Staring into the mirror in her tiny bathroom, Eva frowned at the dark circles under her red eyes. There had been very little sleep the night before, and none of it was restful. The bright red stripes across her back were still awfully tender, making it difficult to get comfortable lying down or sitting up.

"You've been with them for almost two months now, and all you give me is one apartment address, the name of a crazy man, and reports of dealings with my own men. Remind me again what it is I'm keeping your parents alive for?"

The whip cracked again across her back, shredding the fabric of her blouse again as she cried out and shook her head.

"I'm sorry, Alex! Please! I swear to you that there isn't much more to report. It's his Right Hand woman. She is skeptical of me, and I think she's encouraging him to keep business at a distance."

Four lashes had split her skin, and the blood from them soaked what remained of her blouse and caused it to stick painfully to her skin. Alex Katsopolous huffed and put the whip down, walking slow circles around where Eva stood.

"Fine then. You must work your way closer. You see him tomorrow?"

Eva nodded, fighting back tears against the stinging in her back.

"Yes. For breakfast."

"Alright then. You tell him you wish to work more closely with him. Tell him you quit the hospital. See what you can do. But, Evelyn, I warn you; if I don't get decent information from you soon, I take your mother first- and your father will watch. And, if he gives you any more cash, no more 'forgetting' to hand it over, yes?"

Freshly showered and wearing a loose-fitting silk blouse with pink flowers on it, Eva arrived at the cafe a few minutes early. Ilya sat at a table not far from her- well within earshot- reading a newspaper with a cup of coffee. She sat in her chair, straight as a board so as not to let her back touch the hard wood of the ladder-back chair. A waitress approached and gave her a smile.

"You want anything, honey?"

Eva gave her a soft smile and shook her head.

"I'll wait. Thank you."

She looked down and smoothed her hands over her black slacks, glancing at the silver and diamond bracelet that her father had given her for her 16th birthday. How she missed them. Someday, this would end.  Not for them, if she could help it.

Billy made his way into the Cafe that Eva asked him to meet with her for breakfast at. He never passed up breakfast. It was his favorite.

He had his guys scout the place out before he went. They said it was a nice small place, it had no connections to anyone that they were aware of, and most importantly, there was a back way out in case things got dicey. Oscar waited in the car, Billy and Charlie went inside. Charlie sat down right as close to the door as he could with his back to the wall. Billy looked for Eva. As soon as he spotted her he smiled and walked his way over to her waving.

"Morning doc. nice little place you picked, what do they got that's good here?"

He made sure to wear his suit today, he had to stop showing up to see Eva in jeans an a tshirt. He had to look the part. So today he decided to be a little different. he went with a navy blue suit and a cream colored shirt. It was a nice combination that he liked. His tie was chocolate in color and it matched his shoes.

"Oh and before I sit down, is this a social outing, or are we talking business. I knew it was just a matter of time before you asked for a raise you know."

He smiled at her, and slowly took his seat as he unbuttoned his jacket.

She'd seen his guards come in first, then stood as Billy Mastrosimone approached the table. Eva's smile was brighter now, and a little make up in the right places had very well disguised her tired eyes.

"I remember you saying you were a fan of breakfast, so I thought it might be the best way to butter you up, so to speak. Oh, and they've got an excellent Irish breakfast here. It's the entire reason I come here."

She chuckled and retook her seat as he sat down. The waitress returned promptly and took their drink orders while handing them menus. When she was gone, Eva cleared her throat softly.

"It's business. I hope."

Here came the tricky part. It wasn't that Eva was especially bad at lying; it was just that she didn't do it much and didn't have much confidence in her abilities. She took the linen napkin from her table and placed it on her lap. 

"I've quit my job at the hospital. Nothing to be alarmed about; it just...wasn't really going anywhere for me. I don't want to be a junior surgeon all my life, and there were at least four tenured surgeons above me that would be advanced before I was. I was thinking about taking a different direction."

The waitress returned with the drinks. Eva gave her a kind smile but stopped talking while she was at the table.

