“I’ll take care of that myself. Rick was loyal and needs to be repaid, if not to him then to his mother.”
“Take Mook with you,” Lou said. “He’s another good kid, and she’s his great-aunt. I’m sure it’ll make her feel better to have some family around.”
Cain nodded and led him back inside. “Clean up and I’ll call you if we’re going out, but don’t worry. That won’t be for awhile yet.”
“Don’t start without me.”
“More importantly, I don’t plan to finish without you.”
*
From the sunroom, Emma watched Cain and Lou talk, and she could tell Lou’s face was wet with tears. She was trying not to give in to her own grief again, since it wouldn’t help Cain take care of things. When Cain had told her about Rick, she’d cried for the loss but had selfishly given thanks it hadn’t been Cain or one of her children. If she burned in hell for that, then so be it.
“This doesn’t happen often, does it?” Dallas asked her.
“Not really, but it doesn’t make it any easier when it does. Could you excuse me for a minute?” She stood next to the window until Cain noticed her. She knew that once Cain started to strike back, they wouldn’t have much time alone.
When Cain’s eyes finally found her, she smiled and waved her out. As Emma hurried to where Cain was standing, she stopped and put her arms around Lou and kissed his forehead when he bent down to return the kindness. “I know you’re not going to listen to me, but you need to lie down for a while. This wasn’t your fault, Lou.”
“It might take a bit for that to sink in, and I couldn’t sleep now unless someone cold-cocked me.”
“I’m in no position to tell you what to do, but can I ask you for a favor?” When he straightened up and she dropped her head back to still see his face, she had to shield her eyes from the brightness.
“You know you can.”
“Lie down for at least an hour. When Cain decides to move, she’ll want you with her, and I want you at your best. You won’t be protecting only her, but my heart as well. That’s a really corny thing to say, but it’s true.”
“You’re a tough opponent, Emma.” Lou hugged her again and headed to the pool house. After Katlin had moved out, the guys used it as a sort of bunkhouse when they kept long hours and needed to get some sleep.
“Undermining my authority, lass?” Cain asked, but from the relaxed set of her eyes Emma could tell she was kidding. “I’m glad he listens to one of us.”
“I just told him the truth. He does go out everyday with my heart in his care.” She leaned against Cain and put her arms around her hips. “One thing I’ve learned about you big ruthless types is that most of you are closet romantics who can’t fight it no matter how hard you try.” Cain laughed and scratched Emma’s back. “Did Lou give you any clues?”
“I needed a point to start from, and I think he provided that. Sounds like three or four guys waiting for something else jumped Rick and killed him. From Lou’s sketchy descriptions they sounded Hispanic.”
“Rodolfo’s guys?”
“I can’t answer that right now, but give me some time and maybe I can narrow it down.”
“Before I lose you to the people waiting inside, remember that I love you, and I’m here to take care of you.”
“I love you too, and even though I’m working, I want to see you.”
Emma pressed her cheek to Cain’s chest and laughed. “See what I mean about you big ruthless types.”
They walked back to the house hand-in-hand, and Emma saw Dallas standing at the French doors of the sunroom watching them. Aside from when they arrived, Emma hadn’t seen Remi and Dallas together. She was looking forward to it, if only to see if there was anything worth celebrating.
“Ramon and Mano arrived while you were out there with Lou. I put them all in the kitchen since there aren’t enough chairs in the study, but don’t worry. I’ll keep the kids out of the way.”
“Thanks, lass.” Cain kissed her and nodded to Dallas as they entered the house. “Why don’t the two of you join the kids upstairs and watch some television?”
Emma rubbed the small of Cain’s back to let her know she’d understood the request. No one minded Dallas being there, but she was still a wild card in Cain’s opinion as well as Remi’s. While they wouldn’t send her home, Cain didn’t want her too close to the upcoming meetings.
“Call up if you need anything.”
Cain waited until she heard the door to the den upstairs open and close before she entered the kitchen. She spotted Muriel first and noticed the anger twisting her face. “I need you to contact T-Boy and get with him, Muriel. Tell him it’s worth a lot to me to have today’s list of all the passengers who flew in and had to go through Customs.”
“There’s something else you should know,” Muriel said hesitantly.
“This isn’t the time to withhold any information, no matter how trivial it is.”
“One of Vincent’s men came to see me last night after he talked to you. Somebody’s bringing in a shooter, but we don’t know the target.”
“Or who hired this guy?” Remi asked.
“That’s probably easier, since we can narrow it down to two people we’re dealing with right now. It’s the why that’ll take more time,” Cain said as she cracked open a soft drink from the refrigerator. “What do you think, Ramon?”
“I think like you that it’s Nunzio Luca, but what does Rick have to do with that?”
