Mafia and His Dangerous Angel

Chapter 3: Grace

After the bombing, I felt an urgency to stay close to Devon, a gut feeling warning me that he could be the next target. I scoured newspapers and listened to gossip around town, but all I discovered was that Mr. Cleaver had no son, and the impostor who masqueraded as him had to be a seasoned professional.

His frustration was palpable when Devon finally stormed into his office after handling damage control with other companies. "I can't believe this," he muttered, tossing files in frustration as papers scattered around him.

"How bad is it?" I inquired, concern evident in my voice.

He turned to me, anger blazing in his eyes. "Bad enough that three more companies backed out of the condo build on Charles," he gritted out. He hurled his eight ball across the room, the thud echoing against the wall before it landed on the floor.

"What are their demands now to proceed with the build?" I pressed.

He sighed heavily, running a hand through his hair. "They're demanding that the responsible party be apprehended. They're not willing to invest if there's a risk of another bombing."

"Do they believe the bombing was a targeted threat?" I pondered.

Devon hesitated before responding. "These investors have enemies, Grace. Paranoia comes with the territory."

"They don't sound like your typical investors," I remarked.

"Sir!" Anna, his assistant, rushed in, her expression fraught with anxiety. "Nico and his men are here and refuse to leave until they see you."

Devon's frustration boiled over. "For heaven's sake, Anna! I employ you as my personal assistant, not as eye candy."

Anna blushed, adjusting her attire in embarrassment. Her white blouse was impeccably fitted, but her black pencil skirt bordered on provocative, especially with the absence of stockings and her sky-high heels, revealing her white panties.

"I apologize, sir," Anna stammered, glancing nervously at me. "Should I let them in, or should I call security?"

Devon sighed, tapping his fingers on his desk. "Give me a few minutes. Let them know I'm wrapping up a meeting."

"Of course," Anna replied before hastily exiting, her departure drawing my attention to her swaying figure.

"You may not want her as your personal eye candy, but I wouldn't mind," I quipped, smirking at Devon.

"Grace!" Devon's tone was exasperated. "Hide in the closet and call the police if anything happens. I don't know why they are here."

I glared at him. "You owe me lunch for this. I don't hide for just anyone."

Devon smirked. "Noted. How about sushi?"

I relented, crawling into his cramped closet beside the TV monitor. "Fine, but I want yakisoba and shrimp."

Devon laughed, “I’ll order it now, and it should be here by the time I’m done with these people.”

Peering through the narrow cracks in the door, I prepared myself. Catching someone threatening Devon could unravel the mystery of the charity event bombing. I regulated my breathing, ensuring silence in case someone approached.

Soon enough, several men entered. As they neared Devon's desk, I recognized them as acquaintances of the man I rescued at the charity event. But why were they here? Did they know Devon personally, or were they linked to the bombing? Tension rose as another man joined them. His sleek black hair fell across his eyes, his lean physique accentuated by a grey silk shirt adorned with tattoos of dragons and swords. Despite the danger, I found his presence oddly captivating. He was attractive, and he knew it too.

The man sat down in the seat I was sitting in, a bleak look on his face as he glanced over Devon, “It’s a pleasure to meet you in person finally. However, it seems you have some information that I need.”

Devon frowned, leaning against his desk, “Information? On property? I might be able to tell you who owns it, but that’s about it.”

The man shook his head, “I want to know about the bombing the other day.”

Devon sighed, crossing his arms, “There’s really not much I can tell you.”

“I doubt that.” The man said, an intense look on his face, “My men and I are going to ask you a couple of questions.” He crossed his feet, stretching out in the chair. “If you give us answers, we’ll leave you alone. If we don’t like what we hear… there will be consequences.”

Devon shook his head, “I’ll answer your questions, but they might not be what you’re looking for.”

The man was silent for a moment, and I got a bad feeling about this. The man finally spoke, “What do you know about the individuals or the organizations behind the bombing?”

Devon blinked a few times, “I honestly don’t know anything. I had thought it was Mr. Cleaver being funny at first, but then my date had pointed out a few things that didn’t add up?”

“Date?” The man said, leaning forward. He looked intense, like he was upset that Devon was dating someone, “What did this ‘date’ notice?”

“There was a spider tattoo on Mr. Cleaver’s neck.” Devon shrugged, “I hadn’t really noticed until she had said something. He also wasn’t wearing any of his glasses, and his gray hair magically turned to salt and pepper.”

The man curled his lip in disgust, “A spider tattoo?”

Devon nodded, “Yup!”

“Have you received any threats or warnings since the bombing or even before the bombing?” The man asked, his eyes never leaving Devon’s face.

