For Logan (Chicago Syndicate Book 5) (33 page)

But she ignores him and continues, “No, I’m sick and tired of Logan being treated like a condemned man. I didn’t know James well, but I do know Logan, and you’re missing the big picture here. The
Consigliere
betrayed the head
Capo
.”

My mom’s glare shifts between us as we stand opposite her. “All of you believe Logan is innocent. James was the boss for years. This Logan has been with you for a mere few months.”

“The fact remains that James murdered our
Capo’s
grandmother,” Henry adds calmly.

“No! I can’t handle this now,” she mutters with a scowl, stalking off.

“I’ll talk to her,” Cam offers, embracing me.

“Don’t bother. I just need a moment alone without any arguing.”

“We understand,” says Fallon, motioning to the others to follow her.

As Henry passes me, he takes my hand and slides a piece of paper into it. I frown, and he sends me a pointed look before he catches up with the rest. Hurriedly, I make a fist to hide the paper when Adriano stands beside me as we watch my father’s grave being filled with dirt.

“Do you have an update on Logan?” I ask him.

“No.” He combs his unruly dark hair back with one hand in a manner that reminds me of Logan. “But I wanted to ask you, why are you so sure Logan’s innocent?”

“Because he loves me,” I confess. “He’s been loyal to you, Adriano.”

He studies me intently before explaining, “We found the security tape at the nursing home. The guard did kill Logan’s grandmother, so I’m inclined to believe you.” His tone turns softer, compassionate as he catches my eyes. “You didn’t handle things well with Mykhail, but I think you know that. The carnage it’s caused is enough of a punishment for you. You’re Cam’s sister, so I’ve kept this all on the down low within the organization, but never lie to us again, Rosalia.”

“I promise,” I say in good conscience. I’ve learned my lesson the hard way. “The second I see Logan, or if he contacts me, I’ll tell you. But, can you promise me not to act until we know the entire story?” I start weeping, worried that the Syndicate might murder Logan. “Please don’t kill him in anger. I love him, Adriano.”

He pulls me into a hug. “I won’t. I promise you.”

“Thank you,” I whisper as he releases me, and I’m appeased because Adriano doesn’t make empty promises.

As soon as he turns around to leave, I unfold the paper Henry inconspicuously gave me.

Mykhail. Heaven’s Pond Graveyard. White marble.

The location is on the other side of town, so I race to Mary’s to pick up Adam before I drive to Heaven’s Pond.

***

I
wander inside the second cemetery I’ve visited today, holding hands with Adam, who’s skipping and sucking on a cherry lollipop. A slight drizzle has started to drop from the grey clouds shrouding the sky. I pull the hood of his jacket over his head, but he yanks it back, loving the feeling of the tiny raindrops on his face.

We pass the first row of burial markers. The first square, white marble stone covered with a beautiful array of white roses catches my attention. Halting, I clutch my chest and read the black inscription:
Mykhail Medlov. Beloved Big Brother. Beloved Friend. May you rest in peace
.

Then, on the left side of Mykhail’s grave, I note three similar white headstones and check the names on those: Jenny Wade, Logan Wade, and Rose Wade.

His Nana and I shared the same name; that’s why he always calls me Rosa. More importantly, Logan’s back.

His family is buried here, and he laid a part of my family to rest here as well. The love bleeding through my veins for him ignites instantly. Baby Logan’s grave is so small, and my heart slams in my chest as a lone tear escapes from the corner of my eye.

Adam is riveted by the flowers on the graves. Thankfully, he doesn’t sense my gloomy mood as I kneel down onto the grass in front of Mykhail’s plot and swipe the moisture of the rain off with the sleeve of my trench coat.

In what I can only describe as the darkest of times, Logan has managed to uplift me. This is his sign for me to wait for him; I’m positive. I’ve always known he and I share something few others will ever experience. The lusts and pains of a love so strong that being apart rips out your very core.

Sitting back on my haunches, I explain to Adam, “This is where Mykhail is buried.” Adam has mentioned Mykhail in passing, although less and less.

He stops next to me and flings his arm around my neck, leaning his weight on me. Since I’m seated, we’re face-to-face. It’s endearing how he constantly cuddles into me.

