“And you think the Widow Maker doesn’t?” he asked. He was fast losing patience. All he wanted to do was have a drink and reorganize his plan. None of that was working for him right now.
“She’s more than that,” Xavier said.
“I know. Now get the fuck out of my room so I can clean up her mess and whatever fuckup Viko has made.” He went to his door, opened it, determined to clean everything so everyone fucking lived.
Being the head of Killer of Kings was starting to make him feel more and more like a parent of spoiled little brats.
****
Graciella had hoped Viko wouldn’t let his emotions get the better of him, but as they arrived at the location Boss had, it looked like that was very much not the case.
Not only was there no sign of the scientist, but Viko was also there with a mostly empty bottle of whiskey, and a gun, and it was aimed at all of them.
“I should have known you’d be on their side,” Viko said.
It was rare for Viko to lose control.
She kept her gaze on him. His men stood behind him, hand on their guns, ready to shoot.
“I take it you didn’t make your fucking arrival confidential?” Boss asked, stepping away from them and glancing around the factory. There were a few packets on the floor, but it looked like it had been packed up fast.
The operation wasn’t as big as she imagined it would be. The factory itself was small compared to most.
Viko burst out laughing, the sound of a crazed man.
The journey to the Dominican had been uncomfortable. None of the Killer of Kings wanted to talk to her. Even Boss had focused on his laptop, not giving her a single glance.
She should be pissed off.
Instead, she just stared out of the window and chanted to herself how safe it was to be on the airplane. She hated flying.
Hated it, despised it, often had nightmares of the plane going down into waters and being swallowed whole by a giant octopus, or eaten by piranhas. She very much preferred driving. Something to stay on the ground. Nice firm ground.
“Go ahead, Boss, shoot me. You and your boys want to do it. Go ahead,” Viko said. “What about you, Graciella? Want to shoot me?”
“Not today.”
He snorted and lifted his gun. It was pointed at her forehead.
She looked at him. There was an especially sore spot within her when it came to drunks. Men used alcohol as an excuse for their vile behavior. There was no fear inside her, only acceptance.
“I should kill you,” he said.
Graciella didn’t need to look back to know the Killer of Kings were tensed and poised. She didn’t reach for her gun. She knew Viko, not intimately, but enough to know he wasn’t going to shoot her.
“Go ahead.”
“You told me that son of a bitch was here!”
“He was here,” Boss said. He had his gun out. “You kill her and that’s it, it’s over.”
“We’ll have a good old-fashioned shootout. You think you’ll make it out alive, Boss? You’re good. Maybe you’re better than me, but I always have a plan. I have a lot of fucking plans in place and if you kill me, I’ll make sure you don’t get to sleep without someone breathing down your neck. I wonder how the Killer leader would be after weeks of no sleep. That calm exterior would certainly crumble.”
“Viko, we will find him,” she said.
His hand hadn’t wavered.
“We will.”