"I don’t think you understand, boy,” the flabby man across him said in condescension. Oh, Delian Leofric understood well. This loan shark thought his financial skills were better than the mafia that he decided to skim off the money he sends them.
Wanting to sound empathetic, the gangster boss said, “I don’t even profit from this anymore. I just do it since I know how people in Erebus are in need of money.” He pointed his golden-ringed finger at Delian. “Even people who work for you.”
He almost felt sorry for the man. Some people like him, when given a small amount of power, don’t realize they’re still pests in the grand scheme of an underground organization. So easy to get rid of and replace.
“Mr. Nikos, the police and justice system of this city also work for me. You know what happens after a few calls.”
The boss’s nostrils flared and his face turned red. “If you think you could threaten me with that, go to your daddy and cry to him about it.” Cheers and ridicule were heard among the other gangsters inside the opulent room with them. For a gang getting no profit, they sure do look tacky.
Looking back at his lone guard, he shook his head sadly. “I know, it’s a shame. Even my father wouldn’t be able to save you now. So what about this, since I hate wasting time?” He clasped his fingers together.
“We both hate talking to the suits and badges, so the easier way would be for one of your lackeys here to shoot you in the head, right now.” He studied each man as Nikos’ face contorted like the gargoyles by his balcony. “And why would they do that?”
Delian leaned in as if explaining algebra to a child. He replied, “Simply because that person will replace you and will get double the percentage.” He let the weight of his words settle in before going on, “Also, I would need a sharpshooter like that in my higher ranks.”
With an air of composure, Delian sat back in comfort like he was in his own home. The color drained from the gangster’s face as his eyes darted from one of his cronies to the other. The look of betrayal was starting to come out. He could see their resolves crumbling.
Delian continued, “It would be a lie if I said that I didn’t enjoy moments like these. But I need an answer now, so-”
Not even a second later, “Fine! Take the money! You-” Nikos stopped before he insulted the Leofric boy further. Surrendering, he said to one of his men, “Give Sir Leofric here the money so they can be on their way.”
Delian stood and buttoned his jacket without breaking his gaze. “Pleasure doing business, Mr. Nikos. You and the boys may see more of me in the future.” He extended his hand which was not reciprocated by the still-fuming Nikos.
Delian smiled softly and opened the door. Before leaving the room, he remarked, “Here’s the difference between us. If you said the same thing to my men, they would’ve shot you before you could even finish that sentence. Because they have half a brain to know that the offer was bullshit. And loyalty is not just a word to them.”
>>>
“You did well on the problem with Nikos.” Hector Leofric said as he pour wine into his son’s glass, “I heard he even added a few extra grand for the past money he stole.”
“Yeah, I may have said something about percentages,” Delian replied as he took a sniff of the red drink. “Chateau Lafite 1887? What’s the occasion?” He asked while the maids served dinner for the three people at the dining table. He eyed his stepmother questioningly as the latter grimaced at Hector.
“Your consigliori, son. It’s been decided. You’re going to meet him soon since he just came home from deployment.” And there it was. His life, now at the hands of the Council. Hector stated, “The Erinyes mafia was never manned solely by the Leofrics. We’ve always been assisted by the Council consisting of the other three families.”
“More like controlled,” Delian wanted to counter his father.
“You do realize that the families put their best foot forward to present candidates, right? So this person is possibly the finest among them.” The heir’s silence seemed enough for a satisfactory answer as he heard his father’s soft “Hmm.”
“The Council has provided you your right-hand man. All you need now is a wife, which they could also help you with.” Hector observed his heir for any sign of defiance, but his son was good at hiding it.
“I’m aware,” was all Delian could say for now. Being ambushed with this news definitely complicated things.
“Well, maybe Del here has a girlfriend. Why don’t we consider that?” His stepmother chimed in. Delian glanced her way as she pried, waiting for him to answer. His father cleared his throat. “Maybe that would change things. Son,” he said to get his attention, “do you have someone?” Delian wanted to say yes, just to see how the Council would react but decided it was not worth it.
