The Arrangement 20

  I can’t tell her exactly what I’m thinking; it’s too much. The intensity of my feelings for her scares her. Fuck, it frightens me, too. Of course, it’s too much, but love is like that. It comes in waves, and right now I’m at the crest. I want to breathe her in and feel her beneath me. I want her skin slick with sweat and writhing against me, crying out, calling my name and begging for release.

  “Mr. Ferro,” Bill says, handing me his phone. “He’d like to speak with you.”

  I swipe the phone from his hand. “What?”

  “Where the hell are you? You were supposed to grab her and be here half an hour ago.”

  The guy is an asshole. There are people in the world that are born to be assholes. He is one of them. And he can’t help it.

  “We get there when we get there.” I hit END CALL and hand Bill his phone.

  “Where are we going?” Avery finally asks the question. She looks at the guys and when they don’t answer, she takes my hand. A fake smile spreads across her lips. “I’m not going to like this, am I?” I shake my head. Hair falls into my eyes and I push it back.

  “I’m afraid not. I know you’re going to hate it, but it was a necessary evil. Do you remember Project 597?” The smile falls from her face and her back stiffens.

  “You’re not serious?” I don’t reply. Avery’s spine suddenly melts and she looks like a sulky teenager. I want to smile and pinch her face when she does that. It’s a remnant of Avery from a more carefree time, from long before she met me. “Henry Thomas? You hate him.”

  “I do. Which makes him more predictable than anyone else. Henry will always do what serves his own best interest, which is why he fits perfectly into our plans.”

  She makes a face and then sits up straighter. With her hands on her knees, she looks over at me. “Spit it out, Ferro. How are we getting Happy Hands to help? And does he know Mel is with us? She kicked his ass last time.”

  That makes me laugh. “No, he doesn’t know Mel contacted me, but if she hadn’t this plan wouldn’t work. We have every piece we need to end this once and for all.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Vic Junior and his entire team will be wiped out, and Black will go down with them. After this is over, no one will ever come after a Ferro again.”

  CHAPTER 9

  SEAN

  Avery’s voice is an octave too high. She yanks her hair out of her face and tosses it over her shoulder. Leaning in, she gets in my face. Her words come out in a rush, making the sentence sound like a single word.

  “AreYouInsaneWeCan’tBeHere!”

  She’s pissed.

  We drive around Henry’s South Shore estate to the back entrance of the mansion, where Justin parks the van in a garage that originally served as a stable. After purchasing the estate, Henry added wings onto the main house until it resembled one of England's Tudor palaces. He nurses an unhealthy infatuation with Henry VIII. Both are rumored to have severe mood swings and teeter on the edge of crazy--maybe Thomas just views the former king as a kindred spirit.

  Either way, Avery has every right to be appalled we’re here. She’s gone pale, the color washed from her cheeks since I said his name. She’s shaking slightly. I take her hand in mine, but she pulls it away. “Avery, if we didn’t need to be here, we wouldn’t be. There’s a reason for this. I promise.”

  “Do you know what he did to me?”

  “I know and I’m sorry.” My throat tightens. I dislike seeing her in this state.

  “I thought you’d pick up the patent from him, not drive up to his freakin' house! How can you even trust him?” She pleads with me with those big brown eyes and I wish we could drive away, but it’s not possible.

  “I don’t trust him. I don’t trust anyone except you. If we could avoid this, I would.”

  Mel shoves past, elbowing me as she goes. She glares at me.

  “This is a dumbass plan.”

  “You don’t even know the plan," I snap.

  “Yeah, that’s why it’s stupid. If Mr. British tries any shit, I’ll make good on my former threats.” Mel opens the door of the van and jumps out.

  Henry Thomas is standing there. He’s dressed in a pair of slacks and an angora sweater. Coupled with loafers and a turtleneck, he looks like he belongs in a magazine, not planning nefarious things to end the Campone family's reign in New York.

  “Oh, dear God." He flinches when he sees Mel. "You brought the beast along?” Mel lowers her hood, walks over to him, and gets up in his face. Henry doesn’t back down. Spine straight, the two of them are nose to nose.