“Myk?” His button nose scrunches up. “Where?”

I point to the burial plot in front of us. “This is where his body is, so we can always visit him from now on. But he’s also here”—I place my hand on his chest—“in your heart.”

“Hi, Myk,” he comments cutely.

Adam’s adorable innocence has me hugging him securely, but for too long. He wiggles lose and skips away.

“Don’t go too far and only walk on the path. Okay, sweetie?”

“Yes, Mommy,” he replies with his back to me.

My gaze shoots to the right, to Adam. “Why did you call me
Mommy
?”

“You said to Mary you’re my mommy,” he simply answers, picking a flower from the grass and hopping back to hand it over to me.

He beams, and my affection for this sweet child multiplies. He misunderstood me when I told Mary that I’m the only mother figure Adam knows, yet I’m incapable of correcting him.

“Thank you, sweetie.” I accept the flower as he flops into my lap and reclines back against me. Kissing the top of his head, I loop my arms around his middle and ask, “Do you want me to be your mommy? To live with me, and I’ll take you to school in a couple of months?”

“Yes,” he replies immediately.

“But Mykhail won’t be there. It’ll just be you and me.”

“I want to stay with you.” He looks up and smiles.

Without hesitation, I make the decision that’ll alter my life. I love Adam, and I’ll be his family forever. Though I can’t afford to be irresponsible anymore. At the end of the day, I’m still unaware of the complete truth.
What if Logan did kill my father?

Before I change my mind, I reach inside my coat pocket to get my phone, unlock the screen, and type a short text message, sending it to Adriano right away.

Rosalia: Logan’s back. Mykhail’s body is buried next to Logan’s Nana. I haven’t seen or spoken to him. I only received a message with the address of Mykhail’s grave.

Logan

––––––––

I
’m wiring over twenty thousand dollars to the warden, who’s arranging on the inside to have Dimitri drugged and incapacitated in order to be delivered to me. The remaining twenty thousand will be paid when I actually have Dimitri. My money is draining like wildfire, but if I can’t be with Rosa, I don’t need the damn money anyway. I’m using all my personal resources to finance this mission and speed up the process. In addition, Henry has gained access to the prison’s security system so that I don’t need to involve any others.

Early Wednesday morning, as I finish dressing in my room at CIA headquarters, my phone chimes in before my plan for Dimitri has been executed.

I snatch it off the bed, surprised, and answer, “Adriano?”

“Logan,” he says in a cool tone. “I think it’s time you start explaining what you and Rosalia have done. She told me you had Mykhail buried.”

My instinct tells me that Rosa has probably been questioned and honest about her answers, so I do the same, partly. “She and I didn’t do anything except date each other. James discovered it months ago and waited for his opportunity to destroy our relationship. I didn’t kill Mykhail. I only stole his body from the warehouse after James set me up. And two of your guards were involved as well.”

“Did you kill James?” he demands to know.

“My rank’s been stripped. I can’t talk unless I’m reinstated, Adriano. You can understand that.”

It’s quiet on the other end before he says, “A couple of things I never told anyone is that I never found James’s phone, and the security footage of the mansion has been deleted.”

Even though Adriano appears to be hinting that he’ll protect me, it would be foolish to confess right now. Ignoring his statement, I steer the conversation back on course. “I can and will explain everything in person. But I haven’t betrayed you. While I’m unsure of my position, I’ve done my job. I have Dimitri,” I bluff. If this call had been made
after
I had Dimitri that would’ve been better for me.

“Is this a veiled threat? Because if it is, I’ll hang up and continue with my plan A, which is having my men hunt you down.”

“It’s not a threat. I left since I know how this world works. I’m not against you, and you need me too. I’m your only line of communication with your most important partnership with the government, and I have the man we need to eliminate.”

It takes a moment until he retorts, “Well played, Logan. However, I have my demands as well. I want you to disclose the entire truth to me about James. Then I want to see Dimitri and end him myself.”

“That’s fine, if you reinstate me.”

“No,” he responds calmly, “it won’t be that easy. James, you, and Rosalia made quite the mess. Now, I’m going to clean it up, but I want you to stay away from Rosalia until I have Dimitri – as a precaution. And also, until I’ve smoothed things over within this organization.”