“I don’t.” Delian turned towards Danae, the always-optimistic woman his father married for love. “Not everyone is as lucky as you two.” If anyone was offended, they didn’t show it since Danae just clasped her hands together as if making a wish. “Then let’s hope you find her soon.”
>>>
“I hope you wouldn’t talk to her like that.” Hector walked towards the mosaic windows of his office. “I know,” was all Delian said, pouring his fourth one. Or maybe sixth, he didn’t remember. “The Council was also the reason I met your mother,” Hector paused to look at a portrait obscured by a sheer, black cloth, “and everyone knew that Latona was the perfect woman. I did love her, and in some ways, I still do.”
Delian looked at the painting as well. Her kind smile still shone through the cover and it reminded him of how his childhood was: peaceful, bright, and hopeful. But now was not the time to reminisce.
“It doesn’t matter who becomes my wife. I’m more concerned about who they picked as my right hand. I might have to be careful around him,” he said jokingly. Time is wasted on caring about trivial things like marriage, he just hoped that whoever his consigliori would be won’t hinder his future plans.
Hector looked at his son suspiciously then warned, “Don’t challenge the Council, Delian. Your fight is not with them.” Delian gripped his glass until his knuckles turned white. His coward of a father can never go against the Council, even if it meant hurting those around him.
Delian got sick of all of it: his father’s gutless attitude, the all-too-imposing manor, and the endless waves of guards surrounding him. That’s why he found himself, alone, sipping a five-dollar whiskey at Ambrosia.
If it were not for the military woman, he would have gone to the more sketchy pub, Styx, and gambled away whatever he had on him. There was just something about her that struck a chord with him. In a good way or a bad way, he wasn’t sure.
The Leofric heir wanted to laugh at her reaction to seeing him. It wasn’t out of fear or anger. Rather, her furrowed eyebrows and widened eyes only showed signs of shock, like she was caught, and maybe even annoyance that he talked to her.
His lips curled to a smirk as he watched the stranger carelessly chug a whole mug of beer. Wanting to poke a bit of fun, he pushed on, “Marines?” The woman, no older than 25, pulled her cap to her nose and nodded at him. How Delian wished she’d remove that cap. He wanted to see more of her expressive eyes. The way she regarded and looked at him made the mafia heir feel like a regular guy.
“You can just call me Del, by the way.”
“You are?” He extended his hand, albeit groggily.
“Eirene.” What a beautiful name.
>>>
After some kicks and punches exchanged, Delian soon found himself stepping on a motionless Swede. “You guys came in at a really terrible time,” Delian tsked as he pressed his polished but now stained shoe deeper into the man’s shoulder, making the latter groan in pain. “And there I was, talking to a lovely girl.”
Despite the poorly-lit area outside, the dark liquid was evident on Delian’s cheek. Blood, you’d think it was water collected in puddles and splashed around the area. “Now see what you’ve done. You dirtied my shirt,” he complained.
“Do you understand what you did? You ruined what could’ve finally been a normal night for me,” Delian fussed as he left the blond to catch up on his breath. Behind them was a large dumpster with the other barely leaning on it.
“Please. Nej, snälla,” the man choked out. His limbs seemed all out of place with a foreign-looking gun glinting on the ground.
“Begging for your life, eh? Let me think.” Delian looked up and held his chin, as if in deep thought. “This must be a punishment if Stockholm just let you come here like this: with no support, no plans. Your bosses don’t just send anyone to assassinate me, especially those who can’t kill an unarmed person.” The Swede must have realized it too that he slumped his head on the concrete ground in utter defeat.
But before he could continue with his speech, the back door suddenly creaked as Rein screamed, “Watch out!” Right as the unattended Swede took a long wood from the dump and hit the back of Delian’s head. “Dö, Leofric!”
The world started to spin around Delian as he fell to the concrete floor. He watched on as Eirene twisted the man’s arm to his back and smoothly threw him into the dumpster. Only his right foot could be seen sticking out. “Wow, this girl’s strong.”
