Dirty Read online

  She grins up at him as she walks away. “All in good time, Mr. Gambino.”

  Catching up to me, she mumbles, “Slimy motherfucker.”

  The statement catches me off-guard. There are few men Ling doesn’t like, for obvious reasons. That reason being they have a dick. And Ling likes dick. Ling likes dick very much.

  As soon as we enter Miguel’s office, he looks up from his seated position. “Well?”

  There’s no easy way to say it. “Spoke to your sister. She’s not okay. That woman needs help. I don’t know what’s gone down, but something’s weighing on her.”

  Miguel’s face turns pained only a moment before anger surges through him. He stands and barks, “I know this. I fucking know.” Calming himself with a deep breath, he asks through a sigh, “What did she tell you?”

  Again, no easy way to say it. “Says Dino killed Raul.”

  At that, Miguel deflates, almost literally. With shock written all over his face, he slides back into his desk chair and pinches the bridge of his nose tight. “Fuck. No bueno.” Removing his hand from his nose, his eyes widen before he looks up at me, jaw clenched. He growls a venomous, “What did you do?”

  At this, Ling steps forward and utters a severe, “I don’t like your tone.”

  How did this turn on me? Everyone needs to fucking chill. I place my hand on Ling’s shoulder and look Miguel in the eye. “I don’t roll like that. Never had to force myself on a woman before in my life, and I didn’t start today.” Needing him to get me, I tell him, “Got a sister myself, man.”

  He looks like he wants to believe me but can’t do it. “So she just came out and said he did it? Just like that?”

  Oh, I know what he means, and if I were him, I’d be questioning it too. I was surprised as he is. “Exactly like that.”

  Ling speaks up, sounding more the voice of reason than I’ve ever heard before. “A woman like that doesn’t turn on her man, one she obviously loves, for no reason. There’s something more here. Something vital that we’re missing.”

  “And whatever it is,” I add, “she’s not letting anyone in.”

  Miguel stands once more, walking around his desk and out the door. “Follow me.”

  Miguel leads us up the stairs, past Alejandra’s room, to the end of the hall. Miguel knocks once, firmly. A deep voice calls out, “Adelante.”

  He opens the door, leading us inside what I quickly realize is Eduardo Castillo’s private study. This is not an office. An office is not a personal haven or getaway. An office implies only work is done there, and with one look of this room… this is far from an office.

  The large, intricately carved mahogany desk at the back of the room shouts wealth, and the throne that would double as a desk chair screams power. The room has an obvious color theme, with all the burgundy and heritage green flowing through it. I would say the color theme is royalty.

  I would laugh were it not a member of underground royalty hosting this scheme.

  Having made a call to Happy at a pit stop, I learned a few things about Eduardo Castillo. He comes from a long line of dirty motherfuckers. He has a reputation for being a fair man, good to his family. And finally, you do not want to fuck with him or his. Happy told me about the few who had. None of them have been seen since, but wreaths had been sent to the families of the missing. Anonymously, of course, but the unspoken message said enough.

  Those people were not coming back.

  So I am in the lion’s den, bringing forth a shit-storm.

  Eduardo Castillo, sitting on the sofa, playing a solo game of chess, looks over his guests, before asking, “Problema?”

  Miguel walks forward to speak to his father, leaving Ling and I where we are. The first rule of respect in the underground: Do not sit unless invited.

  Eduardo watches Miguel closely as he speaks rapid-fire Spanish, only pausing to look over Ling and me before turning back to his son. A minute of Miguel’s explanation, before we’re cloaked in silence. Eduardo stands and, walking over to me, holds out his hand. “Eduardo Castillo.”

  “Julius Carter.” Releasing his hand, I motion to the slip of a woman by my side. “Ling Nguyen.” As Eduardo takes her hand and leans down to kiss it, I mutter, “Careful. She bites.”

  Eduardo cracks a smile, albeit a small one, but it’s progress. “Please sit.”

  Ling and I sit on the sofa opposite the one Miguel and Eduardo sit on. Having dealt with people like Eduardo hundreds of times before, I wait for him to speak first.

  His voice, tired and gravelly, he states a heavily accented, “So. We have a problem.” He points to me. “And you will help me fix it.”

