quiet. Even the people in the waiting area who aren’t with us are watching like we’re their personal soap opera.
Frankie glares at me with a look I’ve seen before. He’s fuming, and I know what he’s thinking. Frankie isn’t the guy you want to piss of, but then again, neither am I. I should probably apologize, though, because Frankie’s probably only days away from being officially named boss, but I’m emotional. Tommy is my guy, so I’m allowed to be upset too, but I know I’m going to have to fix things with Frankie soon, or I could end up getting clipped over this.
I try to catch my breath and calm down, but it’s easier said than done. Frankie looks furious, and I know I have to fix it.
“Look, Tommy just got shot, and I’m all fired up,” I begin. “I don’t mean no disrespect, Frankie. You know that. You’ve known me since I was a kid, and you’re like an uncle to me.”
Frankie cuts me off by turning his back and walking away.
I turn to Joe and Charlie, and the looks on their faces tells me they know what that means. I may have just royally fucked up. They look scared for me.
I think to follow Frankie to plead my case, but before I can, my phone rings. I look at the display, and I’m comforted by Alannah’s name. She’s probably worried to death about me, and I hadn’t had a chance to call her and tell her anything. Right now, I just want to hear her voice.
“Hi, beautiful,” I say when I pick up.
Then, everything stops.
“Oh, how fucking sweet, lover boy,” a deep voice replies.
A man’s voice.
Abram’s voice.
How does he have Alannah’s phone?
“What’s the matter? Surprised to hear from me, you fuck?” he says when I hesitate to speak.
“How do you have her phone?” I manage to say as my heart beats faster by the second, and tears blur my vision.
“How do you think, Dominic? Me and your little girlfriend are hanging out right now, and if you ever want to see little Miss Alannah again, I suggest you get your ass here to her house, right now. And you better be alone, or all that’ll be left of her is five little pieces of her hand.”
He hangs up, and my heart falls into my feet. I can barely breathe, and my skin feels like it’s on fire. Charlie and Joe stare at me, wondering what’s wrong, but I can’t tell them. I can’t risk Alannah’s life.
Abram has Alannah.
My body fills up with more fear and rage than I’ve ever felt, as I break into a full sprint towards the exit.
Dominic
One gun tucked into my pants, another with a silencer in the holster under my jacket, plus a knife in my pants pocket.
I approach the house from the front, because I don’t want Abram to think I’m doing anything he needs to be suspicious of. I won’t risk him hurting Alannah, so I get out of my car and close the door loudly, like everything’s normal. I walk to the front door, and before I can knock, it opens all the way. Abram fucking Baskov greets me with a nine millimeter already pointed at my face.
He’s wearing black sweatpants and a white tank top. His ugly fucking face is just as bearded and soft as it was the last time I saw him. He doesn’t have the look of a street guy, yet here he is pointing a gun at me, with the love of my life tied to a fucking chair in her own living room.
I see Alannah’s teary eyes and it makes my blood boil. I have half a mind to lunge at this fucker, but I have to keep myself under control. She doesn’t seem hurt physically, which makes it a little easier for me to keep it together, but just seeing the rope wrapped around her and weaving through the legs and arms of the chair is enough to make my knees shake with anger. She has duct tape over her mouth and her eyes are locked on me like she’s trying to communicate telepathically. I wish I could read her mind, but I’m stuck on the outside, trying to figure out what she needs me to do to save her.
“Nice of you to show up, Dominic,” Abram says as he steps back into the house but leaves the door open for me. “Get in here and close the door behind you.”
I don’t say