Chapter 22
Chapter twenty-two
Orgies and Cheese
Kenji
The war room smelled like men—sweat, cigar smoke, gun oil, leather, the sharp metallic tang of ammunition being sorted and counted.
I stood in the doorway and let the contrast hit me.
Several days ago, I'd been in here with Nyomi on a romantic date.
Now that same room was packed with men—dozens of them lining the walls, gathered around tables covered in weapons, talking in low voices, checking magazines, cleaning barrels, doing the quiet preparatory work of people who understood that soon some of them might not exist anymore.
TV screens were muted and mounted along the upper walls and showed the news coverage of Tokyo rebuilding after the bombs. Subtitles appeared and disappeared. Red graphics scrolled. Worried anchors cycled through speculation about the bombings.
I walked in. Under my arm, I carried the book from my mother’s belongings, The Rites of Burial and Becoming.
Reo waited for me at the entrance to the miniature Tokyo. He stood with his hands clasped behind his back—perfectly still, perfectly composed, his black suit unwrinkled despite the fact that the man had been partying all last night and stuffing his mouth with cheese.
As I got close, he moved his gaze to the book and then returned it to me.
Hiro walked up next to Reo and yawned, still wearing his fur coat and leather pants. No shoes were on his feet.
I frowned. “Did you even go to sleep last night?”
“We were too busy.”
I stopped in front of him. “Busy doing what?”
“We had to do the race up the claw. Don’t tell Nyomi about that by the way. I like her thinking that we are perfect gentlemen.”
I smirked. “Who won the race up the claw?”
“Reo.”
I snapped my view to him.
He apparently had to cough into his hands.
“And how are your ribs, Roar?”
“Just fine.”
“Stop pushing yourself too far.”
“When does one have the opportunity to climb a massive dragon’s claw?”
I glared.
“However, in the future I will be more careful.”
I could see the race up the claw. The party still going. Music still loud. All my men drunk.
Hiro at the bottom in his fur coat, shouting the rules nobody would follow.
The Fangs already lined up along the base, betting on each other in low voices the way men bet on horses.
Reo somewhere in the middle of it, pretending he wasn't going to climb. Pretending his ribs weren't healed enough. Pretending he wasn't already calculating which side of the claw had the best grip.
And then as soon as the signal came, the Roar moving first, scaling up a thirty-foot dragon claw.
If I had been there. . .I would have beat them all.
Clearing my throat, I turned back to Hiro. “After the race, you went to sleep?”
“No way. I went to sleep after the orgy under the claw.”
I quirked my brows. “Orgy under the claw?”
“Of course.”
“Should I ask who participated in the orgy?”
“Well, it was the Claws’ event so. . .”
I tilted my head. “And the women?”
“Brought to us by our lovely Tiger.”
“You all fucked the waitresses under the claw last night?”
“Of course.”
“You are aware that those were adult daughters and sisters of our Scales throughout the island.”
“Their fathers and brothers will never know. What happens under the claw, stays under the claw.” Hiro did a military salute. “Besides the women received hefty compensation this morning for their hard work.”
“You paid them like they were prostitutes?”
“We gave them several thousand to shop like queens.”
I let out a long sigh.
“Don’t tell our Tiger.” Hiro’s face actually appeared worried. “She’s to have the best impression of her Claws.”
I tensed at his saying her Claws. “What about the Fangs? Did they join the orgy too?”
“I sent them home. They weren’t happy about that, but what could they do? Our Tiger’s friends left with them.”
I looked at Reo. “Did you participate in the orgy under the claw too?”
“No.” Reo brushed down the front of his jacket. “I went upstairs like a responsible adult.”
Hiro rolled his eyes. “Reo went upstairs with two waitresses and all of the remaining Roar Bites. Five fucking trays. He wouldn’t even leave us one tray.
And he was about to fight us when we tried to grab it.
By the way, the two waitresses never came back downstairs.
No doubt they were rubbing cheese all over his cock and licking it off.
Or perhaps he was rubbing cheese on them and licking it off. ”
Reo pursed his lips.
Hiro gestured at Reo. “Ask him what he did.”
Two waitresses. Five trays. One Roar. The math is concerning.
I considered the possibilities of what Reo would do with two waitresses and absolutely too many trays of cheese, and then decided that it was not a mental image I needed for today.
“Let’s go.” I headed off.
Hiro snickered and followed.
Reo got to my side.
We entered the city.
Tokyo stretched in every direction at shoulder height. Some buildings rose taller. Tiny windows were lit from within. There were rooftop gardens no bigger than a hand. Billboards I could read if I leaned close enough.
