnessy was sentenced to eighteen years in prison after making a plea deal.” He chuckled.

“That’s unheard of, but either he just got out of prison or he didn’t serve his entire sentence.” If he had a decent attorney, he would have gotten out much earlier. Obviously, he hadn’t served that long and I doubted it had anything to do with good behavior.

“Uh-huh. But get this. He only served one year and additional evidence was suddenly found that linked someone else to the murder. Strangely enough, part of the reason for the conviction was there was a video of Connor killing the man. I had to dig deep, calling in a couple favors, but the information is reliable.”

Now a grin crossed my face. “Let me venture a guess here. Then district attorney Sebastian Rork reopened the case after the sudden appearance of new evidence. He felt guilty and wanted to make amends.”

“Something like that.”

“I’m surprised we didn’t hear about it.”

Kazimir snorted. “That was a long time ago while you were just getting your feet wet with being enforcer and sending the Irish back home.”

I was brought back to the moment when we’d finally destroyed their fledging operation in Vegas, killing Tristen’s brother who’d been tasked with expanding operations.

The nagging continued.

“Something is off here. This is a highly orchestrated plan,” I said while mulling over the limited details. “Why would a prosecutor who worked his entire career to place criminals behind bars have a change of heart?” I was being rhetorical.

“Maybe he was dirty. I haven’t looked into his finances yet, but from what I’ve seen, Sebastian is a man of the people and doesn’t appear to live a lavish lifestyle. One thing I did learn for certain. After Connor was released, Sebastian never hounded the family again.” Kazimir shrugged.

“We need a complete dossier on the man. I want to know every fucking thing about him. He could have hidden bank accounts in fucking Brazil for all we know. Now he’s in a perfect position to undermine our business while allowing the Irish savages to purchase several pieces of prime real estate. I’m going to contact Mark Jenkins to begin locking down other properties.”

“Understood. I’ll keep my ear to the ground. It’s also possible Sebastian was threatened, at least initially, but he’s a smart man. What if he has a little black book of his own?”

“He’s only one man, Kazimir.” The question remained. What was he trying to accomplish?

Even if he’d been threatened, that didn’t necessarily explain why the mayor would suddenly decide to develop a commission on crime unless… He was still paying off his debt to the O’Shaughnessy family. “Do you have a picture of him during the time in LA?”

“Not on me, but I can get one. I’m sure the case drew attention. I can see your wheels turning, brother. What are you thinking?”

Rubbing my jaw, I accepted there were few coincidences in life and that karma had a way of knocking you on your ass when you least expected it. “She’s not planning on working for her father,” I said absently as I studied the kitchen, satisfied there wasn’t anything in the room to find. “That doesn’t mean he won’t place pressure on her.”

“And?”

“And I think she should.”

He laughed. “With a long leash attached to your arm.”

Chuckling, I rubbed my jaw. “Exactly. What better way to keep track of what he’s doing?”

“Why do I have the feeling that your desire to keep her close has more to do with your appreciation of her as a woman?”

“That would make her a weakness.” As I walked toward Sergio’s office, a vision of the night from twenty-two years before drifted into my mind. I’d been close to losing consciousness, the blast causing a concussion, yet certain images were ones I’d never forget.

A father and mother grateful for a life saved.

A debt owed.

“Some weaknesses are worth fighting for, Mikhail. Even you know that. There’s one more thing you should know that could prove useful if I know you. There’s a charity benefit next week that Christine Rork is hosting, the lovely and very powerful mayor’s wife. You should have heard about it. The event is thetalk of the town and everyone who is anyone will be there. I checked the guest list. Bristol Rork is on it. Maybe you could be her plus one. At minimum you’d give old man Rork a heart attack.”

His grin was practically evil. I laughed. “You are one conniving son of a bitch.”

“You taught me well, brother.”

“Yes, I can see I have. Worth a thought. Just see if you can get into Sergio’s computer system. I’m going to run a further check on Mayor Rork and his former life.”

“Why do I think there are connections to the past?”