Page 175 of Fall Before Her Throne

Ryuji gave me a mock-salute. “Can I bend her over the balcony and fuck her?”

She inhaled sharply and smacked his chest.

I smirked. “Save it for when we get home.” She paled, and I tweaked her nose. “Remember, you brought this upon yourself.” When she rolled her eyes, I gripped her cheeks. “I will redden your ass until you cannot walk. Behave yourself.”

Her eyes twinkled with mischief and lust. “Of course, my king.”

I couldn’t wait to be buried in her again. My thumb drew down her lips. “Temptress.”

“He’s on the move,” Max said. He and I peeled off from our group, following the police commissioner as he made his way to the balcony alone. “We’re approaching.”

“Be ready to run if necessary,” I murmured while I straightened my tuxedo.

“Everything is ready if we need a distraction,” Ciel added.

“The event is about to get started,” Wynn said. “We’ll keep an eye out for Greco while you two talk with the commissioner.”

The commissioner had been avoiding my communications. I know he received them because Ciel hacked his systems, which is how we knew he had been in direct contact with Greco. This would be his last chance to respond to my favor. If he did not, we’d expose the blackmail we had against him.

“Michael Drake,” I said as I stepped up beside him. Max drew closer on his other side, so the two of us cornered him against the balcony railing. His head snapped up in surprise. “You have been avoiding me.”

Drake stepped backward and bumped into the railing. “Obi. What the fuck are you doing here? Do you have any idea what this event is?”

I chuckled. “Do you? You’re outwardly associating with a known international crime lord.”

He scoffed. “Hardly. Piero Greco might be throwing this event, but it’s all formalities and politics. Run of the mill in this city. Attending a party isn’t a crime. The mayor herself is here. Are you accusing her of corruption?”

“I’m not here to talk about the mayor.” My voice lowered. “I’m here to talk about you and the favor you owe me.”

He blanched. “I was going to⁠—”

“You get one chance, Drake,” I said, holding up my index finger. “One chance to do what I’ve asked of you. If you refuse, we will expose you and the work you hired us to do.”

“That was years ago. You can’t⁠—”

“I can, and I will.” I leaned closer. “I know that you’ve been talking to Greco already. If I was going to accuse anyone of corruption, it would be you.”

Drake swallowed. “He’s offered me a ridiculous amount of money for my department to turn a blind eye. How am I supposed to turn that down? It would set my family up for generations.”

I shrugged. “Take his blood money, but also know that I will expose what kind of man you are. Your family will not appreciate your incredibly dirty laundry becoming everyone’s business. You might receive enough money to set them up for generations, as you say, but what will that be worth when your entire world hates and reviles you?”

His jaw worked while he considered the ramifications of my threat.

“This is what I need from you. You will order your department—from every chief to every officer—to go after Greco and his men. You will work with my Shadows specifically to capture Greco and either kill him or deport him. You will arrest every single one of his known associates. You and your department will stop accepting his bribes. It ends now. Tonight.”

Drake turned to Max. “And you, Max Volpe, long believed to be part of the Five Families. Is your presence here tonight confirming your criminal nature?”

Max shrugged. “As you said, it’s not a crime to attend a party. I’d be much more concerned about the offer right in front of you. Take it or leave it, but we’re not leaving without an answer.”

He stared at his feet while his fists clenched on the balcony rail. He might fume on the inside, but he knew he had no choice.

“Incoming,” Wynn said in our earpieces. “Greco is here. He’s on the move.”

“He’s headed toward the balcony,” Caspian warned. “Get out of there.”

“What will it be, Commissioner Drake?” I pressed. “Are you on my side? Or Greco’s?”

His back straightened as he found a backbone. “Why should I allow assassins such as you to influence me? Why would I bend to you?”