Free Breaking Bones (Mariani Crime Family Series Book 2) by Amanda Washington Page B

look my direction.
    Confused, I hurried my steps and caught up to Renzo, who thumbed something into his phone as we walked. Then he said, “Jimmy’s alone in a booth on the northwest corner.” His tone was angry and his words were clipped. “He’s angled himself so he can see all entrances, but I just sent him a distraction.”
    “Got it.” I clutched the gun in my jacket pocket. “Warn or whack?”
    “How about you just stand there with your thumb up your ass while I handle it?”
    Venom dripped from Renzo’s words. I wanted to find out why, but there wasn’t time. He opened the unlocked back door of the restaurant and we filed in. I kept my hand on the gun in my pocket as we passed through a dirty kitchen that smelled of pancakes, bacon, and sausage. The dining room shades were drawn against the rising sun. The muted light made it easy to find the booth in the northwest corner. A waitress stood with her back to us, coffeepot in hand, partially blocking a man wearing a blue cap with an alien on it. Jimmy—whoever he was—appeared to be a minor-league baseball fan. I couldn’t see anything below the cap, which meant our target couldn’t see us, either.
    The booths on either side of Jimmy’s were empty. Diner traffic this early was low, but there were still enough patrons to provide a possible witness. Wondering how Renzo planned to play this out, I followed as he slid into the seat across the table from Jimmy and leveled a gun at him. The waitress excused herself and I took her spot, standing to block the view of onlookers. Jimmy was in the middle of taking a bite of his waffle. He stiffened and the color drained from his face. Then he slowly lowered the fork back to his plate and faked a smile.
    “Renzo. Hey man, I’ve been looking for you. My phone broke and I—”
    “Cut the shit, Jimmy,” Renzo said, gesturing at the phone on the table. “I tracked you through that piece of shit, dumbass. Thought you’d never leave the house. I’m glad you did so I didn’t have to go in there after you.”
    Renzo filched a piece of bacon from Jimmy’s plate and stuffed it in his mouth. “Goddammit, I can’t believe you put me in this position,” he said around bites. “Of all the low-life, scum-sucking, bottom-feeding bastards out there, she had to choose you.”
    Sweat beaded across Jimmy’s forehead. “You gotta listen to me,” he pleaded. “I… I made a bad bet, but I’m workin’ my ass off to get the money, I promise. I’d have it for you now, but Ellie has to get braces and my insurance doesn’t—”
    “Shut the hell up,” Renzo snapped. He shoved the last bite of bacon into his mouth and then wiped his hands on a napkin. “Stop using my niece as an excuse to be a douchebag.”
    What? His niece? Jimmy had to be Isobel’s husband, and therefore Renzo’s brother-in-law. I swore under my breath as all the pieces clicked together. No wonder Renzo was pissed. My presence was a show of disrespect, a slap across his face. Carlo had sent me as a sign that he didn’t trust Renzo to whack his sister’s husband.
    Damn.
    I’d worked so hard to make sure nobody saw me as a threat, but in one foul swoop, Carlo had undone all my work. Renzo was pissed, but he couldn’t take it out on Carlo. Carlo was disciplining Renzo and putting me in my place. After this hit, I’d be at Renzo’s mercy… and Renzo didn’t have any mercy.
    “If Ellie needed braces, you should have made wiser bets,” Renzo said between gritted teeth. “I told Isobel not to marry you. I can’t believe I let her talk me into throwing you some business. You got my ass called to the carpet, and now I have to deal with you. You left me no goddamn choice.”
    Jimmy’s eyes practically bugged out of his head. It would have been comical if the situation weren’t so deadly. “You c-c-can’t d-d-do this. Isobel will n-n-never forgive you.”
    Renzo calmly slid his gun back into his pocket and pulled on a pair of gloves. When he was