Chapter 34 Mafia Gossip
Chapter thirty-four
Mafia Gossip
Nyomi
We turned one last corner, and I felt the atmosphere change completely. The noise of the staff wing fell away. No more doors, no more carts, no more movement.
I did a quick glance back at the twins, hoping they still weren’t shaken up by what I’d said earlier.
They moved in perfect formation behind me—silent, synchronized, and professional.
But something had shifted.
Yuki's shoulders sat differently. Lower. Looser. The rigid tension from before had melted away.
That’s good at least.
Aki walked with his chin slightly lifted, and for just a heartbeat, his eyes met mine before sliding away.
Not cold.
Not distant.
Just. . .processing.
Neither of them smiled.
Neither offered reassurance.
They just walked.
Steady.
Present.
Still guarding me like they had been from the start.
And somehow, that was enough.
The tightness in my chest eased just a fraction as I turned back around.
They’re going to be okay.
I looked ahead at the long stretch of hallway, ending in a single, heavy door. “Is that the Scales’ suite?”
“Yes.”
“The women are pretty far from Kenji and all of you.”
“He likes to keep them away from all the mafia politics.”
The overhead lights were warm, but shadows pooled near the corners, stretching long along the baseboards.
“Have you ever been in their quarters, Hiro?”
“Back in Tokyo, but not since we’ve been here on the island. However, I imagine the suite is similar to the one in Tokyo.”
“Where do they live in Tokyo?”
“In my brother’s mansion.”
I blinked.
Oh no. That’s going to change.
My mind immediately conjured the image of me moving into Kenji’s sprawling Tokyo mansion with three women who were obsessed with him living down the hall.
Absolutely fucking not.
Kenji had given me the choice—to decide whether they stayed or went. And now, standing here, imagining a future where I shared a home with Hina, Mami, and Yuki. . .
The answer crystallized in my mind with perfect clarity.
They all may not be the spy. It may be one, two, or none, but regardless. . .they have to go. All three of them.
I couldn't start a new life with Kenji while he carried this baggage. I wouldn't wake up every morning knowing these women were somewhere in the mansion probably plotting ways to get close to him again.
No.
I'd tell him when the time was right
We walked on, the heavy door growing closer with each step.
And speaking of baggage. . .
Kiko’s face flashed in my head.
Kenji’s maybe-baby mama.
"Hiro. . ." I hesitated, then pushed forward. "Earlier in the war room, you said Kiko might be pregnant with your twins. Not Kenji’s. Is that. . .actually possible?"
His expression didn't change. "Yes."
"How sure are you?"
"Very. As I said before, my brother and I typically share women. I actually had her first. Told Kenji it would be a good time. He had her days later—said he was bored that night and figured why not. Then I had her once again."
Behind me, one of the twins made a soft sound—barely audible, but definitely there.
A snort.
My brain short-circuited. "So. . .you both. . ."
"Yes."
"In the same. . .timeframe?"
"Within the same week for sure." He shrugged. “She’s just set on the twins being my brother’s because of all the perks.”
We reached the door and stopped.
The heavy wood loomed in front of us, dark and imposing, but I couldn't focus on it. Not when my mind was spiraling through the implications of what Hiro had just told me.
I turned to face him fully. "So those twins could be yours?"
"They could."
"Or Kenji's."
"Also possible."
My pulse kicked up. "Is there. . .anyone else?"
Hiro's jaw tightened. "I think Kiko has slept with our father too, but Kenji doesn’t believe it."
The hallway tilted.
Behind me, I heard fabric shift—one of the twins moving, probably crossing his arms. Then another soft sound, like air being pushed through teeth.
I widened my eyes. “She slept with your father too?"
"Yes. The Fox."
“How do you know this?”
Hiro glanced back at the twins.
I looked at them.
Yuki crossed his arms over his chest. "The Claws watch the Fox."
Aki's jaw tightened. "For the past three years, Kiko has visited him a lot in the middle of the night."
"And when she leaves the hospital—" Yuki's mouth curved into something cold.
"—her clothes look disheveled." Aki finished, his tone flat. "Hair, too."
My stomach dropped.
The implications hit me all at once—Kiko sleeping with three men in the same family, positioning herself to claim whichever one would give her the most power, the most security, the most status.
"So. . .” I turned back to Hiro. “Could Kiko be a spy?"
"Of course." Hiro's expression didn't change. "None of us have any doubt that she goes back to our father with information, which is why when she told Kenji she was pregnant, he moved her out of Tokyo. And put her under 24-7 watch."
