When I hung up the phone with Sierra, I let out a sigh of relief. I knew that messing with Alice’s health would be a huge risk, but thankfully, she was fine. I just hoped that Giorgio wouldn’t get to her before we got her out of the hospital.

Being back at the police station made me nervous. I had been at this particular precinct a few times in my younger years, just for general mischief, nothing serious. Still, after my stint in prison, any type of law enforcement officials put me on edge.

I tried to remind myself that I was doing the right thing. In prison, a rat is the worst thing you can be. A rat will be tortured or even killed, even by inmates that had nothing to do with the case. If for some reason, I went down for anything, as I knew Giorgio was capable of doing, I wouldn’t survive prison. That’s one reason why the top boss never went down.

My father was horribly mistreated for years for a stupid reason, yet he never sought revenge. It wasn’t because he didn’t have it in him, but he grew up in a gang. If things went differently, he could have been on top. But, because someone with a little more power held a grudge, he was nearly sent to jail.

That’s why my dad wasn’t happy when I told him I wanted to kill Giorgio. He told me that it was a terrible idea. I knew he was right, but I wanted to try anyway. He told me it was better for me to leave town and stay away from Giorgio. Instead, I went straight for him.

Still, he understood why I wanted to end him, and respected that. I was an adult now—I did my time like a man, and I came out of prison a different person. I was older and wiser now.

The detective assigned to my case was a young blond guy, who didn’t look much older than me. His partner was older, had a deeply-lined face, and a bushy mustache that made him look gruff.

“I’m Detective Daniels,” the young cop said, “and this is my partner, Detective Duff. I understand you have some information on gang activity. Is this a gang you’re currently affiliated with?”

I paused. If I admitted it, would I go back to jail? Technically, I was on the payroll. If I lied, it wouldn’t sound legitimate.

“Depending on your affiliation, there is a chance you can receive immunity. Especially if you testify at trial if there is one.”

“I can’t stick around for a trial,” I chuckled. “If you knew what kind of information I was sitting on, you’d understand why I have to leave town.”

“Okay then,” Detective Duff said, sitting backward in his chair, “who are we dealing with here?”

“Giorgio D’Angelo.”

The detectives’ jaws dropped.

“Do you understand why I can’t stick around?”

“Tell me what you know about him. Are you involved in his gang?”

“Only because I wanted to take him down. He got me arrested for a crime I didn’t commit. I spent time inside because of him. I wanted to return the favor, and maybe get some scum off the street in the process.”

“So, this is for revenge?”

I balled up my fists. “His family is in danger if he stays free.”

“His family?”

“He beats his wife. He has people spying on his daughter at all moments of the day. He tortures and kills innocent people all the time. Is it so hard to believe that it’s the right thing to put this guy away for good?”

They looked at each other and then back to me.

“No, we believe you. What do you know about his crimes? Anything in particular that can be used as evidence?”

I set the folder of documents on the table and slid it toward the detectives. I waited for them to flip through the pages. The further the got, the more excited their faces became. I knew that I had done well.

“Do you understand what these documents mean?” Daniels asked in a condescending tone.

“Yes,” I said pertly. “I believe this means that Mr. D’Angelo owes the government millions of dollars in unpaid taxes. Also, it shows that he has been involved in illegal gambling rings and foreign drug cartels. I’m sure there’s much more in there, but I’m no expert on the subject.”

They stared at me, realizing they underestimated me from the moment I walked in the door. By now, I figured they’d listen to whatever I had to say.

“I don’t know much about the business, but I personally know that he conducts most of his business in New York and Las Vegas. He doesn’t technically own the casinos out there, but he has a hand in all of it. If he doesn’t like how an owner is using his money or services, he sends one of his goons to rough them up. He is dangerous and violent, but he gets off the hook every time because he has a lot of connections and money.”

“What kind of connections?”

I cleared my throat, not wanting to tell them something they didn’t want to hear.

“Police connections?” Daniels guessed.

“Yup. In most cases, they’ll make an arrest, usually someone who’s on the bottom tiers of the organization. That’s how I got caught up in it.”

“What do we want to do?” Daniels said to Duff.

“I think we need to get a search warrant for the D’Angelo home.”

“This is bigger than us. We need to get the feds on the line immediately. Grab anyone who’s not working on an active case. We’re going to need all hands on deck.”

“Can I ask you something?” I said quietly.

“Sure, kid,” Duff grunted.

“Does this mean that I’m immune for getting caught up in this? I have a feeling that whatever you find in your investigation will lead to the arrests of everyone in the inner circle. Will my father and I be safe? I only came to you because I want to protect my family. I have a child on the way. I need to put this all in the past.”

They looked at each other, somehow telepathically coming to a conclusion.

“You’re safe. We won’t press charges against you or your father.”

“Also, just out of curiosity, but if you find this information to be valid, will you be making an arrest immediately?”

“We can’t tell you that,” Daniels said. “But you’ve been very helpful.”

“He’s dangerous,” I said. “I promise you, if you don’t get him put away for a long time, he will hurt anyone who stands in his way. I want to make sure you understand that.”

The detectives looked a little confused and nervous.

“We get it, kid,” Duff said. “Mob bosses are usually dangerous. You can leave this up to us now. We can handle it from here.”

“So I can go?”

He gestured toward the door.

“I hope you’re right about all of this, Apollo,” Daniels said, holding the door open behind me. “It would be a big win for the city to get him off the streets. You’ve been a big help. No matter what happens, you’ve done a good thing.”

As I walked outside of the police station, I carried those words with me. I didn’t care about the cops and the big promotions they’d get for catching one of the city’s biggest criminals. I didn’t really care about the stories that would be plastered all over the newspapers because of my information. It was personal. This felt better than revenge. This felt like true justice.

I got into my borrowed car and drove away, knowing that there was nothing more I could do but wait.