Page 152 of Cody


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“Is Valerie in on it?”

He moves his jacket aside, revealing the gun he’s carrying. “Do not make accusations against Valerie. She’s an innocent victim in all of this. Now, I need you to step back and leave. And do not insert yourself in my business again. Do you understand?”

I watch him move his hand closer to the gun.

“Loud and clear.”

I got what I came here for, anyway. Once I’m in my car, I make the call.

“Carter here.”

I spit out everything I just learned. “Vince used Ted to do his dirty work. I don’t know the details, but—”

“Cody, I know.”

“Youknow? Why didn’t you say anything? It would have saved me from confronting him.”

“You confronted him?”

“Just now.”

“Cody, listen to me. Stay away from Vince. I’ll handle him. I can’t have you fucking up my investigation.”

Well, if you’d told me he was your suspect, I wouldn’t have gone in there. Fuck.

“What am I supposed to do? Go to family dinners with Lucy and act like everything is normal?”

“That’s exactly what you need to do. Actually, no, make an excuse and don’t go. Cody, seriously, stay away from Vince.”

He ends the call before I can ask anything more.

CHAPTER39

Lucy

Six monthslater

“Areyou sure you want to go?” Cody asks me.

I nod. “I have to. The town needs to know I support this.”

Cody had been right; my uncle’s food bank wasn’t legitimate. It was a front for selling drugs. That all came out shortly after Vince was charged with conspiracy to murder my father and my uncle Louis. To say I was shocked is an understatement. But I was even more shocked when my mother agreed to testify against him.

I guess her love only runs so deep. She told me that once she learned Vince was responsible for her brother’s death, she was done with him.

Today, the mayor is holding a formal ceremony to thank Agent Carter and the FBI for cleaning up Fallwell Cove. News of my mom’s testimony spread through town faster than the gossip about their affair. I have to show up today in support of Agent Carter to show the town I’m not tangled up in any of their business.

Connie wraps her arms around me. “Lucy, no one thinks you’re a part of this. You don’t have to go today.”

“I do.”

She gives me a weak smile. “All right. Just be ready for questions.”

Questions. I have questions too. Once my mother was given full immunity for her testimony, she sang like a canary. According to her, Vince told her after the fact that he offered to pay Ted to shoot Lawrence, and he paid someone else to make Louis Altero’s death look like an accident. When asked about my dad’s businesses, she claimed to have no knowledge.

I would have believed that a month ago, but I don’t buy it for a single minute now.

“Rover will meet us at the ceremony,” Cody says.