  “Funny, I said the same thing about you. Just because you dress all proper and shit doesn’t make you any less of a freak.” She flicks the collar of his turtleneck.

  He laughs lightly, acting like her words don’t bother him. His pupils darken and grow wider. He likes her that close. The woman is beautiful and dangerous.

  “No, my dear, you are as freaky as they come.”

  Mel opens her mouth to let him have it, but I cut her off.

  “Drop it. Whatever you two want to dish out has to wait. We have a limited amount of time.”

  Henry steps back, lifting one brow at me. His arms are folded over his chest.

  “Very well. Another time, fair maiden.” The last two words drip with sarcasm.

  “Assface,” Mel mutters in reply.

  We’re still standing in the garage. The chauffeur isn’t around. Henry's eyes sweep over Avery as she climbs out, his jaw clenching tightly. I step between them. I’m not entirely certain what transpired between them, but Henry isn’t the type to forgive and forget. Odds are, he’s still livid.

  “Show me what you’ve done with the project,” I say, redirecting his attention to me. Henry presses his lips together tightly and nods.

  “Follow me.”

  We walk out of the garage and follow a path around to the back of the house. We enter a room filled with floor to ceiling panes of glass decorated with wrought iron scrolling. Each pane looks like hand-blown glass. It’s a statement, a claim to having more money than God, and too ostentatious for my taste. We enter through an elaborately decorated iron door. Henry gallantly holds it open for Avery and Mel to pass through. As Avery passes him, she looks back at me, worry clearly visible in her eyes. I steel myself. If I don’t, I won’t be able to follow through with this plan.

  That’s what concerns me most. Avery will see the way I think, the way my mind can devise a cruel plan to painfully destroy my enemies. I can’t hold back or it won’t work. That’s been my vice in the past--trying to do things within the parameters of mercy. Vic Jr. is beyond mercy. He views compassion as weakness. He showed my mother no mercy and will receive no mercy in return.

  Justin follows behind us and, once inside, remains by the door. Avery leans in close to me and takes my hand.

  “I don’t like this.”

  I kiss her temple and release her fingers. I don’t respond because there’s nothing to say. I don’t like this either, but it’s necessary.

  Henry pads across ornate rugs and around velvet couches, to an antique desk large enough to sleep on. A carved stone mantle frames the massive desk, stretching the length of two men at least. Henry sees me looking at it, smiles, and strokes the carved details appreciatively.

  “Imported from England. It was salvaged from an estate belonging to the Duke of Suffolk during the reign of King Henry VIII. It’s quite charming.”

  Mel laughs. “Charming? What the fuck is wrong with you? Your fireplace is bigger than my dorm room. There ain’t anything charming about that shit. Nah, you're overcompensating for something." Mel smirks. "Is your dick smaller than you'd like?"

  Henry stops smiling and walks toward her.

  “There’s nothing small about me, miss. Isn’t that right, Avery?”

  Avery’s spine goes ramrod straight. Mel starts to speak, but I talk over her.

  “Enough! We don’t have the luxury of squabbling or wasting time. As it is, we’re down to the
wire. It’s a game and this is our last move.”

  “Your last move, not mine.” The pride in Henry's voice is more than I can handle.

  “That’s where you’re wrong. You’ve been on Vic’s list for ages. He hasn’t bothered to take you out because you were giving his dad a reason to keep you alive. Vic Jr. doesn’t give second chances. As soon as he finds out you and I were together--and he will--you’ll die in a very unpleasant way.”

  Henry sneers. “Then why should I help you?”

  “Because I have something you need.” I pause a moment and tell him. “Campone's ledgers point to a series of unsavory transactions that involve the purchase of this property.”

  “My father bought this property," Henry begins proudly, his back stiffening, "along with most of the land in this area.”