  No hesitation. “I will.”

  “Good.” He sighs through his nose, aging ten years before my eyes. “Raul Mendoza was a good man, a loyal soldier, and trustworthy man. When Vito Gambino introduced me to his son Dino, I thought he was just like Raul. I saw the way he treated my Alejandra, and it was a relief to me, to know he would look after her and treat her well. I was promised loyalty from Gambino’s men. Raul considered Dino a friend, considered him kin.” He lowers his face and sighs before returning his gaze to mine. “This will not do. An example must be made.” His face turns feral as he grits out, “I want him dead. Today. Now.”

  Ling speaks, but she does so quietly. “I wish it were that simple, Mr. Castillo, but Alejandra’s word is not enough.”

  Hate to say it, but she’s right.

  Eduardo’s murderous eyes shoot to Ling’s. “You think she lies?”

  Ling realizes immediately that she’s insulted a mob boss and stands her ground. “Absolutely not. I believe Alejandra. Lord knows, a woman who loves her husband would not out him like that without reason.” She softens her tone and states, “We need more information. If Dino insists he’s innocent, he needs an alibi. If he can’t provide one, then we’ll proceed.”

  Eduardo looks to me. “You let her speak for you?”

  I know he means it as an insult, but I don’t rise to the bait. I simply repeat, “Like I said… she bites.”

  Eduardo doesn’t smile, but his eyes do.

  My turn. “I’m convinced that Alejandra believes Dino did this. I watched her fight herself, and I saw the exact moment she lost that fight. She asked all the right questions, and I watched the reactions to the answers she received. She was terrified of giving him up.” I state confidently, “I believe her. I believe Dino did it.”

  Those words being all Eduardo needs to hear, he stands, straightening his tie. “I want to see this fucker buried.”

  We make our way downstairs and enter the main room. There are some new faces there, and I guess them to be Gambino’s men and his sons. The moment we enter, Eduardo walks to the center of the room and stands silently in front of the men. I notice Alejandra is absent, but we won’t need her right now. Not ten seconds of standing before Eduardo has the attention of the men and complete silence. He looks to the ground before looking at the men in the room. “First item on the agenda.” His eyes turn to Dino. “Would you please stand, Dino?”

  Dino looks at his father-in-law and, knowing his place, stands.

  Eduardo looks to Miguel. Miguel comes forward, glaring at Dino, and he says loud enough for all to hear, “I, Miguel Castillo, accuse you, Dino Gambino, of murdering our brother Raul Mendoza.”

  And that’s when all hell breaks loose.

  “Oh, God,” I whisper as I stand by the door, listening to the chorus of angry men as furniture screeches here and there.

  Shit.

  I’m in so much trouble.

  Oh, shit.

  There’s no way they’ll let me live.

  I’m a dead girl walking.

  “I didn’t kill no one!” Dino screams, his face now red and distorted with rage as he tries to make his way to Miguel. The expression on his face less let’s hug and more I will bleed you dry.

  Moving Miguel behind my back, I stand tall. No fucker’s gonna lay a hand on me. It would be the ultimate disrespect to Eduar
do to see a guest harmed in his home. No way would Dino hit me.

  At least, that’s what I think until I see Dino advance on me, and I quickly realize that he is just that fucking stupid. An arm’s length away from me, he raises his fist and rears it back then… stops in his tracks.

  A slim, delicate hand, holding an open switchblade pressed to Dino’s jugular appears, while another strokes his lax cheek. Her normally seductive voice lethal, Ling utters clinically, “Do you know that the jugular pumps the greatest amount of blood flow to the heart than any other vein? Piercing it would almost definitely lead to fatality. I say almost, because it’s all about how you pierce it. For instance…” She changes the position of the blade, pressing the tip directly to his neck at exactly the right point. I spot Dino’s flinch a moment before I see the small amount of blood pool at the point of the blade.

  I fight the urge to smile. The wild bitch pierced him.

