“It’s fine, Archangel,” Klaus said, pulling my attention back to him. “I simply was greeting our other family.”
I grunted. I’d let it go, but fuck, I wish Church was easier to deal with.
“Since I know you’re going to ask, the horsemen are doing just fine,” Church said, finishing his slice of pizza and wiping his mouth. “Lorenzo has been no trouble at all. He has delivered each thing I ask for without question and does as he’s told. If I didn’t know he was a mafia don, I’d say he’s the perfect neighbor, aside from all the murdering and drugs he does.”
We rarely spoke about the horsemen. In fact, it had been ages since I’d asked anything about them. From time to time, I’d see Enzo in the news. Women fawned over him, but from all I understood, he was single and never spotted with any of them.
I knew from a long time ago that he and the horsemen didn’t want me with Rosalie. They didn’t know she was mine the moment I took her out of that damn city, and they were a big determining factor on why she hadn’t been back to do a show there yet. Alex from Trackmaster Records had been riding my ass for three years about getting her into Chicago again. He said it was her roots. I pointed out that Detroit was her roots, and we had already played Little Caesars Arena twice, with both shows sold out.
He wanted Chicago, though.
I couldn’t fight him off any longer, so Chicago it would be. When I’d told Rosalie, she’d looked sick, but she held her head up and said she’d get through it.
I didn’t anticipate any issues since Church was all over it like flies on shit.
Two nights. Two shows. Then we’d leave it behind and hopefully skip it again on the next tour we did, when she dropped her third album.
That was the plan anyway, and part of my deal with Alex about it.
He was typically good when it came to his word, so I kept the hope alive that we’d be in and out without having to look back. Although it was Carter George who made the ultimate call, since he technically owned Trackmaster.
“That’s good to hear,” I muttered, catching the side-eye Ryder gave me.
“It is.” Church nodded. He was quiet for a moment before he spoke. “Does Rosalie ask about them?”
“No. Not really. Of course, she likely thinks about Cole, considering Ellis, but out of all of them, I think E is the one she thinks about the most. I caught her looking at his social media a few weeks ago. She said she was just wondering what he was up to.” I swallowed, remembering how red her cheeks got.
I didn’t mind her checking in on E, and I even told her as much, but she’d apologized anyway. I suggested that if it would make her feel better, she could reach out to him and ask how he was doing. I’d told Evan about it, and he agreed. He’d come a long way when it came to the horsemen. He didn’t seem to hate them. He only seemed indifferent these days. Before, he didn’t even want to be in that life. Now, I was sure if he went back to it, he’d dominate, and Enzo wouldn’t know which way to look because Evan was every-fucking-where. He would likely be a huge asset to Enzo now that he’d gotten over a lot of his trauma from the underground. He’d gone a bit darker, but was still soft for our girl.
It didn’t matter, though. Everyone was free to do whatever made them happy. I knew going into this relationship with Rosalie that she’d maybe someday reach back out to the horsemen. That was a decision that was hers alone to make, especially since she had Ellis now. I knew she wanted her to know Cole at some point.
“What do you want to know?” Church asked. “I know a lot about all of them. I keep tabs on monsters in my city.”
“Cole still nuts?” Ryder asked with a laugh.
“Crazier than before, yes,” Church replied. “Enzo too. He’s likely a lot darker than any of you remember him being, but going through what he has is likely the reason for that. He deserves it, though.”
“The kid?” I asked. “Did he keep it?”
“Yes.” Church nodded. “It’s a boy. His name is Lazarus Constantino De Luca. He’s a few months older than our little ballerina. He does not have much of a life outside of the horsemen’s home. Not like Ellis has.”
I nodded at that, assuming it was because they didn’t want him in the spotlight to be a target. That’s how we were with Ellis, for different reasons, of course, but just the same.
“And how is Enzo?” I asked.
Church shrugged. “He’s a dickhead. He’s top of an empire. Cocky. Prickish. But he does stay in line. I appreciate that about him. Much like the kings.” Church glanced at Klaus, who remained expressionless. “Anyway, Dominic and the kings are fairly quiet. They have their arrangement with the horsemen, stick to their side of the city, and all is well. It’s almost paradise.” A wicked little smile cut his lips upward. “Almost. We do have the Virelli family back in business, so that’s been… interesting.”
“I’m sure in the underground with you it is,” Ryder said. “You’re still punishing people, yeah?”
“Of course.” Church reached out and grabbed another slice of pizza. “Our job is to ensure monsters don’t roam free. At least monsters who make it their life’s work to hurt others with rape, torture, and lies. I don’t fucking like liars.” He bit into his pizza again, and I blew out a breath.
“So E? How is he?” I asked. E was an addict, and I often wondered if it had ever caught up to him. He was known as the sugar daddy. The inventor of sugar, a drug that was non-addictive and non-traceable. It was worldwide at this point, and many entrepreneurs tried to replicate it, but no one could do it as E could. At least that’s what I’d heard. Even Rosalie’s band smoked it, and I would be lying if I said I didn’t partake from time to time. E was at the top of his game and likely a damn multi-millionaire at this point in his life, if not a billionaire.
“Doctor Ethan Masters is good,” Church said. “Quiet. A little spooky. Not the sort of character I’d want to run into in a dark alley, but overall, he is doing well for himself. I have heard he no longer does drugs. Has a PhD in medicinal chemistry and does some work at Mayfair from time to time. He simply makes drugs now and has created quite an impressive empire. I suppose having children can change a man.” He winked at me.
I had no idea what he was talking about, but I didn’t dive into it. Maybe Rosalie had told him we were trying for a baby, or maybe Asylum and his damn all-seeing eye had said something to him.
The door to the bedroom opened, and Evan came out, holding Rosalie’s hand. She blushed when she saw everyone sitting in the living room.
