Chapter Seventy-Nine - 2

"Does Massimo know anything about this plan? About the dealers revolting?" Ivan asked.

"Not that I know of. I haven't seen him in a few weeks, maybe longer. Word is he's in Colombia right now, but nobody knows why and nobody has heard from him since he's been down there." Smith said. Sephie glanced between me and Ivan. She then glanced at Gus to see if he knew anything. He looked like he might've known something, but we didn't know how much.

I sighed. I needed the dealers once this was all over. I needed them to want to work for me. The fastest route to loyalty was honesty. "Massimo and Dario are in Colombia trying to negotiate a new deal with Trino. They're trying to overthrow me, along with Sal and the other bosses."

"Even Armando? I thought you two were close?" DJ asked, completely taken aback.

"No, Mando is good. He's the only boss that stayed loyal to me. The rest of them have their own agenda right now," I said.

DJ was thoughtful for a moment. "This makes everything make so much more sense," he said.

"What do you mean?" Sephie asked.

"The city, by and large, isn't happy right now. It's divided up, right? So, each part of the city has its own boss, except the area around Ghost's building. That's kind of no man's land, if you will, which is why I assume we're meeting here. This is no man's land, but we all consider it to be Ghost's territory. The people here and the people in Armando's area are happy. Like almost obliviously happy. They don't realize there's anything happening in the rest of the city. But in every other area of the city, the people are becoming increasingly unhappy. The people in Sal's area have it the worst right now. They're talking about an uprising against Sal and his people. They've already gone to the cops to ask for help, but Sal has most of the force on his payroll," DJ said. "It's only a matter of time before the other areas of the city follow suit with Sal's area, if you ask me."

"Why are Sal's people not happy with him? Because of his increase in business taxes?" I asked.

"That's most of it, but crime has increased in his area. Much of that crime is because of his people too. The guys he has working for him are all thugs and mostly out of control. It doesn't take anything to set one of them off. The people who live in his area have been living in fear for a while now, but they're reaching their limit. They've started fighting back. A couple of his guys got shot a few weeks ago. It's caused a truce. For now. But tension is high in that part of town," DJ said.

"How do you know so much about Sal's part of town when you work for Armando, DJ?" Sephie asked.

"I have family in Sal's part of town. I grew up there. I have a big extended family, so they have a good idea what's going on in different areas of the city. We're everywhere, basically, and we really like to talk," DJ said, chuckling.

Sephie looked at me. I already knew what she was thinking. I said, in Russian, "I know. I think your idea of using the people is still a good one. We might not be able to do this as quietly as we thought. It appears the people are aware of more than we originally thought. At least in other areas of the city."

"If nothing else, you can get word that we're taking care of their problem," Viktor said, still in Russian. "If you get rid of all the bosses but one, you're going to need the people to be loyal to you. We can't take on the entire city too. You take care of their problem, they continue to love you."

"It was a good option before, it's still a good option. I'd still like to do this as quietly as possible, but it's looking more and more like that might not be possible," I said.

We were quietly contemplating our options for a moment when Smith asked, "So, are you gonna take the laser sight off me or what?"

Just for emphasis, Stephen moved it to his chest once more. We watched as two more sights showed up beside Stephen's. Sephie, without cracking a smile, said in Russian, "I can't even begin to tell you how much I love you right now, Yoden."

The great thing about the Russian language is that it's harsh. So, even when you were saying something funny or sentimental, to anyone that didn't speak the language, it still sounded quite severe. Smith was completely convinced that she had just threatened his life once again. He swallowed, hard, and kept his mouth shut. I simply raised my eyebrow at him, looking at him as sternly as I could.

"Tell us where the smaller brawn operations are," Viktor said. He opened a map and laid it out on the kitchen counter.

It was exactly the distraction needed to give me a moment alone with Sephie. I pulled her away from everyone to ask her thoughts on everyone. Truth be told, I also needed to touch her. She knew what I was wanting without me asking her. She stepped close to me, her hand finding mine once again. It was such a habit for me that I reached up and resumed my ongoing battle with the curls around her face as she quietly talked to me in Russian.

"I like DJ. A lot. He's very much like Chen. Gus too. I'm not getting anything bad from those two. Smith, on the other hand, I don't get a good feeling from. I don't think he's necessarily trying to undermine anything, but he doesn't have good reasons to be here. The other two legitimately want to be here. He does not. I can't figure out why he is, but I don't trust him. However, I don't know how to get rid of him at this point either. If he's being forced to sell for Massimo, he could easily be forced to tell him everything about our plan. I don't like it, but I don't think him meeting the same fate as Chucky is necessarily fair either. I don't think he has a choice in this matter," she said. I could see the concern on her face as she talked. She'd been weighing the options this whole time.