  With the men in the room now watching the deadly viper at work, she continues, “If you insert the blade as so—” She presses harder on it, forcing a small trickle of blood down the side of his neck. “—you would need to press it the entire length in”—she makes as if to turn the blade in a circular motion—“and twist. Death would be inevitable. But it wouldn’t come quick. Oh no. You’d bleed out slowly, over the course of minutes. You would feel the blood leave your body, with every beat of your heart, turning you cold and lifeless until finally, you took you last breath.”

  Dino stands with his arms out, somehow knowing that Ling isn’t bluffing. Watching Miguel with a look of betrayal, he bites out, “I didn’t kill Raul.”

  But Ling’s got her mind on other things. Standing on her tiptoes, she places her cherry red lips at the side of Dino’s throat by her blade. Her tongue darts out and licks upward, through the blood at Dino’s neck. And she wonders why people think she’s crazy. She cements that opinion in every mind here, when she mutters, “Don’t push me, honey. You have no idea how much the idea of killing you turns me on.”

  At that, I do smile. That’s my girl.

  An older man steps forward. “Now, let’s not do anything rash.” I see the resemblance between this handsome older man and his son immediately. This is Vito Gambino. Hands raised in a placating gesture, he asks, “What is the meaning of this?”

  Miguel steps forward and nearly shouts, “This hijo de puta sucia killed my friend. The husband of my sister. Family.” And then he does shout, “He killed my brother!”

  Dino grits his teeth, nostrils flaring, and growls, “I didn’t do it! Fuck!”

  Ignoring his son’s theatrics, Vito looks to Eduardo. “I assume you wouldn’t allow this to be brought to attention without proof.”

  Eduardo remains silent. It’s Miguel who speaks. “We have word from someone we trust.”

  Vito asks, “From who?”

  A small voice by the door gains attention when it echoes into the silence. “Me.”

  This is not a good idea.

  Why did I think this would be a good idea?

  My body trembling with fear, I hold my knees together, hoping to God that no one hears them knock together. “Me.”

  The entire room turns its gaze to me, including that of my husband, looking stunned and deceived. I quickly avoid his eyes but hear his plea. “Ana. What are you doing?”

  Rather than answer him, I step into the room to stand by my father, addressing everyone inside, “I, Alejandra Gambino, stand before you all today with a heavy heart. My husband, Dino, confessed to me that he killed Raul Mendoza in cold blood.” I turn to Vito and look him in the eye. “The Dino who stands before you is not the man I married.” I look up at Dino. “I don’t know this man. His jealousy over my previous relationship with Raul escalated on the night of Raul’s murder. He asked me questions and, not wanting to have secrets between us, I answered them. Needless to say, Dino did not like the responses to the questions he asked. The next thing I knew, Dino was throwing things in a rage before disappearing.” I look to Raul’s father, tears in my eyes. “He didn’t come back till morning, and when he returned, his clothes were rumpled and bloodstained.”

  Dino lets out a humorless laugh. “What?” He looks around to the faces crowding him. “You’re not fucking buying this shit, are you?”

  The somber looks on the men’s faces say they do.

  Looking around the room, Dino turns to me, losing his fight. He whispers, “Why are you doing this?”

  This time, I look him in the eye and lie, “I would defend you to the death, Dino. But things are different now.” I raise a hand to my belly protectively and utter a hushed, “I have a child to protect.”

  His eyes lower to the hand on my stomach. “You’re pregnant.” An awe-filled statement.

  Lowering my eyes in a show of surrender, I whisper, “I’m pregnant.”

  I am going to hell.

  As I keep my face to the ground, Dino speaks. “I can change.” He says this as a statement, but it comes out a plea.

  When I look up at him, I shake my head. “No. You can’t.”

  Julius steps in. “Anyone here that can vouch for Dino’s whereabouts that night?”

  At this point, Dino’s face turns to panic. “I was at home, in bed with my wife!” He turns to his brothers. His youngest brother, Luciano, looks at Dino in disgust, while Gio smirks, shaking his head at me. Dino pleads, “Luc? Gio? Say something!”

  My heart races. I can’t believe they won’t vouch for him. I expected that to be my one obstacle.

  Dino blinks rapidly, turning to Vito. “Pops. Please.”

  Vito speaks softly, but the silence in the room ensures he’s heard. “After the funeral, you called him feccia.” Vito looks up at his son, disappointment clear in his eyes. “You called him scum.”

