Chapter 4 - THE BROTHER WHO TRIED TO GET OUT
Eden had spent three years imagining her brother's final hours.
Sometimes she pictured him alone.
Sometimes frightened.
Sometimes angry.
She had never imagined him sitting across from Nico Ferraro.
The thought made her feel sick.
"What did he want protection from?" she asked.
Nico was quiet.
Then he said, "Raymond Pike."
Eden closed her eyes.
Pike had introduced Evan to illegal betting when he was seventeen.
At first, it was small.
Collecting cash.
Delivering envelopes.
Keeping records.
Then the debts grew.
The threats started.
And Evan began coming home with bruises he refused to explain.
Their mother begged him to leave.
Eden threatened to call the police.
Evan promised he would stop.
Then one night, he disappeared for three days.
When he returned, he was shaking.
He told Eden he had made a terrible mistake.
She asked what happened.
He said:
"Some people don't let you quit."
Now Nico was telling her the same story.
"Evan came to my office with information about a gambling operation," Nico said. "He claimed Pike was moving money through businesses connected to Vincent Gallo."
"Why come to you?"
"Because Gallo was using my company's shipping invoices without authorization."
Eden frowned.
"He thought you'd help?"
"He thought I had enough influence to stop Pike."
"Did you?"
A pause.
"I tried."
Eden stared at the table.
"What happened?"
Nico's voice lowered.
"Evan disappeared before we could arrange a meeting with an attorney."
Her stomach twisted.
"And then he died."
"Yes."
She swallowed.
"Did you know?"
"Not until afterward."
"Did you investigate?"
"I asked questions."
"That's not what I asked."
Nico was silent.
Eden closed her eyes.
"Did you investigate his death?"
"Not the way I should have."
The admission hurt more than a lie would have.
She stood and paced the kitchen.
"My brother was twenty-six."
"I know."
"He had a mother who loved him."
"I know."
"He had a sister who waited for him to come home."
Nico said nothing.
Eden's voice broke.
"And you had the power to help him."
"Yes."
She stopped.
"Then why didn't you?"
The silence stretched.
Finally, Nico answered.
"Because I thought I had more time."
Eden ended the call.
That evening, she found an envelope beneath her apartment door.
No stamp.
No return address.
Inside was a photograph of Evan.
He stood outside a warehouse beside Raymond Pike.
The photograph was dated four days before his death.
On the back, someone had written:
YOUR BROTHER DIDN'T DIE BECAUSE HE USED DRUGS.
May you like
Beneath it was a second sentence.
HE DIED BECAUSE HE KEPT THE WRONG BOOK.
