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“I suppose you’re right. But I wanted to get your attention. I trust I have it?”
I said nothing, rage boiling inside me, an anger I’d never known before. Nico threatening Georgia and the girls had unlocked something inside of me, something I wasn’t sure I’d be able to put away.
“If I don’t have it, let me try this.” I heard footsteps, followed by the sound of a door opening, then the sound of horrible, blood-curdling screams.
“How’s this, boss?” called out a voice.
The whirr of a power tool sounded out, followed by a horrified “no, no!” from whatever poor SOB was on the receiving end of the thug’s special “skills.” More screaming followed.
The move was a common tactic of Nico’s. Whenever he wanted to intimidate someone, he liked to walk in on one of his punishment sessions. I’d never been on the receiving end of this particular tactic, but damned if it didn’t have an effect.
“You’re going to go somewhere quieter if you want to have a normal conversation,” I said.
“Fair enough.”
“No, Nico!” shouted the man. “Tell him to stop, please tell him to—”
The door shut, the voice cutting out.
“Now, where were we?” Nico asked. “Ah, yes, I was preparing to tell you the reason why I called.”
Part of me wanted to deny that I had a family, but the idea only lingered in my mind for a moment. If Nico knew, then he knew. And few people could see through a lie like he could.
“I want to know why you left.”
I grit my teeth. There was still the matter of whether or not he knew I’d been the one to tip off the cops. Was he trying to trip me up? For all I knew, he was simply mad that I’d left without saying a word to him. I had to play it smart.
“You know why. That kid.”
He snorted. “That’swhat this is all about? You severed our relationship, left to go to the other side of the country, all because of somekid? Jesus, if it was about money or some such, I’d understand. But a no-namekid?”
“It’s more than that. You wanted me to break my Hippocratic oath. I wasn’t about to do that.”
“Please. You’ve been working with me for years, being a good little boy while you stitch up bullet wounds and knife injuries and whatever else. And now you want to tell me that out of the blue you got a wild hair up your ass, grew a conscience, and decided to leave? No, something isn’t adding up.”
He went on. “Either way, I’m not happy with what you did. What happened to obligation, Alexandros? Or gratitude? After all, you’re only where you are because of me.I’mthe one who recognized your genius, pulled you out of a life on the streets;I’mthe one who sent you to the best schools this country has to offer. Everything you have in your life is because of me, even that cute little blonde thing of yours and those two precious babies.”
The mere mention of Georgia and the girls coming out of his mouth was enough to make me wish Nico was right in front of me so I could rip his throat out with my bare hands.
“Get to the point, Nico.”
He chuckled. “Never been one to respect authority. You know, I’ve killed men for speaking to me the way you just did. But I digress. What matters now is what you do next. As far as I’m concerned, you still owe me, Alexandros. You owe me for all of the time and money I put into you. To that end, I want you back in New York by the end of the month.”
“Not going to happen.”
He chuckled mirthlessly. “I figured you might say something like that. So, I have a deal. You come back to New York, bring your little family for all I care. But you’re giving me five more years. I want five more years. Once that’s done, you can fuck off forever for all I care.”
There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that this was bullshit. Nico never let people go. Hell, the only reason my father had gotten out of the organization was because he’d died. Once Nico had me back in the city, I was certain he’d use my nearness as a way to make sure I never left again. I wouldn’t even put it past him to threaten my family as a way to make me stay. Not a chance I was going to let that happen.
“No.”
“No?”
“You heard me. When I left New York, that was my way of telling you that I was done.”
“Not even a two-week notice. Not very professional or courteous of you. I would say that your father should’ve raised you better than that, but then again, he really wasn’t around for long enough to do much raising, now was he?”
Nico was pushing my buttons, trying to get a rise out of me.
