Page 80 of Lord of Vice

They looked at each other and nodded but Diego addressed it. “Every assassin has that branded into their skin.”

“My second on command was able to determine the ones who planned the attack in my resort were brutal Mexican criminals in some prison down there.”

“Typical,” Diego said, he and his brother nodding. “They hire men who are little more than heinous beasts, training them to be bloodthirsty assassins.”

“Do you have any idea who they’re working for? Or are we talking about various syndicates throughout the world?” My anger and lack of patience were only increasing.

The two men were thoughtful for a moment, but I sensed they were sizing me up.

“What we’re about to tell you isn’t widely known and it needs to stay that way,” Diego added.

“As you might imagine, Diego, I’m not the kind of man to play games. If I’m a target of some asshole, I need to know by whom and why.”

“While we’re uncertain of their real name, in the dark bowels of the internet, they’re called the Death Squad. Before you ask, we’ve been looking into the highly organized and very dangerous organization for almost two years,” Dante started.

“They are some of the most powerful people in the world who formed an alliance well over twenty years ago to begin gaining more power in several industries: oil to world banks, the tourism and movie industry, the currency market and as you might imagine, defense systems and computer technology. They are well funded, highly secretive, and hire highly trained assassins to do their dirty work. From what we know, criminals are their favorites as often they have no family to worry about.”

I glared at Dante, trying to resist bursting into laughter as I sat back against the seat, looking from one to the other. “Okay. You heard this on dark web chatter?” I couldn’t believe they were buying a story like that.

“No, Kraven. We’ve had our own personal experiences with several of the assassins, which prompted us to look deeper into the organization.”

“The members are?” I prompted.

“Anyone and everyone who enough money to buy their way into the organization,” Dante said almost in passing.

That didn’t tell me shit at this point.

“Fine. Let’s say I’m buying this, which has yet to be determined. Why do they want me dead?” I was almost amused but could tell they were deadly serious.

“Because you’re now the leader of one of dozens of powerful mafia families in the world. If our intel is correct, they’re attempting to rid the world of certain elements in society.”

“Do-gooders?” I teased.

Diego laughed. “No. They’re merely targeting potential rivals.”

I lifted my eyebrow as I studied Dante. “Really? That’s a tall order. Why bother?”

“They are well aware of the danger in keeping us alive, Kraven. They don’t want any complications.” Diego was shifting his drink from one hand to the other. “I’m not telling you that all the issues you’ve experienced over the years have to do with them, but your wealth and control of this city is widely known.”

After taking a sip of my drink, I still had no idea what to think about what they were telling me. “I’ve had some issues with Gray Death recently. So has a buddy of mine. Any relation?”

“We’ve had some issues as well as I mentioned,” Diego said. “We’re not certain if they are using that as a ploy or if it’s nothing more than some of the smaller cartels trying to make an inroad into the United States. However, you should be cautious about selling the drug.”

Dante’s warning was well understood. “I have no intention of it, gentlemen, and you’ll need to accept my apology if I call this horseshit. Or in my native country,konskoye der’mo.”

Diego grinned. “Donkey shit. We heard you were quite formidable, which is why we’ve also come to extend you an offer as well as provide you with at least some information that might help keep your empire intact.”

“I’m curious. How would you know that phrase? Do either one of you speak Russian?” I was more than curious.

It was Dante’s turn to grin. “We have a Russian in our alliance who uses the phrase often.”

The term alliance was used. Not employee. Not soldier. Not ranking men. “So it’s true what I hear. You’re both involved witha group of men in our line of work who have formed a friendly organization to help watch each other’s backs. Yes?” When they seemed surprised, I laughed. “I pay attention to the dark web as well, although I must admit up until this point, I hadn’t heard about this Death Squad. Catchy name.”

“Very observant, Kraven. Yes. The Brotherhood is what we call ourselves. While it wasn’t our brainchild, the group was formed years ago by the leader of the Kansas City mafia and a close friend of his. It’s expanded over the years mostly because the alliance works, proving helpful in several ways but in our minds, now it’s become necessary to continue expanding our ranks to battle this other group.”

“A group you know nothing about other than what you’ve heard on the dark web.”

Diego was smirking as he pulled a piece of paper from the same file Dante had. “Do any of these names ring a bell?”

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