4. Crew
The holidays are meant to be a restful time for us. We spend the entire year ensuring the city’s underworld doesn’t descend into complete chaos, but this is the one time a year when the criminals of the city take a hiatus. Okay, that’s not totally the case, but they don’t tend to plan to overthrow their bosses, nor do their bosses plan to take over territories that don’t belong to them.
But John fucking De Marco had to go and ruin my time off. Or at least, as close to time off as someone like me gets. I guess that old saying is true. There’s no rest for the wicked.
I’ll be the first to admit that promising your first-born daughter to a man like Charles Davenport is not going to win you any parenting awards, but breaking that contract and letting her run is just plain fucking stupid. What did he expect to happen? Did he think Davenport, and in turn the Syndicate of the Legion, would just let that slide?
I let out a groan and drop my head into my hands. The girl was long gone when Kaos and Kovu got there, but that’s not our problem. Our job is to keep the peace and take care of problems to avoid wars. The moment De Marco took his final breath, this ceased being our issue. If Davenport wants the girl that badly, he’ll find her himself.
I suspect the only reason he’ll want her is so he can have the territory she’s now the sole heir to. Her idiot uncle and cousin may be able to hold down the fort until she can be located, but they’re not capable of the type of leadership they’d need to hold that territory. It’s arguably the most valuable in the city, housing the docks and some of the best warehouse space on the market, so it’s only fair that it’s also the most disputed.
If he does manage to find her, that’ll be a new problem for us to solve. The bylaws state a family can only have ownership of one territory at a time, but I’m sure Charles will try to twist that rule to suit himself.
A knock at my office door drags my attention away from my feeling sorry for myself, and by the time I look up, Bishop is standing in the doorway looking sheepish.
“What’s wrong?” I ask immediately.
“Hi son, how are you doing? Oh, you know, Dad, a bit bored, can’t wait to kill some fuckers once business picks back up,” he muses as if he’s having a conversation with himself. He always was the smart-ass of the group, I’m not sure why I ever expect him to be serious.
I groan and drop my head back against my seat. “I’m not in the mood, Bishop.”
He rolls his eyes and takes a seat across from me. “Well, seeing as you’re already in a bad mood, this won’t put you in one.” He shrugs. “I found a woman in the alley behind the garage, and she’s currently being seen to by Rogers. Kovu and I have taken responsibility for her and will make sure she doesn’t get in the way until she’s able to leave.”
I stare at him for long moments, waiting for a punchline for what must be a joke. Because surely my son isn’t such a fucking moron that he would bring a woman into our compound. But not just any woman, one who is hurt, which means she likely has some kind of baggage. Except he doesn’t laugh, he doesn’t even crack a smile. “Please tell me you’re joking.”
“Sorry, pops, no can do.”
I shouldn’t be surprised, whoever this woman is, she’s not the first stray he’s brought home, but it’s a bad time for a woman to be allowed in the compound. Recently, our position within the underworld was called into question, and although the threat has been neutralized, it doesn’t mean the families of New York haven’t got the same idea in their heads.
“No.”
He sighs and leans forward, propping his elbows on his knees. “I wasn’t asking for permission.”
“Bishop, I’m sure you understand this is a bad time to have a…houseguest.”
“You would say that regardless of the time,” he points out. “She won’t cause us any problems, and I’ll send her on her way once she’s back on her feet.”
I watch him for a few seconds, trying to figure out what could possibly be going on in his head. “What is it about this woman that makes this so important to you?”
He scrubs his hands down his face, and I see a flash of something I haven’t seen in my son’s eyes for a long time.
Interest.
Bishop was always a bright kid, and as a result, he’s always been a little bored. Even when we were finding our way into the positions we hold now, he struggled with the monotonous nature of our work, and now that we’ve cemented our role, he’s been getting more and more bored. There’s something missing in his life, and I have a feeling it’s what he thinks he can get from this woman, whoever she may be.
“She’s pretty beat up, and I don’t think she has anyone who can take care of her. I know you’re going to ask how I know that, seeing as we don’t even know who she is, but I just get the feeling she’s alone in the world.”
I tap my fingers on the edge of my desk as I consider my son. His features are so similar to mine that some days it’s like looking in a mirror, but we’re different in a lot of ways. He got just the right combination of ruthlessness and hope from his mother and me, even if she wasn’t in his life for very long. I shut off the painful memory before I can allow myself to feel it. That’s something I’ve gotten especially good at in the last twenty years, because I never want to feel like that again. I never want to watch my love take their last breath in front of my eyes.
“She can stay. But she is not to be left alone. If you and Kovu want to take responsibility for her, then I will hold you two responsible for any issues that may arise from her being here. The first sign of her being a problem and she’s out. Do I make myself clear?”
His eyes widen with surprise. He was expecting more of a fight. He thought I was going to demand she be removed from the compound immediately, to hell with how hurt she is or if she has anyone else in the world. But I won’t do that to him. And if Kovu has agreed to help watch over the girl, I can only assume he too has an attachment to her.
“I understand.” He nods quickly and pushes himself to his feet, not waiting around to give me a chance to change my mind.
“And Bishop?” I say, causing him to stop in place by the door and look over his shoulder at me.
“Be smart.”
I don’t have to say anything else. He knows what I’m talking about. Whoever this girl is, she’s not the first to come within these walls, but I’ll be damned if she’s going to tear us apart like the last one did, even if I’m the one that has to break my son’s heart.