  “Which is exactly why you wouldn’t want these ledgers leaked. I’m certain that you are aware of how this land was acquired and what will happen if the district attorney were made aware of the situation.” Henry doesn’t move. His eyes get a vacant blank stare, which tells me his mind is reeling, trying to find a way out--but there isn’t one. I’ve got him by the balls and he knows it.

  Finally, he nods. “But if you fail, I die. Vic will know I was involved. As it is, I'm having difficulty shaking that little shit.”

  “That’s why I came to you. I know you’ll want to eliminate any pertinent threats and, now that he’s blown up mine, Vic will be on your doorstep next. This is a preemptive move for you. Since you’ve been playing nice, he won’t see it coming.”

  Henry sits down behind his desk and leans back into his chair, tapping his fingertips together. I remain standing, my arms folded across my chest.

  Mel flops on a couch and lets out a howl.

  “Holy mother of--what the hell is this made of? Bricks?” She rights herself and rubs her elbow.

  Henry looks over at her, then Avery, who is sitting on the arm of a couch. “I prefer my things hard.”

  “Like your head.”

  “Among other things,” Henry says with a smirk before returning his gaze to me. “I’m inclined to agree with you, especially since he already managed to remove the matriarch of your family.” The bastard sits there, audaciously smiling over the death of my mother and the loss of our home. “Project 597 was the prototype. I combined the patent I bought from you with hardware I already had, to create something of a marvel. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to profit from it yet. They need a test run.”

  “You already have a buyer?” I know he does, and I know who the buyer is, but I want to hear what he has to say about it.

  “I do," he says, nodding proudly. "However, we’re at an impasse until I prove Project 597 is in working order.”

  Avery speaks up. “What are you talking about?”

  She was there when Henry bought the patent, but she didn’t know what he planned to do with it. I didn’t think he’d get it working, but he did.

  Henry smiles at her. The way his eyes sweep over Avery makes me want to punch him in the face. He remembers something, something sexual. I bury the impulse to throw him through the wall.

  “Project 597 is a chaos device.” He opens the top desk drawer and pulls out a small box. As he speaks, he opens the lid and takes out a small black bead. “It boasts many marvels, but in this case it functions as an anti-security device. You could compare it to a magnet on a hard drive.”

  Mel asks, “It fucks stuff up?”

  “In a manner of speaking, yes. It renders computers useless. Sean’s patented material combined with my technology made it possible. And the best part is no one will notice a thing until it’s too late. Unlike other devices that disable cameras, computers, and locks--this one successfully tricks the security programs--allowing one to move through a system undetected. If you shut a security system off completely, the computer alerts the owner and authorities.”

  Mel asks, “So why won’t this trip the alarm?”

  He glances over at her. “Simple. It’s because the computer thinks it is still running. The cameras will begin to play backward, so it doesn’t appear frozen. This device alters the timestamp and initiates the pause by proximity.”

  “So this has to be near the main computer system Vic uses?” Avery stares at the little black bead and swallows hard. She knows what’s coming, what I’m going to have her do.

  “It does, which is why it’s housed in this cute little contraption.” Henry holds up the bead in the light.

  “Add a gold chain and that looks like Black’s bracelet.” Mel realizes the plan as she says it. “Aw, shit! You’re sending us in? That’s the plan. Avery and I sneak in, then you guys kill everyone?”

  Henry laughs and holds up his hands. “I’m not killing anyone. In fact, I’m not going.”

  “Can’t get that sweater dirty, huh?” Mel’s gaze narrows while she looks at Henry. When she turns to me, she’s all business. “What’s the plan, Ferro? All of it--spill!”

  “Black will get an order she can't refuse. Avery will walk right into the trap, and she’ll be sent to Vic. He’s been wanting her and knows Black can’t say no. Black has been doing everything within her power to get Avery to say yes, so go in and agree. Wear your bracelet like you always do and we’ll know where you are. Vic is going to take you to his house. He’ll want to boast before he does anything and show you what he took from you. Before he can do anything, I’ll come for you. Then we’ll show him how it feels to see his home explode. He’ll get to watch from the inside.”

