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“Where’s Thomas,” Danny demanded, setting his feet how Sean had once taught him.
“Yes, sir, I remember,” the man said, ignoring Danny and walking forward. When Danny didn’t move, he bent down, wrapping one arm around Danny’s knees and lifted him off the ground. “No one leaves, no one gets hurt.”
“What the fuck,” Kevin shouted, his footsteps heavy.
“Hm, they are angry,” the man said, tossing Danny back.
Danny grunted as he hit Kevin’s solid chest, feeling Kevin try to catch him as they stumbled backwards.
The man shut the door behind him, flipping the safety bolt without looking away. “Of course, sir,” he said, taking the phone from his ear and tapping at the screen before holding it out.
“Good morning, boys,” a familiar voice said through the speaker. “I understand this is upsetting but I need you to listen very carefully. Thomas’s life and safety depend on it.”
* * *
Seong watched Felinus talk to Danny and the foster brothers, or perhaps “talk at” was a better phrase. He had watched Felinus from the first day of being a capo. From what Bat, Brutus, and Lucio had told him, Felinus had never had a problem taking charge. But taking charge and being in charge were different. Felinus had a way to command anyone regardless of how much power he technically had over them.
Him silencing three upset barely college students with nothing more than his voice, without the benefit of his intense glare and imposing form, was proof of that.
“Am I understood,” he finished, pausing. “Good.” He handed the phone back to the man sitting next to him.
“Do you have everything under control now,” the local asked his man, the “escort” that was originally going to take Seong and Tiger to the hotel before things changed. “Excellent,” he said after another pause. “Keep them busy. Don’t tell them any details.” He chuckled. “Of course you do. I will be in touch.”
“Thank you again for offering your man for this, Mateo” Felinus said, calm but in that careful way he always spoke to men he respected who could make life difficult. “If we had realized this was going to be the situation, we would have brought more of our own to keep them in check.”
Mateo waved a hand. “Think nothing of it,” he said. “It is the least we can do with the trouble that main lander is causing. I tolerated his ego and… what did my son call it? Microaggressions? But him ignoring my deliberate instructions, well… hopefully his people are as loyal as his previous apprentice.” He smiled at Seong.
Even if he wasn’t masked, Seong wouldn’t have returned it. He couldn’t. There was nothing worth smiling about, not until he had Thomas back, not until he saw him and held him and—
And what?
It was Seong who caused all of this. It was Seong’s influence on Thomas, his presence in Thomas’s life that put a spotlight for Peacock to follow. He knew what he would have to do. Once Thomas was safely home, Seong would step back from his life until he was just a memory. That would be best.
He looked away instead, watching the buildings past.
Mateo didn’t seem to take offense at least, turning back instead to talk to Felinus more. “We’ll drop you and the other two at the corner. Then I will take the two of them to the warehouse. By the time you arrive, everything should be in place.”
Seong felt eyes on the side of his face.
“Will he be able to handle things on his own in the in-between?”
“He will be fine,” Felinus said, “just as long as you are able to make good on your promise. We don’t care what happens to the other people in that building but Thomas is to remain unharmed and Peacock will be dealt with, preferably by us.”
“Of course.” The pressure of the eyes moved away. “It will be easier since your friend here can pass as one of mine. Are you sure you are not from the islands?”
“No,” Tiger rumbled, now dressed in breezy shorts and a button up shirt to look more like the other men. “I am from Germany.”
“Hm, well, lucky for us Peacock is just racist enough that so long as you don’t talk, he won’t know the difference.” He paused. “There is a boy, local kid, that works for Peacock that may notice that you aren’t one of us.”
Seong looked around. “Boy?”
He waved a hand. “Nineteen but he’s been at it for a year and a half. I think Peacock wanted him to be a go-between but the boy is…” He trailed off, making a few twists of his lips. “Well, let’s just say your Thomas is far better at holding his own against a room full of dangerous men. Gregorio is too soft for it. Too easily pushed around.”
Seong’s lips pressed together. That sounded right for Peacock’s targets. All the more reason why Thomas was in danger. Thomas was too used to the danger of men who would hurt him for the smallest mistake to be afraid or compliant with something like being handcuffed to a chair. Seong knew what Peacock’s escalations looked like but those had taken time to build up. He had been compliant. He had been desperate for approval. Everyone wanted approval, but Thomas was smart enough to know that Peacock’s approval meant nothing. “What happens to him once Peacock is gone?”
He shrugged. “Depends entirely on how much he can do with who remains. If he’s not able to keep up, we will send him away. If he continues to be useful in other ways, he may stay.” He smiled. “We are not monsters after all.”
“Right,” Seong muttered, glancing at Felinus.
