The Cain Casey Series

Chapter One

“Fuck!” Merrick Runyon said, slamming the phone down. Blue, the manager of the club Emerald’s, had called to tell her about the explosion that had just destroyed it. If she had to guess, mob boss Giovanni Bracato had thrown the first punch in the upcoming war. With his sons and grandson back in his possession, Giovanni wasn’t wasting any time on exacting revenge.

The tall, slim African American woman leapt from the desk chair in Derby Cain Casey’s home office, the clanging alarm system making her dive to the floor and start crawling. As soon as she opened the door, the wall of Cain’s first-floor office erupted with gunfire. Screams rang from every corner of the house as soon as the firing began, which, judging from the spray of bullets, wasn’t going to end any time soon. Outside, three of the six men stationed on the wall had to be dead for anyone to get this kind of access to the back of the house.

The gunfire seemed to be concentrated on the office and the bedrooms. With the safety of a few walls between her and the outside of the house, Merrick ran up the stairs. If something happened to Cain’s family on her watch, she’d never find anyplace on earth to hide. She gripped her Glock 9 mm as she sprinted down the hall to the rooms where Hayden, Emma, and Hannah Casey had been sleeping.

“Emma,” Merrick yelled as she ran.

A huge wave of relief washed over her as Hayden stepped into the hall in just a pair of jeans. She pushed the twelve-year-old to the ground and continued to the room next door, where she found Emma and five-year-old Hannah cowering in the middle of the room in front of the bed. Without thinking, she dashed in, grabbed them both by the collar, and dragged them into the hall. The windows were history and the wall looked like swiss cheese, but they were safe.

Merrick pointed at Hayden. “Stay here, I mean it.”

They would be safe in the middle of the house on the second floor unless the idiots outside planned to use some sort of missile as a big finish to the colossally stupid move they had already made by opening fire on Cain’s house, especially with her family at home.

From her vantage point at a window in the back of the house, Merrick could see two cars and a utility truck with the rear basket in the up position in the street. The man in the basket, holding an Uzi and what seemed like an endless supply of clips, was covering the two men who’d scaled the wall. The cars were inching forward with the back doors open, waiting for the climbers to hit the sidewalk.

Thankfully, reinforcements had arrived, and more of Cain’s guards were returning fire. Merrick jerked the window open and aimed for the driver of the first car, keeping her finger on the trigger until she emptied the clip. The car drifted to the sidewalk and crashed into a vehicle parked on the street. The attackers jumped out and joined their allies in the second vehicle, but not before Cain’s men took out another three of them. After Merrick rammed another clip into the gun, she shot the guy in the utility truck in the head, and the driver sped away, the basket still raised.

An almost eerie silence followed as the car raced after the truck toward town. Emma Casey sat clutching both of her children, almost in shock as she waited for Merrick to come back and tell her what was going on. She hadn’t been out of town long enough to forget what the alarm from the men guarding the house meant. When the thing had gone off she had grabbed Hannah and hit the floor out of pure instinct, Cain’s warnings ringing in her ears from years before.

“Mama, what’s happening?” Her daughter sounded terrified, and Emma could feel her shaking from the abrupt awakening. Hannah pressed her small hands against her ears as if they hurt from all the noise.

“It’s all right, Hannah. Merrick and the rest of Mom’s men will make it all right,” Hayden answered for her. “There’s just some bad people outside, but they won’t hurt us.”

“Emma, get the kids dressed and ready to move.”

The order came from the top of the stairs where Merrick stood. She breathed deeply, as if to center herself, as she jammed the gun back into its shoulder holster. “I have to call the cops, and I don’t want you here if I can help it.”

“You mean they aren’t on the way after all this?”

“Before we let anyone on these grounds, I have to look around.”

“Hayden, go get ready, and take Hannah with you,” Emma said.

Hannah, however, clung to her.

“Please, Hannah, go with your brother and I’ll be right in.”

Emma and Merrick stared at each other until the door to Hayden’s room clicked closed.

“Who was out there, Merrick?”

“Some idiots who’re going to regret their parents ever met once I tell Cain what happened today.”

Emma ran her hand through her hair and closed her eyes for a long moment. “I want to go see Cain.”

“Why?” In the last few days Merrick had grown to like Cain’s wife, but she was about to see what Emma was made of. Merrick was afraid her boss was about to get screwed again.

“Whatever I need to see her about is between the two of us, Merrick. It’s a family matter and really none of your business.”

“You’re right. I work for Cain and can’t pry or make decisions for her, but I’d spend the time until we get to the hospital thinking about what you’re going to say. Cain’s willing to give you just so many chances. Then not even the Virgin Mary will get you back where you want to be.” Merrick tapped her finger against her temple. “Just some food for thought.”

Pausing halfway down the stairs, she shouted back up to Emma. “Finish getting dressed and don’t come out until I come get you. I’ve got a few things to do before we can even think about moving to the hospital, so be a little patient.”

