Part 17 (1/2)

aYou look like a thug,a Anna said, moving past Dante to hug Gabe and plant a kiss on his cheek.

Gabe wrapped an arm around Annaas waist to hug her back. aIad like to think you care, but Iam sure you were frisking me.a She laughed. aOff duty. Promise. Iam even having a beer to prove it.a Gabe s.h.i.+fted his gaze to Dante. aIf sheas drinking, Iam following.a aBeeras in the fridge. Help yourself.a aWhat, I donat get served around here?a aA subpoena maybe, depending on what you spill,a Anna said, lifting the knife shead been slicing with to point it at Gabe. aAnd depending on how much of my beer you drink.a Gabe grabbed a beer from the refrigerator and popped the top, then made himself at home by sliding onto a bar stool at the counter. aThought you said you were off duty.a aNever agreed what you said would be off the record.a aOuch.a Dante laughed. aBetter make that clear before you start spilling your secrets.a aOff the record for the night then, Detective?a Anna made an affected sigh. aIf you insist.a She lifted her beer and took a long swallow, then resumed slicing tomatoes.

aRoman coming tonight?a Gabe asked.

aNo. Heas bound and determined to run vigilante over the alley to make sure the killer doesnat show up there. Plus, since he found out thereas been no missing morphine from any of the hospitals around here, heas running down the morphine angle with some informants. So itas just us.a aA threesome, huh?a Gabe waggled his brows.

aIn your dreams, perv,a Anna said, dumping the tomatoes in with the bowl of lettuce. She handed Dante the plate with the burgers on it. aYou two go out and start the grill. Youare in my way.a Dante grabbed his beer and the plate and waited while Gabe opened the sliding-gla.s.s door to the backyard.

Dante flipped the switch on the gas grill and set the temperature, then lifted his beer, taking a drink.

aSheas in rare form tonight,a Gabe said. aItas unusual for her to be in a good mood. Is that you?a Dante shrugged. aI have no idea. Her moods are up and down.a Gabeas lips lifted. aSheas a woman. Thatas to be expected.a aYou an expert?a Gabe smiled as he took a sip of his beer. aIave had my share.a aBut not one to settle down with.a Gabe stared out over the backyard, took a couple swallows before answering. aWhat do you think, man? Look at my lifestyle. Not really conducive to having a woman in it.a aYou could change your life.a Gabe didnat meet Danteas gaze. aNo, I couldnat.a aYou stuck in something you canat get out of?a Now he did turn to Dante. aIs that why Iam here? You and Anna planning an intervention? Because if so, forget it. Iam exactly where I need to be.a Gabe didnat say it was where he wanted to be. Where he needed to be.

A big difference in Danteas mind.

aNo, itas not why youare here tonight. I know better than to get involved in your business.a aGood.a Dante threw the burgers on the grill, and they drank in silence for a few minutes, until Anna came and joined them.

aSo, did Dante tell you about Sam Maclin?a Gabe s.h.i.+fted his gaze to Dante. aNo, he didnat. Whatas up?a Anna filled him in on their initial visit, and Samas following her.

aThereas a hornetas nest you shouldnat have poked. Why the h.e.l.l would you want to go there?a aTo see if we could ferret out some additional information on the case,a Anna said.

aDid you?a aObviously, since Sam came after me and told me to stop digging.a Nothing seemed to shock Gabe. He sat there calmly and took it all in. aHeas a suspect in the murders?a aWe donat know yet,a Anna said. aBut weare keeping an eye on him.a aInteresting. So what do you need me for?a aWe have a list of the people who went to medical school at Was.h.i.+ngton University within a few yearsa time frame of Tonyas senior year,a Anna explained. aAccording to one of Tonyas friends, a Wash U med student was Tonyas dealer. We need to find out who that was.a aYou haveaconnections, I a.s.sume,a Dante said. aYou know people.a Gabe arched a brow. aAnd?a aWeare hoping you could find out if any of those people are or were involved in drug dealing, distributiona Maybe also find out if this list of friends of his are involved, too.a Gabe nodded at Annaas point-blank suggestion. aYou think one of his buddies might have been there that night and might have a reason for wanting us dead? Or even this med student?a aI really have no idea,a Anna said. aBut weare chasing every angle we can.a aIsnat this your job?a aIt is. Iave narrowed down the names from Was.h.i.+ngton U, and got Tony Maclinas friendsa names from Sam. But you know as well as I do that sometimes people who show up clean might not really be.a He nodded. aGive me the names. Iall see what I can find out.a aThanks. And maybe you could also give us a lead on the drug distribution in the city and county. If we could talk to some of these people, track any of them back to Maclin or any of his friendsaa Gabe frowned. aYouare asking a lot of me, Anna.a She nodded. aI know. I donat want you to put yourself at risk, but if thereas any way you can tiptoe around this and still get us some information, Iad appreciate it. Itas for all of us, Gabe. We already lost George and Jeff. I donat want any more of you to die.a Gabe looked away for a few minutes, as if he struggled with what was the right thing to do. Then he looked back at Anna and said, aIall try my best. But they watch my every move. They know my connection with you. So if I find anything, you have to be careful how you use it. Understand?a Anna nodded. aI understand. Thanks, Gabe.a Dante watched the interplay between Gabe and Anna, like an intricate dance. She knew what to ask, and Gabe knew just how to answer. Obviously theyad played this game before, the mobster and the detective.

