Chapter Fifteen The League
Henry
“So what have you been doing with your life, bro?” Michael asked me.
I paused, then gave him my standard response, “Security.”
“Yes, I know, but come-on. You can’t just give me that vague-ass answer, Henry. I'm curious about the past few years. Have you been doing security gigs? Like at events or what?”
“I do private jobs, not public. I cannot stand Hollywood people or the like. I choose carefully and turn down many. I made enough in the last few years that I really do not need to work.
“But you have to work, right?” His brother smiled at him. “Same with me. I need something to keep me in the game. Funny thing is that we both are in security.”
“Not the same kind,” I replied. “I travel to foreign areas. You stay here in the Crescent, right?”
“I am running a private security firm. I have five teams now. There are many dignitaries and others who come to events here. There are also businesses here that hire us.”
Henry raised his hands up at him in defense of what he meant.
“I didn’t mean it like that, Mikey. As if yours is not legit or good enough.
I think you are living the dream here. I am happy about the life you have now.
Truth be told, I was worried about you being a cop.
That job could get you killed. I’d rather you run the business you have and keep your ass alive. Your kid and wife need you.”
Maya patted my thigh.
I looked over at her.
She gave me a bright smile. Like telling me she felt proud of me.
“I learned my lesson,” I added as I looked back at him. “I hire out only for the wealthy. I do not work for criminals.”
“I found out why you left,” Michael said. “And I can’t blame you. What a mess.”
Now Rain and Maya stared at me.
At the silence in the room, Michael sighed. “I am sorry brother. I should have thought before I spoke.” He glanced at Maya.
She patted my hand consolingly under the table and said, “We all have pasts. And men can have some very bad pasts.”
We three men looked at her and grinned.
“Hell yes, we do.” Michael chuckled.
I scoffed at this. “Come on Mikey, you were a freakin’ choir boy.”
He shook his head. “I’ve never sung one hymn, Sir.”
“Our father…” My voice faded away. Why in the bloody hell would I mention him? Maybe because he was constantly in church and forced us to do the same.
Michael stared at me. “The man was a damned hypocrite. Going to church, speaking religion and preaching the gospel to us. When all the while…” He cleared his throat and sat up straighter in his chair.
I released a long breath and replied, “See, this is why men like Alberto Mancini and even Carlos are the real deal. I have more respect for them. They will look you in the eye and admit what they are and what they did. They will not embellish it with why they did those things. Or pretend to be righteous like our father did. They also will not play any of it off as prestigious either.”
“Da, I see it that way as well,” Rain finally spoke. “I did things in Russia that had to be done. To survive mostly. I do not deny that nor do I ask anyone but God for any kind of forgiveness. “
Michael agreed, “Our father did not do that though.”
I glanced at Maya to see that her eyes were round.
Rain gave her a nod. “Their father led two lives.”
I whipped my gaze over to him. How did he know that?
He shrugged. “Privet …If I work beside someone, I do my research. Besides, you mentioned this subject one night over drinks when we spent that summer with Carlos. So I did not have to fill in too many blanks, if you will remember. After Carlos ranted about his father and how horrible he was. You told us a bit about yours.”
This was true as we already knew at that point that Santiago Castillo was one of the darkest souls to ever walk the earth. I slowly shook my head at him and then glanced at my brother.
He gave me a nod.
I took this as permission to tread this very sore subject of our father’s true sins.
“He truly led a double life. One with my mother in England as he was British. Then one with Michael’s mother here in America.
He traveled for his job and that allowed him to have cover for the cheating life he lived and the double marriages. ”
“But that wasn’t all, was it Henry?” Michael asked as he stared at him.
I sighed and almost unwillingly, I added, “He was more than just a cheater and polygamist. He was a killer too.”
Maya sucked in a breath as she looked shocked.
I nodded at her and explained, “Of all the bloody things he could have been in secret. He was a contract hitter, not a fucking salesman. So he did travel for work and that may have been the only true thing about the man. Religious and seemingly pious while talking about sin when he was violating nearly all of the commandments himself. When he was finally caught, he said that appearing to be devout made for a good cover and he defended his employment by saying ‘did we think raising two sons was cheap?’ And I have to say that after our mothers found out, he was never sorry either. He actually seemed proud of it all.”
Maya squeezed my hand. “There was a good thing that came out of it though.” She smiled at me. “You got a brother.”
I stared at her.
“And what a brother I am!” Michael laughed. “We had a few good times when you lived here. Even if you cannot bowl worth a crap.”
I scoffed. “That is such an American thing and boring as well.”
“So says the Brit who likes badminton.” Michael scoffed. “My God, if anyone invented a game you could sleep through. They nailed it with that pansy ass nonsense.”
Maya giggled.
“Mate, it is the same as tennis. Just with more class,” I defended.
“Tennis can get grueling and rough and not for teetotalers.” Michael laughed. “Wow, it is good to know that you haven’t changed, brother of mine.”
“I felt the same way when we met up in San Diego,” Rain interjected. “That Sir Henry never changes. He just gets more arrogant and annoying.”
The two men laughed.
I rolled my eyes at them. “Jealous much? Those who lack class make up for it with jokes.”
“Don’t act like you are superior to me,” Rain advised. “I have skills that often blows your little British mind.”
“Like when you showed up at the Super 8 out of the blue after not knowing where Carlos and Selena were?” I crossed my arms over my chest.
“Da, exactly.” Rain smirked at me. “You all were, how you say, gob smacked.”
I nodded in agreement. “We were but I’ve had time to figure that slick move out.”
“Is that so?” Rain kept smiling at me.
“Yes, you tracked my bloody phone! You followed me there.”
Rain didn’t look like he was taken off guard as he laughed. “Took you a week to figure it out, did it?”
