Cold Brew and Bullets (Part 1 of the Syndicate Series)

Chapter 16- Wanting Revenge

There was a rumble of agreement from a couple of men, and Soren, one of my older and more experienced men, agreed. "They've crossed too many lines. I'm sure that if we called any of the other international groups, they'd agree that something has to be done. Niklov has been causing trouble for decades, I can't imagine that anyone would be sorry to see him go. It might be good to let them know the basis of what's happened, that way they don't think that we're the aggressors."

I gave him a crisp nod, he was right. Before I made any moves, I needed to know that even if I didn't have any outspoken allies, that I at least they wouldn't get in my way.

Stefano furrowed his brows, "Did the girl say what exactly they did to her? I didn't see her condition, but I heard she was in bad shape. If that's the truth, we may have an indisputable case for taking up arms against them. Intentionally involving civilians happens, but depending on what they did, they may lose favor."

I glanced at Leonardo, knowing that even though she seemed reluctant to talk about details, they had done some extreme things to Eliana. It made me feel guilty to confess, "I don't know the full extent either, the doctor didn't let me see her during the procedures, but she managed to walk a little bit today. He was hesitant to assess her without talking to her, but it doesn't seem as though there's anything that would cause permanent damage."

Another one of my men, Cesare, seemed hesitant to ask the question that I knew must be pressing on all of their minds, "Do you think she'll go to the police?"

Leonardo shook his head, "No. We offered to take her to the police, my plan was to have Luca take her statement and temper it so that it wouldn't raise any red flags, but she didn't want to make a report at all. She wanted nothing to do with the police."

A few of the men exchanged looks, and while their doubt of Eliana spiked a new kind of rage in me, I knew that it was coming. Admittedly, it was suspect that a civilian would be attacked, kidnapped, and tortured, but not want to say anything to the authorities that could get her justice.

"She's figured out what they are, and by extension, what we are, but I don't think she understands the extent." I gave it to them bluntly, knowing that they deserved to understand at least that much.

"Is she going to run or talk?" Another capo, Emilio, asked.

I glanced at Leonardo, but we both already knew the answer. "I don't think so. She's been extremely level headed, hyperrational. She's not scared or panicking, I don't think she's a flight risk."

Leonardo nodded in agreement, which I appreciated. None of my men would have questioned me, but Leonardo's reassurance would make them less on edge. Emilio was a courageous man, probably the most likely to speak his mind out of all of my capos, but I could tell from his careful tone that he knew he was treading a fine line. "How long can we expect her company here? And may I ask.... If there's a particular reason that she is here instead of a hospital?"

The room froze, the tension ready to shatter at any second. The question crossed the lines of what I would usually discuss with my men, but while I normally would have lashed out at the question, I was tired and exhausted enough that all I could supply was a glare. It was completely feasible that they had some sort of inkling by now, or found the situation odd. I had never before had connections to anyone outside of this organization, and it wasn't like she could be hidden. The minute that a young woman came stumbling through our front gates on the brink of collapse asking for me, word and suspicions spread like wildfire.

It would be easier to control the narrative if I addressed it head on, "She'll stay here until she is well enough to be self sufficient, but her injuries are still a little limiting. Her name is Ms. North, she's an aquaintance who was unfortunately caught in the crosshairs and the Russians seemed to target her because they thought her shop was laundering money for us."