Dante was aware of who Gabe worked for. Anna had told him, but until now he hadnat wanted to believe how deeply he was embroiled with the mob.

Though he supposed he shouldnat be surprised. It wasnat like working for Paolo Bertucci meant you were his waiter or a day trader. At least, it wasnat the stock market you were trading in.

When the burgers were done, they ate at the table outside. Anna had made salad and fried potatoes.

aYouare awfully good at this domestic s.h.i.+t,a Gabe remarked as they ate. aSome guy is going to snap you up someday, fill your belly with babies and lock up your guns.a Anna snorted and waved her fork at Gabe. aIad like to see the man who can lock up my guns.a aSo youare okay with the belly filled with babies?a Dante asked.

She narrowed her gaze at him. aIs that a proposal?a aIad be afraid to propose to you when you have a pointy object in your hand.a She laughed. aGood answer, Renaldi.a aYou two are so romantic, itas sickening,a Gabe said. aShould I leave?a aNo, smart-a.s.s,a Anna said. aYouare on dishes.a Gabe recoiled. aYou trust me with your dishes? Thereas a reason I eat off paper plates.a Dante rolled his eyes. aIall do dishes. You two talk strategy.a Anna watched Dante carry the plates inside, a mix of feelings settling over her. She was relaxed, an unusual sensation for her. Maybe it was Dante and Gabe. These were the two guys shead always trusted the most, and were probably the two men she should trust the least.

Incongruous. And d.a.m.ned disconcerting. She had no idea what to do about either of them.

aWhatas wrong?a She s.h.i.+fted her gaze to Gabe. aNothingas wrong.a He leaned forward, lowering his voice, though Dante was running water in the kitchen and Anna doubted theyad be overheard.

aBulls.h.i.+t. You watch Dante like you want to lick him all overa”and by the way, that makes me kind of want to toss my dinner all over your patio, so knock it off when youare around mea”but at the same time you look at him like heas a suspect. Whatas up with that?a She narrowed her gaze at him. aAre you sure youare not a cop? Youare awfully good at reading people.a He laughed and leaned back. aYeah, I think you know better.a aI do. Iad be a lot happier if you were a cop.a aYouall get more of the information youare looking for since Iam not. Now, whatas going on with you and Dante?a She couldnat help but let her gaze drift back to the kitchen, where Dante stood, his hands in the sink as he rinsed her dishes and loaded them into the dishwasher. Such a powerful man doing such a domestic ch.o.r.e without complaint.

She didnat understand him. At all.

She turned back to Gabe. aDo you trust Dante?a aWhat do you mean?a aItas a simple question. Heas been gone twelve years, then suddenly shows up and people start dying in the alley where I was attacked.a aYou think heas connected? Do you really suspect him?a aThat wasnat my question. Do you trust him?a aYou mean do I think he could have killed George and Jeff? h.e.l.l, no.a aJust like that. You donat even know where heas been all these years.a aI donat have to know. I know him, know who he is and what heas capable of. Out of all the guys, I know him best. Heas not capable of it no matter where heas been for the past twelve years. When we were kids, he took care of all the younger guys and wouldnat let anyone hurt them. He stood by me when it mattered most, and I got into some deep s.h.i.+t when I was younger. He could have turned his back and not gotten involved, but he stood toe-to-toe with me and took heat on his own just to keep me safe. Thatas not someone whoas going to start picking them off one by one.

aWhoeveras doing the killing is someone who doesnat care about people. Dante cares.a She nodded, watching Dante in the kitchen.

