CHAPTER 6
ILAY
I lay back in my chair and let out a heavy sigh, running a hand through my hair. God, she’s amazing. If only she wasn’t the human sized version of a headache.
Putin walks back in and throws me a dirty look.
“You already know what I’m going to ask,” I say flatly. “Find those fools dumb enough to touch my woman and kill them.”
I want them dead before dinner. Putin straightens, nodding. “Okay, sir. We’ll do that.”
“Oh, and also, give me every dirty detail we have on Senator Ivano,” I add. “Pile them into a file and drop it on my desk.”
Putin frowns. “Boss, what are you planning to do with that information?”
“I’m going to give it to her.”
His eyes widen slightly. “Boss, giving it to her means you’re exposing yourself and cutting ties with the senator. We still need him for the documents on that property—”
“Oh, look, Putin,” I cut in, leaning forward, “I know you live by the book or whatever, but sometimes I feel like you’re always questioning my authority.
If I ask you to do something, fucking do it.
Do you have to complain every time? I know what I’m getting myself into.
It’s not like I don’t have the court in my pocket.
I just want my woman happy. I can think about the consequences later. ”
I push back in my chair. “So just do that. Oh also, arrange dresses in many colors, size 8. Her shoe size is forty, so get a pair of heels in that size. And some jewelry.”
“When you’re done getting all the stuff I asked for,” I continue, “make sure it’s the most expensive, exquisite jewelry you can find. Everything to her liking. Then wrap it up in a nice box.”
Putin gives a short nod. “my wife has been offended and I have to appease her.”
“Noted, sir,” he says. “I’ll get right on it.”
***
Low golden light spills over the velvet booths, catching on diamond cuffs and the polished edges of whiskey glasses. The bass hums softly giving the room a slow rhythm. Perfume clings to the air, mixing with cigar smoke and the faint burn of aged liquor.
Sitting across from me is Ryuji Miyamoto, the Oyabun of Japan, in the private booth at the back of the restaurant.
The man’s a beast in his own right. Six-foot-six, with a big built, on his face is a scar cutting through his left eyebrow and another running down the side of his neck.
Dark hair falls just past his ears, careless and messy.
He takes a swig of his drink, sighing relaxed.
“So,” I start, leaning back and swirling the whiskey in my glass. “I’ve been hearing about a lot of executions in your port.”
Ryuji takes another drink, before answering, “Yeah. I’ve been carrying them out personally.”
I let the silence hang between us for a moment before continuing. “And what may be the cause? From what I could gather, your father made a treaty agreement with the Chinese. You’ve been at peace for years.”
He sets his glass down, jaw working. “My father is dying. And I wasn’t the one who signed anything for a treaty.”
I put my glass down too, meeting his eyes. “Let me give you a bit of advice. As somebody who’s also obsessed with a woman, keep your mafia business out of it. Creating enemies isn’t going to do you any good. Listen, I know….”
Before I can finish, Ryuji cuts me off. “You don’t even understand.” His voice drops dangerously. “Those fuckers approached her. They kidnapped her for two days.” He pauses, letting that sink in. “So I decided to go on a killing spree for two months. So that next time, they wouldn’t do it.”
I lean back, nodding slowly. “Obviously, I know that’s a valid point. I would have gone for two years, in fact.” I pause. “But you should have kept your woman safe. Kept her close.”
“I did keep her safe,” he snaps, leaning forward. His eyes flash with something dark. “I bought a house for her. In one of the most protected areas in Japan. She stayed there with her father, her mother, her little brother. Everything she needed, I provided.”
He pauses, his knuckles white around his glass.
“But when our arguments came up, and she realized I wasn’t planning to marry her as a first wife she decided to leave. She left the house I bought and went back to where her family stayed.” His voice drops. “Obviously, her father tried to persuade her. But she didn’t listen.”
I watch him, seeing the rage simmering just beneath the surface.
“When my enemies found out that the woman I so cherished had left my area of protection,” he continues, “they kidnapped her. I would have preferred if they kidnapped my fiancée. Heck, I wouldn’t even get into a fight with them if they killed her.
Maybe I’d throw a bit of force around, you know, for my future father-in-law to be at peace. But I wouldn’t even give a shit.”
He leans back, exhaling slowly through his nose.
“But they just had to take the one that I loved,” he says quietly.
“They just had to touch my treasure. They had to touch the most valuable person in my life.” His eyes meet mine, cold and empty.
“So two months is not even enough to let out my rage of not being able to know where she was for two days.”
The silence stretches between us, heavy and thick with tension. I nod slowly. “I understand.”
And I do. Because men like us don’t forgive. We don’t forget. We take, and we destroy anyone who tries to take from us.
“My dad was the exact opposite,” I say finally, pouring more whiskey into both our glasses.
“In fact, my dad was determined to keep my mother out of mafia business. He acted like she was out of the country when we had meetings. Retired her from it all. It’s a little more peaceful.
And you could say it took time for my mother to come around.
” I pause. “Well, we know how we handle all these things. Just make sure it doesn’t affect your business. ”
Ryuji smirks. “I make no promises to Russians.” I laugh. “Sure. Sure. Sure. Anyways, you’ll be here for the party, right?”
“Yes. Of course,” he says, lifting his glass. “I mean, I’m making enemies in Asia. Might as well make friends in Europe.”
We clink our glasses together, the mood already brightening up. He leans back, studying me. “What about you? It seems you’ve been single for what, five years? No serious relationships. All we’ve been hearing are tales of you conquering land after land.”
I swirl my drink, watching the amber liquid catch the light. “Oh, you know me. Nothing has piqued my interest for the last five years.” I pause, a slow smile spreading across my face. “But now I do have something that interests me. Or when I say something, I mean someone.”
Ryuji raises an eyebrow, waiting for more details.
I shake my head. “Well, enough about that. I don’t get off on discussing my woman in front of other men.”
He scoffs. “Possessive as always.”
“Yes,” I say simply.
“But I do have a little bit of a tip for you.” I lean forward. “Go on.”
“That case you asked me to investigate,” he says. “It’s about that politician. I heard that he has a boy toy outside of the country. But my sources say he keeps moving from one place to another. We’ll catch him eventually, and we’ll send you his whereabouts. So you can go collect what is owed.”
I nod slowly. “And when I do that, you’ll help us with our business. It’s a mutual exchange, is it not?”
I lift my glass to my lips, sipping the alcohol as it burns down my throat. “Of course. A mutual exchange.”
We drink in silence after that. The bass still thrums through the walls, smoke curling lazy between us. The weight of our words settles over the table like fog. Men like us don’t make promises. We make deals. And we always collect.