Rio "Maverick" Murphy
Areyoufuckingkiddingme?Rico Castiello asked his brother Vito, his hand movements fast in his anger.
Vito sighed and nodded.I wanted to confirm that it was true before I came to you. Uncle Nico is staying at the Marquise Hotel, and he just arrived today. Meaning he'll make himself known very soon. What do you want to do?he signed, using ASL.
Maverick looked at Vito as he communicated with his brother using sign language, and he had to be grateful that he already knew how to speak using ASL. However, he also knew the two brothers could switch to ISL at any time, which made him want to learn how to sign in Italian as well. It was almost like how he and his club brothers could use their coded language to concealparts of their conversation. For a second, he thought maybe he shouldn't watch them, but fuck that; he was nosey.
Ahh fuck, I didn't even know that he was out of prison, Rico said than sighed.
Third time behind bars for him, hard to keep track. He was out of sight, out of mind,Vito said.
Rico huffed, then settled back against the pillows, his gunshot wounds were still painful as they healed. He hated being out of commission but had faith that his family and their ally could handle business.
Maverick watched the two brothers conversing as he ate dinner—fried chicken and fries. Vito had flown in that afternoon to check in on his brother, claiming he needed to see for himself his condition. They weren't staying, as he was planning to return to Chicago that night. As for Maverick, for the past couple of days, he and Akane, along with the rest of the hit squad from the Castiellos and the Lords, had been taking on the Esposito family as well as the Bartolli and the Jade Dragon Triad. The Bartolli family was hanging on by a thread, and he was ready to cut that thread soon, but didn't know if the arrival of the Castiello's uncle was going to pose a problem. As he watched the two men signing in ASL, it seemed that their uncle might want to try to take over the family business, using Rico's injury as an excuse and looking for any kind of weakness in order to take control.
Maverick smirked because even if Rico was down for the count—for now—his wife would eat any competitor for her man's throne alive. That much he'd gathered about Alessia "Barracuda"—his own nickname for her—Castiello. She was not to be trifled with. He turned from their conversation to set his hazel gaze on the woman who had his undivided attention from the moment he heard her silky voice and the click-clack of her spiked heels: Akane Himura. She was a goddess of death, and she made Maverick's cock sing her glory. She was sitting on thesofa watching the two men converse. Akari, her twin, was eating a salad. The other professional killer in the room was Vito's man, Demir, and Maverick had only heard a few stories about him from club brothers—just how much Demir wanted Wolf and how much those two were perfect for each other, not to mention just how dangerous Demir was. He was Shadowfox, trained in ways Maverick could only dream of. Demir intrigued him just as much as the twins.
Vito's boyfriend, Zindel, was playing a game on his phone. Maverick witnessed Vito introducing Zindel to his brother and sister-in-law earlier. Zindel was even sassier than Maverick remembered. He wondered how much of that was just because he had to hone his seduction skills as a whore for two years. He knew not being able to save his brother must have killed Ze, but at least Zindel was free and apparently very happy. When he got a chance, he hugged Zindel and caught up a little. He was surprised to see Vito and him together, as he'd heard that Vito was straight, but I guess that was just rumors. That was an hour ago, and now everyone was just chilling or chatting.
He returned his attention to Akane and wondered just how great her mouth would feel on his cock. As if Akane sensed Maverick's gaze on her, she turned to look at him, and Maverick froze. The food he'd been chewing sat in his mouth. Her gaze was like a predator finding its prey, and the smile that appeared on her gorgeous face let Maverick know that he was in her sights and she was not going to let him go easily. He was not a catch and release. Finally, he swallowed and looked away. Since they first had sex, he'd been trying to avoid her, trying not to be alone with her whenever possible. He wanted her like a hungry man wanted a juicy steak with all the sides and trimmings after starving for a week. But he knew he had to leave women like Akane alone.
After she told him that he was hers, it aroused him but also unnerved him. He'd had plenty of females wanting to lay claim on him since he was twelve. But not one could have him all to themselves. To him, there were just too many beauties out there for him to settle for one. But something about Akane made him worry that she might be the clingy type to rival even Melissa. He finished his meal and wiped his hands clean with a napkin. He looked at Vito and Rico again.
"Hey, is this Nico guy going to be a problem?" he asked.
Vito sighed and turned to him. "No... not really. We know how to handle our uncle. It's just that he's a fucking loose cannon. Impulsive and not so stable, if you know what I mean."
"So, he's crazy and violent?" Maverick summarized.
Both Vito and Rico chuckled, as Rico had read Maverick's lips.
Vito nodded. "Yeah, pretty much. He's spent a lot of time in prison. The first time was for taking things too far when he killed the boyfriend of a man he wanted. And just recently, it was for aggravated assault and battery. He's always wanted to lead the family, and he might have had the chance if not for killing that man's lover. Not only did that expose that he was into men, which our grandfather opposed, but it also meant that he didn't have the right temperament to run the business. Our father wasn't too keen on Rico being the Godfather, and Nico agreed, but he'd already fucked up and was no longer eligible. That's all you need to know about him. Like I said, we can handle him."
That and having two children out of wedlock,Rico added.
Ahh, indeed. That goes against the family ideals as well. And he did Lydia wrong; she never wanted to marry him after Bianco was born,Vito signed.
Maverick shrugged. "Fine with me. I don't intend to get involved with your family business anyway." He leaned back in the chair. "Okay, so what do we do next?"
"I've taken care of the rat problem we had," Vito said, then pushed Rico's legs out of the way to sit down on the edge of the bed. Rico simply rolled his eyes. Vito was his little brother. "We need to take out the Bartollis. They're weak now, and after we hit these locations, they'll be out of the picture."
"Tell me where to go, and I'll handle business," Maverick said.
Vito smirked. "So I've heard. It would seem the men of the Lords of Chaos MC are very capable. My brother was wise to align with you."
Maverick smiled. "We're badass and loyal."
"That's for sure," Zindel said with a smile. He was always going to be a Lords of Chaos groupie.
Rico nodded and signed,I'm very pleased by that. If you remain loyal, we have a very long future together.
That's what my father wants, and for all of the chapters to benefit,Maverick signed.
This drug that one of your men created. I'm told it's completed. I would love to know more,Rico signed.
"Not really sure about it. I know he took it one night and was high as a fucking star, but he was cool the next day. From what I know, it's not addictive, which was Richie's goal from what I understand. He wanted people to want the drug because it feels great, not because it'll have you fucked up like other drugs," Maverick said and signed at the same time.
"That's best," Vito said. "The less addictive, the more you can claim it's healthy."
