phin
er when the staccato roar of Tommy
hrough the downpour, I saw the black Duesenberg Model J-Damien's car-shattered by bullets, crashed against a brick wall. Men
n Fal
he hands of some nameless Chicago thugs. Damien Falcone was *mine* to destroy. I need
y shoulder. He was dangerously heavy, but the adrenaline of pure hatred fueled me. I dragged him through the labyrinth of
suit jacket. The bullet had grazed his ribs, but that wasn't what terrified me. His skin was radiating a blistering heat, his chest heaving wit
, turning toward the rus
, a hand clamped around my
I crashed onto the mattress, and in a fraction of a second, his heav
ssed, thrashing a
red open, but they were unfocused, glazed with delirium. He wasn't seei
was a raw, broken r
reath caught
e crook of my neck, his feverish breath scalding my
n into a violent tailspin. This wasn't a hallucination of the present. This was an apology from the past-f
ghting the sudden, treacherous
e, his apologies bleeding into incoherent, agonized whispers unt
y built wall of hatred had just sustained a massive crack. I c
our to track down an underground pharmacist I remembered from my past
im, narrow hallway outside the s
nto the flickering light o
er*, losing his *Underboss* was the ultimate disgrace. His cold eyes dropped to the medical box
snarled, his voice vibra
keeping my voice steady as I stepped in front
nged forward, a battering
cluster on his forearm, attempting to deflect his grab. A flash of genuine s
t enough to stop a
y the collar of my coat and hurled me aside. My back slammed brut
he flimsy wooden door dead center. The lock splintered with a deafening crac
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