Irrevocable (Evan Arden 5)

“Everyone better be there.”

“They will. Paulie is making sure of it.”

“Good. I’ll see you there.”

Lucia stands up on her toes to kiss me, and I turn my head slightly at the last second so she only gets my cheek. She gives me an odd look but then heads for her car as I pull out my phone and dial a number I never expected to use again.

“LT?” Eddie-boy sounds shocked.

“Yeah, it’s me.”

“I never thought I’d hear from you again.”

“I know, but things have changed a bit.”

“You’re not dead anymore?”

“Not at all.”

“So what are you doing now?” he asks with a chuckle. “Taking over the world?”

“Not too far off,” I reply. “Rinaldo Moretti is dead. I’m running the business in Chicago.”

“Damn, LT. That’s pretty serious. What can I do for you?”

“Eddie-boy,” I say simply, “I want you to come to work for me.”

I hold my breath and wait for his response. It doesn’t take long.

“LT,” Eddie-boy says, “I thought you’d never ask.”

*****

The meeting doesn’t start for another hour, but Nick walks in at the time I told him to meet me in Rinaldo’s office.

My office.

“You don’t have to explain,” Nick says before I can utter a word. “I already heard about the will, and I don’t really care. I wasn’t expecting anything. I’m the bastard, remember? I never thought he’d actually acknowledge me, not even now. I was surprised to even be included in the funeral.”

I shake my head.

“Shut up for a minute and listen to me,” I say. “Rinaldo gave me some instructions, and I intend to see them carried out.”

“Instructions?”

“Here.” I hand him the key to a safe-deposit box. He takes it, staring at the little object in his hand with confusion. “That opens a safe-deposit box at the Mercantile Bank off Broadway and Thirty-sixth in Quincy. Everything you need is in there. Pack up, get Milena, and get out of Chicago.”

“Leave?”

“There’s a price on your head,” I inform him. It’s a complete lie, but it’s also only a matter of time. “Don’t wait. Don’t stop off and buy a bag of weed for the road. Just get the fuck out. Got it?”

“That’s it? Just leave?”

“Today.”

“What if she won’t go?”

“Convince her.”