"There's a third option, spider monkey," Andrei said from across the room. He looked like he was speaking to Misha, who was standing next to him. No one had figured out we could all hear each other yet and we liked to keep it that way.

Misha responded, "We just lock him up until this is over. You're right, he may not have a choice in the matter, but he definitely doesn't want to be here. Locking him up is a good solution. He gets to live and we don't have to worry about him betraying us. He goes free once this is over."

"And Massimo is taken care of, so he'll be free of whatever he's got over him," Sephie said. "You're giving this the official approval, my adorable Russian guardian?"

"Da. Officially," Misha said.

She looked to me. She still had a question on her face. Stephen chimed in. "We'll have a team grab him after the meeting, Seph." She looked surprised, not sure how he knew what she was thinking. "What? You're standing right by the window. It was obvious," he said, laughing. "And that's also a question I've had to ask before. I mean, it seems obvious now, but it was not obvious the first time it happened to me either."

Her gorgeous smile spread across her face as she glanced out the window, making the room just a little brighter.

We wrapped up the meeting with Gus, Smith, DJ, and Chen. They gave us all the information we had on the brawn operations they'd found, as well as the surveillance they'd already put in place. Gus and DJ were smart men. They would prove to be useful. Chen too.

Smith left the meeting first, which was advantageous. Stephen had a team grab him a couple blocks from the apartment building and take him to a safe house. He would stay there under constant guard until this was all over. I agreed with Sephie that we wouldn't be able to trust him. Before Sephie, I would've just killed him and called it a day. She was right though, it likely wasn't his fault he was caught up in everything if he'd been forced to deal. Now, he would sit this one out and get a second chance once it was over. Or he would get shot if he was dumb enough to try and escape.

Before we left the apartment, I informed the other three what we had decided on Smith. I needed them to trust me, so I made extra effort to be honest with them. It's what had made my relationship so strong with Trino in the beginning. I was as transparent as possible with him and he'd stayed loyal to me, even through the other bosses' attempts to undermine me.

"Smith will no longer be a part of this," I said. Chen's jaw dropped. He looked to Sephie immediately, shocked.

"Please tell me you knew him before too and he wasn't to be trusted either," Chen said.

She laughed quietly. "No, Chen. He's being held until this is over. I don't trust him, but if he's being forced to deal by Massimo, it's not necessarily his fault. He'll go free once this is all over with."

Chen audibly exhaled. Gus laughed at Chen, shaking his head. "You would never last in Colombia, man."

"Which is exactly why I do not live in Colombia," Chen said.

Gus looked to me, a serious look on his face. "I appreciate your discretion, sir. I've had a hard time trusting him since this started. He commands a certain respect from a small group of dealers, but I think it's because they're afraid of him. The rest of us want to be here. I never got the same feeling from him. I think it's better if he's not running anything through this."

"The dealers are very loyal to Gus, sir," DJ said. "He's well-known in his area of the city too. He's got a good rep with the people."

"I would expect nothing less from one of Trino's guys," I said. Gus simply nodded to me. "I'll be frank with you all. This is likely going to get messy. Very messy. But once the other bosses are taken care of, I'm going to need people I can trust throughout the city. I'm very generous to people who are loyal to me." They all nodded in understanding. "We're going to check on everything you've given us tonight, to see what plans we can come up with. We'll be in touch soon after. If anything changes on your end, let us know. Chen knows how to get in touch with me."

They all shook my hand once more, then took their leave. Once we were alone in the apartment, I looked at Sephie to make sure she didn't have more insight.

"I think those three are going to prove to be very valuable throughout this, as well as after everything calms down. I get the same feeling from them that I did about Trino. Good guys, trying to make good come from not-so-good activities. It would not surprise me one bit if Gus and DJ had their own businesses they were using the dealing to fund, just like Chen is," she said.

"Does anyone else find it weird that this whole time we've been told it was the bosses that stopped the first wave of brawn years ago, but it was really the dealers?" Andrei asked as we were walking to the elevators in the parking garage.

"I've been wondering about that this whole time. Maybe they were trying to keep me from finding out that Sal is the one that had it created. The story the whole time has been that the dealers were the ones making it and selling it," I said.

"Maybe it was to protect the doctor that made it, so Sal could keep using him," Ivan said.

We heard Stephen's SUV pull into the garage as we waited for the elevator, so we all stood waiting for him to catch up to us outside the elevator. As he walked toward us, Sephie met him halfway. I knew she was still struggling with what had happened earlier that night. Once again something from her past resurfaced, forcing her to face it.

