BURNING HOT

CHAPTER 9

YOU and your men are a disgrace to the Mafia world," the man in the blue shirt continued to dig his own grave. He didn't even want to know their names, these three men they had caught snooping around, working for Bonanno. "You are all soft, making us look like a joke," he spat out in front of him.

Al didn't move; he simply watched the man. For a man cuffed to a metal seat screwed to the concrete floor, he sure had a mouth on him. The other two threw in comments too, and he just observed them. When they finally got all the cursing out of their system, he pulled out his gun and shot the man in the blue shirt right in the middle of the head.

"Damn, the guy could talk," he remarked, passing the gun to Alex.

"I would have offed him myself if he had continued for even a second," Alexandre, his best friend, said. They had grown up together, and that made Al know the man more than he knew himself. Alexandre was far from being a nice guy.

"I would have been pissed at you if you did that before me. The minute I came into the room and the blue shirt guy opened his stupid mouth, I knew he wasn't leaving here – well, not that any of you were leaving in the first place," Al added, without mentioning the body bags.

"I was wondering what you named them," Alex chuckled. Al never bothered to know their names, and he wasn't the brightest when it came to naming them. If Al knew your name, then you were in big trouble.

"I was having a sour mood waking up. Finish with these two and call in the clean-up crew." The underground world was a funny one. The more brutal you appeared to be, the more they feared you. But what happened when the enemies that made any attempt against him simply disappeared? People made up different stories to fill their own curiosity.

He ran a very tight gang; most of his men were ex-army, military, special forces, Marine Corps. In the years since he took over after his father's death, he had changed all the men except for Stark.

"On it," that was all Al needed before turning and walking away from the men who now knew their fate. Of course, they were expecting some form of torture and whatever else they were thinking, but he didn't need any information from them, and Kat wasn't here to pester him about that. The girl found peace in torturing grown men, men who looked like they could crush her with one swat but would be surprised to find it more difficult.

The door to the warehouse opened, and Tyler came in, his phone pressed to his ear as he spoke. Getting closer, Tyler gave a salute, walked toward Alexandre, but he hadn't reached the door when two shots were fired almost immediately.

Al got out and nodded to Rene as he opened the door to the backseat. He slid in and brought out his phone, placing a call to Stark.

"Where to, sir?" His driver, Lui, asked.

"Cousin Stefano's restaurant," he replied, focusing on his call. "Any update from Kat?"

Stark's voice came through the receiver. "I think it's time you went through the files I sent you. It's not looking like Matt is coming back soon. Kat informed me that he intends to stay with his friend, and they've promised to keep him safe."

"Like hell I need someone else protecting my son. Get Kat to return my call. I'll get back to you after I go through the files," he said. The passenger door opened, and Alex slid in, and with that, the car was on the move. Alex had been the one in charge of his security detailing. He was the underboss; all the men answered to him. Since Stark had been sent with Matt, Alex had been doing both the work of his right-hand man and left-hand man.

He moved in a convoy of three, and Alex never made it a habit to maintain a pattern.

"Where is the file Stark sent containing Matt's friends and his family?" He remembered Stark asking their tech guy, Nate, to find out about Matt's friend when he mentioned that the two were getting along and spending more time together. He had simply told Stark to handle it; he didn't need to be going through all the personal data about the people in his son's life. If anything was wrong, then he would have been informed.

"It's one of the two files beside you in the backseat," Alex replied. "The Ivanov's file is the one."

Now Al was a bit confused. He picked the file and opened it. The first things he saw were some pictures of Matt and another guy; they looked close. He checked for important details like the boy's name, Sky Ivanov. The father's name was blank, and the mother's name read Ila Ivanov. Sky was almost a year older than Matt, and they were of Russian origin.

"Same Ivanov? Mael Ivanov's family?" What were the odds? He and Mael had done business together in the past. The guy was young but very smart, and he had his father to guide him. Al hadn't bothered to read about the elder sister, simply because he had heard enough about Ila Ivanov; she was a public figure. And if she stood in front of him, he wouldn't know she was the one. He wasn't really a fan and didn't have time to be interested in any woman.

Well, it seemed he had to now because she was holding his son and meddling in his business.

He could only imagine the kind of woman she had become, nurtured in opulence, where every desire was a mere beckon away, destined to reign over an empire merely due to her birthright.

"Yes, the same woman. I often ponder what's coursing through her mind; this situation could easily turn delicate at any moment." Alex mused, he didn't like when things didn't go as planned.

"Indeed, Alex. I never harbored much curiosity about her based solely on hearsay. My intrigue piqued when I engaged in business with her brother, Mael tough man he assumed leadership from his father barely two years ago when a momentous deal came to fruition for both of us. Do you recollect that, my friend?" He queried, recalling the notable transaction with clarity.

