Page 9 of Chasing Danger

“Mediate,” Alex said with an exhausted edge to his voice. “Convince the Russians to communicate with me. Help me figure out what I need to do or give them to avoid this war. Mentioning your name was the only way I got them to speak with me at all. They’re going to be sending someone to meet with me here in Baltimore, and I need you there at the meeting to help smooth things over.”

Taking a deep breath through my nose, I forced my pulse to slow down. So far it seemed like a salvageable situation. It wasn’t even that complicated. A broken deal could be fixed.

There was just one detail in Alex’s entire explanation that confused me.

“Why Baltimore?”

As far as I knew, the Russian Mafia had no special connection to this city.

Alex waved one hand in the air like he was batting away an annoying fly. “I have no idea. They wouldn’t tell me why it had to be here. Just gave me a time and a place to show up. The whole thing smells like a trap, but not showing up isn’t really a choice at the moment.”

My first instinct was to immediately agree to help Alex. Out of everyone in the room, I had the most to lose, and I wanted it settled as quickly as possible.

It was precisely because I had the most to lose, however, that I had to be cautious.

“Alex,” I said, keeping my voice soft. “I want to help you, but you must realize how risky it is for me to get involved. If things go badly…”

I didn’t need to finish my statement. Everyone in the room knew what was at stake.

Alex nodded. “I know, but I need your help with this. However, I don’t expect your assistance for free. I’m here to make a deal with you.”

My interest was piqued. Since Alex knew how risky this situation was for me, he must have come armed with something valuable to tempt me.

“What kind of deal?” I asked, trying not to sound too eager.

Alex smirked. He knew he had my attention.

“Recently, you’ve been interested in branching out from dealing recreational drugs to medical ones. If you help me settle things with the Russians, I’ll bankroll that new project.”

When the head of the Mariano family came fishing for assistance, he certainly knew what bait to use.

The distribution of medical drugs had been a pet project of mine for years. For generations, my family had focused on dealing recreational drugs. Cocaine, heroin, meth, etc…

However, there were even more people in this country who needed regular access to medical drugs. It wasn’t just a matter of addiction. They needed these medications to stay alive. In other countries, where health care was free and medication was cheap, it wasn’t a problem. However, in America, many necessary medical drugs were very expensive.

If we could offer those same drugs at a cheaper price, we could make a fortune. Plus, unlike recreational drugs, medical drugs actually helped keep customers alive, so they could keep being customers and keep paying us.

There was plenty of potential if I could get it set up. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a lot of infrastructure for dealing in medical drugs. The big drug companies were determined to keep a hold of their monopoly, and finding a way to undermine them would require a big initial investment. I could technically afford it, but it would require draining my resources much more than I was comfortable with.

If Alex footed the upfront cost, however, I could probably get the whole operation up and running in a couple of years.

As I thought everything over for a few minutes, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Alex grinning at me. He knew he had me. I could pretend to mull the offer over as long as I wanted, but at the end of the day, I was going to agree to his deal. There was too much at stake for me to turn him down.

I glanced toward Eva and Gavriil. They also knew what my answer would be, and I could practically see the wheels turning in their heads as they made the necessary plans. First on the list would be to acquire a temporary residence in Baltimore. Negotiations with the Russian Mafia would not move quickly, and if they were insisting on meeting in Baltimore, then it looked like I would be calling this city home for a while as well.

CHAPTER 6

Oliver

I managedto catch the bus with only seconds to spare, slipping through the doors right before they closed. It had been a long day and I was tired, but I did not dare close my eyes. If I did, I might fall asleep and miss my stop, and I needed to get home as quickly as possible.

Some deity must have been smiling at me, because the bus actually managed to run on time for once. It dropped me off at the stop near my house, and I ran until the familiar front porch was in sight.

“Hey, Oliver,” Rowan’s voice greeted me as soon as I stepped through the door.

With one foot already on the stairs to the second floor, I froze in shock, then turned around. “Hey, Rowan. Having a good day today?”

My fifteen-year-old brother sat in his wheelchair in front of the living room television, watching Wheel of Fortune with Nana. His grin could have replaced the sun.

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