He turned as I bore down on him and reached for his gun. It was an instinctive move. A smart one, normally.
I slammed into him hard. I kneed him in the thigh and pinned his hand back against the door. I bashed my forehead into his face and leaned my shoulder into his chest, holding him against the car like a laundry bag.
“The fuck,” Rafe gurgled, blood running down from his nose.
“Evening, Rafe,” I said, grinning. I must’ve been a sight. I could feel his blood on my forehead.
His eyes went wide like I was a demon from his nightmares. “Mal. Holy shit.”
“Gonna pull that gun on me?”
“No,” he wheezed. “Fuck no, man. Let me down. Fuck, you could’ve said something.”
“Come on. You would’ve shot me dead. No hesitation.”
“Bullshit. I’m not pulling the damn gun, Mal. Let me go.”
I didn’t give him the option. I reached around, found the weapon, and took it out. I tossed it aside and it clattered into the gutter. I stepped back. He slumped forward, breathing hard. Blood dripped from his nose and he snorted some more. It was thick and black.
“Fuck, I think you broke it,” he said, sounding nasally.
“I definitely broke it. How’s business, Rafe?”
“It was good until you showed up.” He stood straighter, glaring. “What do you want, Mal?”
“I hear you’re working for Balestra.”
He shrugged and glanced back toward the house. We were two blocks away, far enough that nobody would come to save him.
“Yeah, so what? Everyone works for Balestra now. And everyone that doesn’t is dead.”
“Like Carmine and Falsone?”
He winced and shrugged. “Yeah, like them.”
“Who’s with you in there?”
“A few guys.”
“Name them.”
He eyed me carefully. “You know Balestra’s looking for you, right? He sent out word to all the guys a couple days ago. Be on the watch for Mal. He’s on the loose and he’s hunting. I didn’t believe him. I always thought you had your head on straight. But I guess he was right.”
“He was right,” I confirmed. “I had my head on when Carmine was alive. But now he’s not. Who’s in the house?”
“Ivo, Ruddy, and Tony.”
“That’s it? Just three?”
“They’re counting out. Done for the night.”
“It’s early.”
He shrugged. “We fucking unionized. Got some decent working hours. What do you want me to say? Things are different now.”
I considered that. It was possible only three guys were inside. It didn’t take much effort to count the cash, make sure it was all safe, and close up shop. We did it with three all the time, so it made sense.
“Do you know why I’m here?”
“I don’t and I don’t want to know. I’m just a pusher. You know me, Mal. I don’t start shit and don’t want shit neither.”
I believed him. I knew Rafe. Hell, I liked him back then.
“You shouldn’t have joined with Balestra then.”
I punched him hard in the stomach. He doubled over. I could’ve pulled my baton and smashed it into the back of his skull right then and there. Finished him off. It would’ve been quick.
But I didn’t. I stepped back and let him recover. He glared and did another bloody snot rocket.
“That all you want? You’re just here to torture everyone that isn’t as good as you? Sorry we’re not all a bunch of moral animals, Mal, but I’m not about to get myself killed getting revenge for my old dead boss.”
“I don’t expect you to,” I said, glaring at him. “But here’s the deal. You’re gonna leave. Walk away. Don’t get in the car. Drop your phone on the ground. Drop your wallet. And start walking. You’re gonna keep walking for a while, until you’re far away. Say, until you reach Trader Joe’s. You know the one I mean?”
He groaned. “That’s twenty minutes at least.”
“Then you’ll walk back. Forty minutes total. Forty minutes of your life. Once you’re back, grab you shit and drive home. Don’t go into that house. You won’t like what you find.”
He stared at me, but he nodded. That was good. I didn’t want to kill Rafe if I didn’t have to. He was right—the guy was nothing. He was a dealer, a seller. Some poor, broke, corrupt asshole trying to make a living. Falsone, Balestra, someone else, didn’t matter. He just did his job. To him, they were bosses.
But Carmine and Falsone, they were more than that to me.
“They want you bad, Mal,” he said as he did as I asked. He placed his phone down, and his wallet, and his keys. He stepped onto the sidewalk, jabbing at his nose like he wanted to set it back into place. “They’re looking for you. I heard some of the captains and they’re pissed. You’re killing them and they don’t like it.”
“Good,” I said. “Get moving.”
“Just some advice. You should skip town, man. Run while you can. Balestra’s not going to forget.”