Breaking Bones (Mariani Crime Family Series Book 2) (8 page)

We all caught her drift. Bones was doing his best to ignore the whole conversation, Markie’s cheeks were pink, Angel was shaking his head, and I was doing everything I could not to bust up laughing. My grandparents were stuffy and disconnected, and I’d trade them both in for Nonna.

“We’re looking at some locations in southern Oregon,” Nonna continued. “Small towns, nice places to raise my great-grandchildren.” The pointed look she gave Markie and Angel left no doubt she expected great-grandchildren soon. “I don’t know how many surfers will be up there, but the four of you should go up through San Francisco and spend some time seeing the sights.”

“The four of us?” Markie asked. “Won’t you be driving up with us?”

“Heaven’s no, dear. I don’t travel well anymore. I’ll fly up after the movers deliver everything. That’ll give me time to spend a few weeks with Dom and the children beforehand.” Nonna patted my hand. “But you all should go and spend some time being tourists.”

I’d love to see the sights of California, but there was just one problem with Nonna’s plans. “I haven’t decided whether or not I’ll be moving with you.”

She nodded. “Understandable, dear. The lure of the city can be quite intoxicating. Too much of it will kill you, though. More bread?”

It took me a moment to process her offer because I was trying to make sense of what she’d said. She dangled the bread basket in front of me. “Ari?”

“No thanks.”

Markie asked Nonna about Christmas dinner. Still unsettled, I looked to Bones. The worried expression he wore reflected my feelings as I listened to Angel’s grandmother talk about the gifts she had gotten for Angel’s siblings. She sounded like a caring, sweet old woman, but there’d been something more than that behind her words. Had she been warning me? Threatening me? As she patted my hand and reminded me to eat, a shiver of fear went up my spine. Nonna was terrifying, but at least she was on our side.

Or so I hoped.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Bones

A
NGEL AND I took Nonna home after dinner. The drive was uneventful until Angel asked Nonna what her comments to Ariana meant.

“Now I’m just an old woman minding my own business, but it seems like there’s only two people who survive this city. Those who know everything and those who know nothing. Ariana seems like a bright young person who falls somewhere in between—a little too curious for her own good,” Nonna replied.

Angel frowned. “Too curious? You said the same thing about Vinny last year when you told me to keep my mind on him.” Angel glanced at me in the rearview mirror. “That was right before Vinny’s brakes… malfunctioned and he wrapped his car around a telephone pole.”

Nonna nodded.

A shudder ran down my spine, but Angel wasn’t finished.

“And Tony… you called him curious right before he got two slugs in him coming out of the movie theater. The cops called it a random drive-by. Never did find his killer.”

“You’ve always been a sharp one,” Nonna replied.

If Ariana was in danger, we needed details. I leaned forward and asked, “Is she in danger?”

Nonna turned in her seat to watch me, which I knew was a red flag, but I couldn’t keep my mouth closed.

“Have you heard anything?” I borderline pleaded, unable to mask the concern I felt.

“I was beginning to wonder about you, Bones,” she said.

Knowing I’d just been played, I forced my pulse to slow down and took a deep breath.

“Nonna, please tell us what you know,” Angel said.

She straightened herself in her seat and stared out the window. “There’s nothing more exciting than watching a young person chasing a dream. Must have been a hundred years ago, I had a friend named Molly who came to Vegas with big dreams of becoming a dancer. This city chewed her up and spit her out. Couldn’t handle the failure. Slit her own wrists.” She shook her head. “Such a beautiful, talented girl. What a shame.”

“We wouldn’t let that happen to Ari,” Angel replied, meeting my gaze in the rearview mirror. “We’ll help her succeed.”

Nonna studied him for a moment before reminding both of us, “
We
won’t be here.” She let the meaning behind her words hang in the air for a moment before adding, “A person needs more in their life than success to make them happy.”

I couldn’t help but think about the first time I met Ariana. She was writhing in bed, drenched with sweat, her pulse and breathing erratic, dirty dope poisoning her system. I’d kept enough of an eye on her to know she hadn’t used since, but Ariana was impulsive, and I’d be stupid to assume she would never use again.

We dropped Nonna off, and I climbed into the passenger seat.

“We’ll help Ari, you know?” Angel asked. “She won’t fail. If she decides she wants to stay here, then between the two of us, we have enough contacts to keep her safe.”

I wasn’t so sure. Without Angel’s family, we barely had the contacts to keep ourselves alive.

Angel put the Hummer into gear and motored out of the retirement home parking lot. “In fact, Markie told me Ari’s birthday is coming up… January third. We’ve been talking about possibilities for her gift and I have an idea I want to run by you.”

“She’s gonna be what? Twenty?”

“Twenty-one. You know she came to Vegas to sing, right?” he asked.

I nodded.

“Well… you still friends with that talent scout?”

“Noah Garner. Yeah, we still keep in touch.”

Noah was contracted through several of the local casinos and was always on the lookout for talent. He and I had met years ago, when one of his actors had gotten strung out and owed an insane amount of money to the wrong people. When the actor got the shit kicked out him, Noah reached out to the Mariani family through a mutual contact. Carlo sent me in and I made a few calls and threw the weight of the family around, negotiating the debt to payment installments and an interest rate that wouldn’t cripple the guy. Noah and I had kept in contact ever since.

“Cool. You reach out to your contact, and I’ll make arrangements at Uncle Mario’s restaurant. According to Markie, Ariana has a powerful alto and gave me a list of songs. I’ll make sure Uncle Mario’s pianist has the music.”