  “Sean,” Avery’s voice is weak. Her jaw is hanging open. “How do you know he’ll take me there? What if he goes somewhere else?”

  I cross the room to her. Mel moves and I take her seat on the couch next to Avery.

  “You don’t have to be the one to go in, but if you do, it’ll be less obvious that we’ve got him. He won’t know we’re there until it’s too late. The fact that he kept you alive says a lot. Vic hates you. He won’t just shoot you. That’ll end too fast.”

  “What if something goes wrong? What if you can’t get to me in time?” Avery’s skin is becoming paler, glistening. Her breathing is quickening, and when she takes my hand, she holds it tighter and tighter. I wish we didn’t have to do this, but we have to.

  “I will. I’ll get to you. And if something goes wrong, Mel will be there.”

  Her eyes meet mine and hold. Fear is overflowing, but she just nods.

  “Sean, you know why he wants her, right?” Mel sounds uneasy. Her voice is tight and she’s lost her normal carefree vibe. “Vic is well beyond being a perv.”

  “I know.”

  “He wants to have sex with his sister… after he kills her.”

  Henry chokes suddenly and stands up.

  “What? How do you know that?”

  “He’s been asking for her, you’re right," Mel says, glancing briefly at Avery and then back at me. "He didn’t say exactly what he wanted to do, but it just clicked. He wants someone he can’t have--Black puts a higher price on that. Avery's his half-sister. Then it falls under the other contract with the crazy high fees because Black is kidnapping someone for him. Black asked him if this was a reorder, but he said he wanted something different. The other women vanished, no bodies, but the last two--they turned up.”

  “What are you saying?” Henry places his hands on the desk and leans forward. “That he’s killing these women?”

  “Yes but, more than that, I think he’s crossed the line.”

  “Yeah, well, wanting to bang his sister proved that point.”

  “You’re thinking something else,” I say, prompting her to continue.

  “I’ll find out for certain if we go through with this. It’ll show up.” Mel stops talking and paces the room. She’s never this quiet. I know what she’s thinking, but Avery and Henry don’t.

  “You can’t stop there!" Henry looks at me and realizes that I already know. "What does he want with her?"

  “Let her confirm the order when they go
to Black’s office. It’ll tell us how much time we have. Mel, can you tell Gabe we’re coming? We’ll need him out of the way to take out Black.”

  “Done," she says, nodding. "What about Black? You’re going to lure her there?”

  “Black will want to gloat," I begin slowly. "She’s been jealous of Avery from day one. I’m sure you noticed the way Black was behaving around you?” I take Avery’s hand. “She wanted to break us apart, and I now believe it had more to do with our past relationship than I originally thought. I didn’t love her, but it's clear how I feel about you.”

  Mel starts to mutter something, but Avery glares at her. Mel swallows her words and turns toward Henry, wide-eyed without comment. Henry smirks.

  “Can you two give us a moment?” Avery's voice is strong again, certain. Henry rolls his eyes, but grants her request.

  “After you, my lady.” He bows in front of Mel.

  “Don’t make me kick your ass in your own home," she snaps. "That’d be embarrassing.” The two exchange quips all the way into the hallway, and it’s not until the heavy wooden door closes behind them that the sound completely fades.

  “Sean, do you really think this will work?” Her brows wrinkle together as she watches me, worrying.

  “I do.” I take her hands in mine and rub the back of her hand with my thumb. “In the past, I’ve held back. I haven’t used every resource available to me. I’ve tried to shield you and keep you out of it, but they won’t leave you alone. Not now, not ever. This is a plan he won't see coming. He already knows Black has been trying to get you to agree. Black is a patient woman. This has been in the making for months and we'll use it against her. Ultimately, it’ll cause her downfall.”

  “She still loves you, doesn’t she?”

  I close my eyes and look away. Shaking my head, I tell her the truth.

  “I don’t know if she ever loved me. I think she just enjoyed the concept of being a Ferro. She chose her life and I chose mine. She thought I was unattainable, but then you caught me. Jealousy rears up for many reasons. We’re going to use that to our advantage.”