Assassin P.I. Read Online Free PDF Page A

innocent people like Trevor Santino and Angela Zaro . . . and good people like his father. But he couldn’t help them anymore, couldn’t go down that rabbit hole of misery again, not without losing his soul this time. He was done, but still couldn’t stop himself from asking anyhow.
    “It’s an easy one. Nothing you can screw up this time.” Deluca glanced behind him before handing over a large manila envelope. “Meet Benicio Acevedo.”
    Jack opened the envelope and withdrew a mug shot. A mid fifty-something man of Latin blood and dark brooding eyes stared back. Other than the small scar that marred his otherwise flawless chin, the man could pass for a model, ala Marlon Brando style, not a wanted criminal.
    “Benny here is guilty of cooking and distributing heroin laced with fentanyl. His bad batch of smack got a couple of kids killed on the south side of town.”
    Drug dealers were a dime a dozen in this town. It’s what Deluca didn’t say that got Jack’s attention. The death of a child tended to rile people up. While the town mourns its loss, the reporters capitalize on every tearful wail. But there’d been no such news. Poor kids from broken homes living the wrong side of town didn’t make the news. No one was mourning the loss of a few teens who’d OD’d. It was like a knife to the gut. Someone had to avenge their deaths. If not him, then who?
    “Sounds like an easy case for the DA to make. You don’t need me.”
    “Hernandez is an incompetent fool and Bad-Batch Benny’s well connected with a slimy, but smart, lawyer. Always seems to find some way to weasel out of going to trial. Word on the street is he’s no stranger to taking out his competition, shutting them up for good. Only a bullet to the head will work on a scumbag like him. Trust me, I need you on this one. This case is right up your ally.”
    “I told you I’m out. I’m done.”
    Deluca chuckled. He fished a cigarette out of his coat and lit it, disregarding the smoking ban. He took a long drag before answering. “You’re done when I say you are. Do your job and I’ll make sure you don’t get pinched.”
    Jack peered inside the envelope at the loaded Sig resting atop a neat pile of paperwork and a wad of cash. “It’s clean?”
    “What do I look like? An idiot? I didn’t get this promotion by being a dumbass. You know the drill. You shoot. You clean. I return it to lock-up where it connects a bad guy to an even badder crime. It’s what I like to call”—Deluca paused and smiled—“a win-win situation.”
    Then why was he the only one taking all the risks?
    He studied the contents of the documents. A map revealed the exact layout of Benny’s house and lab. Snapshots disclosed the color, make, and license plate number of Benny’s car. Case notes divulged any other pertinent details that would make it easy to locate the man. Where he banked, who his dentist was, the name of his wife, and the name of his mistress would only serve to make this a straightforward case. Except for one thing.
    Murder was still murder.
    “Jesus Christ, Jack. I thought you’d be happy to get back in the saddle again.”
    “It’s not that.” He couldn’t explain it, but something had changed in him. He wasn’t the same man anymore.
    “Then what is it? If you’re worried about that last case, don’t be. I already took care of it.”
    That was only part of it. No cop ever liked to see a case go south, and when a kid got caught in the crosshairs, it really screws with a man. But there was more to it than that.
    “Angie’s back.” Jack saw the tinge of disapproval that crossed Deluca’s face.
    “Christ, Jack, I thought you were done messing around with her.”
    “I was. I am.” He took a breath. “She’s got a job for me.”
    “And what’s that? Off her husband?” Deluca sat down and wrapped his fingers around his glass again.
    “Somebody already beat me to it. She wants to hire me to find the guy who did it.”
    Deluca slapped