“Yes and pretending to be that skilled at tracking?” I quipped. “Someone’s map is too small I’m guessing.”
Michael burst into laughter.
Maya joined him with a giggle as she noted, “They get like this a lot.”
Michael swiped a tear away. “They’re worse than Henry and I. But damn, that is funny.”
“Nah,” I said. “You are family so I have to put up with you. Him? Only when I need a semi-good tracker.”
“Oh, ho-ho, blyat!” Rain exclaimed as he chuckled.
“Rain and I have talked about this trip,” Michael told me in a more serious tone as he got down to it finally.
I took a sip of my Earl Grey and then set the teacup down. “And what have you both surmised?”
“Blin…” Rain nodded. “We need to be careful even from the time we make the arrangements to the time we get to the island. So, I have procured identities for us. Your brother here filled me in on the rest of this.”
“They have done worse than kidnap people and drain their blood?” I asked.
“They are protected by the League, Henry,” Michael announced.
“The fuck?” I swore as I stared at him, then looked at Rain.
“Who is the League?’ Maya asked.
“The deadliest security force you can hire,” a voice came from the doorway.
We looked up to see Mr. Mancini standing in the entry.
He came into the kitchen. Maybe came in just does not describe it well enough.
The man dressed to the nines with not a speck of lint or a hair out of place.
The way he moved was like a quiet symphony of ruthless grace and dignity.
“Their retainer is one million dollars.,” he explained in an Italian accented voice.
Then they charge 100K a month or possibly more.
They employ an army of the nastiest, most cutthroat men in the underworld.
Men who have no warmth, no soul. They will kill anyone they are told to.
Their protection services are like no other.
They do not just scare offenders away. They put them into the ground.
A fratellanza di assassini assetati di sangue…
Brotherhood of bloodthirsty killers.” He grabbed a small cup and set it under the spout of the espresso machine.
We all just stared at his back until he turned around to face us.
Then we all looked away. As a rule, men like him did not like being stared at.
They believed it was the epitome of rudeness.
And yes, even men such as us were intimidated by a man reputed to be this ruthless and cunning.
I could not fathom what it would be like for Michael to be his son-in-law.
Rain and I weren’t weak kneed young teens either, but with this man we might have twinges of just that.
I knew about the Mancini legend when I lived here in New Orleans.
Very few people openly crossed Alberto Mancini or tried to mess with him.
Back then, the whole Houdini thing was very real, not just a scare tactic.
There were even a couple of men that I knew as just passing acquaintances and they were disappeared.
However, they were not good men. Drug dealers of the lowest kind really and there wouldn’t be a loss to anyone I assumed.
Now however, he was reputedly less of a mafia man and more of a businessman.
I noted that did not lessen the intimidation factor though.
A man like him would carry that as a normal state of being.
We all simply waited for him to speak.
Except for Maya as she addressed him directly, “This group. They protect the ones who organize this ritual?”
Mancini turned to look at her. “What ritual?” he asked as he strode over to the table.
Maya stared up at him and replied, “It is called the Luna de Sangre Consegrado.”
He paused and stood still for a few seconds. “Why or how would you know of this?” he asked in almost a whisper.
Rain, Michael and I all glanced at each other. If he reacted this way, it must be very bad.
“My family was taken almost three years ago,” Maya told him with no hesitation. “A private detective I hired told me that he found that they were kidnapped for this ritual.”
“And he lived after he found this out?’ Mancini asked her.
Slowly shaking her head, she replied, “No, he did not.”
He set his little cup on the table, then he smoothly pulled a chair out to sit down. “Mia cara, you do not mean to tell me that your family is set to be the blood of the moon?”
Biting her lip, she nodded at him.
Blood of the moon…I admit I never heard it put that way. I didn't wonder how Mancini knew about it either. If it was an underground event and a notorious group he would know.
Looking around at us, he advised, “You should not pursue this.”
“I cannot let them die, senor,” Maya replied.
Looking back over at her he explained his statement, “You cannot stop this. They were dead the minute they were taken.”
Maya’s eyes filled with tears. “Would you just sit and allow this if they were your familia, Senor Mancini?”
The kitchen went very quiet.
He stared at her.
Maya did not look away from him.
“La famiglia è tutto,” he whispered.
Slowly nodding her head at him she repeated it in English, “Family is everything.”
He now looked over at me to ask, “And you intend to help her with this?”
I nodded at him. “I do and I shall.”
Mancini looked over at Rain now.
Rain nodded at him as well. “Da, I will assist them as well.”
He then gazed at his son-in-law. “I do hope you are not going with them?”
Michael shook his head. “I have been gathering intel for them.”
“I am glad. I do not wish for Alessia to be a widow. It would destroy her to lose you.”
“You speak as if we shall fail,” I told him.
He looked back over at me. “No one has ever stopped those vampires. Especially after they hired the League.” He then turned to look at Maya. “You were there in Catemaco to find your family,” it was not a question.
“That is how I became a nanny to your…to the twins.”
“And from what they have said, you saved them.”
She lowered her head. “I did the best that I could.”
Reaching over, he tipped her chin up with his forefinger. “You did more than that, dolce ragazza. Sweet girl. “If not for you, they would have perished.”
She stared at him wide eyed. “How did you know that?”
He dropped his hand and said, “I have seen that look before. The one you wear. You are a pure soul but now you believe that you carry sin.”
I was blown away. The man was a force on his own, let alone sensing things like that.
“I had no choice,” she whispered.
“No, you probably didn’t,” he agreed. “I can say I have lived that scenario many times over. Having no choice but to shed blood. While it was just once for you. I do not speak for God. Bene, dearest Maya, you will literally fly into heaven most likely. And most of us cannot say that.”
We all stared at him.
I agreed with this, though I wisely remained silent.