Eirene soon came to his side to check his injuries. “Are you crazy or just stupid?” She scolded him as her hand reached his head. Delian never imagined there could be something else softer and gentler than his silk feather pillows. Her warmth seemed more than enough to heal his wounds.
“Wait, you’re mad?” He sounded perplexed. “I would have thought that by now, you’d call the badg-, the police on me.” Since Eirene was a soldier, what happened back there should have prompted her to do something against him. Instead, she’s heaving angrily, as if she was worried.
Wait, is she?
He soon felt something trickling down his temple and his mind blacking out. The pain was starting to be unbearable. But resisting the urge to sleep, he grabbed the woman’s hand. It may be because of his alcohol-filled and concussed brain, but he really wanted to ask her, “By any chance, will you marry me?”
“Now I know you’re really crazy, plus bleeding.” She shook off his hold on her to support his weight.
Delian let out a quiet laugh. “Well, will you?”
Before he could hear her reply, a new voice boomed, “Man, you were supposed to befriend him, not kill him.”
“I didn’t, just help me get him up.” Her concerned face blurred out as his eyes rolled to the back of his head.
“Your newfound friend’s fine,” Aidon interrupted her thoughts. If there’s one thing Rein admired about him, it was his ability to read people’s minds. “If you haven’t stayed with him, it would have gone worse.” “How did you find me so quickly anyway?” She asked, wanting to keep her thoughts away from that man. “I made sure to arrive as discretely as possible.” Aidon gave a dry laugh, “My, my, Eirene. You forget who you’re talking to. Anyone who steps foot in Erebus is instantly under my watch.” He flipped through the newspapers and continued, “What did I tell you about surveillance? To make your targets believe there’s nothing going on, that they’re safe.” “And here I thought the King of Spies was losing his touch,” Rein quipped. “By the way, did they say if Leofric remembers anything?” Her chest did feel a pang of guilt for leaving the guy bleeding and passed out in the bar. Thankfully, Damon came right away so she didn’t have to carry him by herself. “If he did, what would you d
“Lou, you really don’t remember what she looks like?” Delian, fresh from the hospital, asked the bartender. “Aye lad, I told ye already. She had her cap on the whole time. And the cameras also didn’t manage to catch her face.” It’s been five days since that night, and all Delian managed to know was that she got in a black car with an obscured plate. He almost thought that she was a figment of his imagination after waking up with a bandaged head. “Thank God, she wasn’t,” was all he said when the night’s event was reported back to him. Though he was relieved, he was equally as frustrated for forgetting her face. The Swedes did fail in their attack, but they succeeded in doing worse damage to him. Speaking of the two, no further news from the foreigners was heard as they seem to have gone under the radar. The Stockholm mafia also feigned ignorance at the current events. But Delian was not interested in any of those. That was why despite the doctor’s stern advice for him to go home and
“Are you ready?” Aidon brushed the invisible dust off of Rein’s slim-fit suit as they both checked her reflection. It was finally the day she was to be introduced as Rein Evander, the prodigal son of the Evander family and Delian Leofric’s consigliori. It took a month due to the Swede accident, but they’re here now. “Yes,” she replied. There’s no room for doubts now. Doubts only bred mistakes. And she couldn’t afford to commit one, too many people’s lives were at stake here. Her father’s vengeance was at stake. Rein wasn’t ashamed to admit that when she took on this responsibility, she didn’t really think of its consequences for her country. "Oh, before I forget. Here.” The new right-hand man passed a dark mask to Damon. “Our family is known for wearing these.” If each mafia family had its own quirks, this would be the Evanders’. Their secretive moves and preference for anonymity were represented by the mask. “It’s fine if you don’t, just be careful who you talk to.” Even if Delian
