Page 7 of Lord of Vice

“Do we have any concrete evidence the kid was working for anyone?” I asked.

“You mean other than large sums of money deposited into his bank account starting four months ago?” Konstantin asked in his usual snarky way.

“Why would a smart kid be that stupid not to open up another bank account that wasn’t attached to his earnings from the casino?” Misha asked the question that had been rolling around in the back of my mind.

“Valid question,” I muttered and took a sip of my whiskey, curious as to what the girl had ordered. She was already gobbling up the free breadsticks, dousing them with water. She appeared as if she was starving, eating way too fast.

“Kids are stupid and arrogant,” Konstantin suggested.

“True, but this kid was also no stranger to breaking into a vault. Someone trained him.” Dima’s words were also very true.

“We need to find him so I can have a lengthy discussion with the brat.” I rapped my fingers on the table, furious that the kid beenable to disappear within minutes of being seen on tape. My men had raced after him, but he’d fled the scene as if a ghost.

That meant someone had been his accomplice.

I had a bad feeling his actions had been for an entirely different reason than simple theft.

“We’re trying, boss,” Misha hissed.

“I have our best trackers out. He won’t be able to take a shit soon enough without us hearing about it.” Dima laughed, lifting his glass to the waitress as she walked in our direction, twisting his finger to indicate another round.

Konstantin munched on his calzone, tomato sauce dripping down his chin. I shook my head when I noticed, hating messy eaters. I always had. It was one of many quirks that I’d been labeled with over the years.

That was in addition to the fact I enjoyed violence more than most men. So what? I was damn good at what I did. Now some would call me soft, which was likely why the kid had made the hit in the first place. It would seem I’d need to make an example of him.

Sighing, I couldn’t help but notice the girl had ordered a large pizza and at least one other order. She wasn’t just hungry. She was famished. I did love a girl who could eat, not some stick-thin chick who refused anything but a salad. Who wanted a bird in their bed?

I couldn’t seem to take my eyes off her or the way she was chowing down. In my experience, girls who ate so fast had issues in their lives, including possibly running from someone. I certainly didn’t need to get involved with any messy situationbut if there was one thing I couldn’t tolerate it was brutality against a woman.

“You with us, boss?” Konstantin asked at least four minutes later.

The waitress blocked my view of the girl as she brought another round of drinks. She’d been flirting with me since we walked in and she was pretty but I would adhere to my rule of not mixing business with pleasure.

No matter how enjoyable the experience might be.

“I’m here. We need to find David and find out who he’s working for. Once we do, we’ll remind the other players in town that we control. Period.” I took a swig of my new drink, realizing that I might need to find out from another connection about any gossip on the street. I had a feeling whoever was behind the theft was just beginning an attempt to destroy my regime. That didn’t sit well with me.

“Agreed,” Konstantin said through clenched teeth.

I rose from the table. “I need to make a phone call. I’ll be right back.” I took long strides through the small restaurant toward Tony’s small office, stopping long enough to admire the beautiful woman. She’d eaten a significant portion of the food she’d ordered, the waiter already bringing to-go boxes.

As I headed into the office, I immediately pulled out my phone, dialing an old buddy of mine.

“Kraven, my man,” he answered on the second ring. “Long time no hear from.”

“Yeah, I know. I wish I could say this was a social call, although you should make a trip to Sin City every once in a while.”

Zach chuckled. “I’ve been as busy as you have. What can I do for you?”

“I need to find out what you heard on the streets in Reno about new blood coming into Vegas.”

“Sure, that’s an easy request. What’s up?”

“I have a feeling someone thinks they can overthrow my regime.”

He laughed heartedly. “I guess they’ll soon learn facing your wrath isn’t in their best interest.”

Now I laughed with him. “Maybe it’s long overdue I provide a reason why not to fucking cross me.”

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