Emma watched Merrick take the rest of the steps two at a time. She’s right, Emma. You cut and run now, and it’s over. She wasn’t going to run away again, but was it fair to raise children in a house where they could get killed just for sleeping in their own beds? Surprisingly, the voice in her head that asked the question sounded a lot like her mother’s, and for once it didn’t sound all that unreasonable. A responsible person would have been on the first flight out of town, consequences be damned.

Behind her Hayden opened the door, fully dressed and holding Hannah’s hand. “You want to leave now, don’t you?”

“I’m not going anywhere without you, sweetheart.”

Hayden pulled back as Emma reached out. “Just so you know I won’t live anywhere without Mom. I want to be with Hannah, but not at the expense of my mother.”

“We don’t have to talk about this now.”

“Merrick’s right, you know, and I hope you listen to her. If you walk away again Mom might not let you come back. If you do go, I’m staying here with her, just so you know.”

Emma was stunned. “Like I said, we don’t have to talk about anything right now.”

“I heard you, but I just want you to know that before we get to the hospital.”

Emma didn’t have any idea what she would say when she visited Cain.

*

Three dead strangers sprawled on the sidewalk, and another lolled in the front seat of the abandoned car. When Merrick snapped her fingers, two of her men removed anything that would identify them. As Cain’s personal bodyguard and the head of her security forces, she had to make sure they carried out a thorough investigation before the cops arrived. She strode to the car, pushed the guy over, and jerked out his wallet before going to the passenger side and removing all the papers in the glove box.

One of her men shoved everything they found into a bag and hurried back toward the house in case the police were on a quicker schedule than they planned for. Then another pulled out a digital camera and snapped pictures of the remnants of the men’s faces.

“Make copies and don’t come back until I know who paid them. Whoever finds the ones who got away will get a big bonus in his paycheck this week. Now get moving.” Merrick stalked to the front door.

Sirens sounded in the distance, probably responding to a dozen emergency calls from the neighbors. Merrick figured they mostly thought it was kind of cool to live next door to such an infamous personality—until the ugliness of Cain’s life landed on their doorstep so dramatically. She shook her head and headed inside. For the rest of the day she would have to answer questions and prove she and her men had acted in self-defense. From the kitchen she made two phone calls to speed up the process.

“Muriel, I need you at the house as soon as you can get here. We have a situation, and I don’t want it to get out of control. And I sure don’t want the police to use it to broaden the scope of the investigation that’ll begin in about two minutes.”

Muriel Casey sat up in her office chair and tapped her fingers on the mahogany desk, a gift from her cousin Cain when she’d graduated from LSU Law School. “What’s the situation?”

“Someone blew up Emerald’s before coming over here and shooting up the back of the house.”

When Merrick explained, she sounded like she was ordering lunch, but Muriel knew better. Later, Merrick would decompress over a stiff drink, but now she had to keep her head.

“Anyone hurt?” Before Merrick could answer, something else occurred to Muriel. “Wait, if you were at the house, that means Emma and the kids were with you. God, tell me there isn’t a scratch on them.”

“They’re fine, physically anyway. I’m afraid the trauma may frighten away our little blond bird, but I don’t have time to think about that. I’m going to call Agent Daniels next. We have enough trouble trying to keep the locals at bay, so maybe for once the feds will come in handy.”

Muriel stopped tapping her fingers and flattened her hand on the cool wooden surface. “I’m not saying that’s a bad idea, but hold off on that call. Get Emma and the kids out of there for now and over to the hospital. Cain will want to see them all as soon as possible, just for peace of mind.”

“I think we should phone the feds now, Muriel. This has someone else’s fingerprints all over it, since I don’t believe Giovanni can be this stupid. I say we turn them in to the proper authorities and let them give us a head start on the investigation.”

“I’ll make the call after I talk with Cain, but only when you’re out of the house. After all, Cain’s the one who says you should live with your blinds open every so often, even when you should be locking the doors. Shows whoever’s watching you that you aren’t dirty.”

On her end, Merrick twirled a paring knife between her fingers, trying to temper her desire to plunge it into someone’s chest. “Do you think it’s a good idea for me to leave? Won’t the police wonder where I’ve gone? I’ll look like I’m running from something.”

“You’ll look like you’re trying to protect the people you’re hired to protect. I know who we’re dealing with, my friend, so I can only imagine the damage they’ve left behind. No one’s going to blame you for trying to keep Emma and the children safe. If the police need to talk to you, they’ll do it with me in the room. It’s not like they won’t know how to find you.”

Muriel stood and buttoned her jacket. “Get moving, and I’ll deal with everything. After all, that’s my part of the job. Oh, make sure we have the gun permits handy, and everyone’s license to carry them all the time. Having those might get me out of there before midnight.”

“Call me if you need anything else.”

“Merrick, that’s my line.”

Merrick grimaced, afraid that when Cain heard about this episode, she might want to stick a knife in her.