"I'll have the Irish breakfast, please."

Billy held up his two fingers.

"Make that two, and a whole pot of coffee one cup at a time."

He gave the waitress a nice smile, but then turned serious as soon as she walked away.

"I'm real sorry to hear that Eva. It can be hard doing things right. I'll bet most of them surgeons were guys too huh? You ladies only just barely got the vote a while ago, it's gotta be tough being a girl. I could never do it."

He smiled again as the waitress filled his cup of coffee and he started to prepare it. Two sugars and then one splash of cream. Delicious.

"So, what's the next step then? You looking for a more permanent sort of job with me? Or you looking for a loan from a guy you know can afford it?"

She wanted to talk business, they would talk business. Billy glanced toward the window then. It was a nice morning, there wouldn't be a ton more nice mornings before the winter air started to settle in. Detroit was always worse than New York had even been when he was a kid. He hated winters in Detroit.

With a hint of surprise, Eva glanced up at Billy as he mentioned how rough women seemed to have it. He wasn't wrong at all. It was never easy in a man's world; especially in a largely male-dominated field like medicine. Every time they met, he seemed to find some other way of surprising her; a finely tailored suit that perfectly fit his intimidating frame, an appreciation for the solitude in music, or an imported bottle of brandy simply because he remembered she liked it. His consideration for the plight of a woman was another, and it lightened her spirit a bit as she lifted her cup of plain, black coffee.

"Oh, I don't believe I'm in any position to ask for a loan. In fact, I had a rather different idea. A business proposal. Partnership, if you will."

After one sip of coffee, she placed the cup down and placed her hands in her lap.

"In my time working with you, it's become fairly clear that your particular business has a lot of hazard associated with it. I also recognize that there is a fair amount of risk involved in attaining medical care in any 'above board' facility. In considering how I could be of better assistance to you, I thought that it might be beneficial if there was a place you could safely take your associates for quality medical care without the risk. A place in your own control. I don't exactly know where such a place could be housed, but it could easily be disguised as a regular business; like a medical supply store."

She paused and sheepishly bit her lower lip.

"If this all sounds ridiculous, I'm sorry. I am in a bit over my head when it comes to your world; but...you see, I really want to help. I like y-- working for you."

Her olive toned skin burned slightly with a blush, and she picked up her coffee cup to take a drink.

Billy slowly sipped his coffee as Eva spoke to him. He nodded a long, though he would have been fine giving her a loan of she asked for it. This though, this was something that he really did need.

"That sounds all well and good doc. I got a few questions though. First one is, do you still have contacts at the hospital that can get you the equipment and supplies you might need? Second, are you willing to split this 70/30 in my favor if I were to buy all the supplies for you, and give you a building of your own to house all of this in? Last, as a partner I would need to know what else you needed from me. What can I bring to the table here that isn't protection?"

Billy smiled to the waitress as she came back with their breakfasts and he did not bother to wait for more than a few seconds before digging in himself. He was hungry, he was always hungry.

Eva quietly chuckled to herself as Billy went right for the meal. She couldn't blame him. There's very little more tasty than a full Irish breakfast. Spreading some jam onto her toast, she thought for a moment before answering. 

"More? You mean more than a building, financing, and protection?" 

She gave him a cheeky grin. 

"Billy, I'm not the type to drive hard bargains. 70/30 sounds perfectly reasonable. I've always wanted my own practice, and this isn't something I could afford to do on my own. If you're willing to help, I am confident that I can build a very valuable service that will be beneficial not only to us, but to others with similar business in the city."

Eva forked up a bite of grilled tomato and mushroom, chewing it while she stole a glance at Ilya. The goonish blonde was staring at his paper, but his eyes weren't moving. If only Ilya hadn't come. If only he'd stayed in his car. For a moment, a longer moment than she'd had before, Eva began to think of what might happen if she told him. Billy Mastrosimone was a man of considerable wealth, influence, and strength. Surely he could handle a few Greek thugs? But...her parents. If she even looked like she might turn on them, she knew Alex would kill them. It's the same wall she hit every time.

