Chapter 60
Dante
I wiped my hands on the cut of the dead Rider, keeping my eyes on Nico as he descended the stairs into the basement.
His eyes widened as he took in the state of the body next to me, the brief flicker of shock the only emotion he had before he turned to me with a brilliant poker face.
But then his eyes fell on what I was using to clean myself off with, and I felt the anger seething from him, making me grin.
“Problem?” I asked, knowing I was committing the ultimate mark of disrespect.
“You know what the fucking problem is. I’ve done a show of faith arriving here alone, knowing we had a truce—”
“A truce?” I laughed. “Is that what we were having when you sent your men to attack my old lady and then violate my Church?”
He shrugged at me. “The men sometimes attack of their own accord.”
“Cut the shit, Nico. Had it remained just the attack on my old lady, I might have believed that. I wouldn’t have been happy, and the men would have ended up in my playroom here,” I said, gesturing behind me at the broken man.
“But my old lady knows how to take care of herself, and they’re already dead.
By her hand. Attacking us during Church wasn’t a random attack.
Especially when they used one of my prospects as bait.
So how about a bit of truth, before I publicly sever the truce right here, right now, and charge you for the crime of being on our territory? ”
“I didn’t tell them to attack. I—”
“Oh, but you did. You see, we’ve heard all about the deal you made with the chief of police. What was it again? They’ll turn a blind eye for… How long?”
“So what do you plan on doing about it?” He asked, narrowing his eyes at me.
“That’s up to you. The attackers are all dead, so as far as I’m concerned, that’s the end of it. I would like to continue this truce, Nico. It’s been a peaceful few years, and I’d like it to remain that way.”
“I knew it,” he laughed. “Crash would have retaliated by now. You’re soft. And I don’t respect soft.”
“Crash would have blind reacted, yes. And it would have led to dozens of your members dying, as well as their families. And then you would have responded to our response, and we’re right back at square one.
If that’s how you want to continue this dance, that’s fine.
You won’t be leaving this room. I’m sure killing the president is enough to kick-start the war you’re so desperately seeking. ”
“You’re going to leave this unchallenged?” He asked, raising his eyebrow at his dead club member behind me.
“I’ve dealt with it. What I propose is a new truce between you and me, starting now. Same conditions as before, with one or two amendments.”
“What amendments?”
“Your men put my vice in the hospital. I think the least you can do is offer him weekly updates on Gabriella.”
“Go fuck yourself,” he laughed. “Here’s an amendment: tell your vice to stop trying to contact her.”
“I can’t do that, I’m afraid.”
“Then the truce is over, and war continues.”
I narrowed my eyes as I saw his hand go to his waist, within reach of his gun.
“Let’s try a different angle,” I said. “We want updates on Gabriella. You know the history there—”
“She’s my old lady!”
“As I said, you know the history. All Vienna wants is physical proof that Gabriella is alive and well. And that’s all I’m asking for. I realise you had a pretty sweet deal with the police, so in return, I’m willing to call my guys off the border and let you take Belle Isle.”
“Belle Isle?” He said suspiciously.
“There’s the Meth clinic there. You’d be able to up your supply tenfold.
You know the people would rather come to one of us than use a state run clinic.
The choice is yours,” I shrugged again. “But that’s my final offer.
You’re coming out the victor here. You’re gaining territory and losing nothing. ”
“And why would you do that when you think we’ve betrayed the current ceasefire?”
“I’m doing it for my vice. I know how important Gabriella’s safety is to him. It’s something I’ve been meaning to approach you about for a while now, and after the events of the past few days, it seemed like the perfect opportunity. I am going to need something from you, however.”
“I knew it. Name your price.”
I stepped to the side, giving Nico a full view of the dying man behind me. “End it. End it in a way that your club will know it's you, and let them know that’s what happens when they betray the ceasefire. Without that guarantee, I can’t go ahead with any truce.”
Nico looked at me for a moment before he reached into his cut and pulled out a knife with a large leather handle.
He took the time to show me that the handle had his name engraved on it, as well as the Rough Riders' logo. He picked the jacket up off the floor and pulled the stitching away from the patches and placed the material on the Rider’s chest.
He then moved forward and carved Rough Riders directly beneath the Devil's carving I had done earlier. He ended it all by taking his knife and driving it straight through the skull of his club member, directly between the eyes.
I watched as he pulled out his phone and took a picture, turning the screen to me so I could see he had sent it to the Telegram group chat.
“There,” he said, pulling the knife back out with a squelching sound. “Not only have I aided the murder, I’ve pardoned it in front of everyone. I’ll have a prospect send you updates every Sunday,” he said, scowling at me.
“Then we have ourselves a truce.”