“Most of us don’t know and can never fathom the sacrifice our forefathers made to put us on this pedestal.” Hector, together with the rest of the Leofric family, stood before the mafia members on top of their grand staircase. The event, in a regular person’s eyes, appeared to be just an affluent community’s celebration. But behind those expensive suits and lavish dresses were weapons of different types and sizes. In the Erinyes mafia’s eyes, it was a gathering of the strongest and most skilled people to welcome a newcomer. A newcomer who was deemed better than most of them to be chosen for the soon second-highest position in their organization. “To be able to acquire the power, wealth, and control of this city through their blood is something we could only imagine. So to you, the coming generation of our families,” he looked at each young member from all the clans, “Be strengthened by pain, honed with experience, and linked together through our deep fellowship. Only then could you d
“I’m sorry, little princess.” Delian gingerly caressed Althaea’s plump cheeks as she snuggled with a blue monster plush, drifting through a dream-filled sleep. “Don’t worry, she has no idea,” Danae spoke from behind him, her approaching steps light to not wake her daughter. “But she was upset that her Prince Charming had to leave early. She even threatened him that she was going to sleep forever like Sleeping Beauty until he came back.” Danae giggled at the memory. “So what happened back there, Del?” Her stepson didn’t know how to answer. Instead, he led her out of the room and took one last glance at the sleeping figure before gently closing the door. All he was able to say was, “Sorry I put Althaea in danger.” “You know, I’ve seen you watch him the whole night. Did he do something to offend you?” The truth was, right from when they met, Del was the offensive one. But Rein seemed to have the patience of a saint to not sock him on the jaw after the latest debacle. Was he supposed t
“Shit!” Thane ran through the wide courtyard of the Evander estate, however quick his long legs could take him. The lush, grassy ground’s friction with his Oxford shoes didn’t help at all. “Come on, Rein. Answer the phone,” he grunted while gripping his phone close to his ear with only ringing sounds getting back at him. Minutes earlier while strolling on his way towards Rein’s home, a black Rolls Royce Phantom drove past him. He observed the way passersby quickly made way for the car in a mix of aversion and awe. And he knew only the mafia could elicit such a response. Also, it was slow enough for him to make out the passenger of the transport. Thane scoffed in contempt, “And here they claim that they’re helping people.” The special agent was familiar with how cruel and hypocritical the mafia could get, having a brush with them in the past. But before he could make another snide comment, he realized where the car was going. “This road only leads up to the Evander mansion.” Thane sp
The drive was quiet and Rafiq’s interest in the conversation between his boss and the Evander heir grew. “Where shall we head next, Sir?” Looking from the rearview mirror, he saw Delian sitting deep in his thoughts while trying to decipher a feeling he can’t shake off. “I feel like I’ve met them all before.” “Sir Rein and her Marine friends?” Rafiq asked. Ever since Delian went face to face with that captain of theirs, his demeanor quickly reverted to his business-like self. The mafia heir’s mind drifted back to that night at Lou’s bar after the fight with the Swedes. “There was another person with us that night. I heard a man say something along the lines of, “Don’t kill him.’ But I’m not sure.” Rafiq replied, “You were pretty beat up, Sir.” Delian scratched his chin in frustration. Why did he have to forget such crucial details of that time? Still, he had his suspicions. “I think the man that approached me and Eirene was Rein.” “You think Sir Evander has a connection with your
What the Evander guards thought to be another uneventful day turned out to be the opposite as a luxurious car drove by the Evander guardhouse. “What’s your business here?” One of the two burly guards asked roughly, leaning down the passenger’s side. The dark windows rolled down to reveal the fair Kora Renaud which took both men by surprise. Not only because of the lady’s beauty but also because of the common knowledge that Renauds and Evanders were not particularly close. “M-Miss Renaud, how can we help?” “I’m here to visit Rein. Would you let me in?” Her sweet voice pleaded as she batted her lashes at them. She didn’t have to since they were mesmerized already, but it wouldn’t hurt to be sure. Kora noticed one of them recover from his awe, beginning to reach for his earpiece. She has to get in before Rein had the chance to say no. “Uhm, I don’t know why he didn’t tell you. But he is expecting me.” She managed to look hurt at the Evander heir’s action, or lack thereof. Not wanting