Her expression sombered again.

​​​​​

​​

Billy continued to eat his breakfast and then nodded toward Charlie who promptly stood up and walked into the back of the shop causing the only waiter to get up and go back there as well. Charlie would hold him and the cook in the back until Billy called for him. So Billy extended his hand and shook Eva's.

"It's a deal. Oh, except for one more thing..."

Billy pulled on Eva's hand causing her to bow down in front of him and almost hit her head on the table. As he did so, his free hand whipped out a pistol from under his jacket and before the blonde behind the newspaper could react, Billy took his shots. Two of them. One right after the other. If there was one thing Billy knew about, and knew about well, it was that there was no way you took chances when you meant to kill a man. As the newspaper fluttered to the floor and soaked up part of the crimson stain that began to grow on the dark wooden floor, Billy returned the pistol to it's holster and lifted Eva's head by the chin.

His gaze was serious now and had none of the usual playfulness to it.

"You're under my protection now. Whoever that was that's been following you, consider him fired. No more hiding shit from me. You're my associate now. You're in and there's no getting out."

His swift motion from a simple handshake to pulling her down to the table top was so sudden and unexpected that her brain didn't catch up with what was going on until the second shot was echoing in her ears. Before she could even scream, Billy Mastrosimone was looking her squarely in the eyes with a look she'd never seen before.

Wordlessly, with adrenaline shooting through her body like shock waves, Eva looked back and saw Ilya's body lying on the floor like a ragdoll someone tossed against a chair. She gasped and leaped from her chair. Panic filled her dark eyes as she paced a few steps to one side then back again, raking her fingers through her hair. There was no choice now. The bottle was broken and there was no way to put the wine back in. With Ilya dead, it was only a matter of time before Alex found out, and then her parents would be next. Unless...

Eva looked back at Billy, half expecting to see the gun aimed at her. It wasn't, and she found her tongue. 

"We have to... I... I have to run. Oh god, he's going to kill them."

The usually even-tempered doctor was quickly sinking into a panic. She wrapped her arms in front of her, looking frantically in all directions for a few moments while trying to find any coherent thought that didn't involve her parents being murdered. The olive tone of her smooth Mediterranean skin was a bit more pale as she looked at Billy pleadingly and spoke with a shaky voice. 

"Please...hide me. I swear I'll explain everything...but you have EU get me out of here."

Billy raised an eyebrow at his doctor. She was his now. His family, his doctor. He had made that very clear to her.

"Yeah, we can go back to my apartment, but you gotta tell me right now why you're freaking out over a dead body. It's not like you haven't seen one before. And don't forget who I am and what I do, nobody is gonna kill anybody."

He picked up his toast and took a gigantic bite out of it as he made his way toward the front door and opened it for her.

"Go on, Oscar's in the car, I just gotta grab Charlie. HEY CHARLIE!"

Billy watched as Oscar opened the door for Eva and she clambered into the car looking around like a skittish puppy. Charlie came out from the back of the place and tilted his head toward the body for a second.

"Call it in, get the cleaners in here, pay off the cook and waiter who saw nothing at all. Once it's taken care of meet me at home."

He walked back to the table and took the sausage, scarfing it down before he made his way outside and into the car.

"Alright Eva. Start slow and keep in mind Integra isn't here yet, so if you have something important, just wait till she gets to my place."

He put his arm around her and pulled her into his chest to try to help calm her down.

"It's gonna be fine, relax. Close your eyes for a minute and we'll be there before ya know it."

Eva winced a little as the back of the seat brushed against the lash marks on her back, but she didn't care about her own pain one bit at the moment. All she could think about was her parents, and the Greeks that were already roaming freely around their home- just waiting for any word from Alex. Billy appeared beside her in the back of the car, pulling her to him and holding her for reassurance. Now, she felt both fear and confusion. He wouldn't be so kind if he knew...what he was about to know; yet Eva couldn't help but bury her face in his shoulder and allow a river of pent-up tears to flow. She did close her eyes, silently sobbing, and trying to put her thoughts together.

