Total pages in book: 57
Estimated words: 52592 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 263(@200wpm)___ 210(@250wpm)___ 175(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 52592 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 263(@200wpm)___ 210(@250wpm)___ 175(@300wpm)
“I’m not saying that the boss at that club is the one responsible for killing her, or that he or any of the other bosses orchestrated her murder. What I’m saying is that the trail leading back to the one who is responsible has a lot of moving parts and components. Your mother’s killer, the real person behind hiring someone to shoot her, doesn’t want to be discovered. But even within the most complicated, covert webs, there are always clues left behind. And one such clue from that night is that the shooter has ties with the boss at that nightclub. And the boss at that nightclub has ties to the person who set up the hit on your mother,” Nico explains. “Nothing is ever simple or transparent, Elle. Not in Las Vegas and not when the mafia is involved. What might seem like a random street murder, or a quick hit job in which crime is blamed, and causation is brushed under the rug, usually runs much, much deeper than what it appears to be on the surface. Maybe if you do a bit of internet sleuthing and digging around, you’ll be able to sniff the trail back to its source. Just stay away from that club.”
I nod, letting my cheek brush against his shoulder in bed as I move my head. I have no intention of keeping that promise.
“Thank you for that,” I say.
“I know it’s not the whole answer that you’re looking for,” he says with a weary sigh. “But maybe it will help you uncover the truth. Just be prepared to deal with the truth when you find it, Elle.”
Something in his voice makes me think that he already knows where this is leading and whom it is leading toward. I press him further, partly because I’m not sure that I’m ready to ruin this moment between us by getting back to the reality that is waiting for me once I get back to the city. My “ghosts” will still be there to haunt me in the morning. Just for tonight, I want to stay with this Ghost and pretend like there is a different way for our story to end. One in which he isn’t the dark observer in the alley that night, but is my hero who not only saved me, but who is still going to save me and help me bring about the justice that my mother deserved to have.
Sleeping with Nico Vitale may have been reckless, and it might come with consequences that I haven’t even fathomed yet, not the least of which is the fact that I just let down my guard with the man who was supposed to be my enemy. But even so, I don’t regret it. The way that he moved inside of me, and how he made me feel like I was strangely safe and worshipped with him, is not the kind of thing one can regret.
Tonight, Nico’s stark blue eyes weren’t cold when they looked at me; they were as hot as the bluest part inside of a flame. And tonight, we burned everything—especially ourselves. All that is left now is to see what rises from our ashes.
CHAPTER 16
NICO
After my night with Elle, I feel like I can no longer avoid uncovering the truth about that night. I have my theories and suspicions, and I know where a few loose ends lead, but even I don’t know who masterminded the shooting and why they had Elle’s mother murdered to begin with.
I was content for years to only look into it as far as it benefited me. But now I can’t leave it alone, not after letting Elle in.
She deserves to know the truth about what happened to her mother, and whoever was in charge of it deserves to be punished. I don’t normally pride myself on being any sort of righteous vigilante—to the contrary, most would consider me a self-serving loner, but I do still have a threat of moral dignity inside my soul, and that means I won’t be able to look Elle in the eyes again unless I find out the truth.
After she returns to the city, I decide to pay someone a visit—her father, Detective Hale Monroe.
If assholes are icebergs, then this guy is the tip of one for sure. He’s cold, overly ambitious, and manipulative. He’s used the police force as a means to play multiple sides for his own gain. He’s not just a dirty cop; he’s stained in all the ways that make someone a terrible person.
When I get in the car to head back into the Strip and over to the police station, I mull over the pieces of the puzzle that I already know. I’d heard about the rival mafia family’s involvement through rumors, and the boss at the nightclub that I told Elle about definitely had his hand in all of this. But both my sleuthing and my keen instincts have always pointed me toward suspecting Detective Monroe as the one who orchestrated Elle’s mother’s murder.