“Yes. Is that a problem?” His gaze is hard and challenging like he’s faced shit recently for being the son of an asshole of a mafia man who went away for life about five years back. His girlfriend at the time got a little nosy and wondered where all the millions came from. Turns out she was an undercover cop looking to take down the organization from the inside. All she managed to do was shift the power from one Constantine to another. My father went on about it for a while.
“It seems the better Constantine is running the show now,” I say and he seems to be shocked by my opinion.
“My father had a few run-ins with yours. From the way my father described their dealings, Constantine senior wasn’t a nice man.”
He takes another long puff on the cigarette before stomping it out underfoot. “I can’t contest it. Arrogance destroys a man’s judgment.”
“The same goes for women, too,” I confess. “I thought I could take on the world by myself and I forgot I could ask for help.” I look at my men and the understanding in their expressions tells me all I need to know.
“That is why we are here. There’s a war coming to Chicago. I would stay out if I were you. Take that as the helpful advice it’s meant to be. We're going to kick a big nest of killer wasps and the queen bitch who commands the tiny soldiers loves the taste for blood.”
I pucker my lips. “Dramatic much.”
“You would agree if you knew who we were talking about.”
Shayne wraps an arm around my shoulders and tucks me into his side. “Who’s the unlucky bastard catching your wrath?”
“Heard of Society 69?”
A wave of curses rolls through my men. “Yeah, we know. They’ve wanted us as the middle men in their deals for a long time. You think you can take them down?”
That is Jasper. His face hardens and the look of pure rage passes over his expression before he locks his emotions down. He doesn’t want to scare me, I realize. But he doesn’t have to protect me from the ugliness of the world. I know a lot. And what I don’t know I’m willing to learn.
“I’ve heard of them,” I offer. “The leader of the Belladonnas has had issues with them. Ivy, the leader, warned me before I did my trial interview with her about the kind of trouble we could run into on the streets. There’s a whole list of who not to steal from and I recognize the name Society 69 in parenthesis next to some powerful names.”
A light goes off in Harlon’s eyes. “We could use those names, if you have that list.”
“I’ll give it to Jasper. He can see that you get it.”
Harlon Constantine holds a hand out. I don’t know if he wants me to shake it or put the diamonds in it so I wait for one of my men to tell me.
“It’s okay, Luna. Give him what he came here for.”
“I’m sorry to part with these, but at least they are going to help clean the streets. After you get done with Chicago, maybe think about Seattle.” I look to Jasper, Shayne and then Voss. “Maybe I’m out of place in saying it, but I think these streets could use a good sweeping, too.”
“No doubt,” he says and then he opens the bag and takes out three diamonds. He drops each glittery stone into my open palm. “For the information.” With that the man and his friends glide back into the shadows he stepped out of like fucking ghosts.
“That was freaky. Let’s get out of here before something else comes out of the darkness.”
“Harlon is a lot of things and freaky is one of them. He took over Genesis back in Chicago and he’s recently opened up a branch here.”
“I’ve never heard of it.” I move the loose stones around in my palm a million ideas of what to do with them running in my head. I’ll need to get that list from Ivy for starters. I don’t have a photographic mind, but I do have sticky fingers if she can’t find a way to part with the names.
“It’s a club for bad guys is the easiest way I can describe it. But we can talk about that later.”
That is Shayne. He hasn’t let me out of his arms and from the look on his face he doesn’t have talking at all in mind.
My men take me back to the elevator and press the button that lands us a few floors below The Society.
“Where are we headed?”
“Our place. We have a lot of talking to do.”
Voss tilts my chin up and kisses me while his brother holds me to him. “But first let’s get you out of those shoes.”
Voss grips my ass and lifts me up, using the back wall of the elevator as support for my back.
“Mm, sounds nice.” I kiss him, and tap the ends of our noses. Shayne is on my left and Jasper calmly comes to my right. I’m surrounded by men my father never wanted me to know, but I have never felt safer in their presence.