Chapter 49 #2
My release crashed through me like a tidal wave, every muscle in my body tensing as I emptied myself inside her. Elin cried out above me, her own climax triggered by the feeling of me pulsing within her, her nails raking down my chest hard enough to draw blood.
For long moments we remained locked together, both of us breathing hard, sweat cooling on our skin. Finally, she reached up to uncuff my wrists, and I immediately wrapped my arms around her, holding her against my chest.
"Better?" she asked, pressing a soft kiss to my collarbone.
"Much," I admitted, running my fingers through her damp hair. "I needed that more than I realized."
"I know." She lifted her head to meet my eyes. "Being Don doesn't mean you stop being mine, Pretty Boy. Don't forget that again."
"Never," I promised, meaning it completely.
A sharp knock at the door interrupted our post-coital peace. "Don Azzaro?" Harley's voice was carefully neutral but urgent.
Elin sighed, rolling off me to get dressed. "What is it?" I called, pulling on pants.
"Carlos Vega is here. Juarez's lieutenant. He's demanding to speak with you."
I exchanged a look with Elin, who was already reaching for her gun from the nightstand drawer. "Give us ten minutes, then bring him to my office."
"Should I have him searched?"
"Thoroughly," Elin answered before I could. "And keep two men in the room."
As Harley's footsteps retreated, I finished dressing, my mind already shifting back into Don mode. "This could be trouble."
"Or opportunity," Elin countered, checking her weapon before securing it in her waistband. "Depends how we play it."
Minutes later, we entered my office to find Carlos Vega waiting, flanked by two of my men. He was a compact man in his fifties, grey threading through his black hair, his expensive suit unable to disguise the predator beneath.
"Carlos," I said, settling behind my desk while Elin took position beside me. "What brings you to my home?"
His cold eyes flicked between us, lingering on Elin with obvious distaste. "You killed my Don."
"Your Don was planning to rape and murder my sister," I replied evenly. "He got what he deserved."
Carlos's jaw tightened. "Miguel Juarez was a great man. A respected leader."
"Miguel Juarez was a sadistic piece of shit," Elin interjected, her voice cutting. "And if you're here for revenge, you can join him."
"I'm here," Carlos said, his tone measured despite the fury in his eyes, "to discuss terms."
That surprised me. "Terms?"
"The Juarez territory needs leadership. Miguel had no sons, no clear successor. His organization is . . . fracturing."
I leaned back in my chair, beginning to see where this was heading. "And you want my backing?"
"I want an alliance." He straightened slightly. "I take control of Juarez operations, you get a thirty percent cut of profits, and we maintain the peace between our trade routes."
It was a reasonable offer, actually. Better than the war that would inevitably come if the Juarez territory descended into chaos.
"What makes you think you can hold it together?" Elin asked. "Miguel's other lieutenants won't just roll over for you."
Carlos smiled, and it wasn't pleasant. "They will when they see what happened to the ones who opposed me."
A kindred spirit, then. I could respect that, even if I didn't trust him.
"Fifty percent," I countered. "And I want oversight of your trafficking operations."
"Forty percent and trafficking stays internal."
"No trafficking at all," Elin said firmly. "That's nonnegotiable."
Carlos's eyebrows rose. "You're joking."
"Do I look like I'm joking?" Her hand moved casually to rest on her hip, inches from her concealed weapon.
"The trafficking brings in twenty-five percent of our revenue," Carlos protested. "You can't expect me to just—"
"I can and I do." I leaned forward, letting steel enter my voice. "The Azzaro family is moving away from certain . . . unsavory practices. Our associates will do the same or they won't be our associates."
Carlos was quiet for a long moment, clearly weighing his options. Without Azzaro backing, his chances of consolidating power were slim. With it, he'd have to give up his most profitable ventures.
"Drugs?" he asked finally.
"Selective operations only. High-end clientele, no street-level distribution," Elin answered. "We're not running a charity, but we're not poisoning neighborhoods either."
"And in return?"
"You get Azzaro protection, access to our legitimate business fronts for money laundering, and a guaranteed market for whatever clean operations you develop," I said.
It was a good deal, and we all knew it. Carlos would be giving up significant short-term profits for long-term stability and growth.
"I need time to consider.”
"You have twenty-four hours," I replied. "After that, we find someone else to work with."
Carlos nodded curtly and stood. "I'll be in touch."
After he left, Elin moved to pour herself a drink from the bar cart. "Think he'll take it?"
"He'd be stupid not to." I joined her, accepting the glass of whiskey she offered. "But that doesn't mean he will."
"If he doesn't?"
I smiled, but the expression held no warmth. "Then we make sure whoever replaces him is more reasonable."
Elin clinked her glass against mine. "To reasonable business partners."
"And unreasonable consequences for those who aren't," I added.
As we drank, I reflected on how much had changed in such a short time frame. Not long ago, I'd been my father's enforcer, following orders without question. Now I was reshaping an entire criminal empire according to my own vision.
Our vision, I corrected myself, glancing at Elin. Everything we'd accomplished, we'd done together.
"Penny for your thoughts?" she asked, noticing my contemplation.
"Just thinking about how far we've come." I set down my glass and pulled her against me. "And how far we still have to go."
"Regrets?"
"None." I kissed her forehead. "Not a single one."
The future stretched ahead of us, full of challenges and dangers we couldn't yet imagine. But whatever came, we'd face it together, bound by love and blood and the unbreakable understanding that we were stronger united than we ever could be apart.
Don Azzaro and his queen. The Owl's Talon and his Goddess.
Let the world tremble.