He set his bag down on the concrete, opening his arms to her as she got closer to him. She ran the last few steps to him, her arms wrapping around his neck. He held onto her tightly. Everyone still had their earpieces in, so we could hear their conversation.

"Thank you, Stephen. You're my favorite vampire," she said as he held her.

"Seph, you don't have to be scared of your past anymore. Those people … they can't hurt you ever again. We'll make sure of that. You survived it once completely on your own, but you have us now. We will never let another bad thing happen to you," he said.

She was quiet for a moment. I'm positive she was fighting back tears. Finally, she sighed, saying, "Squishiest vampire ever." We heard him laugh as he picked her up and hugged her tighter for a moment.

It made me happy to see them so close. It was a long time coming. I had my doubts in the beginning of whether Stephen would ever warm up to her, but it was evident that he loved her just as much as the other guys. Almost as much as me.

It was quite late when we finally made it to the penthouse by ourselves. Sephie was sitting on the counter in the bathroom, brushing her teeth. She had taken my shirt almost immediately when we got to the bedroom. I had to admit to loving it when she demanded I hand over my shirt when we were finally alone. As much as I hated putting clothes on her instead of taking them off, I did enjoy taking my shirt off and putting it on her for the night.

"So, you know how you said you could feel my anger without having to look at me now?" I said. She looked at me curiously as she jumped down to rinse her mouth out. "I could feel your anger tonight when Smith got a little too short with me. I knew you were seething before you stepped beside me."

Her eyes went wide. "Was it like a living thing that you could feel around you?"

I thought for a moment. "That's a good way to put it. I didn't have a chance to glance at anyone else, but I'm sure it was visible on your face that you were pissed. Except I didn't see you or the guys. I was looking at Smith when I felt it. And then there's the matter of your eyes," I said, smirking at her.

"What are you talking about?" she asked, pulling me into the bedroom.

"It happened that day with Mike. It's the only other time I've seen it and I, uh, found myself completely turned on by it," I said, climbing into bed so she could lay across my chest. She climbed on top of me instead, her legs straddling me.

"Well, now you have to tell me more," she said, a mischievous grin on her face.

I sat up more, so I could look at her. "Your eyes go dark, solnishko. Like the green and blue rings disappear and the brown gets dark. Really dark that day with Mike. Not quite as dark tonight, but it was a noticeable change."

She thought for a moment, as her fingers lightly traced over my chest. "I remember you looking at me and being confused at what I saw." She laughed quietly. "I had forgotten about it until now."

"Yeah, uh, super hot," I said. I could feel my cheeks flushing. I wasn't sure she would want to hear how turned on I was in that moment. "I was glad I only caught a glance of it tonight. I didn't need to deal with that on top of everything else."

She put her hands on either side of my face, her gorgeous smile across her face. "I'll try to remember not to look at you the next time I get angry in front of other people," she said, giggling. She leaned down to kiss me, still laughing.

"You laugh, but I'm seriously considering pissing you off when we're alone just to see what happens," I said. She laughed harder, hiding her face against my shoulder. Her laughter was infectious. I found myself laughing along with her, but I was serious. I really had weighed my options on pissing her off just to see if I could make her eyes go dark again.

She wrapped her arms around my neck, pressing her body against mine. She was still laughing, which I loved. "I just love you so much, Adrik," she said, trying to contain her fits of laughter. I held her close, enjoying the pull in my chest that happened so frequently now when I thought about how much I loved her.

The first half of the week went by quickly. It was filled with reports from the smaller brawn operations that Gus's people had found, planning sessions, and endless meetings. By the end of Wednesday, I was very grateful we had spent the previous weekend at the house, away from everyone. I was already looking forward to being able to go back.

I finished up my last meeting of the day, looking forward to finally being done and able to go upstairs to Sephie when Viktor walked in with Armando and Giana. Fuck. They'd been gone most of the week. He took Giana to his house after her "episode" the week before where she thought Sephie had been an addict. I had to admit to enjoying some time away from them. Mostly her, but Armando was still such a talker that it was nice to have some peace and quiet without him around. Otherwise, he was tolerable. She was still very hit or miss. Mostly miss after her behavior last week.

I was so tired that I was questioning my ability to be diplomatic. I hoped this was going to be short. "Armando, what can I do for you?" I asked. I didn't even bother to address Giana. On purpose. I kind of liked it when she was so nervous she couldn't talk. I was hoping that would happen if I purposely ignored her.

"Boss, I was hoping for a minute to discuss something with you," he said.

