AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Kirill was watching me, a smirk on his face. I was in no mood to entertain his jokes that night.
“What’s up, boss? The new hire is hot.”
I turned to give him the full benefit of my glare. “All the girls are hot. What of it?”
He shrugged nonchalantly. “Nothing. Just… you were in your office a long time. Were you sampling the merchandise by chance?”
“How is that any of your business?”
“Hey, I mean you’re the one who said no fraternizing with the help.”
“I’m aware.”
“So? What’s up with that?”
“What? Was I just supposed to hire her without finding out if she could dance or not?”
He cocked an eyebrow. “I thought that was Monique’s job.”
“Yeah, andyourjob is to make sure she’s not a Fed, so why don’t you focus on that?”
“Eh, already did. She’s pretty straightforward. Trailer trash. Barely got her GED. Used to dance for a small club that’s closed. Went out of town for a while. Is back now. Nothing to worry about.”
“Great. You can call her in the morning and tell her she’s in.”
Kirill’s smirk widened. “You sure you don’t wanna do it yourself?”
I gave him a look. “Is there something you’re getting at,Brigadier?”
He shrunk a bit at my tone. “Nah… of course not.”
“Good. Now shut up and let me think.”
He lifted his hands in surrender and stopped talking, for which I was grateful. I went over everything I knew about Anto Radic. He was a player that had emerged on the scene in the last few years. No one knew where he had come from. All of a sudden, he was selling high-quality snow, taking territory from the Colombians. He claimed his supply was Afghan and nobody had been able to prove otherwise. With no references, he had to find other ways to get customers, and I for one was very suspicious of Vladimir’s sudden arrest. I’d known him a long time, and the man was careful.
We drove into Manhattan, and The City That Never Sleeps was empty of traffic. We were headed for a small, obscure club on a nondescript side street. Logistically, it wasn’t an advantageous spot for anyone. The entrance was narrow and there was no nearby parking. That meant if we had to make a quick getaway, we were screwed.
As a compromise, the drivers would circle the building and be ready to go as soon as Kirill called for them. Three of my men entered the building before me, followed by Kirill and me, and then three of his lieutenants.
Anto was waiting for us in a basement. I clocked two men on the floor above, guns pointed downward. In the room were three more men in addition to Anto, their guns out.
He was sitting on a couch in front of a coffee table. On the table were three open black bags, and from what I could tell, they were packed full of the good stuff. I paused just inside the door, and my men spread out to the right and left of me.
“Anto Radic. We meet at last.”
He got to his feet, grinning, his long, greasy hair falling in his face. He was extremely tall and thin, with a full goatee and glittering, empty dark eyes. Seemed to me, he frequently sampled his own product.
“Alexei Levin. It is an honor.” He bowed.
Personally, I thoughtthatwas a bit over the top, but whatever. I took another step forward. “What you got for me?”
He shrugged, indicating the bags. “Everything you need.”
“Great.” I nodded to Kirill who stepped forward to test the merchandise.
Anto held up a hand to stop him.
I cocked an eyebrow at him.