Before too long, Eva was following Billy into his apartment. As soon as the door shut behind them, she hurried to the big window in the living room, keeping to the side and peering carefully out to see if there were any of Alex's men around. There were none, but she drew the curtains anyway with trembling hands. Before she turned to face Billy, she took a deep breath and tried to keep her heart from exploding in her chest. She took a few steps toward him, her hands held tightly together at her waist, almost as if in prayer. Hardly knowing where to start, Eva looked at the Don of Corktown, slipping out of his suit jacket and waiting to hear the story. For a moment, she just stared; knowing this may be the last time she would see the kindness in that devastatingly handsome face. Still, fear spurred her on. Time was running short for Phillip and Magdalena Hadley.

"The man you killed was named Ilya Misko. He worked for a Greek gangster named Alex Katsopolous. It's Alex who is threatening to kill my parents. He's...been using me."

She softly cleared her throat and wiped the moisture from her eyes.

"He found me, at St. Andrews, and said he knew my family. He showed me pictures of them in their home, and said that if I didn't do exactly as he told me, he would murder them. I didn't believe him at first, and told him I'd call the police if he didn't leave me alone; but that very day my landlord evicted me for no reason at all. He threw me out of my condo onto the street. Alex showed up immediately after. He'd paid the landlord to throw me out- I guess to show his muscle. He then told me that his men were the ones working as gardener and house keepers for my parents. I had no choice. He assigned Ilya to stay with me at all times, and forced me to live in the rat hole apartment that I live in now. He took nearly all my pay from the hospital- and from you."

Eva closed her eyes momentarily and bowed her head.

"My job was to find an Italian crime family to become attached to, and give him information to help him sabotage them; overthrow them so he could gain a foothold for the Greeks in Detroit. They were trying to find the right person- but then...you showed up at the emergency room. Ilya knew who you were, and that was it. I had no choice."

Feeling the tears stinging her eyes again, she hugged her arms tightly around herself.

"I was supposed to give them information about your organization, and anything I could about the Ligambi family. You- you were smart, and so was Integra- to keep me from knowing too much. I couldn't give them much at all."

Feeling that she was short on time herself, she began to talk faster.

"They only know so very little- they know you live in this building, but that's only because Ilya followed me everywhere."

Eva was now visibly trembling, and felt as if she were two inches tall. She moved to stand right in front of Billy and sank to her knees.

"I swear to you, Don Mastrosimone, I didn't tell them anything that could have endangered you. I...I couldn't."

Reduced to sobbing again, Eva hid her face in her hands.

Billy listened, and nodded as Eva spoke. He didn't move, not one inch. Integra knew. She had known all along. Billy had been an idiot and now folks were in danger.

He made his way to the front door and opened it.

"Boys, we've got a bit of a problem. Looks like we got ourselves into a little pickle here."

He sighed.

"I'm sugarcoating this. Com inside one at a time and call your families, if you have any, to tell them that you love them. We've got to move fast for the rest of the night and I don't know what's coming next. As soon as my sister is here get her inside we need to put some shit into action right away."

Charlie and Oscar both just nodded. Rebecca looked shocked. She was not ready for this sort of night. Billy sighed as he made his way back to the living room. She would never be the same after tonight.

He opened the liquor cabinet and poured six drinks. The first was a brandy. The following two were whiskey. Then the last three were cordials of Limoncello which he brought out to the bodyguards and they thanked him for.

"Alright Eva, take your brandy and have a seat. You have two choices in front of you tonight. The Greeks, or me. Right now you're sitting in my apartment, waiting for those men to start bearing down on us. What are you gonna do next? There's a gun in the top drawer of the record cabinet. Take it. You are going to need it one way or another. But be smart about what you do next. If you're really a Greek spy, you're going to shoot me, and you'd better kill me or else..."

He paused and took a sip of his whiskey.

