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"Romanov’s an arrogant son of a bitch. He thinks he’s smarter than everyone."
"That he does."
"He thinks he can do whatever he likes in this city and I suspect he'll welcome you into the fold if you approach him personally. You have background in security. You could provide security for their operations in return for them laying off your family's business."
I considered.
"Your uncle Donny had a love-hate relationship with the Romanovs. They knew it but they used him anyway. You could go to them and offer your services, say you want to go after the DA for arresting Donny and for Sean's death. If you could get them to start planning a hit against the DA, we could use that to take Sergei down."
"I was going to try to keep as far as I could from the Romanovs," I replied—but, of course, I was already planning how to get revenge. "What are you thinking I should do?"
"Make the offer of services. Use it to get in closer. They'll understand your wanting revenge against the DA. In the meantime, we'll coordinate with the local police to put some protection in place for your father and brother just in case anyone outed you, but then we want you to get in close to your uncle's old contacts in the family."
I considered. "I’m willing to do whatever it takes to break ties between my family and organized crime. And if the Romanovs were involved in my uncle's arrest, then all the better."
"We want you to go undercover."
"I have no clandestine training."
"We have an excellent training program," he said firmly. "Besides, you won't really need the full training. Maybe a couple of weeks, tops."
"It's hard to be away for a couple of weeks," I replied. "What's involved?"
"Basic clandestine techniques so you know how to handle yourself. What we really want you to do is befriend your uncle's contacts in the Romanov family. Find out what's going on," he said. "Look, you're a soldier. One of the best. Special operations forces. We'll send you in and you'll give him to us."
I sighed and took a sip. “Everyone knows that I don't approve of my family ties to the mafia. I'll have to convince them that I had a change of heart."
Gladwell shook his head.
"You can pull a Michael Corleone and pretend you want to protect your father and need his help. You can say you want revenge against the DA."
"I’m a businessman," I said, fighting it a bit longer, although I had already decided to take their offer. "I'm not an undercover FBI agent."
"Oh, you won't be an actual agent," he said and chuckled. "You'll get training and be part of an off-the-books program that isn't directly tied to the FBI or any government agency. We don’t want to get our hands dirty, but we need people who can roll around in the dirt with the animals."
"Thanks," I said, frowning at the way they described my uncle.
Gladwell eyed me. ”I understand your younger brother’s currently linked to several questionable people in Las Vegas. We may or may not have evidence that he's been involved in some illegal activities."
I glanced up at him. “Are you threatening me?”
“I'm only making suggestions.”
I sighed. I wanted my family to be safe and certainly didn’t want them to be in danger because of my actions at the bank.
"I need to think about it."
"I’ll wait for your answer. You have exactly five minutes. You either sign this offer for operations training or you and your family are on your own and your baby brother may be taking a trip to the local lock-up."
"What about rules of engagement? If I have to get down with the dogs, I might have to get dirty. What can I do to protect myself? Prove myself to them?"
"Wide open," Gladwell said. "But you have to have pretty good reason if you use lethal force. Of course, if you get caught, we may have to pick you up, put you in jail for a few days or weeks, just to make it look legit. I'm sure as a Marine you've been through hell and back. If anyone can take it, you can."
I nodded.
Of course, I said yes. It wasn't just that I wanted to protect Conor and my father. It was that I wanted revenge.
I wanted to make Spencer pay for his role in bringing my uncle in on trumped-up charges. Sure, he was dirty, but in the greater scheme of things, my uncle was a flea on a gorilla's ass compared to the Romanovs.
