Madame Moll (Gun Moll Book 3) Read online

  “Doll, I’m not sure I know this song.”

  “Why am I not surprised? I’ve got to introduce you to more soul and R&B music. This is I Still Love You by Next. It’s one of my favorite songs, by the way.”

  “Is that so?”

  “Yeah, it is.”

  The night seemed to pass in a kaleidoscope of music, laughs, and good food. Fernando’s, the five star restaurant she’d hired to cater the event had outdone themselves in every way. Nearly two hours later, Melina had her share of stuffed mushrooms, prosciutto wrapped green beans and veal parmesan. Even Mac had admitted the food was almost as good as his mom’s. Almost. Then he’d made her promise to never repeat what he’d said.

  Of course, she’d promised before extracting a promise of her own from him later. The drinks continued to come, and the music continued to flow. Life was good. Each and every person at The Dollhouse had needed this. The escape from the harsh reality that any moment could be their last. A subtle reminder to live life to the absolute fullest in every way. Melina grabbed a flute of champagne from one of the servers and quickly downed it before pulling Mac back out onto the dance floor.

  “You’re not tired yet, doll?”

  She shook her head. “No. It feels like I’ve cast my cares to the winds tonight, and I can just let loose.”

  “Maybe it’s all that champagne talking,” Mac teased her.

  “Or maybe I’m just enjoying this time with my husband and counting down the days until we can be as close as humanly possible again.”

  Mac groaned. “You and me both. This is the worst kind of torture.”

  Melina laughed as Bruno Mars’ 24K Magic started to play. She and Mac danced together seamlessly as one. And then the music came to a loud and screeching halt.

  “What the hell?” Melina said.

  “Sorry to interrupt your little get together, but we need to speak with the owner of this establishment,” a man’s voice said on the loud speaker.

  Melina looked over towards where the DJ booth was set up and noticed two men she hadn’t seen before standing on either side of the DJ. Both were dark-haired. One older. One younger. With purposeful strides she made her way over, with Mac right behind her.

  “I’m the owner, Melina Maccari. I’d like to know why you’ve come into my establishment uninvited and rudely interrupted this private party.”

  Both men exchanged glances before slipping their hands into their jacket pocket. Melina braced herself and cursed under her breath when she saw what they’d pulled out.

  Badges.

  Fuck.

  “Detectives Meyer and Langley. We have a few questions for you, Mrs. Maccari.”

  Just like that, the night was ruined.

  Melina didn’t blame her guests for filing out as quickly as they could.

  The stench of cop was in the air.

  Beside her, Mac bristled while the detectives smirked as the club emptied. The assholes knew exactly what they had done.

  “I’m sorry to inform you gentlemen, that coming here was a waste of your time. I have nothing to say to you.”

  The older mustached, Detective Meyer smiled showing tobacco stained teeth. “I think you might change your tune once you hear what we have to say.”

  “Unless you have a search or arrest warrant, I suggest that the two of you get the fuck out of my wife’s establishment before I get our lawyer on the phone. I’m sure the police department would love another harassment suit.”

  Langley held up his hands. “No need for any of that, warrants included. We actually just came by as a courtesy to Mrs. Maccari.”

  Melina arched a brow. “Is that so? Public relations department hounding you guys now?”

  “Hardly. We just thought you might like to know one of your employees has been picked up for heroin and cocaine possession,” Meyer said.

  Mac’s hand slipped around her waist.

  “I think you must be mistaken. All of my employees were here this evening, enjoying a party I threw for them.”

  “Hmm. Sure is a lot of employees for one place. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say it looked like some low level mob figures were choosing their entertainment for a different kind of party if you catch my drift,” Langley said.

  “My wife has tried to be courteous by not having the two of you thrown out on your asses, but I’m not my wife. I suggest you leave now before I show you why the things they say about me may very well be true.”

  Detective Meyer’s lip curled into a sneer. “Is that a threat, Maccari? We can haul your ass in right now for threatening a police officer. I’m sure the guys in booking will be happy to see you again.”

  Langley placed a hand on Meyer’s shoulder and shook his head. Melina wasn’t fooled in the least. They were playing the classic good cop/bad cop routine. Too bad for them it wouldn’t work.

  “Forgive my partner. Sometimes he gets a little too high strung. As I said this was just a courtesy to let you know, Brianna Carmichael is in lockup. She had half a brick of cocaine and ten ounces of heroin.”

  Detective Langley took out a picture and laid it on top of the bar before turning back to his partner. “Let’s go, partner.”

  Meyer leveled a hard glare at Mac before he reluctantly followed his partner out of the club. Melina’s temple started to throb. This was not the shit she needed right now. She picked up the picture and cursed under her breath. The detectives weren’t bullshitting. There was Brianna in her booking photo looking worse for wear.

  “How the hell could this happen?” she asked.

  Mac took the photograph from her hand and crumpled it into a ball.

  “It doesn’t matter how. What matters now is that it did and that creates yet another problem we don’t need.”

  There was a hard edge to his voice.

  “You think this is my fault?”

  His hands found her shoulders. “Of course not. You can’t control what someone does when they’re not working for you, anymore than I can. I know how selective you are with the women you hire to work here.”

