“Emma’s father declined to turn over his daughter, so he agreed to provide the remainder of what he borrowed. I gave him a deadline of full payment in sixty days, or I would take Emma away.”
“So what’s the rest of the story?” I ask him. He’s not revealing much more information that I don’t already know, and I’m getting bored.
“When the sixty days were over, Emma’s father did not provide full repayment of his debt. I heard he had an unfortunate accident, and as a result, Emma was left fatherless,” Callaghan replied.
“How does this concern me?” I ask him. My anger rises with every word that comes out of this asshole’s mouth.
“You have Emma. I want her for payment in full on her father’s debt to me,” he answers.
“Let’s assume, for a moment, that I have her. Why would I just hand her over? Men in our line of work are not exactly honorable.”
“You’re a businessman, Ivan. You want to protect your assets and avoid any conflicts with those assets.”
“And?”
“I would hate for something to happen to your properties in the Seaport District. Those are valuable pieces of property that can be rendered worthless.”
“What the hell are you implying, Declan?” I lean forward with my forearms propped on the table.
“I’m not implying anything, Ivan. I’m simply stating that property is valuable to men like you and me.”
“Bullshit,” I say to him. “Here’s my answer for you—I will not turn Emma over to you. The debt was between you and her father, and he’s dead. So that’s the end of it. I don’t appreciate being threatened, either personally or professionally.”
“Who said anything about threats?” Declan holds his hand up in mock surrender.
“Cut the shit, Callaghan. This meeting is over,” I tell him.
I stand from the table before he can. Anger flashes across Declan’s face before he schools his features into a neutral expression.
“Things could have ended much differently,” he says as he rises from his seat. He holds out his hand for me to shake, but I leave it hanging there.
”Stay away from Russian territory,” I tell him. “If you come anywhere near Emma or any of my properties, I will not be responsible for what happens.”
Declan stares at me with a look I can’t decipher, then turns to leave the restaurant, his goons following behind. As soon as he’s gone, my brothers enter the restaurant and we gather at the table in the back. Boris brings out more food for my brothers and Mikhail.
“Mikhail, when you’re done eating, get on the phone with Kolya,” I start. “I need him to dig more into Declan Callaghan. There has got to be something on him we can use for leverage. He’s too cocky for his own good.”
“You got it, boss,” Mikhail responds.
“Dmitri we need to increase security on all of our properties immediately,” I say as I direct my attention to my brother. “This also means the Beacon Hill and Watertown houses. I also need more security for Emma. Yuri is no longer an option.”
“What’s going on, Ivan?” Dmitri asks. He’s always the first one to ask questions.
Ignoring him, I continue. “Maksim, I need you to make sure all of our other operations stay on track for the next few weeks,” I say to my middle brother. “As a matter of fact, you’re now officially in charge of technology and research. Kolya will report to you.”
“Yes, Ivan,” Maksim says quietly.
“Grigory,” I say to my youngest brother.
“What’s up, Ivan?” Grigory asks around a mouthful of stroganoff.
“I want you to look into any legal means we can use against the Irish. Work with Dmitri and Maksim and ensure that everything is done within the letter of the law,” I tell him.
“Well that’s no fun,” Grigory says.
“I said the letter of the law, not the spirit, Grigory.” I smile at my little brother.
“That’s more like it.” Grigory smiles back.