aYouare mad at him because he left twelve years ago. Donat judge him because of that. Who made you doubt him?a aRoman.a Gabe nodded. aRomanas careful of you, like we all are, but he probably sees you getting closer to Dante and heas afraid for you. You know how Roman is. Heas always been the worrier. Head throw any of us under the bus to protect you. You were there for him when he was younger, so heall want to keep you safe. And he was hurt when Dante left. Heas got some issues about that, too.a aThatas true.a aAnd because he was older than Jeff he took it on himself to be the one to watch out for you after Dante and I left, didnat he?a aYes.a aBesides, that night in the alley twelve years ago bonded all of us to you. Weare all going to look out for you for the rest of our lives. And even if one of our brothers gets a little too close weare going to be wary on your behalf.a aLike Roman did.a aYeah. The only thing you have to answer isa”do you trust Dante?a She inhaled and let it out. aI honestly donat know yet. I want to.a aThereas your answer. And you should probably figure it out before you two get any closer.a She smiled at him. aYouare a good friend.a He smiled back. aIall always be here for you, Anna. No matter what you need.a She swept her hand across his cheek. aThank you, Gabe. I love you.a aWhoa. You trying to steal my girl?a Gabe leaned back in the chair and propped his feet on the table as Dante walked out. aYou know it, bro.a aWell, knock it off. I saw her first.a aNo you didnat. Jeff did. Or maybe it was Roman.a Anna rolled her eyes. aYouare both full of s.h.i.+t. I saw all of you first, when you were being bullied by those a.s.sholes on the football team. And I saved you.a Dante and Gabe looked at each other and nodded.

aYou sure did,a Gabe said, his lips twitching.

aWead have been toast if you hadnat threatened them with having your daddy the cop kick their a.s.ses.a Anna leveled a mutinous glare at Dante, then at Gabe. af.u.c.k you. Both of you.a She stood and went inside, but a smile lit up her face at the memory of the first day theyad met. She really did love these guys.

Which made her miss Jeff even more. And made her realize that this thing with Dante was getting out of control.

She was growing more and more comfortable with him and it was beginning to make her more and more uncomfortable.

Nineteen.

Anna had sent Dante with Roman to work the drug-dealer angle, needing them both out of her hair long enough so that she could go see her dad. She found him walking up the street with Rusty as she pulled to the curb.

aWorking up a sweat?a she asked as she walked up the steps to the front porch.

Her father let Rusty off his leash and into the house so he could get a drink. aThe knee feels strong lately.a aYou look pretty good now that you took off some of that beer weight.a aHey, I still have my beers. Rusty just works them off me.a She laughed. aHigh five for Rusty, then.a aHowas the case coming along?a aWe have some leads. Nothing major breaking yet.a She went inside and got them both something to drink, then came back, bringing Rusty with her. The dog curled up at her dadas feet and went to sleep.

aSo why are you really here?a Her gaze shot to his. aCanat a daughter visit her father?a aAnytime. But why are you really here?a She narrowed her gaze at him. aYouare very cynical.a aAnd still a good cop.a She laughed. aYeah, you are.a aSo?a She leaned back in the rocker and stared at the street, at the normalcy of the neighborhood she knew all too well, wis.h.i.+ng life were as simple as it had been when she was a kid. aI donat know. Itas a lot of things.a aSo, itas Dante.a aHeas part of it. The case is part of it. I just feel out of sorts.a aYouare frustrated because this case isnat easy to solve and it involves people you care about. And Dante isnat making your life easier because you canat fit him into one of your neat little organizational slots.a She turned her head. aWhat does that mean?a aYou like order, and heas chaos. Heas turned your world upside down and made you feel things, and you donat like to feel things.a She looked out at the street again. aHmmph.a aSo Iam right?a aI donat know. Maybe. You make me sound like a robot.a aNot a robot. Just afraid to put yourself out there and risk being hurt. Itas not like youave paraded a bunch of boyfriends in front of me over the years, Anna. Youave never brought a guy over to meet me.a He was right. She hadnat. Mainly because shead never had a serious relations.h.i.+p with anyone. aNo one was worthy.a aYou havenat brought Dante by since he came back, either.a She shrugged. aHe wonat be staying long.a aDid he tell you that?a aNot exactly. I just know.a aSo youare already ending things between the two of you before you know how he feels about it.a She s.h.i.+fted in the chair to face him. aI just know, Dad. Weare not going to end up together. He has his life and itas somewhere else. I have mine and ita”a She didnat even know how to finish that thought. She couldnat see that far into the future, but she did know her life wouldnat include Dante. Why get her fatheras hopes up by dragging Dante into his life?

aIt what?a aI donat know. We just wonat end up together.a aOr maybe youare afraid you wonat end up together. That heall leave you like last time.a She frowned. Her dad was just as bad as Dante at reading her thoughts and emotions. d.a.m.n men. aWhen did you get so good at this relations.h.i.+p stuff?a He laughed. aHoney, Iam the last person you should be talking to about love. I wish to G.o.d your mother was still alive. Shead have been great to talk to about this. But she isnat, and all you got is me.a Her lips lifted. aIam okay with having you. Youave done a great job giving me advice, Dad.a He reached out to grasp her hand. aThank you, baby girl. But I know you. I know your heart. I know you loved Dante once, and I have a feeling you still do.a She inhaled, let it out and kicked the rocker back with her foot. The rocking relaxed her.

