Page 85 of Dangerous Deceit

A small chuckle comes from Niko, but Cherry shoots a look at him, and he gives her a cocky grin. And me? I’m fixed on Tomo and Ronin. I’m surprised no one has thrown any punches, but from what I know about Akio, he ruled with violence. Tomo is probably avoiding that kind of response to prove a point. But I have to give Ronin credit for calling out our boss like this. It takes fucking balls, especially when he’s still earning his way into our group.

Dice curls his fists, and Cherry steps forward. I crack my neck, finding my gun.

But Tomo lifts a hand, and we take a step back.

“He’s right,” Tomo says to us. “But the funny thing is, thehangureare taking over the crime world, aren’t they?” Tomo narrows his eyes, leaning in closer to Ronin. “This is Vegas. You can’t live on honor out here, Ronin. If you don’t thrive on violence, youdie.” Tomo bares his teeth, showing the first hint of aggression I’ve seen from him in years. He punctuates each word of his final order: “Make. My. Deal. Happen.”

Cherry guards Tomo as they both walk back to the private elevators. Once they’re gone, Niko pops up beside Ronin.

“Didn’t know you had it in you,” Niko says. Ronin lights a new cigarette, and Niko smacks him on the back. “Good luck with the Ito-gumi. Seems like a lot of fucked-up history you’re dealing with. If you need help, let me know,” he jokes. “You know where to find me.”

For once, Niko is completely amused, a smile on his face, almost like he’shappyto watch the Ito-gumi and the Endo-kai go head-to-head. But as second-in-command, all he has to do is make sure theoyabun’sorders are carried out, no matter what that means. And yet, I wouldn’t be surprised if Nikowantsto see Ronin fail. After all, if Ronin is older than Niko, then he’s threatening Niko’s position as the nextkumicho.

Niko slips off, disappearing into the casino, leaving Dice, Ronin, and me alone.

As for me, I’m more sympathetic. I’m not jealous of Ronin’s position. Dealing with Akio like that must be a pain in the ass. I shake hands with Dice, then turn to Ronin.

“Kento wo inoru,” I say as we shake hands.Wishing you the best of luck.He’s going to need it.

I head out, relieved that this problem with the Ito-gumi emerged. Ronin’s got bigger shit to deal with than my love life, and that gets him off of my back. Vi and her lies are a secondary issue now.

The urge to see Vi grows in my chest, but even the thought of her innocent blue eyes makes my brain mush. How the hell am I going to “take care” of her?

“Take care” only means one thing to the Endo-kai. I know what my duty is, and it makes me sick.

Kento wo inoru,I had said to Ronin. As if he’s the unlucky bastard who needs extra push of strength. I’m the one who needs it.

CHAPTER 37

VI

Hours go by.I call Uncle Jay, but it goes straight to voicemail. My throat is dry, and I don’t know what to do.

I check Kenzo’s office again, wondering if there will be a sign I’m doing the right thing, a hint it’s okay to lie to him because he’s the worst kind of criminal. But it’s locked, and that’s another bolt in my chest. Kenzo doesn’t trust me, and I know his judgment is right.

But screw it.Screw the job with our client. Screw our beach house. Screw it all. I just want to leave Vegas and forget any of this happened. I want to go back to researching and not think about how a yakuza man turned my entire life upside down.

I grab the handle to the front door, but it doesn’t budge. The keypad above the doorknob flashes red.

Kenzo locked me inside of his penthouse.

Did I lose my last chance to run?

This time, I scour the nightstand drawers, the shelves, the boxes, digging for an extra phone to unlock the door. I even try my own device, but nothing works.

I’m trapped.

The front door clicks, then swings open, and Kenzo’s singing floats through the air. For a brief second, I’m relieved—he’s in a good,normalmood—but then I notice the differences. The beat is off, a bit too slow to be natural, and his key is higher than usual. It’s like he’s thinking about something that’s troubling him, but he’s pretending like everything is fine. Which means he’s lying to himself.

And that scares me.

He pulls off his white jacket and throws it on the back of the couch. Blood splatters his dress shirt. My skin is clammy, and I’m faint. I know what that means, and god, I don’t want to face what I’m guilty of. Did the owner of Legendary Analysis die because of me?

“What happened?” I whisper.

Kenzo angles away, like he doesn’t want to pay attention to me, and it hurts. Does he know I lied? Is he willing to look the other way, or does he still suspect me? My throat is as dry as a desert, my senses on high alert.

“Business as usual, babe,” he finally answers. “Look, I want to give you the benefit of the doubt, but you need to make it easy for me.”

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