"...you've seen first hand the work that Integra does. She doesn't have my strength though. Think about it long and hard. We knew you had family. We didn't go threaten them. We knew you had ex boyfriends, but they are perfectly fine. We never showed up to the hospital again compromising your livelihood once you asked us not to."

He took another calm sip, but still didn't sit down.

"I told you earlier, you're mine now. I meant it. Forget the apartment, you'll stay here. All of your possessions are as good as gone. I will buy you whatever you need. But you should know one thing. Integra is about to walk through that door, and you're going to need to explain everything to her. Come clean, be completely honest and if you're lucky, she decides to only break a few bones in your body. I'm not going to do it myself, but I'm not going to stop her. You've made your bed Eva. You could have fixed this a long time ago by just asking the good guys for some help."

He finished his whiskey and put the empty glass on the coffee table between them. He got up and left the living room leaving the woman by herself in silence. She was in his home and he would protect her, but she needed to know that tonight, tonight she had lost something. She was going to have to rebuild it from nothing now.

After Billy left the room, Eva stared at the glass of brandy. She couldn't bear the thought of drinking it now, though she wanted more than anything to get drunk and feel nothing. There was activity all around her- guards coming in and out- but Eva remained on the floor, lost in a flood of fear. She knew all too well what Integra could do, and just how short the woman's temper was, especially when it came to Billy. Eva shuddered. She was as good as dead.

Then, a thought came to her. The gun in the record cabinet. Slowly, she rose from the floor and went silently to the beautifully carved cabinet and opened the door. Inside was a .38 revolver. With her hands still trembling, she reached in and retrieved the weapon. It was, of course, loaded. It felt heavy in her hands, and she clutched the handle tightly. Looking back up, she saw a record sitting on the turntable. It was the song that had been playing on the radio that night they'd talked and shared a drink. That night- the memory broke her heart instantly. She could have told him- she could have ended it all right then. But fear...the fear paralyzed her. Now, the fear was all she had left. Billy could handle the Greeks; as much as she wanted to, she couldn't do anything to protect him now. She'd brought this on him. There was nothing she could do now to save her parents. A doctor that couldn't save anyone that mattered.

Eva flicked the switch on the record player, and a sweet instrumental version of "It's Only A Paper Moon" floated quietly through the room. Eva looked toward the bedroom where Billy had gone. Her hands weren't shaking anymore. Closing her eyes, she lifted the revolver and pressed it to her temple. 

Integra rushed back home after getting a call that she was needed back immediately. 'Kenzi.' She had heard the single code word from her brother and she was suddenly on high alert and on edge. She didnt know what happened to call for something like this but it wasnt good. So her bodyguard, Jason was rushing her back to the apartment before the two of them and Martin raced up the stairs. By the time she got to the apartment, she ignored the guards outside and simply burst into the room, not varing that she called out loudly.

"BILLY! What the fu-" she cut off as she saw the doctor with a gun to her temple as her eyes turned cold, and if looks could Kill, the doctor would certainly have fallen over dead. She stalked towards the woman who had dropped the gun before gripping the front of her shirt and yanking her close so she was in her face. 

"Where the fuck is my brother.... what did you do." She growled the words out at the woman as Anger, her shoulder protested the actions, still sore after having been dislocated and then popped back in, but she cared more about her family being safe.

"You better talk quick...before i asusme the worst. Doctor."

Hearing Integra come bursting through the door, Eva was startled by her voice, dropping the gun which clattered to the floor. Before she could say anything at all, she found herself mere centimeters from the powerful woman's face. 

"He's fine! Billy is fine- he's in the other room. It's me...I...I was being blackmailed. Greeks want to take control in Detroit and threatened to kill my parents if I didn't get them information! Please Integra..."

Fire flashed in the woman's eyes, and next thing Eva knew, Integra's hand was clenched like a vice around her throat and crushing her windpipe ever so slowly. Eva tried to plead with her, but her voice came out choppy and choked.

"Ple-ease...no..."

