Page 96 of The Boss

He was right about that.

After taking a sip of his drink, he smiled. “I was correct in my desire to visit America. Perhaps I’ll insist on placing that on the top of my agenda.”

One thing I did know about the Armenians, they would stop at nothing to gain power, even if that meant doing so by entering another country. They were smart people. They knew better than to take on the Nomikos family. However, that didn’t mean I shouldn’t consider him dangerous. An opportunist. I’d need to keep that in mind in the days to come.

“I appreciate you coming here, both in offering condolences as well as providing insight.” Why did I have the sense he had more on his mind? “Is there something else, Davit?”

“Threats are a necessary evil in the business we work in, Dimitrios. I feel the pressure all the time. In fact, I’ve received recent threats from an unknown source. My car was shot at by an unknown source only a couple days ago. It is entirely possible we’re both targets, someone desiring to take away all that we’ve worked to achieve.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. We live in a dangerous world.”

“Yes, we do. Perhaps after your brother’s funeral we could confer on certain business items that could be of mutual benefit.”

I had the distinct feeling he was here only to test the water temperature. It would be foolish of me to say no at this point.

As I moved toward him, holding out my hand, he certainly wasn’t surprised I’d agreed. He accepted the gesture, lifting his glass after grasping my hand.

We drank together, the hard stare something we’d both been taught to do. I held no animosity toward him, but trust wasn’t something I could afford at this point.

“I must admit. Hearing you survived a shark attack was impressive. You’ve got balls, my friend.”

“All in a day’s work.”

“Yes, I can tell that.” He took another gulp of his drink before slowly walking to the bar, even taking the time to pour the rest into the sink.

“Say hello to your father for the family,” I told him.

“I’ll do that.”

In the corporate world of crime syndicates, we were similar to any Fortune 100 company in the money we made, the clout we carried, and the influence we wielded like a weapon. Corporate moguls had enemies. While many pushed pens in their acts of devastation, the damage they could do equaled ours.

People mysteriously disappeared or were killed even in their illustrious and supposedly squeaky clean world. However, the acts taken were usually far less bloody and violent.

Usually.

There were always new groups vying to be top dog. It was how you handled the situation that could increase or ruin your reputation.

What I’d learned from Davit’s visit was it was entirely possible we were both facing the same enemy.

However, that would remain to be seen. I wasn’t a stupid man.

Often information provided came at a significant price.

Now I just needed to determine if that was the case with my Armenian friend.

CHAPTER 25

“He who commends the brutalities of the past sows the seed of future crimes.”

—Robert Green Ingersoll

Dimitrios

Perhaps knowledge was king to winning any war. But if so, knowing when and how to use acts of brutality was prince.

It was a phrase and a concept I’d coined a long time before. I’d heard stories about serious acts of violence from generations past, but over time, violence only solved a portion of whatever conflict you were in.

For me, intuition and following my instincts had been my two greatest attributes. My gut was telling me the planned deal needed to be pushed forward. With the funeral being in the morning, additional groundwork would be laid for an afternoon announcement.

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