Page 113 of Dangerous Deceit

“Are you crazy?” Kenzo asks. “You’re not losing your finger.” He looks around. “Where is Ronin, anyway? Putting crazy ideas into my wife’s head?—”

“You saved my son,” Tomo says, locking eyes with me. “You’ve shown your loyalty to him, and I hope, one day, you will dedicate your loyalty to the Endo-kai too.” He bows his head deeper than before, and I blush. Saying something like that—offeringme,an amateur con artist, a spot inside of the Endo-kai—is a big deal. My insides turn to mush. “We’ll call it time served.” Tomo adds a wink, then he offers his hand. “We need another strong person like you on our side.”

Tears fill my eyes, and instead of shaking his hand, I give him a big, giant bear hug. Tomo jolts from the contact, and Cherry straightens protectively. But Kenzo laughs. Eventually, Tomo pats my back,almosthugging me back, and I’m okay again.

“All right,” Cherry says. “We get it. You’re happy. Now get off of my dad.”

“Sorry,” I mumble, but I can’t stop smiling.Thisis what a family is supposed to be like—being there for someone, even when they mess up—and it feels good. “I’m just relieved.”

Cherry gives me a half-smirk, and that, coming from her, is a victory. Dice nods at me. Kenzo laces his fingers in mine.

“Dice,” Tomo says, tilting his head toward him. “You handle the Ito-gumi’s courier, then call Niko. The two of you will take care of the storage facilities and find a new place.” He lets out along sigh. “We’ll have to change our security software too. What a fucking nightmare.”

Tomo’s phone vibrates.

“Ahh,” he says, looking down at it, then he answers the call. “Ronin?” There’s some talking on the other end of the line, then Tomo says, “We’ll take care of that next. For now, I want you to find thatwakashu.Take him to the maintenance site. We’ll meet you there in an hour.”

My stomach curdles. Without hearing the details, I know what that means. Tomo must be referring to the soldier with glasses, the one who gave the information to Jay.

Kenzo pulls me toward the door.

“We both need a shower,” he says. He scratches his jaw. “For our next place, we’ll have to get one of those big walk-in showers. Maybe one with an indoor hot tub too.”

I raise my brow, about to tease Kenzo about his moving habits, but then my eyes catch Tomo and Cherry heading toward their SUV, their expressions focused and ready to deal with business, and it’s like we’re cutting class while everyone else takes a test.

“Don’t we have to go to the maintenance warehouse? And watch?” I ask.Watch an execution.I’m dreading it.

Kenzo shakes his head. “You’ve already had enough of that for one day.”

My insides warm; he may not admit it, but this is how he’s taking care of me. Business can wait.

Outside, the rain drizzles on our skin, like the storm never really happened. The body is gone, and a stream of water dances between the rocks. I let out a breath, then clutch Kenzo’s hand. He kisses the top of my head. We walk toward his Challenger, and a few slivers of the pink sunset sneak between the storm clouds, promising that life moves on.

And so, we go home.

EPILOGUE

KENZO

one week later

Scrolls depictingthe deities of the sun, war, and thunder hang on the wall, with twelve candles lighting the altar in front of them. Vi is sandwiched between Tomo and me. Tomo and I wear the traditionalhaoriandhakama.A horde of business-suited yakuza surrounds us for the ceremony. I pour the sake into Tomo’s cup, then pour some into a smaller cup for Vi. Tomo drinks his sake, then nods to her, and she drinks hers.

Sakazukigoto,the sake sharing ceremony, is a ritual I have enduredmanytimes before.Begrudgingly.Mostly as a guest, but once as the newestkobun,and another time when I joined the leading ranks of the Endo-kai as thesokaiya.Usually, I hate this ceremony. It means sitting for a long time. Waiting for outdated rituals to finish. Sake sipping, instead of sake bombs. But with Vi, it’s different. This is more important than a wedding; it promises that Vi, despite her history with us, is dedicated to the Endo-kai. She’s officially part of our family now.

This is her blood oath.

Next, Tomo and Vi exchange cups, drinking each other’s sake, then Vi wraps her cup in a small piece of paper, tucking it in her pocket, an act that symbolizes her complete loyalty to Tomo. The two of them offer more sake to the deities represented at the altar, and even though it’s all formal and shit, I can’t stop humming along to “Sweet Emotion” by Aerosmith. We played the song on the way here, and it just fits. It’s true: I don’t care where we are in a year, as long as I’m with her.

Once the ceremony is over, I swallow my wife up in a hug and lift her off of the ground.

“You’re the fucking yakuza now, baby,” I laugh.

She smacks my shoulder. “Never would have believed a born-again virgin like me would end up here, working for a bunch of criminals, did you?”

I kiss her forehead. “Of course I did. You were practically born into this life. You just needed the right family.”

She giggles, and the whole yakuza, including the newest members, join us at the strip club for a celebration. The Gilded Stage is in full swing, and Tomo, like the party master he is, has the entire VIP section reserved for us for the night. Yakuza money is flying, the champagne is plentiful, and the strippers are happy.

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