No longer.
Now it was personal.
He met Aiden and James at a dingy little bar on the line between their territories, one of those places that seemed to cater to both Hallorans and O’Malleys, depending on the day. Apt.
Dmitri left his man in the car, as previously agreed upon, and strode through the front door. Negotiation was a funny thing. It relied as much on the perception of power as actual power. Slinking through the door as if he was afraid would send a clear message that he was weak and start things off with him at a disadvantage.
It was always better to have enemies and allies alike overestimate his power. Reputation was everything. A man had a strong enough reputation and he’d never have to fight another day in his life. But the slightest scent of weakness, and enemies would come out of the woodwork to nip at his heels. That was what had happened with the Eldridges, and if he didn’t deal with them effectively, there would be someone lining up behind them to take a swing at the Romanovs.
Romanovs. I’m the only one left.
James burst into motion the second he caught sight ofDmitri. He pushed off the bar he’d been leaning on and drew a gun from his shoulder holster in a smooth move. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t shoot you and put us all out of our misery.”
He would pull the trigger if he was smart.Dmitri was a threat that wasn’t going away as long as he was alive. Saying as much wasn’t in his best interest, though, so he just shrugged. “I have information you need.”
“You almost killed both me and Carrigan.”
“Carrigan was never in any danger from me.” He looked James up and down, comparing what he knew of the man against the woman he’d almost married. “I suppose I understand what she sees in you. You’re rather rough around the edges, aren’t you?”
James narrowed his blue eyes, his finger hovering on the trigger. “You’re a piece of work.”
“Guilty as charged.” He shouldn’t bait Halloran. James had every reason to hate him, and he would have killed the man if his plans had gone as they were supposed to. “Where is your lovely wife? I would have thought she’d be in the middle of this conversation.” She hadn’t struck him as someone content to sit on the sidelines while her man took care of business.
When James didn’t immediately answer, Dmitri laughed. “Did you have to threaten to tie her to a chair? That must have brought back fond memories.”
“Stop fucking talking or I’ll give you another hole in your head.”
Dmitri eyed the tumbler at the bar next to the man.Likely whiskey.“Do you have any passable vodka in this place?”
“You do realize I could shoot you right here and there isn’t a person in this place who would testify against me.”
Apparently, the time for fun and games had passed. Dmitri sighed, already bored. “Yes, you could. Just like I could have had you killed several dozen times over the last two years. I didn’t, so let’s move along, shall we?”
He felt someone at his back a few seconds before Aiden calmly said, “Put down the gun, James. We need him.”
James lowered the gun, but he didn’t put it away. He glared over Dmitri’s shoulder. “Don’t think I’ve forgottenyourinvolvement in this shit storm, O’Malley. You stirred this up, and you put Carrigan in danger because of it. She’s willing to forgive that.”
James wasn’t.
It would have been smarter for Halloran to play this softer. Of the three men in this room, he had the smallest number of resources to bring to the table, since a good portion of his were tied up in the nonprofit Carrigan ran.Interesting thing, that.
But then, James Halloran wouldn’t know cautious if it smashed him over the back of the head.
Aiden skirted Dmitri, and Dmitri let him do it. When facing down rabid animals, showing fear didn’t get a person anywhere but dead—the same rule applied to the Boston Irish. He’d misjudged them during his short time in negotiations over Carrigan with Seamus O’Malley, and Dmitri had been paying the price for that oversight ever since.
He waited for Aiden to take a seat, and then got down to it. “Mae Eldridge is responsible.”’
“For fuck’s sake, you could have told us that information with a phone call.” James downed the glass of amber liquor in front of him.
“I want evidence.” Aiden O’Malley didn’t so much as blink, but Dmitri hadn’t expected him to.
The man was as cold as ice—something he appreciated—except, it seemed, when it came to Charlie Moreaux. There was something about that woman that Dmitri found familiar, but he couldn’t place exactly what it was. He had a man working on digging through her history to figure out what she was really doing with Aiden O’Malley, but the drive-by had sidelined that temporarily.
He focused on the two men glaring at him. “Of course.” Dmitri pulled out a file that he’d had put together. It wasn’t as thick as he would have liked, but it had enough information—and photos—to prove his claim as truth. He strode over to the bar and set the file down, and then retreated to watch their reactions as they flipped through it.
James was furious, as well he should be. Carrigan would have died in that restaurant and Halloran loved her to distraction. A loss like that could kill a man and yet leave his heart beating.
Dmitri had no intention of falling under a woman’s spell—not even Keira’s. Love was a weakness, no matter what society would have one believe. It offered a bright target for anyone and everyone who had reason to hate him. He wanted Keira, yes, but it was a purely physical thing. If he didn’t need an O’Malley to compensate for the blunders with both Carrigan and Olivia, he wouldn’t have bothered.
