Once a Killer Read Free Page A

home.”
    “Thanks. I love you.”
    “Love you, too.”
    When Michael pulled up outside Papa Gino’s pizza restaurant, he tried to spot the men inside, but they were nowhere near the misted-up front window. Twice he walked by the building, but still he couldn’t see them. If they weren’t police officers, then who were they? Were they dangerous? At least the place was busy so he’d have plenty of witnesses if things got heavy. As he walked in, the men were sitting at the back of the dining room. They saw him first and waved to attract his attention.
    “Where the fuck have you been?” asked Glass Eye when Michael slid into the booth next to Bull Neck. It was a tight squeeze, and the moron made no attempt to move over to make room. When he grabbed his half-empty glass of beer, he revealed a Tag Heuer sports wristwatch with a faux crocodile strap. There were faded letters tattooed on his knuckles, but Michael struggled to read them upside down.
    “You’re lucky I came at all.” Michael was now almost certain these guys were not cops or FBI. “This had better be good.”
    Glass Eye took a large bite out of his pepperoni pizza and pointed to the menu. “You eaten?”
    “I’m not hungry. It’s not like we’re friends or anything. Just tell me what you want.”
    “We’d have told you in Chicago if you’d stayed around long enough.”
    “I haven’t been to that city in years.”
    “Cut the bullshit. We know it was you.”
    Michael glanced at his watch. “I’ll give you two minutes before I’m out of here.”
    Bull Neck chortled and then finished his beer in one swallow.
    Glass Eye put his pizza down. “We’re in the market for a good lawyer and we hear you’re one of the best.”
    Michael stopped himself from blurting out the first words that sprang to mind and inhaled a deep draw of air. It was clear these men were a couple of crooks. What was this charade about looking for a lawyer?
    “I have a full client list.” He stood up. “I’m sorry, but I can’t help you.”
    “Sit down,” Bull Neck said, grabbing Michael’s arm with his left hand.
    A woman on the table of four opposite looked at them and frowned. Michael sat down. The last thing he wanted was to create a scene in a crowded restaurant in the town where he lived; someone in here might recognize him. He’d have to find another way to brush these guys off.
    “You’re well-known to our employer,” said Glass Eye. “He needs you to do some work for him.”
    “I know a lot of people, but I can’t work with all of them. There are plenty of other lawyers out there.”
    Glass Eye grimaced. “He wants you.”
    The woman opposite was still watching them and now looked as if she suspected something was going on. If he was going to avoid this situation turning nasty, Michael figured he’d need to humor the men, at least for a few moments. “Who is it you work for?”
    “James Grannis.”
    Michael thought about the name. “Doesn’t mean anything to me. As I told you earlier, I think you have me mistaken for someone else.”
    “He runs the Grannis Hedge Fund in New York City.”
    Michael shook his head no. “Still doesn’t help. I don’t know him.”
    “Well, he knows you, for sure. He says you and he go back a very long way.”
    “I don’t know him. Okay?”
    “He’s not a man to make mistakes.”
    “Well, he’s wrong this time. I don’t know what else to say.”
    Glass Eye leaned over the table as far as he could and lowered his voice. “He said he was real sorry to hear about your mother.”
    A chill cut through Michael’s veins. What did this have to do with his mother? “Who are you people?”
    “Look, Mr. Grannis wants a meeting to discuss some business. I’m sure he’ll clear up any confusion when you meet.”
    Every instinct Michael had was telling him to get out of here and have nothing to do with these men, whoever they were. But if he walked out now, there was no doubt they would track him down again. After all,