Eva's instincts kicked in and she tried to wriggle away. Integra had one hand on her throat and another still gripping her shirt. Trying desperately to get away, Eva let her knees sink, making her dead weight in Integra's grip. With a rip, Eva's silk blouse gave way. Still, the woman's grip on her throat was too tight for her to get away. 

Gasping, Eva tried again.

"Wait...not fin...finished..."

The fire was burning bright in Integra's eyes as she glared at the woman in her grasp. As the doctor went dead weight in her hand, she felt her shoulder ache more from the strain of holding the woman up. Letting go as she went to shove the woman to the floor, a dark look on her face as she glared down at the woman.

"Then you better talk fast, you have two minutes." Her voice was cold as she watched the woman, her guards alert and nearby to grab her if she tried anything funny. Integra walked towards the table, picking up the glass of whiskey before downing it rather quickly. She wouldnt get drunk off drinking it, but it would help her ignore the soreness in her shoulder. 

Placing the empty glass down, she glared back at the woman. "Are you going to talk? Or are you just hoping i just forget about the path you laid out for yourself. If you want to fix then then you better toughen up and take responsibility for what you need to do." She was cold towards the woman, but mostly because she wanted to protect her family that could not be dangerous. It was the one aspect of Eva she understood, the need to protect ones family was strong. But to go against the people who havent strong armed her was stupid...

Eva hit the floor again as Integra angrily pushed her away. In a way, Eva was relieved to be out of Integra's grip; but she knew her reprieve was only temporary, depending on how she took the next bit of information. Eva slowly pushed herself up from the floor, cautiously, and held the tattered remains of her blouse over her front. In the back, bright red lash marks peeked out from the torn fabric.

Coughing a few times from the pressure on her windpipe, Eva reached for the brandy. Integra was right- if she were going to fix this at all, she had to steel herself and lay it all out. But, maybe she still had one ace in the hole. She drank the brandy in a few swallows and sat the glass on the table.

"They know very little. You were smart, Integra, not to let me see or hear much. Alex kept pressing me for more, but I didn't give them much of anything. Alex...his name is Alex Katsopolous. He's the one that wants to overthrow the Italians. He wanted me to be implanted as long as I could and feed him information that could help him weaken the Italians. I swear to you, Integra, they know very little. They know Billy lives in this building, but not which apartment; and that's only because Ilya followed me everywhere. They only know your names. They don't know the guards, or where you all work from.  I don't even know that. You were right to be wary."

Now, she had one chance left.

"I know far more about them than they know about you. I can tell you everything about the Greeks. I know their base, where Alex lives, what businesses they run. I know where his guards hang out. I even know his girlfriend's apartment- I had to go and treat her several times. Alex is a monster, and he's greedy; but that's where he's weak."

Eva looked up, directly at Integra and spoke with conviction.

"Please, I know that I put you both in harms way. You must know that I never wanted that. I was afraid of Alex; afraid for my parents. They're all I've got. But...I can help make this right, I swear it. I'll lead you to them. Until they realize Ilya is dead, it's business as usual. They won't be expecting to hear from me until late this afternoon. Let me go...follow me there, and I'll put you right where you need to be."

She spoke a bit louder, hoping Billy could hear her last words.

"I want to make this right- not for me, but for you. Both of you have been more kind to me than I deserve. If I'm going to lose everything, let me at least do this. An act of loyalty, even if it is my last."

Billy rounded the corner as he heard Eva finishing up some speech or other and the first thing he noticed was he shirt was torn. The second thing he noticed was the revolver on the floor. He was drying his hands with a dish towel

"I go to do my dishes while I wait for my sister to show up and when I come back you're in tatters and there's a gun on the floor. Not to mention Integra's downed her drink and looks like she's ready to kill you. Both of you sit the fuck down."

He looked Eva in the eye and she nodded. She was the easy one, she was afraid. He turned to Integra.

"What's done is done, it can't be changed. On the floor is her weapon, if you don't trust her with it, take it away, but when we get to where we are going and one of my boys dies because she could have done something about it, that's on you then."

