Anteros raised a brow. “You didn’t care for your father?” Anteros could understand that, at least. He could understand useless fathers, could understand fathers that were useful in ruining things even more.
“I cared for him,” Levi corrected. Anteros nodded carefully at his reply, mentally preparing to end the meet with Levi and kill him, when the man added, “I cared a great deal that he had the decency to die.” The bitterness in his voice was enough to choke on.
“Your mother is also dead,” Anteros said, making a gesture for Levi to relax. Levi nodded and Anteros continued. “Both parents dead…must have been a hard life for a boy.”
Levi shrugged. “It’s life.” Anteros nodded imperceptibly to himself. Most men in Anteros’s presence were predictable. They cowered or kowtowed. Not this man.
“You didn’t like your father,” Anteros said. Levi opened his mouth to respond, but Anteros raised a hand to silence him. “It wasn’t a question. You didn’t like your father, yet you’re working so hard to walk in his footsteps.” Anteros leaned on the wall again, waiting. “That was a question.”
A few moments passed, and Levi didn’t break eye contact with Anteros. It was almost as if he was challenging him. His hazel eyes hardened to petrified wood and Anteros thought he might have to really deal w
ith Levi, but then he looked away and said, “My father was a blight on this world. I’m not following in his footsteps, I’m erasing them.”
Anteros could believe that; he’d spent his life doing the same. Another moment passed and a single strand of Levi’s mahogany hair fell from his strict bun, across one eye, then Anteros asked, “What do you have for me?”
“I don’t know who the leak is—yet,” Levi replied. “But I have seen the woman there, Lucia. She comes often and speaks with the captain.” Anteros glowered; he’d thought the captain was loyal to him. It at least explained why the asshole hadn’t asked for his permission when hiring Levi. As far as he was concerned, he couldn’t trust anyone at the fucking precinct anymore.
He eyed Levi. “Has the captain added any new hires beside yourself?” Levi’s fate hung upon his next words. If what he said couldn’t be corroborated, Anteros would destroy him along with the rest of the precinct.
“Yes,” Levi replied. “Four men, all within the last month.” Anteros studied Levi for a beat then nodded.
“You work for me now. You tell me what goes down in there.” Anteros thumbed behind him at the building as he kicked up off the wall, telling Levi to follow. He studied the precinct as they approached its face, took in the five-story stone and brick building, the American flag jutting out above the blue double doors.
Fuck.
He wanted to burn the building, raze it to ashes. He was the one who had turned the police, and now Lucia was profiting from his spoils?
“What’s up, Boss?” Pretty Boy said as they reached the alley’s opening.
“The place is rotten.”
“Shit,” Little O muttered. “All of it?”
“All of it,” Anteros replied. To his left Pretty Boy nodded slowly, absorbing the information.
Levi checked his watch. “I gotta go. They’ll wonder where I’ve gone.” Anteros waited until the blue double doors had closed behind him to turn to the group.
“Assuming Levi is clean, he’ll be our man inside,” Anteros said, eyes still on the building. It wouldn’t take too long to learn if four new men had been hired. “When we get enough information, we throw out the rotten fruit.”
“What are you thinking?” Little O asked.
“Bomb.” Without another word, Anteros turned to walk back to where Nikolai had parked the car.
“Fucking yes,” Pretty Boy said, running after Anteros. “I am so overdue for a bomb.”
“I could use a little fire,” Crazy A conceded at his back.
“Hey, where’s servant boy?” Pretty Boy asked as they approached the Escalade. “I was gonna make him go to the M&M store while we’re down here.”
“That’s at least forty blocks away,” Little O grumbled.
“And your point is?” As Pretty Boy and Little O continued to talk, Crazy A sidled up next to Anteros so only he could hear what he had to say.
“I really thought you’d given up on all of this—the fighting, the blood. Thought you just wanted to be Boss. To fuck slaves. To do your job.” Anteros looked at Crazy A, at the hard lines in his still young face and his bitter, unfeeling eyes.
He didn’t get it. Fucking a slave was why he was back.
“This is my job,” Anteros replied as he clicked on the power for the Escalade.