Page 37 of Emperor of Havoc

I spot Ryu across the room, his face dark as he talks with Yamamoto and a few other men Takeshi had been hovering around earlier. I find Nina, and ask her to come translate for me as I march across the room toward the group of men, my stomach twisting slightly.

When we reach them, Ryu’s frown deepens. He eyes me carefully as I step forward, chin lifted.

“Neither my father’s wishes, plans, nor leadership is changing,” I sign, Nina translating aloud. “The Ishida-kai will continue as it always has. All this marriage does is shore up our alliances and stop this from escalating into a war nobody wants. That’s it. The empire comes first.”

The men murmur amongst themselves, echoing the “empire comes first” line that Papa is so fond of.

I turn to Yamamoto. “What was my dear fiancé talking to you about earlier?”

The older man shifts a little uncomfortably. “Ms. Ishida?—”

“You have been allied with my father for years. I’d like an answer.”

Yamamoto exhales slowly, looking away. “I believe he was trying to…make friends with me, if you know what I mean.”

I do, but I’m not done with Yamamoto yet.

“No, I don’t,” I sign, waiting for Nina to translate. “Do you mean he was trying to fuck you?”

Yamamoto’s face darkens. “Excuse me?”

“Be. Specific.”

He coughs uncomfortably. “I believe he wanted us to be friends in the sense of forming an alliance within the alliance.”

That motherfucker.

We’re not even married yet, and he’s already trying to make side deals with my family’s top allies.

“Thank you for your honesty, Yamamoto-san.”

When the group disperses, Ryu lingers behind. He leans close, his voice low. “Takeshi is going to be a problem. I don’t trust him further than I could throw him.”

“Me either,” I sign back quickly. “He’s an opportunistic shit.”

“Who, specifically, are we talking about?”

I stiffen at the sound of Takeshi’s voice behind me. For a split second, I’m totally confused how he’s managed to insert himself into the conversation, before remembering thatsomehowthe fucking psycho has learned a decent amount of sign language in the span of a week or two. Which is…weird.

But then, a thought curls the corners of my mouth. I smile fake-sweetly as I turn from Ryu to face my smug-as-fuck fiancé.

“Who do you think we’re talking about?” I sign. This time, it’s inJapaneseSign Language, as opposed to the American version I typically use, since it’s far more widely understood.

Takeshi tilts his head to the side, his eyes piercing into me. My grin widens.

Got you there, asshole.

I'm starting to turn back to Ryu when Takeshi clears his throat. “Well, you said ‘opportunistic shit'. I could only assume you were fawning over yours truly.”

I stiffen and my eyes snap back to Takeshi, who's grinning widely, though his eyes sparkle with black malice.

“Oopsie,” he sighs. “Seems I may have accidentally learned all your secret code languages.” He looks past me to Ryu. “Surely there’s a decrepit old house that needs haunting, or a bridgethat’s in sore need of its troll back. Why don’t you run along and let me speak to my fiancée alone.”

I swear I canhearRyu’s teeth grinding. But the man is, above anything else, utterly self-controlled, like a samurai. So even if he's looking at Takeshi like he wants to murder him with a rusty spoon, he barely moves a muscle in his face.

“Ms. Mori…” he growls quietly.

“I’ll be fine, Ryu,” I sign back, glancing at him and giving him the briefest roll of my eyes. “I'll take care of him. Thank you.”

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