The Most Dangerous Dame

I gazed at Moe through the spicy haze of cigar smoke. “Yes, I do. You say she was taken before she made it home. Do you know where she was staying?”

Moe hesitated for a brief second. “My daughter and I were… estranged. Dates back to an ambitious boyfriend of hers that met with an unfortunate accident. Turned out he was the nephew of a rival of mine, using his seductive skills to get inside the family. Needless to say the matter was handled, but Sophia never forgave me. Her attitude became willful and headstrong. She wanted a life outside the family, away from those who persecuted her so terribly. So I allowed her to strike out on her own, convinced she would return all the wiser once she saw the true face of the city, free from all the trappings and privilege she was accustomed to.”

I recalled some of the conversations between me and Scarlett. A stern, overbearing father. A first love shattered by a car accident. The determination to live life by her own rules. “Only she never did come back, did she?”

“No.” Flacco stared out the window. “I kept tabs on her as I could, took care of debts and small troubles when they were brought to my attention. She moved around a lot from one man to the next. I took care of some of those as well.” The glower that shadowed his eyes spoke of just how those poor bastards were taken ‘care of.’

He glanced at me. “I even knew when she became involved with you, Mick. At the time no one knew anything about you, and when it became clear you weren’t a threat, I let it be. She seemed… happy. I thought perhaps she would settle down into a modest but respectable lifestyle.”

I felt the ghost of guilt hover just out of my line of sight. “I… wish I could’ve have been the one to make her happy.”

Flacco waved away the apology. “Relationships are fragile things. We’ve all been there. I’m not faulting you for what happened. I’m trying to nail the bastard who would dare to lay a finger on my own flesh and blood.” For just a second Flacco’s eyes revealed a red-rimmed view of anguish. When he blinked, the predictable fires of anger and revenge replaced that fleeting window of vulnerability.

“I’ve heard a lot about you, Mick. I hear you’re the wrong man to cross, but the right man to have in your corner. You and me are a lot alike in that way.”

I didn’t know what to say to that, so I said nothing.

Flacco stabbed his cigar my direction. “Don’t think I don’t know how that Pike situation went down. Nobody could really explain how my main crew got taken out, so Pike was blamed for the hit. I knew Pike didn’t have the stones to even whisper my name without looking over his shoulder, but I had to give him the New Haven Blues regardless. I would have looked weak and inefficient if I didn’t rub him out.”

I tried not to sweat as Flacco weighed me with his bulldog eyes. “But we both know my hand was forced, don’t we, Mick?”

I didn’t know what to say to that, so I said nothing.

“Looks like the cat’s got his tongue, Moe.” Electra spoke in an offhand, lazy tone. “Want me to cut it out for you?”

I never saw her pull the long, ivory-handled folding razor, but it suddenly gleamed in her hand. She snapped it open it with a flourish, drawing closer. I tried not to flinch when the cold, razor edge rested against my cheek.

“Looks like you did a good job making yourself presentable.” Her breathy whisper was hot and sweet when it tickled my ear. “But we can always find a spot you missed.” The razor slowly slid down my jaw, just at the point of drawing blood. I froze when it rested at my throat, knowing an awkward swallow would put some pretty bad stains on my collar.

Moe raised a questioning eyebrow. “I’d start talking if I were you, Mick. Nate says he knows you, so I’d hate for you to get on Electra’s naughty list. Electra, why don’t you let Mick talk in a more comfortable manner? See?”

Electra’s lips puckered in a sensual pout. We were close enough to kiss, but that was about the last thing I wanted from the Black Widow. She smiled regretfully as she drew back, snapping the razor back into folding position. I had to stop myself from touching my neck to see if she drew blood. I steadied my nerves by taking a heavy drag on the cigar instead. I ended up coughing like a rube, but it was still better than a bloody smile in my neck.

I shakily exhaled smoke and ignored their amused smirks. “All right, Moe. You wanna know how the score went down?”

He gazed at me over steepled fingers. “That would be preferable.”

“Pike got on my bad side by setting up and murdering the Luzzattis, who happened to be good friends of mine. I didn’t have the firepower to take on his op, so I had to set up a sequence of events that would convince his boys to take a powder while I handled my business.”

Flacco’s eyes never blinked. “And that sequence of events happened to be framing Pike for an attack on my crew that you in fact originated, forcing me to hit the mattresses with his organization and engage in a hostile takeover. That about how it went down?”