Chapter 227

• The ride to our meeting with Ciro was quiet, the tension inside of the vehicle so thick I was having a hard time breathing. Or maybe that was just me, panicking. Enzo and I shared the backseat, but every time I glanced his way, he was staring out the window. I told myself he was only being vigilant, as he always was, scanning the area around us for any signs of danger to him or his boss. But somehow, this time, I felt it was more than that, which only worried me more. Reaching across the leather seat, I took his hand and held on tight. He squeezed my fingers without looking at me, and wouldn’t let me go when I tried to take my hand back.
• It seemed to take forever, and yet no time at all, to get to Luca’s club where the meeting was to be held in a private room upstairs. When we walked in, I saw girls earning their tips onstage in various stages of undress. None of the customers watching them paid any attention to us at all, their eyes riveted to the bare breasts and shaking asses that, if they tipped enough, they might actually get to take into a back room where they could get a much more up close and personal experience. At least, that’s what Jade told me one time when we were chatting around the kitchen table, and I told her I’d never been to a strip bar.
• As I looked around, I recognized three…no, four…of the faces crowding around the stage. Taking Enzo’s hand, I tugged on it to get his attention. “My father has four men planted in the club that I can see.”