  She rubbed a hand over her face. “I did. I vetted all of them. I don’t understand this. Brianna isn’t some young stupid girl. She’s a pro. A pro with two kids to support while she studies for her MBA. This isn’t her.”

  Mac laid the balled up piece of paper on the bar and leaned against it, quiet for a moment.

  “It’s very likely then that she could have been setup as a way to get to you and me.”

  Melina considered the possibility. “That makes sense, but then the next question is who has the most to gain from taking us down. The cops? Or someone else in our world?”

  “It could be either at this point. You and I seem to have a target on our backs no matter where we turn.”

  “Then we need to do something about it. I don’t like feeling like a sitting duck, Mac.”

  “I know that. Neither do I, but right now it’s best if we lay low. As far as Brianna goes, you know she can’t work for you anymore.”

  Melina crossed her arms. “Yeah. Yeah. I know. Any association with her is bad for business all around. We don’t need any more heat from the cops on us.”

  “Exactly.”

  Melina sighed. “When is this going to stop, Mac?”

  He shrugged. “I don’t know. All we can do now is remain vigilant and tread very carefully.”

  “Yeah. That seems to be our new reality these days. Guess I’d better get the cleanup crew here.”

  Melina walked towards her office to place the call and silently fumed. Was this what life would always be like married to Mac? Loud explosive moments of happiness, followed by uncertainty and distrust around every corner? She didn’t like it. Melina was a straight shooter. The subterfuge and sneaking around annoyed the fuck out of her. If you had a problem with someone, address them head on. But that wasn’t the way Cosa Nostra operated and as much as she disliked it, she was going to have to get used to it.

  For better or worse.

  When s
he’d said her vows, she’d meant every word of them. Melina was no shrinking violet. Times were tense and unpredictable now, but as long as she and Mac had each other, they could weather any storm. Even the ones they never knew were coming.

  Ten weeks.

  Melina couldn’t believe it.

  She stared at her son as the priest held him and liberally sprinkled water on Marquise’s forehead. Biting her lip, she silently hoped that her son wouldn’t cry. Next to her stood Mac, stoic and strong. Even so, she didn’t miss the sheen covering his eyes as they watched their baby be christened.

  On either side of them were Marquise’s godparents, Enric and Victoria. It hadn’t taken any convincing for Victoria to agree to be Marquise’s godmother. She loved her nephew as if he were her own child. And Marquise was fond of his Aunt Tori as Victoria referred to herself. You could see it in the way he smiled whenever she was around and reached for her. Yes, they had a bond and choosing Victoria made sense.

  Enric, on the other hand, had not been so amicable at first. In fact, the young man had argued that they should pick someone more deserving of such an honor. It had taken a gentle reminder from her that there was no one more honorable than the man who’d saved Marquise’s life before he was even born. Enric had grown quiet and then he’d agreed. She glanced at him and saw him shifting his attention back and forth between Victoria and Marquise. It seemed something was still brewing between those two.

  As the priest handed Marquise back to her, the church parishioners clapped. Another soul had been brought into the Catholic faith. It was a day to rejoice for all. Mac put his arm around her, kissing the top of her forehead as they returned to their seats. Cynthia waited on a pew and eagerly reached for her grandson. Marquise gurgled as he went to his grandmother, and Melina’s heart melted a little inside. Mac held her hand as they sat through the rest of the service.

  When it was over, Cynthia rushed off, explaining she had a few last minute things to pick up from the store. She would expect them over in an hour and a half for dinner. Though the two of them had looked forward to a quiet evening at home, they knew they could not refuse Cynthia’s orders.

  “I can’t believe he’s growing so fast,” Melina said as they exited the church.

  “Neither can I. Seems unreal sometimes.”

  “What does?”

  “That we created something so perfect,” Mac said.

  “He is that. Aren’t you, Marquise?”

  Melina smiled at her son, and rubbed her thumb against one of his fluffy cheeks. Every time she looked at their child, she felt a fresh rush of love.

  “So I managed to catch a glimpse of the little principe today.”

  Melina stopped walking and looked up. Anthony stood in front of them. His eyes glued to her son. She shifted Marquise so that he was now looking over her shoulder.

  “Anthony, I’m surprised to see you here,” Mac said.

  “Sometimes you just get tired of the same old thing. I decided to try something different today. Glad I did, though.”

  “And why is that?” Melina asked.

  “Because I got to see how well you and your son are doing. We’re all family here, Melina.”

  “Hmm. That’s news to me,” Mac said.

  “It’s Sunday. A holy day. There’s no need for hostility.”

  “Trust me. You would absolutely know if I was hostile, Anthony. I just find your sudden interest in my son a bit curious is all,” Mac said.

  “It’s up to us to look to our futures in these uncertain times. Children make you do just that.”

  “Yes, well if you’ll excuse us, Anthony. We have somewhere to be,” Melina added.

  “A pleasure as always, my dear.”

  Mac and Melina continued their descent down the stone steps of the church until they reached their waiting limousine. Once they were inside and Marquise was firmly strapped into his car seat, Melina turned to her husband.