Shibuya’s crossing had been frozen mid-step with tiny figures suspended in their tiny lives.
It was all around us—the 109 building, the Hachiko statue near the station.
Then Roppongi, the cluster of towers, the observation deck of Roppongi Hills detailed down to its miniature railing.
Tokyo Tower glowed amber to our left, lit from within like a small private sun.
And the markers were everywhere. Dragon heads with curved horns and gold-tipped teeth sat on rooftops. Fox heads clustered near Ginza and Shinjuku. Lion heads too were here and there near the ports.
A small army of my men moved between the buildings, setting up screens, laying out maps on side tables, and doing the quiet work that came before a briefing.
They saw us coming and made room.
I cleared my throat as we continued. "Reo."
"Yes."
"I want a paternity test done on Kiko."
Hiro blinked. "What called for that?"
"My Tiger feels uneasy."
He studied my face. "Due to the babies possibly being yours?"
"Yes."
He held my gaze for a long second and then nodded. "Then get the testing."
"That's why I'm telling Reo.” I looked at my Roar. "I want it done before she gives birth. Can we get the results in our hands by tomorrow?"
Reo nodded. "It's already in motion."
I stopped walking. "What?"
Reo paused and looked at me. "I spoke with the doctor this morning."
Of course he did. Always several steps ahead.
Still, I had to ask. "You spoke to him before I agreed?"
"I spoke to him because I anticipated this. Kiko has been making trouble with your Tiger so—"
“What trouble?” Hiro and I asked in unison.
Reo placed his hands in his pockets. “Kiko apparently was trying to bulldoze her way into the party last night, but your Tiger handled it.”
I sneered.
Hiro crossed his arms over his chest. “How disrespectful. I want permission to kill her cousin Tet.”
I held my hand up. “How did my Tiger handle it?”
“She had her guards blocking the entrances in anticipation of Kiko attempting this.”
I wasn’t a fan of that. Nyomi’s guards were supposed to be with her. And I hadn’t even known they weren’t around at the party. Granted, she was with me and my men by then. We would have never let anything happen to her.
Reo continued, “I talked to her security team and they let me know that Tet approached her earlier that day about their coming to the party and Nyomi told them no.”
I smiled.
Good job, Tora.
Hiro looked at me. “Can I kill him?”
“Yes.”
Hiro grinned.
“Just don’t let my Tiger find out.”
“You mean our Tiger.”
“No. I don’t.” I looked at Reo. “Did they give my Tiger’s guards a problem last night?”
“They didn’t. Apparently, Nyomi delivered a message explaining that she would have Hiro come outside and handle them if they remained.”
“Damn right.” Hiro nodded.
I frowned.
Why didn’t she threaten them with me? I’m much scarier.
Reo pulled his hands out of his pockets. "The doctor told me that there is a procedure called the non-invasive prenatal paternity test."
“What happens?”
"During pregnancy, fragments of the babies' DNA circulate in the mother's bloodstream.
The doctor draws blood from the pregnant woman.
Next, he takes a cheek swab or blood sample from the possible fathers.
After that, the lab separates the DNA profiles—mother, child, and alleged fathers.
Once done, the doctor is able to statistically determine paternity. "
Hiro narrowed his eyes. "Statistically?"
"Statistically with a confidence level above ninety-nine percent."
I nodded. "That’s good enough for me."
Reo continued. "This test is possible from seven to ten weeks of pregnancy onward. Kiko is well past that mark. Standard turnaround is three to ten business days. But we have a private clinic with advanced equipment, so the turnaround will be twenty-four to seventy-two hours."
Hiro tilted his head to the side. "Risk to the twins?"
"None.” Reo shook his head. “No needle near the fetus. It’s just a blood draw from her. Cheek swabs from you two. That is all."
Hiro let out a low whistle. "Sounds good to me. However, she better hope those babies aren’t mine. Once she has them, I’m taking them. She would be a shitty mother."
I considered Reo’s information. “After the meeting, get Hiro and my swabs and put this in motion. The sooner this is done, the better.”
Hiro chuckled. “Kiko is going to be pissed about this.”
She better feel nothing but lucky because there could have been the grim reaper on her doorstep this morning.
I thought back to Nyomi having to use her guards for Kiko’s bullshit. “My Tiger should have greater Scale power. If she needs more for a particular reason, she should have the ability to grab them.”
Reo nodded. “Already in place. Her team has delivered my message.”
I blinked. “You already decided to give my Tiger more power with moving around the Scales?”
“I anticipated you would want that.”