It was Gabrielle’s turn to sigh. “He went to see where his truck might be just as I arrived. I wish I could have seen him, it’s been months since I last saw him. During our last mission, he was badly hurt. We all feared for his life. When he got better, he sort of vanished. It’s a long story.”
Deva knew about trauma and understood that sometimes, a victim could act out of character for a while. Time was of the essence.
Inching forward toward the coffee table, she grabbed a cracker and munched it, satisfied that her stomach was steady enough. “So, while I was out, what’s our status. What’s Finch up to?”
Aleksei leaned on the wall before her as Lazarus sat on a chair near the coffee table. Both men looked at each other before Aleksei’s brother finally started talking.
“After we talked, Aleksei and I, we started reaching out to our different contacts, trying to find out what was truly going on. Honestly, I thought that the objective of dear ol’ dad was to attack me through my brothers, which is still true, but the ramifications are more complex than that we realized.”
Her spoon halted mid-air as she looked at him. “I don’t like the way you are putting it, Oz.”
Aleksei pushed away from the wall and came to sit on the armrest beside her. “Eat, now.” And when she finally swallowed the spoonful of soup, he relaxed a bit. “What Lazarus is saying is after becoming a financial mogul as well as a strong political and economic influence both in the US and the UK, our father has decided to see if he could extend it some more. Starting with Chicago.”
“You mean the underworld? The different mob families? It’s not impossible, but very unlikely. Well, not that quickly at least. Unless there is a catch.”
Gabrielle turned to her. “Yeah, that’s the thing. It’s not clear enough, but he’s at play right now, mostly in Chicago, where very important families are established.”
Deva pondered on it. “He said he wanted to get close to my father. The MC world is a bit different, doesn’t work exactly the same way as the mafia.”
Gabrielle nodded. “Yes, but if he’s after influence, he would need someone like your father on his side. It would be a good starting point.”
Deva agreed. “MCs walk a parallel line, they are brawn with tactics and an agenda. One known only to them, that’s what makes them tricky. Not like the Bratva or the Yakuza, that are more organized. They are the one treading the line between the illegal and the political. They have done it for a long time.”
Aleksei touched her arm to make her look at him. “I couldn’t talk directly to my Pakan, but I’m close enough to have a sense of the situation. Lazarus is right, something is unsettling the families, but everybody is keeping their cards very close to their vests. Even internally.”
Gabrielle got to her feet. “We’ll put our ears to the ground, see what we can find here.”
Deva let herself lean back on the sofa, looking at the yellowish ceiling. “If the word hadn’t got out yet, that means this is big, and unless you are in the inner circles, you won’t get anything.” Possibilities swirled in her mind as she judged which one may be the best course of action. “Any confirmation that my name has popped up as newly resurrected?”
Aleksei shook his head. “Bratva doesn’t really discuss MC business, but I can check.”
Lazarus rubbed his beard. “I’ve got a few feelers out, and so far, I haven’t had any confirmation. I can recheck, though.”
Deva didn’t like it. “Bratva isn’t that close to MCs, if you try to get information, you’ll raise weird flags.”
Gabrielle frowned. “True. Neither are the Yakuza nor the Chinese. I can check with the Italians, and the Romanians, even the Irish mob, but my links are sketchy nowadays.”
Deva pushed herself up and winced. It was as if her body had rusted while she was unconscious. “Where’s my phone?”
Aleksei crossed his arm, suspicions all over his face. “What are you up to?”
“There’s a Puerto Rican fighter I need to speak to. And if I’m very lucky, we might get the answers we need.”
