“Viktor and Luca are indisposed. We have a contract with them.”
“Yes, I heard about this contract.” I lean forward. “Brilliant, by the way. Love how your minds work.”
Their eyes move toward Anthony, and he grumbles. “Fuck no. I’m not doing shit.”
I wave my hand in the air. “Oh, but I can. What do you want? Undies? Some pubic hair? Blood?”
They contemplate it for a moment. “Semen.”
I gasp and bob my head. “Of course. I can do that. You have something I can get it into? I can make quite the mess.”
Ezra hands me a small vial, and I roll it in my palm. “This is going to be quite the sample. Might overflow.”
“We look forward to having it,” they say in unison.
“Would you like a video of me collecting it?”
They glance at one another and then back at me. “Yes.”
I give them a small salute and walk toward Anthony, who is glowering at them. “They’re fucking disgusting,” he murmurs. “I’m going to have them disposed of.”
“No, you won’t. They’re geniuses. One day they’ll tell me their secrets, and they can’t do that if they’re dead. And I don’t mind doing this. I think semen is a great collector’s item. Oh! I should start my own collection!”
“Fuck. I don’t need to know what you’re storing below my property.”
I waggle my eyebrows and step off to the side, setting my phone up on the trunk of a car before stepping back and making sure everything is on the screen. Then I pull my pants down and get to work. It’s a little rough because I didn’t bring any lube, but I get the job done quickly. And when I hand the specimen to the twins, they pocket it without another word.
Anthony is rubbing his temples, his jaw clicking as I make my way back to him.
“Do we know how he died?” I ask, realizing this is why we’re here.
“Pink, most likely. This is probably the work of He—” he pauses and sighs. “The man we shall never name.”
My lips quirk at that, and I jostle him into a rough hug. He pats my head, and I pull away. “He’s awful. Thank you for not saying his name.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Is there anything else we need to do while we’re here?” I ask, and Anthony nods.
“I’d like to inspect the most recent shipment, if you’re okay with waiting?”
“Oh, I can wait. Plus, I really like Raphael. He gives the best hugs.” I sniffle slightly, thinking about how Georgiy left me, and Anthony sighs, putting his arm around my shoulders.
“Come on. Let’s get you that hug,” he says as he leads me toward the entrance. Two heavily armed security guards stand outside, and I waggle my fingers at them. This is quite the distraction. If I keep going like this, if Anthony keeps dragging me around to his different appointments, then maybe I’ll get through this day without crying again.
He pushes a code into a pad on the door, and then a moment later, it swings open.
As we enter, Raphael rounds the corner and walks up to meet us. He’s been around since I can remember, and from what Anthony tells me, he was around back when Anthony’s dad ran things.
A very kind and loyal man.
“Bane,” Raphael says, and I rush up to him, burying my face in his barrel chest and rubbing against it. It’s a very nice chest, strong and sturdy. He chuckles, patting me on the back. “Leslie-Ann got your gift. She loves it.”
“I’m glad.”
“She’s never had an ankle-bone bracelet before.”
I grin and lean into his side.
