Riding Dirty: Luciotti Crime Family (A Bad Boy Mafia Romance) - Kara Hart Page 0,54

were really the only weapons I ever needed. Well, besides my fists, but those were looking pretty messed up these days.

The street was murky and dimly lit, shrouded by trees and trash. It wasn't a place that was kept up very well. It looked like it had been untouched for years, most likely sitting until some real estate mogul stepped in to buy the strip. As of right now, it was the perfect place to hide a violent thug like Cade.

I neared the building, and with each step my fists clenched harder than before. Before I could get to the entranceway, I heard footsteps inside. Immediately, I drew my gun, holding it near my side. Take a deep breath, Lucas. This is it.

I pushed the door open, aiming my gun in front of me. From behind, a solid object hit the back of my head. I fell forward onto the cold and dusty pavement inside. The pain was blinding white and hot. That intense ringing shot through the center of my ear and I could feel the familiar trickle of blood falling down the front of my face. “No…” I whispered.

Hard leather from the front end of a boot, hit the front of my face. Another set of feet pressed against my back. “Don't you fucking move,” a voice said. I felt the barrel of the man’s gun press against my skull. There was a group of them.

“Cade,” I said, struggling to spit out the words. “This is between you and me.”

“Are you deaf? I said, don't move. That includes your mouth,” the man said. He had a strong Chicago accent, but that was all I could gather from him. I tried to think of all the guys I knew down in Chicago. Our family had always gotten along well with the four families in Chicago. It couldn't be a made man. That meant it had to be a rogue operator.

“Oh, Lucas. What should we do with you?” he asked. I breathed in slow and methodical. I had to think of a plan and act fast.

“You better kill me if you know what’s good for you,” I spat out. His clean boot met my jaw. Though the pain was blinding, I found myself laughing. I looked up at the men and smiled, blood sliding down the front of my teeth.

The one man who had been talking, I had never seen in my life. He was young. Maybe 23. I made a mental note, as an aside. If I lived through this, that kid would find his end sooner rather than later. Next to him was “Carmelo” standing a little behind the crowd. I shook my head with disappointment. He had led me astray.

To the right of everyone was the man in the pictures, Cade. “Don’t let him look at me,” he said out of the corner of his mouth. The unknown man next to him kicked me again and I felt my rib nearly break against his steel toe. I rolled over on my side and looked away, but I had already got a good picture of him. He bore the look of a drug addict out of options. He was desperate.

“What do you want from me?” I asked. Every breath I took, pain shot through my body. The things I do for my family. The things I do for women!

Cade stepped forward. His shoes were covered in mud and old leaves. His pants were ripped at the bottom and stained with pond scum. He looked homeless and shrewd, like he had learned to exist off of bare means. Fresh blades of grass fell off him. Where had this man been before this? “I want to strike a deal.”

“You killed one of our guys,” I sighed, coughing up more blood. “You don’t get to strike a deal.”

Cade looked over at the unknown man and hissed “You said we could strike a deal.”

“Just shut the fuck up, will ya?” the man said. “Here,” he threw a suitcase of cash out in front of me. From what I could gather, there was at least $20,000 there on the ground.

“What the hell is this?” I asked him.

“My friend here said he’d like to cut a deal and we mean it.” The unknown man said.

“Why should I strike a deal with you? I’ve never seen you in my damn life,” I said.

“Because I’m the man with the gun,” he snickered.

“And? I’ve been waiting all my life for a good ending. This one will suit