"Could Kiko have been the one trying to send messages to the Fox on this island?"
Hiro shook his head. "Kiko is so untrustworthy that Reo has a secret special team that monitors her every move. He’s got a spy in her crew and her entire staff is Kenji’s Ears. We know that she's been desperate to get a phone—no doubt to call our father. However. . ."
I quirked my brows. "What?"
"Kiko would want Kenji to win this war, so even if she got in contact with him, she wouldn’t share too much."
"Why?"
"Think about it." Hiro's voice went quieter. "If her kids are Kenji’s and the Fox is out of the way, her status is much higher. She becomes the mother of the Dragon's heirs. Untouchable. Wealthy beyond measure. The most powerful woman in the continent of Asia. But if the Fox wins. . ."
I leaned my head to the side. "What happens?"
"Then she's nothing but a whore with a dead man’s twins." His tone was brutally matter-of-fact. "And honestly, he would be like a lion in the wild."
I frowned. "What do you mean like a lion?"
Behind me, Yuki made a soft sound—dark, knowing.
"When the lion takes over a new pride, he kills the alpha male—" Aki's voice dropped lower.
"—he kills the alpha’s cubs too." Yuki finished.
Ice flooded my veins.
I stared at Hiro. "Your father would kill Kiko's kids if they're Kenji's?"
"Easily.”
“But, those are his grandkids.”
"Doesn't matter." Hiro's expression went cold. "You have to understand something about my brother and my father. They're not just seen as dangerous gangsters in all of Asia. People believe they're. . .something else. Something mystical."
I parted my lips. "Mystical?"
"The Fox survived a bomb that should have killed him.
" Hiro's voice dropped. "Walked out of the wreckage without a scratch.
Now, half the underworld treats him like he's immortal.
Like he's God. Other organizations throughout Asia don't just fear him—they worship him.
Many have statues of his face next to altars. "
What the fuck?
Behind me, one of the twins shifted.
"And Kenji?" I asked quietly.
"The Dragon." Hiro's jaw tightened. "People see him the same way. The things he's survived, the enemies he’s killed at times with his bare hands, the many he’s burned alive, the way he moves through violence like it can't touch him, the legends that follow him—it's not just reputation.
It's belief. Faith. People think he carries something.
. .otherworldly that he not only got from his father, but from his mother too. "
My chest constricted as I thought of the animal shadows in the hallway’s paintings.
Hiro continued, "Even if the Fox kills my brother—even if he wins this war—if those twins are Kenji's sons, people will treat them like they carry that same mystical spirit.
That dragon legacy. They'll look to those boys as the rightful heirs.
As if the Fox is just keeping the throne warm for them. "
"And that takes attention away from your father."
"Exactly." Hiro's eyes glinted. "Grandsons or not, the Fox can't have people believing Kenji's bloodline still walks the earth. Can't have two baby boys growing up with everyone whispering that they inherited the Dragon's power. His mystique. His destiny."
Ice crawled up my spine. "So he'd kill them to erase Kenji completely."
"Not just kill them. He’d do it in the most public and brutal way."
I shivered. “Little babies?”
“Yes.” Hiro's tone went flat. "And he would make it look like mercy. Like he tried to save them, but they were too weak. Too human. He'd destroy the legend along with the bloodline."
Aki made a soft sound behind me.
"My father doesn't just want to win this war, he wants to be the only god left standing." Hiro frowned. “And Kiko is not the smartest Ear, but she does know that.”
“Are you sure?”
“From Reo’s monitoring and ours we know that currently Kiko is terrified that Kenji may lose this war and is hoping he is focused on the win. She just thinks you’re distracting him."
“And what do you think?”
“I think you will be the reason why we all win.”
My heartbeats picked up.
The weight of it crashed over me—Kiko trapped in a nightmare of her own making, carrying babies that could either be her salvation or her death sentence, desperate to ensure Kenji won this war because if he didn't. . .the Fox would probably slaughter her children and her.
And meanwhile. . .everyone’s thinking I would be the mystical Dragon’s savior.
"Jesus," I whispered.
Hiro sighed. "Kiko has been trying her best to be part of the family legacy for a long time. If she's the mother of Kenji's children, she'd be set for life. So would her family. There's nothing my brother wouldn't do for her just to make sure his kids' mother is happy."
I stared at him, my mind racing through the implications. "So she. . .what? Pre-war, slept with all three of you hoping one of you would get her pregnant?"
"Essentially."
Another snort from behind me—louder this time, definitely Yuki based on the pitch.
Then a quieter exhale that had to be Aki.