I glanced at my watch, then looked back to him. "I only have a few minutes. Talk."

"We had a very long discussion over the weekend. Giana was hoping she could apologize to Sephie, but she also owes you an apology for the way she behaved the last time you saw her," he said. I couldn't help the smirk that I was sure was clear on my face. This felt like such a childish thing to make a grown woman apologize to someone.

"Let me stop you right there, Armando. I still have plenty of respect for you, but I won't accept any kind of forced apology from anyone. If she wants to apologize, then she can come to me on her own. If she wants to apologize to Sephie, which she should, then she should go to her of her own accord. It's entirely up to Sephie on whether she accepts that apology as well." I looked directly at Giana, finally forced to acknowledge her. "You have no clue what that woman has been through in her short life. You make assumptions about her life based on her extensive knowledge about certain subjects, never considering that she might just be that much smarter than you are. Your insecurity with yourself is no excuse to try and use a falsely perceived fault as a way to bring her down to your level. You have no idea how angry every single one of my men as well as me were last week. You hurt her, you deal with us." She had held my gaze until the very last, but then her gaze dropped to the floor. "Sephie has been nothing but nice to you since you've been here. She put herself through torture just to go shopping with you when she was injured. She could barely walk at the end of that day, but she smiled through it to make you feel more comfortable. She's listened as you talk endlessly about ridiculous things because you're nervous. She's protected you from Mike. She facilitated getting you and Mando together. And you turn around and believe she's a former addict because she has extensive knowledge about drugs? Did you ever stop to consider it's because she had to learn how that drug affects its users to survive? No. No, you did not. You chose to think the absolute worst of her to make yourself feel better. So, you'll forgive me for not wanting your apology right now. When you can grow up and act like a mature fucking woman, then I'll consider it. But not before." I could feel my anger rising to the surface as I talked to Giana. I'm sure she was terrified. I hoped she was terrified.

I heard Viktor's phone ring. He answered it quietly, which meant it was one of the guys. I heard him say, in Russian, "Net, he's okay. We'll be up in a minute. Tell her she doesn't need to come down." He ended the call and slipped the phone back in his pocket. He glanced at me, a look of surprise on his face.

Armando looked to Giana, who was staring at the floor, then looked at me. I did feel slightly bad for him. He was in an awkward spot. He inhaled deeply while looking back at Giana stare at the floor. "He's completely right, Giana. You can't expect everyone to cover for you for the rest of your life. Your parents fixed everything when you were younger, but that taught you nothing. You must learn to be your own person now. I told you this would happen," he said. His tone was stern but soft. I got the impression that he was trying to get her to finally hear his words.

She was likely trying to hold back tears. She couldn't talk, she simply nodded her head, but kept her gaze on the floor. He glanced at me, a look of apology on his face, then guided her toward the door. They were going to have more uncomfortable conversations tonight.

Viktor and I gave them time to get back to their floor before leaving my office. Once we heard the elevator doors close, he said, "Sephie knew you were angry. From upstairs. Ivan had to call me or she would've come running down here." He was clearly stunned at what he'd just told me, but it made me laugh.

"You're going to think we're crazy, but it's been happening regularly for a while now. This is just the first time we haven't been in the same room when it's happened. It's like we can feel each other's anger. I don't know how to explain it. It's not just the anger either, but that seems to be the strongest one," I said.

Viktor thought for a moment. As we walked to the elevator, he said, "Honestly, it makes sense. I've never seen two people so in sync as you two are. She seems to be able to read your mind the best. You also know what she's thinking better than I've ever seen with anyone else. And she's the only one that I've ever seen be able to get your bloodlust to calm down. I almost didn't believe my eyes the first time I saw it happen."

I chuckled. "I tried to tell her, but I'm not sure she fully understands what a feat that is. And she did it without even trying," I said, shaking my head. The doors to the elevator opened. We were still laughing at our conversation when we walked into the penthouse. As soon as Sephie saw me, she ran to me.

"What happened?" she asked, concerned. She was searching my eyes, trying to answer her own question before I had a chance to answer. I glanced to Viktor to make sure he was watching. I wanted them to see this. I looked back at her and let her search my eyes without saying a word. She let out a small gasp. "Giana tried to apologize, but you made her cry, didn't you?"

I smiled down at her, then glanced back to Viktor. His mouth was open in shock. I glanced quickly at the other four guys who looked just as surprised. "To be fair, I didn't see her crying. She wouldn't look at me at the end there," I said, smirking.

"She was crying," Viktor said. He was still completely shocked at what he'd just witnessed.

"Dammit, I miss all the fun!" Misha said.