"Certainly," Alex responded thoughtfully. "He's an honorable guy, leading his organization in a manner distinct from the typical underworld norm. He follows in his father's footsteps while fortifying the family's legacy, no one in Russia messes with the Ivanov's not out of fear but respect. That's rear in our world" he remarked, and a hint of respect seeped into his usually skeptical tone.

"Let's not stray from the matter at hand," interjected Lui, striving to keep the discourse aligned. "We're not engaging with Mael this time; we're facing Ila. Trust me, no one desires to find themselves on her unfavorable side."

"I heard whispers of a tragic incident in her past – an elaborate scheme plotted by her ex-husband's father to eliminate her and her son," Alex chimed in. "Both managed to survive, but her lower limbs sustained severe damage, leaving her dependent on a cane for mobility."

"There's a dubious narrative circulating in the underworld," Lui contributed to the conversation. "Rumors suggest that her husband met his demise at her hands, she killed him with her bare hands. Driven by her ambition to secure her claim on their substantial wealth and assets. Yet, considering her immense billionaire status, it appears implausible that her motivation was rooted in mere financial gain. It's plausible that her husband's family harbored ulterior motives."

Al slowed to listen to his men. This was a vastly different perspective from what he had heard before.

Lui further elucidated, "Furthermore, she commands a formidable team, entirely dedicated to safeguarding her and her son. If truly they plan on protecting Matt, then our concerns should be unwarranted."

Alex, perpetually the harbinger of caution, opined, "Nonetheless, it signifies that if they decide to betray us, they hold the upper hand, and our chances of rescuing Matt are severely compromised."

With a contemplative nod, Al closed the file for the moment, intending to revisit it after he was done having his meal.

Upon reaching the restaurant's entrance, Lui brought the car to a graceful halt, and Alex promptly disembarked, his gaze sweeping the surroundings with practiced scrutiny.

Curiosity lingering, Al inquired, "How did you come to know this much about her, Lui?"

"I don't know her personally, sir. A friend of mine in the service happened to work with one of Sam's team members. Sam is her top security, the man you should be wary of," Lui explained before adjusting the earpiece in his ear. "We're clear; Alex has gone to secure our table." He exited the car, and Rene opened the passenger door.

The trio exited the vehicle, and with Lui on one side and Rene on the other, Al stepped forward, poised to immerse himself in the ambiance of the upscale restaurant.

Alex felt the shift in the atmosphere as his best friend entered the room. All chatter ceased abruptly. No one dared to whisper, and no one moved. The friendly ambiance of the place had transformed into an aura of danger. If not for the soft background music, it would have felt like time had stopped.

Who wouldn't stare at a tall, broad-shouldered, incredibly handsome man with hair as dark as a raven, its curls seemingly artfully set in place? Even the breeze refrained from disrupting a single strand. Dressed in a meticulously tailored dark charcoal pin-striped suit, custom-made in Italy and clearly worth a fortune, Al didn't bother with a tie. A few buttons of his lighter shade charcoal shirt remained open, and the darker suit jacket hugged his frame perfectly. His shoes, too, oozed luxury.

His face bore rugged, masculine features, chiseled and immovable. A strong jawline was covered by a shadow of facial hair. Al was undeniably attractive, and women practically threw themselves at him, although none had succeeded. That just meant they all shifted the attention to him, and he wasn't complaining.

As his piercing eyes scanned the room, taking in everything and everyone, his mere presence commanded the attention of all present. The effect was timeless, and Alex couldn't help but be captivated, they had both gone through a lot together from childhood and he will continue to stand by him and protect him all his life.

Al' walked straight to the back of the room, where their table awaited. He slid in, and Lui followed suit. The group settled, and soon a waiter, a man, took their orders. They always preferred male servers because Al couldn't stand women flirting with him – which they often did.

Orders placed, a new bottle of champagne arrived, nestled in a bucket of ice. Lui took charge, popping the bottle and pouring the glasses. Rene, Tyler, and the others at the table ordered their drinks as well.

"So, what other information can we get from the information your friend shared about this Ila Ivanov's security?" Al mused, hoping to glean a deeper understanding of the individuals his son had chosen to safeguard him over his own family.

Lui's expression turned grave as he began to reveal the unsettling details. "Not much," he began, "but these aren't ordinary men. They were special agents, the kind dispatched to track down and neutralize their own kind who had gone rogue. The eerie thing is, Sam underwent rigorous training, swiftly ascended the ranks due to his extraordinary abilities, and eventually commands his own team. By the time he reached the rank of Commander, he handpicked his own squad. He wasn't assigned teammates; he selected them himself."

