Chapter 21
DECLAN
I roll over and go to wrap my arms around my heartbreaker. But as my hand flops onto a cold pillow, my eyes open, and I sit up.
That fucking pain radiates in my chest.
She’s gone.
Jumping out of bed, I know this search is pointless, yet a tiny part of me hopes she is still here.
Checking my phone, I have one text.
I open it up and it’s Enzo with the location pin.
I look at the time. It was sent exactly ninety minutes ago. Shit. I look at the time and find some relief in the fact I still have forty minutes to get to that location still.
Dialing Finn, I rampage around the penthouse, and I’m right; her clothes are gone, and so is she.
No note. No text. Nothing.
Fuck.
“Meet me in the lobby in ten minutes,” I tell him as soon as he answers and throw my phone across the room.
I’ll get this done, then I’m going to find her.
That was more than a fuck. Having her in my arms, the world felt right. I don’t want to lose that feeling.
I don’t want to lose her.
I look up at the wooden beam door frame, covered in Hawaiian-style colorful flowers, and frown, double checking the address on my sat nav.
I’m definitely in the right place.
A text pops up.
E
Go through the main bar and out the double doors at the back.
Okay then.
I follow the instructions, the bartender keeping his eyes laser focused on me as I slide open the door.
“Close it behind you,” he grunts behind me.
So I do.
An array of wooden tables and red hammocks fills the beach-style courtyard. I find Enzo sitting on his own, head down looking at his phone with a frown.
I clear my throat as I approach and he looks up.
His eyes, almost as blue as my own, almost looking right through me, with a tailored navy suit and slick black hair.
He looks every part the Italian mob boss.
“Mr. Quinn. Pleasure.” He extends his hand as he stands, and I offer a strong handshake in return.
“Take a seat, we have a lot to discuss and little time.” His Italian accent, like Romeo’s, comes through.
I sit opposite him and notice the pile of paperwork on the wooden table.
He looks around and laughs.
“Good venue, right?” He holds up his hands.
I chuckle.
“Different, I have to say.”
He nods.
“Different throws people off,” he says almost seriously and slides a piece of paper towards me.
I look down and frown as I stare at what appears to be a rundown factory behind huge iron gates.
“Tell me what you see, Declan.”
I look up at him, hiding my confusion.
“A factory.”
“Hmm.”
He hands over the next piece of paper, a bird’s-eye view of the factory.
“And now?”
I study it for a moment.
“A fuck lot of woodland, a mansion, and the same factory,” I say, placing the paper on top of the other.
Another piece is handed to me. Words cover this sheet. I scan it quickly, my eyes stopping on the word “chocolate”.
“Anything interesting?” he asks, continuing to read as I get to the interesting bit, profit reports from before it closed.
“A chocolate factory with a very decent turnover.”
Enzo interlocks his hands, placing his elbows on the desk, his Rolex shining in the light.
“Now, I’ve seen the books for the Quinn Distillery. You boys know how to run a factory, or should I say, use one to your advantage. Correct?”
“Of course. It’s our bread and butter.”
We grew up running around that damn place, no matter how dangerous Mom warned us it was. It fascinated us.
Little did we realize at the time, it would become our laundering empire.
“Whiskey is a little different than chocolate.”
Enzo shrugs.
“But nothing we couldn’t learn fast.”
He hands me another, smaller piece of paper.
The listing price. I blink a few times at the amount of numbers.
Eight fucking figures.
As if on cue, the door opens behind us and a bottle of whiskey and two tumblers are placed on the table.
Enzo throws down wads of cash and pours the glasses.
My brain is too busy doing financial calculations. He leans over and picks up the overhead view again.
“Do you want me to tell you what I see here?”
I pick up my glass and take a sip, letting it coat my throat. I need this.
“Please.”
He rubs his hands together and grins.
I’ve heard he is the ultimate mastermind here.
He places the paper in the center of the table and points to the mansion behind the factory.
“You may not be aware, but I own an empire within the sex industry. Specifically, high-end clubs, only for the mafia or the elite in society.”
Now that gets my heart racing.