Devon slowly nodded, “Before the bombing, we got a death threat stating that if my company didn’t stop the condo build, I would be putting thousands in danger.” Devon frowned, “I knew where that bomb threat came from though.”

“What?” The man said, confused.

“An FBI agent said the saliva on the envelope belonged to a radical environmental group, though, and told me that this particular group just makes threats,” Devon said like it wasn’t a big deal. He shrugged and continued, “I was told by the FBI that I shouldn’t worry about the threat and just continue.”

“Obviously, the FBI agent is wrong. Do you remember his name?”

Devon walked around his desk, digging in his drawer, “I still have his card, actually.” Finally finding it, he handed the card over to one of the other men.

“This will help a lot.” Another man said, pocketing the card.

The leader asked, “Do you have any connections to any criminal groups or activities?”

Devon laughed, “Besides, you, no.”

The leader smirked, “Just one last question then, and I want an honest answer.” Devon gestured for him to continue, “This ‘date’ you were with at the event, her name?”

Devon stilled, his breathing becoming noticeably uneven through the door, “I can’t do that to her.”

“Do what?” The leader asked, standing up and leaning against Devon’s desk, “I just want her name… maybe her address and how I can get in contact with her. Nothing bad, you see.”

Devon shook his head, “No. I won’t do that. She has nothing to do with this.”

“That’s false.” The leader said, pulling a picture out of his back pocket and laying it in front of Devon, “She helped my younger brother and pulled him from the wreckage. The doctors were able to save his leg because of her. I just want to thank her properly.”

Devon swallowed hard, sweat forming on his forehead, “I won’t give you that information…” The leader leaned closer, causing Devon to take a step back, “But… but… we’re supposed to be having lunch later. You can stay and meet her then.”

The leader hesitated, “Lunch?”

Devon nodded, “Yeah, I ordered Sushi for both of us.”

The leader glanced at one of his men, who nodded, “Great. We’ll order sushi as well. Shall we gather in the conference room, then?”

Devon nodded, grabbing his phone, “I’ll let my assistant know to send her in when she arrives. Conference room B is available.”

Devon walked out with all of them. I waited a few moments before stepping out of the closet. I needed more information and quick. I didn’t want to walk in there blind and make a fool of myself. I flagged Anna down when she walked by the room.

She quickly hurried in, a confused look on her face, “Mr. Park is looking for you! You shouldn’t keep him waiting!”

I gestured for her to lower her voice, “I know he is. I need to know who those men are, though.”

Her eyes went wide, “You don’t know who they are?!”

I glared at her, “Anna, I’ve been in the military for the past few years. I have no idea what is going on anymore.”

Anna blew out a breath, “Those men are mafia. Their leader, Nico, is incredibly dangerous, and no one can get close to him.”

I frowned, “What do you mean by that?”

“He owns Red, the club just down the street.” Anna gestured to the left of her, “Women have tried to approach him before, and he’s completely torn them a new one.”

“I still don’t understand,” I was trying to understand, but she wasn’t exactly giving me details that told me what I needed to know.

“He hates women. The last girl who approached him lost her job and her house. Her family has isolated her, and she’s been completely cut off from this side of the district.” Anna moved closer, “I saw her the other day, actually, in the spider’s district.”

“Spider’s district?” I threw my hands up in the air, “Would you make some damn sense!?”

She winced, “Sorry, I keep forgetting.” She glanced nervously at the door, “The spider district belongs to the Black Widow Brotherhood. It’s another mafia group that controls the drug trade and is currently imposing on Nico’s terrorism by trying to take over the smuggling market, too.”

“What mafia does Nico run then?” I asked, confused.

“Nico runs the Raven group. He’s called ‘the raven,’ and his right-hand man, Carlos, is called ‘the Raven’s Eye,’ and he’s incredibly scary as well.” Anna winked at me, “But his tattoos are so sexy!”

“Noted,” I grunted, walking out the door.

What the hell has this town come to? I’ve been gone not even ten years, and now everything is being run by Mafia Syndicates! I can’t let them see me get upset or nervous. That’ll raise some flags for sure. I didn’t have any weapons on me either at the moment. Devon made me leave my knife in the car because it scared his employees that someone was walking around the office with a weapon. I respected his wishes, but f**k!

I tried to get a better look at the conference office they were in, but there were no walls, just see-through windows. I can’t see in, and they can see out. I glanced down at myself and regretted what I wore today. A white tank top with my military pants and my usual combat boots. This is what I was most comfortable in, and today, I wished I had gone with a nice dress or something. I wasn’t exactly presentable for Devon, but he didn’t care. He enjoyed my presence, not my body. Finally, fighting my inner woman, I entered the conference room.