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“Likewise, sir.” He dipped his chin. The man had been raised by Tony’s family’s head of security, and we all wondered if he had been Mario’s secret son, but we wouldn’t ask out of respect. He never dropped his all business exterior, but we called him a friend.
Tony shook his head, refusing to drop the snippet I told him. They each had a phone that hung on opposite sides of the block we were kept in. “What happened with Lester?”
“Aside from his mouth that can’t seem to shut and trying to trip me, he let me know how much he’s seen, so I made it hard for him to see anything.” Shrugging, I didn’t need to be chastised for it. Costas lifted the corner of his mouth, loving how my logic worked.
But Tony? He paled. “You just got out of solitary, Draven! We need you out for visiting hours unless you plan to be in there forever. Our work will be useless if you can’t keep yourself in line to feed us information.”
“Don’t worry, Tony. My fist and finger work managed to put the guards in line too. He clearly saw my behavior as self-defense.” Turning, I waved at the man standing across the room from me, letting my friends see how he feared me. “By doing what I have has made my life easier in here, and I’m still free to gloat about it.”
Tony didn’t like it, but he knew better than to question it. Sitting a little stiffer, he’d never stop worrying over me, and I loved him for it. “Costas arrived yesterday after I bumped into Millie on her run. I have a firm base of entry from the outside to keep in touch with her, and Costas will begin following her to see where other openings are. We’re also still working on the other part, but we’re hoping this girl will be our ticket.”
“Just protect her,” I stated between them. “Sunshine is different. She needs… a guiding hand to give her more.”
“We’ll do our best, but you are my priority, sir.” Costas gave his standard reply. “I will be bugging her phone to track her better and to ensure she is safe. We just have to find our window to do it now that Tony has met her casually.”
“She’s perfect, isn’t she?” I asked my lover.
“Too perfect.” He cleared his throat and shifted in his seat. “I’ll contact you once we know more. Be safe in there, Dray.”
“My next empire was just built.” I winked, knowing no one would bother me anymore in here. After demonstrating my power over the last few weeks, they knew who the true alpha was in these cinderblock halls.
nine
Costas
“Are there any specifics I need to know?” I asked into my phone while laying out my clothes to fit into the dresser in the hotel room. Tony left because he needed to hit the grocery store for a few things, and I needed silence after my flight. Mario just wanted a quick update now that I arrived at the hotel and talked to both men about the circumstances. He needed a side job done while I landed myself in the prison. Someone needed silenced.
Speaking through a secure line, we were more able to speak frankly verses the code we often used like a second language. Someone hurt the second family we were devoted to protecting, so it rested on my shoulders to clean up the mess.
“No, and it can be as messy as you want. We’re not looking for clean on this, but he has information we need contained.” The message had been delivered. This fool had also been the one to mess with Draven right before I saw him.
“There’s one issue if you’re looking for this to be done in a timely manner,” I pointed out my small dilemma. “We’re still trying to figure out my in, and how we’re getting Draven out. The security is pretty tight there.”
“Infiltrate their ranks, even if that means creating an opening for the job. You know how to do the rest because I taught you how to do it. Focus on this job, complete the kill, and hopefully, an opening emerges for you to get Draven out.”
“Yes, sir.” Nodding my head, I tucked in the last drawer now that all my things had a place. Some would wonder if I had a military background, but I came from a militia one. Having my space clean helped keep my mind centered for the things that took priority in my life. Being a killer came with a certain code, so annihilating all distractions sat on my to-do list every day.
“Oh, and I’d rather the boys not know about this. Draven’s ego can be sensitive, and we don’t need the fight between him and his father over it. Lester holds details I can’t have getting out about our shipments.” “Understood. I’ll begin creating my identity to get hired and create an opportunity.”
“Have they already seen your face and fake identity?” he pressed like I was an amateur.
“Yes, but I used my other one with a beard, and I’ve been scrubbing their footage to erase Tony’s visits. He’s also using the proper I.D. I sent him with to keep his true name a secret. None of them understand how they’re connected.”
“Good. Keep me posted if anything else arrives.”
Hanging up, my life never stopped feeling so isolating. A tightness lived within my chest even though I knew I was protecting people I cared for. Nothing felt lonelier than being the man protecting everyone’s peace by sacrificing his own. No one understood because I couldn’t talk about it. After each kill, my mouth did a sabbatical with words in general, long enough for me to forget the rush of the kill.
Mario could never know, but it still sickened me when I watched the life leave someone’s eyes. I knew my place in this world, but I didn’t learn it until after being placed into the hell of it. Walking in, I thought there’d be angelic cherubs embracing me, but I only found I sold my soul to the devil. Being so young, I let myself be blinded from reality, but I wanted to know my father. Now that I did, I could never stop killing for him, and it wasn’t even out of my depraved sense of loyalty. No, this troubled my mind because I knew they’d kill me if I ever tried. My blood would never be enough to save me because it was tainted in the version of a bastard. They’d do it without feeling a single ounce of guilt, so I kept myself alive by being their favored soldier.
Before my self-deprecating thoughts could pull me too deep, the door to the suite opened. Somehow, I wandered out of my room toward the kitchen, but I didn’t remember doing it. A black smear brushed my brain like it always did when I spaced out and found myself in a new spot. Blinking, I tried to pretend like my mind hadn’t been caving in on itself as Tony carried in groceries and a bag of fast food.
“It’s been a few years since we were in the states together, but if my memory serves, you enjoyed Portillo’s.” Waving their famous chocolate cake shake in my direction, he got me something I mentioned in passing the last time we were here.
“You remembered?” The surprise could be read on my face.
“Costas, I swear, we do this show and pony each time I grab your dinner. Of course, I remember what you like. You’re my closest friend other than Dray.” Bringing me a bag of hot food too, I could smell the bacon burger from here. “One day, you’re going to accept that you’re one of us and not just a bodyguard my father sends to babysit me.”
He turned to leave me with that and began putting his groceries away in his Armani suit. The man had always been a character, but his kindness was one thing I’d die to protect. He might hate that I stayed formal when I greeted and worked with him, but he was one of few I held enough respect for to do it out of my wants. No obligation. No hierarchy he wanted me to fall in line with. He offered on more than one occasion for me to call him my friend, but I couldn’t. Something within me just couldn’t. It felt disrespectful to the kindness Antonio afforded me all these years.