Money, guns, and sex. This sounds like a dream job.
“Okay.”
“Look closer, behind the mansion. There are houses placed in the woodlands, one giant mansion in front, see?”
I lean in and take a look and nod.
“What I see is the ultimate enterprise here. This is where we maintain order within our world. The factory, the perfect front to launder, to get our deliveries and disperse.”
“Agreed. Easily done.”
“I’m thinking, this mansion could be the center of my club. Only those who we want to know shall know of its existence. A place we can vet future members for other clubs across the globe. Managed by you and your brothers. Weed out the dirt, so to speak.”
He hands me another piece of paper, images of inside the mansion.
I flick through them.
It’s huge. In need of a revamp, but easily done.
“Lots of scope here for rooms, a bar. I see where you’re going.”
He leans back and knocks back his whiskey.
“I assume this area of my business is something you and your brothers would be interested in pursuing?”
I tap the side of my glass.
“I’ve never thought of owning my own, but I am very much involved in that lifestyle, yes.”
He nods.
“I know.”
Fuck, what doesn’t this guy know?
“You know my blood type?”
“O negative.”
I chuckle and finish the remains of my drink.
It’s a no brainer. Its genius, is what it is.
“How do we move forward?” I ask, resting my calf on my thigh.
“You purchase the factory, I will remain a silent investor. We work together in partnership to get it up and running.”
Flashbacks of last night whirl through my brain.
The chocolate milkshake.
The way she looked up at me through her thick lashes.
Her taste on my tongue still.
Decadent.
Her voice fills my head.
“Decadent. That’s what we call the chocolate factory. The brand.”
Enzo’s eyes light up.
“I like that.”
I nod. But it needs more of a flair. I tap my finger on my chin and a grin forms on my lips.
“So do I. But actually, Decadence sounds better.”
My skin almost itches, feeling her scratches on my back. I can still smell her sweet scent. And that little niggling pain in my chest returns at the fact she left.
“You good?”
I shake my head, trying to rid that beautiful heartbreaker out of my mind.
“Yes. Sorry.”
It’s almost like he knows as he leans forward.
“There is no room for distractions here, Declan. I’ve seen it go wrong, I’ve lived through it too. Our game here, it’s dangerous. Much worse than what you deal with in Ireland.”
A shiver runs down my spine.
“The people I intend to test at—” He pauses. “—Decadence, will be the worst scum on the earth. We treat it as a means to an end. But Romeo and I will teach you the ropes as we go. You see, there is a clear order within my empire, one that is expanding rapidly throughout the states now. I need you.” He taps his head. “In the fucking game twenty-four, seven.”
“I will be. We are ready.”
He leans back, pulling a cigar from a tin, offering me one.
I take it and spark it up with my lighter.
He holds out a small card, I take it and investigate. A name and a number, on the back, a price. Lower than the one on the piece of paper earlier, but still a staggering amount.
“Tomorrow, you call this number, you offer that price, and he will accept.”
I frown.
“How do you know?”
A mischievous grin forms.
“I know everything, Declan.”
Kinda adds up at this point.
“Once you secure ownership, we will start work on making Decadence everything we could possibly dream of.”
I can’t help but laugh.
“It’s gotta be a first, hasn’t it? No one will ever expect what lies behind the gates. Indulging in pussy and chocolate.”
That earns me a chuckle from Enzo as he blows out his cigar smoke.
“A boss with a sweet tooth,” he retorts.
“We gotta come up with a good slogan.” I tell him.
The opportunities are endless.
A chocolate factory and a sex club. What more could we need?
“So, I take it we have a deal?” He extends his hand, and I gladly accept.
“The Quinn brothers are in.”
He squeezes my hand hard, his blue eyes locking onto mine.
“Loyalty is rewarded highly in my world, Declan. This deal will make you the new boss of Pennsylvania. You will be in contact with Frankie Falcone, the New York boss, and Mikhail Volkov in Las Vegas. Are you ready for that?”
I’ve heard of both. I admire both. They’re as ruthless as they are cunning.
“More than ready, Enzo. You have my word, we won’t let you down.”