security to escort you out themselves.”
I figured he’d say that, but I didn’t give up the smile I’d had since seeing his eyes glaze over with the fear he pretended not to feel. “You know George Malik, right? Real standup guy, that one. He was arrested and put on trial for stealing government funds while he was in office, remember that? Got away with it and to a lot of people’s shock. There was a great writeup on it in The Times by Nicholas McAllister. From what he told me, he had a great approval rate because of that piece. Was even offered a hefty promotion that came with a raise The Times couldn’t afford to pay out. Seemed fishy to me. So did the interviews with Malik that nobody else could get besides him. He said he had connections to get him on top, make sure he told the right story. Not the truthful one.”
He picked up the phone and held it to his ear pressing one of the buttons leading out to the front desk I passed when I stormed in. “Daphne, I need you to call sec—”
“Nicholas McAllister had connections beyond you though. Slimy motherfucker was working both sides. Playing you. You don’t even know that do you? Michael Flamell ring a bell?”
He dropped the phone back into the cradle with force before narrowing his eyes at me. “What game are you playing here, West? Don’t think I won’t play it right back. I have—”
“What?” I challenged, stepping forward and crowding his space. “What do you have on me that’s as bad as first-degree murder on top of a slew of other charges which are coming your way? Whatever hold you think you have on me is worthless compared to what’s in that folder right there, and the folder in Flamell’s hands as we speak.”
“Who the fuck is Flamell?”
I chuckled. “Your problem, Richard, is that you only care about power. You think the more people you control, the more money you can make, and the more authority you have over everyone else. What you forget, though, is that you’ll never be able to control everybody that works under those you blackmail. People talk. Things get out that you don’t want out. Like the operation you got in the south side of the city on 10th. Or how about the one three places down from the old warehouse on 5th? I remember you at Anthony’s funeral looking like you actually gave a shit for about two seconds before someone came over, whispered in your ear, and you both left. You went to the old shoe factory, right? Makes sense given what’s made in there. There’s plenty of space, lots of filtration so the people you hire don’t die from the toxins of the drugs you have people produce and distribute.”
He paled.
“Back to your question. Michael Flamell is a friend of a friend. A trustworthy friend, unlike the jackasses you pretend are yours. Can’t exactly be friends with the people you blackmail into giving you control of their businesses to use as strongholds for your dealings. That tends to piss them off.”
I’d hired Dallas for a lot of reasons, but one of the biggest being his former background in criminal justice. He worked for the police force upstate before moving to the city and retiring when his wife and him decided to expand their family. He was offered a gig working for the NYPD because of his reputation, but he turned them down. He’d gotten calls from the chief asking to help with a few profiles, which was how he got into tracking. He accepted smaller jobs along the way which led him to me. I knew the tasks I’d given him weren’t what he was used to, but I paid him well and offered him plenty of incentive when the situation called for it. And the best part? He came with connections. A lot of them.
Not to mention, he cared about Della. That reason alone made me pay him more than most so he’d stick around and look after her.
“This friend told me about Flamell a while ago, said I’d be interested with the intel he had on a high-profile case right here in the city. Wasn’t quite sure why the fuck I’d care, frankly, but when your name was mentioned?” I didn’t hide the shit-eating grin on my face. I relished in it—relished in the fact his lips turned downward, how his face drained of color, because