He put the towel down, tossed his suit jacket to Eva, and crossed to the window folding his arms in front of him.

"First thing's first, put that on so you're not half naked, you haven't done enough wrong in my book to deserve that."

As she did so Billy averted his gaze at the woman and continued with his eyes closed.

"We clearly have to do something as soon as possible. That part might be on me cause I shot your handler. I didn't realize who that was, but I was sick and tired of seeing the grease ball so there it is. Now we have to hit them hard as we can, fast as we can, and we need to get a team to England to get your parents out safely."

He opened his eyes again and poured a drink into each of the empty glasses.

Integra, you know that country, you have a few contacts there, you can take as many men from out operation here as you need to, and you're taking Eva. I'm going to take a few soldatos and we're going to hit the Greeks right away. I'll hand in a few favors and have more manpower than the Greeks will know what to do with. Eva, just write down where I can find them and then the two of you work your shit out on the way to England."

His tone was not jovial, it was not playful. This is what was going to happen, period. There were very few times that Billy Mastrosimone threw his weight around. When he did, that was the end of the discussion. Billy then picked up his glass.

"If you both come back alive, Eva you're going to be a part of this family, for life, no more half in bullshit, and you will owe everything to us, just like I'm willing to put my life on the line right now to save you."

He raised his glass.

"On Integra's word you'll be brought in to my inner circle. I hope you understand what that means, and what you're going to have to do to earn it from the woman I admire most in this world."

For a few, long moments, Eva stared at Billy as she wrapped the coat carefully around her. How is it that this man, having lost so much already and being put in such a compromising situation, could still be so insistent that she be a part of his family? After what she'd done- whether she wanted to or not- how could he trust her? How could Integra- ever? The prospects seemed bleak from Eva's perspective; but at this point she just wanted to save her parents and try to make amends. Billy was far more merciful than she knew anyone could be; and despite the storm swirling in her mind, she found herself admiring him in a much different way than she had before.

Without a word, Eva went to the kitchen counter where there was a stack of mail. She flipped over an envelope and began to write on the back.

"This is Alex's main business. It's a diner on 72nd street called Milo's. He will be there at 7 o'clock to get reports from his men. All of them will be there; and he'll be expecting me and Ilya. If you can get in before 7, he may think you're just any other patron."

She quickly wrote another address. 

"This is his girlfriend's apartment. Her name is Tatyana, and she's a waitress at the diner. Her shift starts at five. If you need any information outside of what I give you, Tatyana will roll over with very little persuasion. If you do get information from her, though, don't let her live.  If Alex or any of his men survive, they will flay her and send her body parts home to her family in boxes."

Next, she jotted down names.

"Lukas is his main bodyguard, but he's smaller than you and deaf in one ear.  The other man on his detail is Dimitri. He's a good shot, but slow on the draw. The rest of the men that you'll see at the diner are useless- they won't know what to do if surrounded."

She handed the envelope to him. He reached out to take it, but she didn't release it right away. Instead, she looked him in the eye with every ounce of sincerity she had in her body.

"Thank you for killing Ilya. You ended this nightmare for me without even knowing it. Whatever becomes of me- it doesn't matter- as long as you know that I've done everything for you that I could. And if I return alive, I am forever gratefully in your debt and service."

Billy had taken the revolver off the floor and now handed it back to Eva.

"Stop saying it, just prove it. Do right by Integra and you'll have a shot at staying with me after that. Do wrong, and you will be allowed to say goodbye to your family. They won't be harmed I promise you, but if you fuck up hard enough for Integra to pull the trigger when she knows that I want you with me? Means there's no coming back from that."

Billy cupped her face in his hand then.

"Don't worry Eva, everything is gonna be fine. Billy the Big Brute is gonna fix some shit."

He opened his foyer closet and reached in. Knocking on the wall a panel came down and he pulled out a small violin case.

"You two work your shit out. Integra, you know where I keep my cash, the plane is yours, do what you gotta do and come home."

With that he headed out the door.