Al listened with rapt attention, captivated by the enigmatic figure that Matt had chosen as his protector.

Lui continued, taking a sip of his drink before dropping the chilling revelation, "My friend collaborated with one of them on secondary missions. He described Sam as 'a phantom.' In fact, among themselves, they were known as 'Ghosts.'"

"I've heard rumors about the Ghosts within the service. Wait, are you suggesting that Ila Ivanov has the Commander of the Ghost Team as her personal bodyguard, along with the entire squad?" Alex's voice trembled with disbelief. Al was now even more intrigued by this woman and her entourage.

Lui confirmed their suspicions with an ominous tone, "Indeed, that's correct. All twelve of them are not merely employees; they are sworn guardians of Ila and her son, Sky Ivanov."

"That would explain their sudden disappearance from the service. They were recruited for personal protection," Alex deduced.

"They got recruited to work for a woman, I understand she like really rich but they could have done better with that deadly reputation." Rene mumbled

However, the next piece of information Lui disclosed was even more astonishing, "Perhaps you missed a crucial detail. I mentioned they are sworn protectors. Ila didn't hire them; they don't work for her. They are partners. It was when she resumed her work following the accident that the Ghosts appeared alongside her and never departed."

"The entire squad followed their Commander, willingly becoming her relentless guardians," Alex muttered in astonishment.

"Yeah definitely a back story to that" Men that dangerous don't retire from the service to become bodyguard to a business woman just for bucks.

"My friend only did one mission with one of them, no personal information was shared, their squad is top secret, the only reason we know of them now is because they came out in the open as Ila Ivanov's security team."

Al shared their sense of amazement, realizing the magnitude of what they were dealing with, he needed to know more about this man and his team mates.

They proceeded to enjoy their meal, with Alex and Lui engaged in animated discussion while Al listened intently, the chilling aura of the Ghosts lingering in the air.

~°~°~•~°~°~

The day had gone smoothly after they arrived at the office. They went straight into meetings that took forever, and then she had a private meeting with two other investors. By the time she was free, it was close to 1 pm. Thank goodness she had breakfast. She was about to call for Kitty when Sam came into her office and locked the door behind him. When he turned, she saw his hard, chiseled face with a very dangerous expression.

Her breath caught in her throat; she knew that look. "Come over here, baby," his voice did something serious to her body as she felt her n*****s get hard. Excitement surged through her at the command in his tone. She was always angry when he did that, but they both knew the main reason was because of how it truly made her feel.

Standing from her seat, she crossed to his side and walked towards him. "Stand right at the end of the desk, mi ladi," standing perfectly still, waiting for his next order. Her breath was coming out in short gasps.

"Turn around, baby, and get your pants off. Then, I want you to bend that lovely ass for me," Sam watched as she turned her back to him and did exactly as told. God, that made him so hard; he pulled off his suit jacket and hung it. All those meetings, and the only thing he could think of was getting her over that desk and being deep inside her.

As soon as she bent, he could see her beautiful, pink, fresh p***y was already so wet. "You naughty girl, you get off on this alone." He moved, pulling at his belt as he got to her, he bent, covering her hands with his big hands, his erection pressing against her ass.

Ila felt her body humming, she felt blindsided by lust as his burning mouth pressed hungrily against her shoulder. Sharp teeth scraped roughly. His scent curled around her, making her inhale his delicious scent. She felt her p***y becoming silky.

"I've wanted to get you alone from the moment you came downstairs dressed in that hot dress suit," he whispered as he slid his hand around her butt, giving it a nice, firm rub. "I miss s******g these babies." Ila was ready to beg at this moment. He blessed her by shoving his greedy finger inside her wet lips. She gasped and widened her legs to give him better access, and that action seemed to do something to him.

"Look at you, all wet and ready for me. Pull your hands to the back." She did immediately and felt him wrap his belt around her wrists. It wasn't too tight, just tight enough to stay tied.

"Damn, you look good." No matter how much he wanted to push into her, he needed to taste that sweet p***y of hers. She was already so wet; her juices were glistening against her lips.

"So beautiful, like petals with morning dew." He got down on his knees, pushed her forward onto the desk, and ate her up. Ila let out a loud moan as Sam's mouth came down on her c**t. He licked and stabbed his tongue in, flicking across the head of her c**t and licking back up to her ass.

"Oh my God," she whispered amidst her sensual moans, as he clearly intended to savor every moment. Her anticipation intensified, yielding another sultry moan, as her body quivered in the throes of impending pleasure.