“You need my help, Dimitri.” Marcelo’s wrinkled his forehead. “I may have dropped out of school, but I have some brain power.”
“Call me, Dima.”
“What?”
“Dima.” I put the pad and pen away. “You’re my friend. Chanel told me to work on it with you. Plus, you blocked Lei from getting to me. I should at least try.”
Marcelo gave me an odd look.
“As my new friend and partner, I need you to find out if something happened seven years ago involving the Syndicate? Or were there seven people that died due to the Syndicate in the past years?”
“Okay. I’ll be looking at Paradise history for anything dealing with seven.”
“Chanel’s grandmother would have been the perfect person to ask, but the Killer Crows will go into protective mode now. You’re being from the South won’t help. Keep your people out of the West for now.”
“Got it.”
“My mother is the next best for Syndicate history. Go to her first. She’ll enjoy your company.”
“I love hanging with her too. She’s a wealth of knowledge.” Marcelo smiled. “And I love her tea. Being with her can be comforting and—”
I eyed him with suspicion. “Just ask her about seven years ago and keep your hands to yourself.”
Marcelo touched his chest. “That breaks my heart that you would think I would hook up with your mother.”
“They don’t call you playboy for nothing.” I walked off.
Marcelo called after me, “I’m surprised you knew the nickname.”
“Unfortunately.” I headed away. “Stay safe, Marcelo.”
Viktor got to my side. “Anything I can do, boss?”
“Don’t die.”
“I swear to make an honest effort.”
“037.” I placed my hand in my pocket and touched the chess piece. “What does that 037 mean to you?”
“I only know 007. James Bond.”
“Hmmm.”
“Not helpful?”
“Not at all.”
What were you trying to tell me, Chanel?
It wasn’t an area code for anywhere in Paradise. That was 803. The zero in front of the three digits prevented it from being an apartment too. It wouldn’t have made sense for Chanel to waste her blood drawing a zero for no reason.
I’m missing something.
I bet it was simple, right there in front of me. Regardless, I couldn’t figure it out. Nothing came to me. All I knew was that all this death stank of revenge. However, I had no idea what the vengeance was for.
Viktor frowned. “What’s going to happen to the Killer Crows now?”
“Kashmere will take over. She’s too young. Early twenties. Super trigger happy.”
“Should I put some of our guys in the West?”
“Not unless you want them dead. Make sure everyone in the North knows to stay far away from the West right now.”
“I understand.”
“Viktor, you went to high school with Romeo and Chanel. Can you think of anything that happened that deals with the number seven?”
Viktor shook his head. “The only thing that comes to my mind is that Romeo was part of the Lucky Seven.”
I stopped. “The what?”
“That’s what the Paradise Gazette called his senior basketball team. I went to all the games. I was a huge fan.”
“Get me all the news clippings on the Lucky 7. I want Romeo’s high school year book too. Chanel’s also. And even Johnny Cupcakes.”
“Okay. Johnny is from the North so that may be hard. That school burned down from some freak fire.”
“Get clippings on the fire and get a yearbook for his year. Somebody would have it.”
“Got it, Dima.”
Walking again, I ran my fingers over the chess piece, needing to push tension away. “What the fuck is 037? That’s going to keep me up all night.”
Viktor opened the club’s front door for me. “We also may have a problem with the news networks. Reporters have dug up information on the bodies. They're going to be announcing that we have a serial killer in Paradise City on the ten o’clock news.”
I’m sure the killer will enjoy that.
11
Promises. Promises.
Rose
A
chilly wind blew past me.
I hugged myself, doing my best to stay warm in this tiny dress.
Once Chanel Jones dead body appeared, Jonathan and I rushed outside of the nightclub. He was going to have a police officer drive me home, but I wanted to stay. From my understanding, this was at least the third murder that had happened on the Syndicate’s watch.
I wasn’t sure who was dead in the hotel this morning, when Dimitri forced me to go home. This time I would discover what was going on.
Jonathan claimed he would pull his political strings as Paradise’s mayor to get me on the investigation.
What is going on with the Diamond Syndicate?
Jonathan scowled at Police Commissioner Kane. “How long have these murders been going on?”
Kane wiped the sweat off his forehead. “Mayor Parks, it has been four victims so far.”
“Four victims!” Jonathan raised his hands in the air. “What the hell has been going on in this city?”
I knew that gesture. He was about to explode. I hadn’t seen him lose his temper since college. “And when did you think Paradise officials would be notified? Did you plan on telling us around the twentieth or thirtieth victim?”