Andrei
The air was crisp and cool as I exited my sleek black car and made my way inside the secret entrance to my bar, the one that gave me direct access to the sub-ground level, where my gambling ring was set up. The room was smoky, and I walked through the haze, nodding to my men who greeted me, too amped up to talk. I had noticed a tail earlier that day and promptly lost him, but I had been on edge ever since. I felt jumpy in my own city. I felt angry, more full of rage than I had in a long time. I felt threatened, and I didn’t do well with threats.
I had to calm down. Too many emotions led to mistakes, and I was anything but careless. Through hard work I had built up the Petrov mob to be a dynasty, and I would not have it ruined now. It would not come crumbling down. I would stand and fight, and I would do it with a clear, calm, and level head.
As I accepted a cigar and puffed out a smoke ring, I reflected that I needed to smoke out Mikhail Vasilev himself. Only then, once I’ve had my revenge, will I feel peace.
Peace. That was something I hadn’t felt in a long time, if I ever had. Maybe once upon a dream, a dream I would twist into reality.
I walked over to the large round table to see who was playing tonight and to note who had the hot hand — I always kept tabs on the gambling ring since it was my most enterprising endeavor, and my most lucrative one — when I noticed a new guy there. He wore a hat low over his brow, which immediately made me suspicious. Why was he trying to hide his features? I maneuvered myself in such a way to be able to see his face without him noticing me and spied his large nose, beady eyes, and missing tooth.
Who could that be? I couldn’t help feeling suspicious, and of course my first guess was that he might be one of Vasilev’s guys trying to get intel on me. And if that were the case…
In the back corner, nursing a scotch, was Aleksey, surveying the place. I casually made my way over to him while maintaining a line of sight on the mysterious guy.
“What do you need?” Aleksey asked. He didn’t bother to look at me.
“You see that guy?” I asked.
“The newbie? Yeah.” He nodded, the movement slight.
“I want you to watch him like a hawk,” I ordered.
“Will do.”
“Do not fail me,” I said sharply.
Now Aleksey stared at me, surprise flashing in his eyes. “I won’t.”
“Ah, but you’re the one who spread word I was looking for a surrogate.”
His nostrils flared, but he nodded again.
“Why?” This was the worst possible time for this to happen. I needed to be able to trust my men, especially the two I sought council with the most.
“I was dating a girl, and her best friend knew I wasn’t good enough for her. But my girl kept talking to me about her friend, what a good girl she was, about her sick mom…I knew she needed the money, and that desperation would get her to agree and that she has zero ties with any mob. She’s clean. And you went with her so…”
“So that’s reason for me to just forgive you for deliberately disobeying me?”
Aleksey nodded slowly. “I’ll take whatever punishment you deem worthy.”
“Start being loyal and true to your word, and we’ll see. Start with that guy.”
He cracked his knuckles. “Can do, boss. For what it’s worth…”
“What?” I growled.
“I am glad you picked her.”
I snorted and walked away. Aleksey being the one behind Kelly finding me had surprised me, but it was what it was. Aleksey, in a way, had done me a solid, but he had also defied me. One of my closest men or not, he would have to be dealt with. At least I knew he would accept his punishment like a man.
I had some business to take care of, and I took an appointment in the back office. Drinks, cards, smokes, they all helped to loosen people’s tongues and their wallets. I could handle this part of the business and trust Aleksey to do what I didn’t have time to handle personally. Being focused helped to ensure I had stability in a world where everything could be sniffed out with a few properly placed slugs, but I couldn’t operate fully if I were distracted by the thought of Vasilev or one of spies.
It didn’t take long for me to set in place a deal that would prove quite profitable both for myself and my new business partner, and I was feeling rather good about myself when I heard a commotion out in the main gambling area. After sending my new partner off to enjoy a few drinks on me, I wasn’t at all surprised to see Aleksey come inside, dragging the large-nosed man.
“What’s going on?” I demanded, his gaze firmly on the man.
“I saw him trying to sneak off into the back. Wanted to see what he could see. A snoop.” Aleksey picked up the guy so he was standing and threw him against the wall, pinning him there.
“Who are you working for?” I asked, approaching them, getting in the man’s face, as much of it that wasn’t smashed against the wall.
He said nothing.
“Fine. Would you rather an easier question to start? What is your name?”
“Called himself Joe somethin’ when he checked in,” Aleksey offered.
An obviously phony name. I pursed my lips. I planned on having a few choice words with the bouncer when I was done here; how could he have allowed someone who was so shady to begin with? But this was far more important to deal with first.
“I would much rather get to know you. The real you,” I stressed. I smoked on my cigar and blew it out, directly into the man’s face. “Your real name. I would know it.”
Still, the man maintained his silence.
“Well, you know what they say, don’t you? That there are ways to make you talk?”
In the blink of an eye, Aleksey had the man strapped down and tied to the chair. I did the next part myself. I would question the man, tease him, give him a chance, and then when I would get nowhere, I would pull out his fingernails until eventually he cracked.
“Stop, stop, please!” he blurted out. Tears streamed down his face, and he was shaking as much as the restraints would allow. “Ask your questions. I’ll tell you anything you want to know.”
“Who do you work for?” I demanded.
“Mikhail.” The man shuddered and closed his eyes.
“Look at me,” I commanded. “What does Mikhail Vasilev want? Why did he send you here?”
“I was supposed to find out information about the gambling ring.”
“Why?” I growled.
“To use the info against you. To try to take you down. I’m sorry. I didn’t want to come. He made me. I had no choice. I swear I didn’t!”
A likely story. The man was basically pleading for his life, and honestly, I didn’t feel murderous — at least not yet. I would kill Vasilev myself, but this man, who I still did not know his real name, was not on my list.
“Let him go,” I told Aleksey.
Aleksey nodded and moved to comply, but I stepped in front of the man and waited until he looked up at me.
“I am sparing your life,” I started.
“Th-thank you. You are most kind. So good. So kind. So generous. I will do anything for you. Just say the word and—”
“I want you to deliver a message to your boss.”
The man had been nodding vigorously, but now he winced and wiggled his large nose. “Y-yes. Of…of course. Anything you like. What should I tell him?”
“Tell Mikhail Vasilev that I, Andrei Petrov, am not someone he wants to mess with.”