My thoughts drifted back to Nonna’s warning, and I felt torn. Ariana had come to Vegas to sing. If we got her a gig, she’d be over the moon. She’d stay for sure, and although it would probably be for the best, I didn’t want her to. But at the same time, I wanted her to be happy. This was her dream. What kind of selfish jackass would I be for denying her a chance at her dream because I wanted her with me?

Angel put a hand on my shoulder. “Don’t worry, bud. We’ll make sure Ari gets her big break before we leave.”

But that’s what I was worried about.

“I’ll get Noah there, but let’s keep it between us. That way if he doesn’t like what he hears, she’ll never know,” I said.

Angel nodded. “I’ll tell Markie you’re on board. She’s been surfing the Internet for a dress. So we’ll make sure Ari looks the part.”

It felt strange to hear my friend talk about himself and his girlfriend as a “we” unit. It was so unlike the independent loner Angel I knew and respected.

He turned down a street and I realized we were traveling away from home.

“Where are we going?” I asked.

“I gotta pick something up.”

His tone was guarded, which was bizarre since there were no secrets between me and Angel. His safety and our friendship depended on it. Before I could get more information out of him, he parked in the lot of a jewelry store.

“What are we doing here?” I asked. I knew the family had ties with this store, but Angel was no longer in the family business. Whatever he was doing had to be personal. “You getting Markie a Christmas present?”

He gave me a sheepish smile. “Maybe?” He seemed nervous as he got out of the Hummer and headed for the store. I followed him, wondering what he was up to.

We entered the jewelry store, and Angel went straight to the lady standing behind the counter and introduced himself. “I have an appointment with the jeweler,” he said.

An appointment? Angel had made an appointment and not told me about it.

“Oh, you must be Angel,” she gushed. “So nice to meet you. Give me one second and I’ll grab Hugh.” Then she disappeared into the back.

“What are we doing here?” I asked Angel again.

“Ring shopping,” he said, his attention on the jewelry cases.

“Ring shopping?” I choked out. “As in
the
ring?”

Before Angel could answer, a balding man in a suit greeted us, introducing himself as Hugh Bryant. After shaking hands, we followed him to an office where he had a couple dozen engagement rings displayed on the table.

“Based on our conversation, I took the liberty of selecting the rings I believe you’ll be interested in. If you don’t see what you’re looking for, we can go out front and peruse the rest.”

Angel thanked him and began examining the inventory. The hint of a smile tugged at his mouth and his fingers tapped against his leg as he drifted from ring to ring.

I stood there, stunned. These were goddamn engagement rings. Angel was preparing to ask a woman he’d known less than two months to marry him. No wonder he hadn’t told me. I’d have told him how crazy he was and done my best to talk him out of it. As his best friend, it was my duty to point it out whenever he lost his freakin’ mind, which he clearly had. I should have clobbered him over the head and dragged him out of the damn store.

“This one,” Angel said, pointing at his selection.

“A wise choice,” Hugh said, setting the ring under a microscopic glass and motioning Angel to take a closer look at it. “Bez Ambar is the designer. This ring has a fancy pink round center diamond with a blaze frame ring of fire. Note the detail on the band and the perfection of the diamond. This particular band is platinum, but if you’d prefer, we can set it in eighteen-karat rose or yellow gold. Other options include a different cut or color center diamond and—”

“No. It’s perfect just like this.”

Hugh nodded. “I agree. The round setting paired with the delicate band gives it an elegant feel with the perfect amount of old-fashioned appeal.”

“What do you think, Bones?” Angel asked.

I thought he was out of his ever-lovin’ mind, but Angel was my boss, as well as my friend. No way would I dress him down in front of an outsider. That was a good way to wind up dead. Instead, I leaned in and studied the ring, giving a low whistle at its beauty.

“Markie will love it. Hell, any girl who’s breathing will love it, Angel.”

The look of relief on his face made me glad I’d swallowed back my initial response. He beamed a smile at Hugh and confirmed his decision.

“Great,” Hugh said, slapping his hands together. I couldn’t blame the guy. Based on the rock size, Hugh was no doubt making a killing on this sale. “We just need her ring size and—”

“Crap,” Angel replied. “How do I get that?”

Hugh opened his desk drawer and pulled out a chain looped with little brass circles. “Take this. You can measure it against any ring she wears on that finger now, or if she’s a heavy sleeper… Do you know when you plan to pop the question?”

Angel shook his head. “I have a couple ideas, but nothing for sure yet.”

“Well, we can always size the ring afterward.”

Hugh answered a few more questions for Angel before sending us on our way. I waited until we were back in the Hummer before assaulting my friend with my own questions.

“You’re gonna propose? Angel—”

He held up a hand. “I know what you’re gonna say, Bones. I haven’t known her long enough and I should wait, and all the other crap I’ve been telling myself. But I don’t want to wait. Markie’s tumor made me realize how uncertain our lives are. Who knows how much time we have left? Why wait to commit myself to the woman I love?”

“I get that, but—”

“No, you don’t. I’m sorry man, but there’s no way you could understand what last month was like for me. I didn’t even think women like Markie existed, but then here she was. She didn’t give a crap about the money or the power. She loved me and saw things in me I couldn’t show anyone else. She risked her life to keep the twins safe, and then she was in a coma.” His mouth twisted with the memory. “I was holding her hand, waiting by her hospital bed, wondering if she’d ever wake up. You don’t know what that’s like, and I hope you never do. I wouldn’t wish that shit on anyone.”