Mafia Runner

Chapter Twenty-Two

Lucian had almost pissed himself when he found out I had snuck out to visit Tony before we left for Florida. Well, this time I was going to take his concerns to heart and actively try to remain as undetected as possible from any Gallo members that were trigger-happy at five in the morning.

I placed in my earbuds, hoping I could drown out my fatigued body, the pressing worry over unprotected sex, and the whole issue with Italians who felt the need to pledge their allegiance to the crime scene.

M.R

Christopher Russo turned his torso around, squinting at the car that tore off down the road. "It's them," he confirmed to his partner. "It's them."

"You've already established it once," the man next to him drawled. "There is no need to clarify it twice."

Russo sat back in his seat, offering the driver a look of exasperation. "It can't be a coincidence. They were after Afton before this. How long do you think they've been watching him without our notice?"

"Is that a rhetorical question? How would I know how long it's been if we just found out together?" The man raised his hands in surrender when he realized the harshness to his words. "It's early. I haven't had my coffee yet."

Russo narrowed his eyes.

When he had been assigned security detail for Afton Conti, he had been secretly pleased. Not only was Afton easy on the eyes, but it also meant he wouldn't have to work the streets. He'd seen enough horrors to choose security any day over what could have awaited him out there.

Unfortunately, Luciano Romano wanted two men on Afton.

"Call him," Auburn instructed, pointing to the phone. "He should know about this."

Auburn was his name, or, at least that's what he told Russo to call him.

The older man had auburn hair, which was probably where his 'nickname' originated from. The older man was an enforcer in the Romano Family ranks, and despite his age, he'd only been with the Family for two years.

Russo had been indifferent when he learned he would be guarding Afton Conti alongside of Auburn. That was, until he realized what kind of grump the man was.

"You call 'im," Russo argued fiercely. "Or better yet, call our Capo. He'll talk to Luciano."

It was their Capo's job anyway.

There were over a handful of Capodecinas in the Romano Family and each one was assigned a group of enforcers—or soldiers. The enforcers—like Russo and Auburn—would report to the Capo, and in turn, the Capo would bring up matters to the underboss or boss.

Auburn looked at the phone with disinterest before continuing to follow Afton with his eyes. "It deals with his pet-project. Our Capo won't want anything to do with it unless it's serious."

Russo stared after Afton, finding himself distracted with the lithe figure.

It had been hell these past few days. Aside from rotating shifts at night, Russo and Auburn were constantly on watch. Having Afton holed up in his house for days had been an incredibly long and boring experience. Not to mention, the extra members of the Conti family were always difficult to keep track of.

The inactivity from Afton was one of the reasons why Auburn and Russo were so slow to react when the boy sprinted from the house this morning. It had taken some time to finally track the young man down.

Dropping his eyes from the blond, Russo called the underboss, deciding it was better to get it over with.

His call was answered.