All Chapters of Mancini's Way: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

I had to set things up with my guys before going in because once I boarded the ship I had to be in constant motion and we couldn't afford to miss a step once we got the ball rolling. There was most definitely going to be firepower exchanged; my job was to see that none of the innocents were caught in the crossfire. I hated losing any of the unfortunates on my watch and so far I've been lucky where others haven't. This cargo was made up of young girls who were bound to be terrified; one of my operatives is a female who specializes in these matters, we've done enough of these runs that we're almost expert by now but there was always an unknown element that could pop up out of nowhere. In the old days we would've just rushed the shit and taken the hostages by force, there would most likely be lives lost, among them some of the victims. These days we handled things with just a bit more sophistication; I have accrued a reputation as a dealer so to speak, I'm known all over

I received the signal from my men aboard the ship that they were approaching the harbor. Jace was already in place on a boat a few slips away from where the ship was supposed to dock. The Coast Guard as earlier prearranged was out of sight and the harbor clear of even light traffic. I stood on the pier a lone figure dressed all in black a very B movie cliché to be sure. As they pulled in and went about the business of dropping anchor I communicated with the Captain who would soon become the first casualty of the night. I saw the spray of blood across his chest before his body dropped. Good job Jace. There was suddenly a lot of movement on deck, which is what we wanted I went into motion while chaos ensued on board. I knew where the cargo hold was and that's where I was headed, my only interest in getting those girls out of there. The rest of my team was in charge of keeping the enemy occupied. They had no idea where the attack came from, as there had been no o

Nothing that I had uncovered hinted at a love interest but that didn't mean it wasn't a possibility. I folded my fists at the surge of emotion that overcame me at the thought I'll have to deal with that later. Right now I have to see her, be sure she was here alone, what the fuck I planned to do if she wasn't I had no idea I just knew I would punish her in some way if that's what I found. Fucked up I know but there you have it, I never claimed to be the most rational motherfucker out there. The moonlight coming in through the bedroom window cast a shadowy glow over her perfect skin, her face serene in slumber looked even younger; my fingers itched to touch, to stroke her hair where it laid spread out over her pillow. Thank heavens she didn't sleep in the nude or else my control might've failed me; it was a trial as it was keeping my distance as her chest rose and fell with her easy breathing the T-shirt she wore to sleep in stretched taut across her breasts.

Did they have to be so fucking obvious? I mean seriously, after all this time you'd think they'd have upped their game. They might as well have been wearing a sign that said G-men. She on the other hand was looking exceptionally pretty in her off the shoulder blouse, which is all I could see of her outfit from my vantage point across the room. Her hair fell in curls to her shoulders and I noticed her little butterfly pin slash camera, was pinned to her blouse again. I approached with an air of nonchalance even though I had no doubt the place was bugged to pick up even the fall of lint from my cuff if there was any. I flashed my boyish grin to unnerve her as soon she caught sight of me. I've been told that it's very disarming to the opposite sex. Watching that blush spread from her cheeks to her shoulders, I was reminded of what she looked like when I watched her in her bed the night before. Sweetly innocent and yet so fucking alluring, it won't be long now, I

I woke up with that same feeling again, the feeling that Hank had been here in my room. I couldn't explain it to myself but it was an overpowering feeling I relived that moment from the night before when he'd ran his finger down my cheek, the look in his eyes as he did it. If I didn't know better I would swear he actually felt something there for that space in time, what that something was I don't know. I had to get up and get moving, nine o'clock will be here any minute and I still had yet to give Durant my report, I'm sure the others had probably given him their surveillance tapes and our recorded conversations and he was probably even now chomping at the bit to give me instructions on how to use my new in to draw Hank even farther into the web I was setting for him. The more time I spent in his presence though the more convinced I became that we were barking up the wrong tree. He just didn't fit the type and since I was now considered the brightest new star in the