She remained quiet. A wicked expression covered her face. I didn’t think she learned her lesson at all. I probably shouldn’t have given it back, but I knew that I could stop the information from coming out anyway.
Plus, if she tried that, it would give me another reason to see her just like with bringing the cup back to her.
“Interesting.” I found that I was really enjoying being in her presence. I loved her scent, that beautiful face, and the silkiness of her voice.
I slipped over the card to her and took my cup of tea. I inhaled the tea. “More roses.”
She watched me with interest.
I studied her full lips. “Next time I see you, Ms. Walsh. I’m going to kiss you.”
She opened her mouth in shock.
“And we’ll also need to discuss how badly I want to fuck you.”
She blinked.
“Have a good afternoon and stay out of trouble.” I left her condo with my new romance and a very hot cup of tea.
8
Dream Lake
Dimitri
C
hanel’s butler opened the door. “Good morning, Mr. Ivanov.”
“It's good to see you again, Frederick.”
He closed the door and guided me forward. “And how is your mother these days? I truly miss her visits. It's been so long.”
“Retirement has served her well. She gardens and paints. She has afternoon cocktail parties with her friends and is even talking about starting ballroom dancing. She’s like a kid. And I am the adult.”
Frederick chuckled. “Mrs. Ivanov, is a true delight and deserves to have fun.”
Nefertiti’s voice sounded on the right. “I’ve got this, Frederick.”
We stopped and turned to her.
Nefertiti loomed over me. Her cornrows were different today. Instead of a circular pattern, tons of individual braids outlined her face. These didn’t have red beads.
She wore a black suit with a red shirt under it. Her silver guns lay in both holsters.
Frederick nodded and went off in the opposite direction.
I faced Nefertiti.
“Do me a favor, Dimitri.” She scowled at me. “Don’t stress her out with your usual insensitive bullshit.”
“Meaning?”
“Try to show some fucking compassion today.”
“I’ll do my best.”
We headed down the long hallway, outlined by large paintings hanging on the walls. All displayed different prominent members of the Jones family. It was the classic Syndicate way to decorate. Always there was an exposition of luxury encased within memories of the past. Pictures of ancestors were important. It helped us remember our sense of loyalty and duty.
I scanned some of the paintings. They were all elegantly dressed black men and women of different shades. Their eyes held fierce determination. The women always sat in a gold chair. The men always stood by their side, gripping huge gold-plated guns with the letter J, encrusted in diamonds.
Every Jones got a family gun when they turned twelve. I remembered when Romeo received his. I’d been insanely jealous when I returned on a visit from boarding school and he presented it to me. I’d asked my mother for one, and she’d refused, proclaiming I had enough guns already.
Nefertiti led me up the gold spiral staircase. It was one of my favorite parts of the Jones Mansion.
Chanel’s great grandfather had commissioned the massive house to be built. Early architects created spiral staircases to be space-efficient. The great Ralph Jones wanted the staircase to be beautiful, stylish, and functional. The railing was sparkling gold. Every marble step had a gold J dotted with diamonds. Even more interesting, the staircase wound clockwise and tight so that a large group of attacking enemies couldn’t rush up to the second level. And in certain spots, the steps were intentionally uneven to trip them.
Nefertiti pointed at two steps ahead of us. “Watch out for those.”
I skipped over them. “It’s been a while, but I remember.”
We made it to the second level and continued to the end of the hallway.
I stopped Nefertiti before she opened the door. “How has she been with Romeo’s death?”
She kept her hand on the knob. “Chanel has been strong since she started walking. However, I believe that all of you visiting has helped.”
I quirked my brows. “Who else has visited?”
“Many from the West.”
“That’s to be expected.”
A twinge of jealousy hit the corner of her eyes. “Mr. Romano had dinner here with her last night.”
Marcelo never mentioned that. Why not?
Her scowl deepened. “Mr. Hao stopped by earlier.”
“Lei was here too?”
“Naw, man.” She shook his head. “His father, Leo. He brought a large bag of caviar limes and a beautiful bible. It was all red leather and gold. They sat in the living room and prayed together.”
“But Lei didn’t show up?”
Nefertiti gave me a sad smile. “Lei came by, but not in the traditional way.”
“He stood outside of her window?”
She nodded. “You need to take care of that, before I have to.”
“I will. And if anyone out of the ordinary stops by, please contact me immediately. I believe we’re all in danger until Romeo’s killer is found.”