  An audible sob comes from Raul’s father, and in a show of solidarity, one of Gambino’s men comes to stand by him, holding him up while a grown man cries for his son.

  The disbelief on Dino’s face would make me laugh if it weren’t so tragic.

  Dino croaks, “Papa.”

  That’s the exact moment that Vito Gambino cracks. Stalking forward, he stands foot-to-foot with Dino and, raising a hand, slaps him as hard as he can, so hard, Dino’s head snaps to the side.

  The ultimate insult.

  Leaning forward, Vito hisses, “You are not my son!”

  Vito Gambino stands tall, straightening his suit jacket. He moves to stand in front of me, and taking me by the shoulders, he kisses both my cheeks in a fatherly gesture of support. Lightly touching the hand held protectively at my belly, he mutters a gruff, “Felicitazioni, bella.”

  Vito approaches my father and they hug, then he leads the way out, followed by Luciano and Gio, while Dino falls to his knees and sobs. “Papa!”

  Without further adieu, Julius says, “If anyone would like to speak on Dino’s behalf, now would be the time.”

  Dino looks around the room, wide-eyed with hope, looking up at the scowling men from his knees. I’d bet my life that he wishes he were nicer to most of the men in this room.

  As expected, no one speaks on Dino’s behalf. And not a moment later, Julius announces, “Dino Gambino, you are hereby found guilty of the murder of Raul Mendoza. Your sentence…” Julius mutters a cold, “Death.”

  Dino suddenly stands and tries to make a run for me. I stand there watching him ascend, his lip curled, his voice raw. “You fucking bitch! I’ll fucking kill you!”

  As his arms reach out to curl around my neck, fear holds my immobile. A loud bang sounds and Dino stills.

  He clutches at his heart, looking up at me with tears in his eyes. Breathing heavily through his nose, he collapses in a heap at my feet, blood pouring out from under the hand at his heart.

  I look to Julius to find him shaking his head at the sight of a fallen Dino, no longer moving.

  My gaze finds hers and gun in hand, as the small Asian woman declares sassily, “Case closed, motherfucker.”

  My eyes find Dino
’s. Still eerily open, I look deep in his eyes and mutter to myself, “I’m free.”

  As if suddenly realizing my dead husband is lying on the floor, bleeding at my black Louboutins, I gasp, clutching a hand to my mouth. Within seconds, my father and brother are by my side. My father states, “It’s okay, Alejandra. We have you.”

  Miguel holds me tight, walking me away from Dino. Away from my old life. He kisses my temple and coos, “I’m so sorry, Ana. So sorry.”

  As we reach my bedroom door, I mutter, “I need time. Please… just give me time.”

  Miguel nods, closing the door behind me.

  On my own and no longer afraid, I grab my purse and take the long hall to the kitchen. I walk out the back door, make my way to the car and drive home.

  The moment I walk through the door, I make my way upstairs. Once inside my bedroom, I pace. “Oh my God,” I whisper.

  “Oh my God. Oh my God.”

  Gathering some sense, I get down on my knees beside the bed and reach under to pull out Dino’s emergency duffle. Unzipping it, I check the contents. Money, guns, false passports. Opening the passports, I find one with my photo but a different name.

  Perfect.

  Taking the duffle across the room to the walk-in closet, I shift the clothes on the hangers to reveal the safe. I open it in record time and unceremoniously throw stacks of hundreds into the bag. Quickly walking to the drawers, I grab piles of clothes and throw them in beside the money.

  This is it.

  My life in one bag.

  Sad.

  That is so sad.

  But I won’t dwell on the past. I’m going to leave the past where it belongs.

  Behind me.

  Without a backward glance, I walk out of my house, leaving the front door wide open, and get into my car. Once I start driving, I open the window and throw my wedding ring into oncoming traffic.

  And as I do that, I laugh.

  Living on the streets could be worse.

  When I say it could be worse, I mean I could be doing worse things than sharing a blunt with a homeless guy, Joseph, down his alley. And when I say his alley, I fucking mean it. From the discarded, torn brown sofa to the small chest of drawers with his few items of clothes in it, this alley is his home.