  “Him showing up on the day of Marquise’s christening is no coincidence. The bastard is up to something.”

  “Yes, he is.”

  Melina swallowed hard as a fresh welling of terror swelled up in her throat. She kissed her son’s cheek as he slept, blissfully unaware of the chaos going on around him.

  “Do you think … he would hurt our son?” she whispered.

  Mac didn’t say anything. He simply looked at her with an empty expression. She understood perfectly, and it scared her to the depths of her soul.

  “Five more,” Victoria said.

  Enric gritted his teeth, a sneer working its way over his roughened features. “Woman, you’re enjoying this too much. I can see it written all over your face.”

  “Three, two, one,” Mac’s sister counted down, a sardonic smile curving her lips. “All done.”

  Enric let the tension bands go with a heavy exhale. Neither of the two had seen Mac enter the rehab clinic, so he chose to stay back and watch their interactions while he had the chance. Call it his intuition, but he was pretty damn sure that he was witnessing the beginning of something happening with those two.

  What, exactly?

  He wasn’t quite sure.

  But there was something about Victoria that prickled at Enric. And there was something about Enric that really rattled Victoria’s chains.

  That kind of shit could make waves.

  Mac leaned against the wall, waiting to see what his sister or Enric might do next. In the rehab clinic, probably nothing inappropriate that might cost Victoria her job, but he still wondered … His mother had always told him that spying only led to trouble, but this was too good to pass up.

  Victoria bent down, staring at Enric at eye-level. “Every single time you get put on my rotation, you won’t work your legs. Not on the weights, resistance, or even simple exercises.”

  “So what?” Enric asked.

  “That routine is just as important—more so, Enric—than what you will do with me. You need to keep it up.”

  “Not with you, Vickie.”

  Victoria glanced up at the ceiling. “You’re being ridiculous because of pride.”

  Mac couldn’t help but notice how his sister didn’t react negatively to a nickname she had previously despised.

  “Let me keep what I’ve got, woman,” Enric said.

  “Don’t you get it?” Victoria asked sharply. “You’ll get a lot more than just pride from this, Enric.”

  Enric looked like he didn’t believe a single word that was coming out of her mouth. “Prove it.”

  Mac almost smiled at the glimmer of determination in his sister’s eye. Victoria was predictable in that way, and she certainly wasn’t one to back down from a challenge. Maybe it was a Maccari thing—something bred into their DNA that made them too damn stubborn for their own good.

  Enric had just gained someone else on his team, whether he wanted Victoria there or not.

  And … should something come of that, Mac wouldn’t be surprised, either.

  Waves, after all.

  Mac waited as Victoria said her goodbyes to Enric and then headed towards the front station with a clipboard in hand. Another girl in scrubs came to ask Enric if he needed help getting cleaned up to leave, but he refused, opting to head towards the locker room on his own.

  A good twenty minutes later, Enric rolled back out of the locker room with his bag in his lap, and Mac finally decided to make his presence known since he was the man’s ride. Enric noticed him approaching immediately, and pushed his wheelchair in Mac’s direction.

  The young nurse from earlier approached with a file in hand, probably the usual signoff and paperwork for his doctor. Enric snatched the folder and said, “Thanks, now scram.”

  The nurse did, not saying a word as she went.

  Apparently, his bad attitude must have been well-known amongst the nurses.

  “Could you at least smile at them while you’re acting like a spoiled fucker?” Mac asked. “I mean, you are going to be coming here for a while. Don’t shit where you eat and
all that.”

  Enric scoffed. “Little late for that.”

  Interesting.

  Mac wasn’t going to push it, though. Besides, he was going to be stuck in a vehicle with Enric for a couple of hours. No need to get the guy in an even worse mood.

  “You done?” Mac asked.

  “Yep.”

  “Great. Let’s get out of here and hit the road.”

  Enric was already wheeling himself towards the exit doors before Mac had even finished speaking.

  An hour and a half later, and the prison housing was finally in sight. Enric hadn’t said a single word for the entire drive, instead opting to stare out the window. Mac didn’t mind the silence, for the most part, but since their destination was close, it was time to talk.

  “Let him worry a little over you today,” Mac said. “Don’t brush him off or make one of your usual snide comments if he asks after you.”

  Enric’s gaze stayed firmly on the window. “He doesn’t need to bother. Besides, he has far more important things to be worrying about, given his situation.”

  Mac sighed, shaking his head. “That’s not how it works, man. Not for us.”

  “Us?”

  “Fathers.”

  Enric stiffened a bit in his seat. “I get that, Mac, but I’ve done just fine on my own for a long while. I don’t see the need to change anything between Luca and me anytime soon. We’ve done perfectly well like we are. Especially now, given the outlook of his circumstance, there’s not much point to me depending on a father who can’t help me from his position.”

  Ah.

  So that was it.

  It wasn’t that Enric didn’t want to allow his father closer, but rather, wasn’t willing to take the risk of being hurt if he did.

  “You act like Luca abandoned you for all these years,” Mac said, passing his companion a look. “We both know that isn’t true. Whatever distance is between the both of you is not by Luca’s hand, but your own. You made that choice.”

  “I’m aware.”

  “Enric.”