“What happened to your father finally made you see what kind of man he is?”
She must have seen something on my face because her expression softened. “Did he hurt you too?”
I bit my lip with a small shake of my head. I couldn’t divulge in her. What had happened between Fabiano and me had to remain my secret. How could I explain to her that I’d fallen for someone like him?
“If I give you money and he finds out…” She trailed off.
I hadn’t even considered that. I pulled away and nodded. “You are right. I can’t drag you into this. You warned me from the start. I didn’t want to listen. Now I have to deal with the consequences.”
She sighed, then grabbed her purse and pulled out a few bills. “One hundred enough for you?”
I searched her face. Did she really want to do this?
She thrust the money at me. “Don’t give me that puppy dog look, Chick. Just take the money and run as fast as you can, and don’t you dare coming back.”
I took it hesitantly, then pulled Cheryl into a tight hug. After a moment of surprise, she squeezed me back. “Can you keep an eye on my mother? Just now and then? I know it’s a lot to ask, but—”
“I will,” she said firmly, then pushed me away. “Now go.”
And I did. I turned around and didn’t look back.
Chapter Twenty-One
I’d texted Leona twice but she didn’t reply. I wanted nothing more than to go to her at once, but I couldn’t disappoint Remo again. This morning he’d acted as if everything was okay between us but I was wary.
Still I needed to see her, needed to see if that broken look from yesterday was gone. I couldn’t think about anything else. I straightened from the men on the floor. “Today’s your lucky day. I can’t spare more time for you,” I said as I sheathed my knife. I went over to the washbasin and began cleaning my hands. It took a while before the water was clear.
The man had lifted his bloody face from the ground. “I swear I’ll pay tomorrow. I swear. I’ll go to my brother…”
“I don’t give a fuck where you get your money. Tomorrow we get our money or you’ll spend more quality time with my knife.”
He blanched.
I left him in his pitiful state and jogged to my car. I tried calling Leona again, but her voicemail went on. What if Remo had changed his mind after all?
I called him as I headed toward Roger’s Arena.
He answered after the second ring. “Done?”
“Yes, done. Is there anything else you need me to handle?”
There was a pause. “Come over later. Nino, Adamo and Savio will be there. I’ll order pizza and we can watch old fights.”
“Salami and peppers for me,” I said, then hung up. Remo didn’t have Leona. He was willing to forget yesterday.
Then why was she ignoring me?
But I knew why. After she had fallen asleep in my arms last night, I’d thought she could forgive me for what I’d done, for what I had to do because her asshole of a father didn’t leave me a choice.
I pulled up in front of Roger’s arena. Her shift had begun about one hour ago. I entered the bar. There were only few customers at the tables. They looked my way before whispering among themselves. Everyone knew about the bloody message Remo had left for our other debtors. Hall’s corpse was a good warning. Most of them had paid their debts in the morning.
My eyes scanned the bar area but instead of Leona’s amber curls, I spotted horribly dyed black hair behind the counter. Cheryl if I remembered correctly.
I stalked over to her. She straightened and put on a fake smile but the fear in her face screamed at me. “Where is Leona?” I demanded.
“Leona?” she asked puzzled as if she didn’t know who I was talking about. At a look from me, she said quickly. “She didn’t show up. I had to take over her shift. Roger is pissed.”
“I don’t give a fuck what Roger is,” I snarled, making her recoil.
I stared at her for a few heartbeats, she squirmed under my gaze. “You sure you don’t know where she could be?”
“She’s a colleague, not a friend. I keep my nose out of other people’s business. It’s safer.”
I whirled around and left. Where the hell was Leona?
I raced toward the shabby apartment complex she lived in and hammered my fist against the door. The moment Leona’s mother opened it a gap, I pushed inside. She stumbled back on her heels, colliding with the wall. She was only wearing a thong, revealing too much of her used up body, and a moment later I realized why. A fat guy emerged from another room, only in white briefs, sporting a fucking boner.