Chapter 128
(ARLO)
I am pleased that Miles has the courtesy to stay in the car despite accompanying me. I feel like I have the free space and liberty to talk to my men. I desperately need that right now.
I arranged to meet them at a restaurant that they use as a front at two o’clock. It is an older building on the other side of town. The restaurant has faded red booths and dark wood panelling. Even its décor is outdated, but I somehow find it comforting. Familiar even. When I was a kid, I used to come here with my father. It was better back then. The booths weren’t as faded as they are now.
One of my captains, Roberto, receives me warmly. “Boss, we were beginning to worry that we’d have to break you out of that mansion.” Roberto is a bit older than me, with jet-black curly hair. He was my father’s second, whom my father trusted with his life. I trust him just as much because I know he is a good man.
Good man or not, I don’t want him or the others to learn that I was forced into this marriage with Miles. First of all, it will make me look weak and unable to run the syndicate. Two, they need to be open to the idea of the Sovereign Ring Syndicate being protected by the Triple Triad syndicates. As much as I loathe Sasha with my huts, my men need to believe that I’m cool with the turn of events. They can never learn the truth.
“Sasha and I had a lot to discuss.” I begin.
“I can imagine,” Roberto says, leading me to the table where the other men are seated. I had requested Roberto earlier to gather ten of my best capos, and he did just that. The captains, each lead a group of men who are my soldiers. They operate in specific territories and do variant activities, depending on where they are.
One of the capos, Walter, hands me a glass of whiskey. “I won’t lie to you, sir, but news about this marriage and merge took us all by surprise.” He watches me keenly and I school my face best, trying to not give anything else away.
“It surprised me too at first but later made sense. We need to grow for us to survive. When my father died, we lost some credibility. I too believe that merging us with the Triple Triads will do us all some good.” I take a sip of the whisky, wincing slightly as the beverage burns its way down my throat.
“What of the marriage?” Roberto asks, rubbing his stubble. “How did that come about? I never thought you were close to Miles Caspar. What we knew is that you hated Miles Caspar just as much as you hated Sasha Adonis. We all thought that p>
I don’t mind that they are questioning me a lot. I was actually prepared for them. I fully expected them. This marriage and merger issue is coming completely out of the left field. I’d be more surprised if they didn’t have questions. “You aren’t entirely wrong. To be honest, I wanted to kill Sasha. At that time, it was my rage for what he did to my father driving me p>
The men rumble.
“Have you changed your mind on that?” Roberto asks.
“Well, angry or not, I’m not rash enough to go after the leader of the most powerful syndicate in the city blindly.” I lie. “In the end, he will ultimately help me fight Dalton. He became an ally instead p>
“You mean it is true that Dalton attacked you back in the mountains p>
“Yes. I went to get some air in the mountains, then Dalton ambushed me. He showed up with smiles Caspar as his prisoner.” I sigh. “I got angry when Dalton told me he was going to kill Miles and put the blame on me. He had planned a murder-suicide-like thing p>
“Lord!” Roberto raps. “That traitor p>
“Yes.” I nod. “Dalton betrayed me and tried to take over me as head of the Sovereign Ring Syndicate. It took some kind of a miracle for Miles and I to overpower him. We eventually managed to run away. It was the time that I spent with Miles escaping that made me begin to understand why Sasha Adonis did what he did to my father.” I lay out the facts thickly, lacing them with lies because I know it is necessary if they are ever going to believe that I’m suddenly cool with Sasha. There needs to be a reason why I suddenly changed my mind about Sasha.
“So, you bonded with Miles while escaping?” Walter murmurs.
I nod. “Exactly. I did.” The memories of how we bonded slightly resurface and my face warms. “I only regret that I didn’t take more men with me in the cabin. One of Dalton’s thugs killed Marcus. That wouldn’t have happened if I had more men with me. My desire to keep my affairs private cost me one of my men p>
The murmurs intensify among the men. They look confused.
“But sir,” Roberto laughs. “Marcus isn’t dead p>
My eyes go wide in shock. “What p>
“He is alive. In bad shape but alive. He is in the hospital p>
“I…I don’t understand. He lost so much blood. I…I thought he died.” Confusion swamps me just as much as I am relieved. I felt horrible guilt leaving him behind at the cabin when we were running from Dalton.
Walter smiles. “He somehow managed to survive. You know Marcus. He is a tough stubborn bastard. He lost so much blood, but Sasha’s men found him in time and took him to the hospital p>
“Sasha’s men found him p>
“Yes. When they were looking for Miles p>
“So, Marcus is really alive?” I shake my head.
“Of course he is,” Roberto says. “I thought you knew. I’m sorry p>
“No. It’s alright.” I say softly. “I…I thought he had died. There was so much blood p>
“Yes. The doctors said he is lucky to be alive.” Walter laughs gruffly. “Maybe he has nine lives p>
I nod. “I’m just glad he is alright p>
“Sir, if you don’t mind me asking, how did the engagement come about?” Walter asks.
I meet his curious gaze with a sharper one. “We had to work together. If we hadn’t, we’d have both died at the cabin. Maybe that sort of up and down makes people bond p>
“I see.” He says, his gaze flicking to the bite mark on my throat. “Well. I’m happy for you, sir. It is good to have an alpha of your own p>
I try so much to not bristle at the idea that an omega can’t function properly without an alpha. That idea is overrated, and outdated but still prevalent. All my life, I’ve been fighting the notion. Even my father worried that my taking after him being the head of the syndicate would be hard for me as an omega. Dealing with that nonsense is hard in this day and age. But it’s just what they believe. I can only prove them wrong by excelling p>
Roberto holds up his glass. “Well. It doesn’t matter how this agreement came about. It seems to be a good thing. Cheers to your engagement, Sir, and to working with the Triple Triads. May both bring blessings and prosperity to our syndicate p>
I do my best to look excited. I force a smile and pretend to be eager. Relief swamps me when the conversation drifts from my impending marriage. We spend the next hour talking about how the merge will benefit our syndicate. Everyone is taking the merge in stride. They actually seem excited about it. I was worried that they would resent the merge, but turns out it is the complete opposite.
I take my leave feeling very positive about it. I get into the passenger side of Miles’ SUV and he starts the engine p>
“How did the meeting go?” he asks, pulling into the road.