“Please…please let me go,” he screamed. His body arched over the table like they’d run an electric current through it. He thrashed against the ropes, but there was no escape.

“Look what you’ve done, old man,” she said to Matty, who looked on, horror-stricken. She took the gun Dino held out and pressed it to Anthony’s forehead. “All your scheming and planning for the easy life. This is the cost of getting it wrong.” She pulled the trigger and put him out of his misery, the fire continuing to burn. His father’s sobs and threats were ignored by everyone there.

“Thank you, Cain,” Hector said, putting his arms around her. “You have given me my life back, and I owe you.”

“Do you have any problem with what we talked about?”

“No, and I would like to see their faces. First, I have some fun,” Hector said, his eyes on Matty.

“Take all the time you need. No one will bother you here, and you deserve some fun.” She put her jacket back on and accepted her knife back from Lou after he’d cleaned it. “Confessing is good, but nothing is better than settling old debts. Anthony has finally paid his in full.”

✥ ✥ ✥

Shelby sat at the conference table in Annabel’s office with her original crew. Joe had given Dylan point for the night crew, and it was nice seeing Lionel Jones and Claire Lansing back again. It seemed like a lifetime they’d been gone. For once the city was quiet, and their job of following Cain had become boring. She’d been spending lots of time in the clubs that had been shot up, and with Muriel in her offices above Emma’s.

“I called you here today to talk about something that can’t leave this room,” Annabel said. She sat at the head of the table and glanced at each of them. “It’s the same as when we had to have our talks about Ronald Chapman. I think we have the same problem, but I can’t figure out who’s behind it.”

“Do you think Ronald’s back in town?” Shelby remembered when Chapman had come to town gunning for Cain, making everyone’s life miserable, only to run from a field the day before Cain’s wedding. He’d run and landed back in DC with no explanation. Whatever it was had Cain’s signature on it, and none of them had complained. It was how she’d gotten rid of Barney Kyle. She’d exposed him for the slime he was.

“I’m not sure. Chapman’s still powerful within the bureau, so I’ve had to be quiet about my inquiries. He’ll nail me to a wall if he thinks I’m looking into him.” Annabel handed them each a folder. “Keep these secure, but right now our focus is on former Detective Elton Newsome.”

“Someone finally fire that loser?” Lionel asked.