Chapter 2David
2
David
“ I ’m telling you, something is going on and I don’t like it.” I blow a smoke ring into the air of the passenger seat as we fly down the interstate in one of my armored cars.
“What can I do for you, boss?” Miroslav asks, his eyes briefly flickering in my direction as he grips the wheel.
I take another long drag of my cigar and glare out the window. “Nothing. Just get me in and out in one piece. We have multiple counterfeit shipments that are supposed to be going out today, and I want to be there in person to make sure everything runs smoothly.”
Miroslav’s forehead wrinkles. “Are you concerned there will be a problem?”
I take a longer drag of my cigar and let the smoke flood my mouth before looking away. “I’m always concerned. About everything.”
“You seem more stressed than usual, boss.” Miroslav’s eyebrows knit.
“That’s what happens when you’re in charge of keeping an entire business afloat and you work with reckless idiots.” I grumble under my breath and scrub a hand over my stubble.
I make a mental reminder to shave later. Stubble makes me feel messy. There’s already enough of that going on in my life right now.
My burner phone rings and my unease spikes through the roof.
“What?” I bark, my agitation rising to the surface.
Miroslav isn’t missing the mark. I am more on edge lately. There is corruption going on inside my counterfeit rings and I’m losing control of the crews one by one. There’s been talk of gun trafficking and my own men running it behind my back.
“Are you on your way?” Vlad, my captain, asks through a connection that sounds grainy.
“Where else would I be going?” I mutter.
“Do you need backup?” He asks. “I know you’re suspicious that you’ll find more than just money at the shipment today.”
I pause, thinking. “Where are you?”
“Across the bay,” he says.
I shake my head and puff out cigar smoke simultaneously. “No. What good will that do me?”
“I can get there if I need to.” He sounds eager. He’s always been anxious for approval, and that’s why I keep him as my captain. He’s as loyal as they come.
“You’re too far away. I’ll be there in…” I trail off and glance out the window. “Under ten minutes.”
“Good luck. If things go south, I’m a call away. I can help you put them in line,” he says.
“I have Miroslav with me.” I toss a conspiratorial smirk to my burly, bull of a driver who has a neck as thick as a tree trunk and fingers shaped like sausages. “I don’t need luck.”
“You know how to handle those clowns,” Vlad emphasizes. “Remind them who the king of this dynasty really is.”
A muscle stiffens in my jaw. “I do what I have to do.”
“Always,” Vlad agrees.
“I’ll let you know what happens,” I say, then snap the burner phone shut, shoving it back into my pocket.
We ride in silence the remainder of the way to the warehouse, where the largest of my business dealings are set to take place today.
When it looks like Miroslav is about to pull up in the front of the building, I shake my head and point straight ahead. “No. Go to the back. We might need to make a clean, fast exit.”
Miroslav nods and turns the wheel. “I don’t know about a clean exit.”
The energy in the car is coiling with tension because we’re both anticipating a fight. My stomach is twisted up like an old wad of rubber bands. That’s why I’ve been smoking so many cigars lately. They’re the only thing that help curb my frustrations, aside from women and drink, but I’m over both of those for the time being.
I don’t want to start a war with my own crew, but it’s time to weed out the people who aren’t following my commands. This warehouse is supposed to be used exclusively for counterfeit money shipments, but gun running talk is becoming more prevalent and it’s making my already simmering temper boil over.
I don’t want things to fall apart under my authority. It’s not something I want to admit to myself, much less to anyone else, even those I trust the most. You should never show weakness to those who are supposed to kneel at your feet.
My father taught me that hard lesson, but it was one he had to learn himself because he got killed anyway. There’s simply no room for mistakes in a game of snakes and knives.
I need to get a handle on who is betraying me first. Sometimes you have to play the long game, feeling out the players and testing the waters to find out who’s loyal and who isn’t.
Other times, the war starts in a split second and the ground falls out from beneath you.
I may run my business differently than my predecessors, but I’m not willing to keep corrupting the next generation. I want change and breakthroughs without violence. If that means infiltrating my own circles and cutting them down to size, so be it.
My father’s face flashes in my vision. He did the best he could before he was killed. I must follow his example because he deserves that legacy, minus the mistakes he made. I promised him at his grave that I would make the changes and grow our counterfeit business into a force to be reckoned with.
I will sit on the throne and watch my empire expand to soaring heights, the way it was meant to be.
It’s the status I chase, not the money. I’ve been around money all my life and it’s nothing new to me. The thrill lies in the power, and the kingdom is mine to take if I work hard enough for it.
I glance at Miroslav. His eyes are on the parking lot as we come to a crawl in front of it.
I break the silence by saying, “everything takes a certain amount of blood and sweat, if you want to make it to the top.”
He cuts a glance at me. “Truer words never spoken, boss.”
“The winds are shifting. I can feel it,” I add, trying to stay optimistic.
“Don’t worry. I don’t plan on going in there unprotected.” Miroslav’s eyes shift to the gun holster next to him.
I take a deep breath and tunnel my fingers through my hair, adjusting my weight in the seat. “Me neither. I feel restless today, like there’s a fire under me.”
“Good. Keep it that way. If they fear you, they can’t hurt you.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“Sometimes there’s no other way to do business.” Miroslav says it grimly, and I know he’s talking about the gun problem.
A heaviness spreads through my chest, and I feel compelled to spew out my current thoughts. “I don’t want to use violence here. I’m trying to put an end to the violence, to approach things differently this time. If you live by the gun, you’ll die by it.”
Miroslav shoves the gear into park. His eyes skim over me as if he’s my protector and willing to die for it. “I’ll back you either way, boss.” He looks at me. “You know that, right?”
I smash my cigar tip into the ashtray and blow out a puff of smoke. Irritation crawls under my skin like ants. I clutch the door handle and step one boot out onto the pavement. “I know it, and I appreciate it. Now it’s time to get to work, and you’re coming in there with me.”
Miroslav is already out of the car and walking toward the building when he says, “You’ve got it, boss.”
He’s one step ahead of me already. I need to follow his lead and stay one step ahead too, especially when it comes to my enemies.
There are people out there who are betraying me, walking in plain sight. A change needs to happen, before everything falls apart, before my kingdom burns to ashes at my feet. If it takes violence, I’m willing to do it, but I have the vision of a more peaceful future, one where I can start a family and not have to fear that they’ll be used against me.
It feels so distant that I have doubts I can even get there before I die, but I’d be a fool not to try.