Annoyance sidles up. I can’t press my luck though, sensing that Adriano accepts Rosa and me and is in our corner, where I need him to stay. “Fine.”

He hesitates before he asks, “Do you love her, Logan?”

“I do,” I answer with conviction, and we’re both quiet again.

To keep the control over this situation, I conclude before he can, “I’ll text you an address where we can meet tomorrow night. I need your word that you’ll come alone, without Luca or anyone else.”

“I’ll come alone,” he replies.

And I hang up immediately, before he demands a time – I call the shots.

***

I
prowl through the forest in the dead of night on Thursday, waiting across from the Department of Corrections on the north border of Illinois. A correctional officer that the warden paid off was supposed to show up with Dimitri half an hour ago. Wondering if he deceived me, I lift my hand to check the time on my chrome watch.

As I look up from behind a tree, the gate opens and the alarm doesn’t go off. Along the tall wall of the prison, a man with long, brown hair rolls a white laundry hamper toward me as I round the tree, exposing myself.

“Your order.” He stops in front of me.

I peek into the hamper, seeing Dimitri huddled inside, unconscious in his orange jumpsuit.

“The rest of the money will be transferred within twenty-four hours,” I tell him and place my hand on the handle, wanting to finish this mission ASAP.

“Pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Smith.”

Of course, I used a fake name. I nod and wheel the hamper through the forest for over an hour. Determination to make amends with Rosa keeps me going through the mud and cold wind spitting against my cheeks. Eventually, I reach the road on the other side, where I parked my car, and dump him into the trunk.

Then I drive toward the address where I’m meeting Adriano, a diner that’s located alongside the highway just outside the Loop, although dread sneaks up my body because I’m not sure if he’ll show up alone. If he doesn’t, then I can only conclude that he doesn’t trust me. In that case, a reconciliation between Rosa and me will be out of the question.

***

I
sit in my vehicle in the parking lot, watching Adriano step out of his silver convertible, which he parked in front of the nearly-deserted diner, before walking inside. No one’s with him, so I move inside too, sitting opposite him in a booth by the window as the waitress places a glass of water in front of him.

He watches me with suspicious eyes, though I don’t detect anger in him, mostly disappointment.

“Adriano, are you alone?”

“I am. To show you good will, I haven’t even informed Luca.” He fishes out his pack of cigarettes and pulls one out with his teeth.

This amazes me, in a good way.

“Do you have Dimitri?” he asks, flicking open a gold lighter to hold it up to the tip of his cig.

The waitress doesn’t even stop him.

“In the trunk.”

“What do you propose we do now?” he says, taking a heavy drag, smoke billowing upward.

“That you and I talk, like we discussed. I hand over Dimitri, and we kill him, call the senator, and end this mess with him once and for all. I’ve gone above and beyond to get him within days, only to ensure my position in this Syndicate. And I’m going crazy without Rosa.”

He regards me sympathetically. I hit a nerve; he was without Cam for months. “Then talk. Tell me what occurred at James’s mansion? The footage is missing. And you’re Alessa’s prime suspect.”

Since I’m guessing Rosa’s confessed everything, I tell the truth to make sure our stories align, “Alessa is being vindictive. She and James didn’t want me with Rosa, but we were together for months, a true relationship. James had his suspicions from the start and, apparently, discovered it around Christmas but didn’t know how to come between us without alienating Rosa. James also found out Rosa had helped Mykhail right before I did.” I pause to check his reaction, which is not one of surprise, so I was correct to assume that Rosa has come clean. “James used Mykhail to frame me. He had a guard kill Mykhail, but he didn’t find Adam. Then James sent me a message from one of the disposable phones to kill Mykhail. I went there to find Mykhail already dead, and Rosa caught me. This was two weeks ago. James threatened to kill Nana if I didn’t break things off with Rosa. Why do you think I was upset and away so often that week?”

Adriano tips his cig into the glass. “Your story does support the little evidence I’ve found and what Rosalia has told me.”

“I didn’t create any problems. I was just giving James time to cool the hell down. Or a chance to get you alone. But he saw me with Rosa the night of your engagement and had Nana killed. I lost it, Adriano. How would you feel if a member killed your mother or father?”