aI sent him away, Anna.a She sat up. aWhat? Sent who away?a aDante. After that night. It was me who sent him away.a She pulled her hand away from her father. aI donat understand. Dante said he wanted to get away, that he got George to sign the emanc.i.p.ation papers for him.a Her father shook his head. aHe said that to protect you, because I asked him not to tell you it was me. I went to Dante, told him it would be best if he left town and put some distance between you and him.a aNo. He said it was his idea to go.a He gave her a small smile. aAgain, he told you that to protect me. He never wanted to go.a Her stomach hurt. aWhy would you do that?a aBecause I was afraid after what happened to you. I was afraid for you. And G.o.d, I was so grateful to him for saving your life, but I was afraid for him, too.a aSo you sent him away, in what? In grat.i.tude? To protect him? From what? That doesnat make sense.a He rubbed his right brow, something he always did when he was troubled. aIam not explaining this right.a aNo s.h.i.+t, Dad. I donat understand this. Why did you send him away?a And why did he go? Did her father threaten Dante in some way? Dante had seemed like a grown man to her. But he hadnat been quite yet eighteen. Close, but not quite. And her father had been a cop. He could have leveled all manner of threats against Dante to get him to leave town.

aI told him it was in his best interest to lie low for a while, just in case Tony Maclinas murder was somehow tracked back to him. I was trying to protect him, Anna. You gotta believe that.a She stayed silent, but a part of her was furious at her father for orchestrating all this, for separating her and Dante all those years ago.

aI wanted you to be safe, and figured if I could get Dante out of here, and get you through this mess with Maclina”keep you and Dante apart, theread be no way to tie you two to the crime.a aThat doesnat even make sense. What about all the other guys?a Her father didnat answer. Of course. She hadnat been dating them, hadnat been as close to them as shead been to Dante. This had been his way to separate her and Dante. Shead have naturally stayed away from Gabe and Roman and Jeff at the slightest urging, because as fond as shead been of them, she hadnat loved them like she loved Dante.

aYou did it to break us up.a He had the decency to look away. aNot entirely.a aHow could you do that to me? To Dante?a aI was panicked, not thinking straight. When I saw you that night, covered in blood and in shock, and you told me what happened, all I could think about was you. I didnat care about anyone else but you, Anna. I made the best decision I could for both you and Dante at the time. I separated the two of you to protect you both. You can hate me for that if you want, but donat blame him for leaving. He honored my wishes, believed me when I told him it was to protect you.

aHead have done anything to protect youa”even if that meant leaving you without saying a word.a All these years she thought Danteas leaving had been his idea, only to find out it had all been orchestrated by her father.

Good intentions or not, it hurt.

She stood and went to the railing, and leaned against it, facing the street. aThings might have been different if he hadnat left.a aYeah, they might have. And they might have been worse. Iam sorry I lied to you, Anna. But I still believe I made the right choice.a She turned around and faced her father. aI canat deny this hurts me, Dad. All these years I a.s.sumed it had been Danteas choice to leave.a To leave me. She couldnat bring herself to admit that, not even to her father.

Her dad looked down at his feet. aIam sorry.a aYou saying youare sorry doesnat make up for you tearing us apart.a He lifted his head. aI wonat apologize for doing what I thought was right at the time. You were sixteen and youad just been through a horrible trauma. You didnat need Dante in your life right then.a The sting of tears burned her eyes, and suddenly she was sixteen again. And Dante was the one person she had needed, more than anyone.

aYou had no right to make that decision for me.a aI had every right to make that decision for you. Iam your father.a aG.o.ddammit.a She swiped the tears from her cheeks. She wrapped her arms around her middle, hoping it would help the ache go away.

aI hope someday youall be able to forgive me,a he said. aI did what I thought was right.a She didnat say anything, couldnat, afraid if she tried, shead fall apart right there on her fatheras front porch.

aPlease donat hate me, Anna.a She pushed back the misery and fought back the tears. aYouare my dad. I canat hate you. But dammit, Iam mad at you right now.a aYou have a right to be.a She grabbed her phone to check the time. aI need to go.a He stood. aOkay.a He looked so d.a.m.n miserable she couldnat help herself. She threw her arms around him and hugged him. He squeezed her tight and she wanted to hang on to him like this forever.

But she wasnat his little girl anymore, and hadnat been for a long time. She let go and took a step back, saw the tears in his eyes and hated that theyad had this fight.

aI love you, Anna.a She kissed his cheek. aI love you, too, Dad.a aBring Dante over soon, okay? Iad like to see how he turned out.a She nodded. aI will.a As she climbed into her car and headed back to the station, she realized this changed everything.

Dante hadnat left her. Head been forced to leave.

How was she going to maintain her distance knowing that?