“Losing two of our highest assets is no big deal? What are you? A fucking idiot? You have no clue, ya fucking genius.” His cold gaze moved to Lopez. “Slave 21 and 62 have been booked and paid for every hour of the weekend. Exactly how are you going to pacify the members who have paid top dollar for their talents?”
“Slaves 30 and 122 have been in training for the past two weeks. They can only improve with time. So far, the feedback from clients has been satisfactory.” Lopez knew his answer wasn’t acceptable. His shoulders sagged under Boneiro’s harsh glare.
“Satisfactory? How long do you think we’ll fucking last with satisfactory results, Lopez? I’ve invested millions in this project over the past four years. Not just in financing the parties but in providing funds for the purchasing and upkeep of the houses we use in the different states. Obtaining upmarket sex slaves comes at a price.” Boneiro hit the roof. “I hate losing money. My accountant is calculating the cost of slaves 21 and 62, from purchase price to projected income over their expected lifespan in our employ. You have two choices. You either eliminate them or you refund my money.”
“That’s fucking ridiculous,” Lopez exploded. “Don’t you think we’ve done everything possible to find those two? We’ve scoured every fucking street and place where they could hole up. They disappeared.”
Boneiro frowned. “How is that possible? There’s no way they can remove the bracelets with the tracking chips.”
Lopez steeled himself to deliver the bad news. “We realized that some of the tracking chips are defective.”
“Let me guess. You only realized that after they escaped. Fucking brilliant. How many others?”
“Six but they’ve all been replaced,” Lopez assured him quickly.
“Once again, you’ve displayed to me your capacity for incompetence. You should’ve checked those chips every fucking day.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ve already—”
“What did you just say? Don’t worry? Who the fuck do you think you’re talking to? How would you like to choke on having your balls shoved down your throat? I’m just one red cunt hair from having you castrated. You understand me?” His hand slashed through the air. “Your inability to find those whores present us with a problem, don’t you agree?” Boneiro continued eating.
“What does it matter?” Bastian sneered. “We’ll ensure that the customers are happy with the whores they’ll get this weekend. We don’t need those sluts to keep stirring trouble among the rest.”
“Nor do we need them flapping their gums to the FBI about our operation, Conti. You forget that apart from yourself there are numerous, prominent men who could be exposed. If you don’t fucking realize that you’re even dumber than I thought.”
“Don’t insult me.” Bastian simmered.
“Shut the fuck up, Bastian,” Lopez finally snapped. It served no purpose to further enrage Boneiro. The bottom line was that his men had fucked up when the women escaped during transportation from the sex party in Chicago. He had to find a way to pacify the irate man. Over the years he’d learned that to Boneiro, there was only one person who mattered— himself. The fact that, to date, they had been running a seamless operation was irrelevant. You were only as good as your last job. Now, in the wake of losing two of their most sought-after whores, they looked like amateurs. Boneiro was only interested in one thing and that was the bottom line. The bigger it was, the more power he amassed.
Lopez cast a warning look at Bastian. He was a brilliant actor but also a hothead. It had been a mistake to bring him today.
His gaze slipped to the younger man. Why he’d forced his way into the crime syndicate business years ago was still a mystery but Matias had indulged him. He’d offered an influx of financial liquidity which had resulted in enhancing his own coffers. It also gave him an added position of strength and fear not to be opposed by smaller crime lords.
Now, he wondered once again what his intentions were… and how the mighty Marco Boneiro wasn’t aware of what was happening right under his nose.
“You’re right, Luca. We can’t afford them to rat us out to the Feds. I didn’t want to but if they’re still on the loose when I return to Chicago, I’ll personally activate the nano explosives in the bracelets.”
“No, Uncle Matias! Think of the money we’ll lose!”
“Shut up,” Lopez sneered. Greed had always been Bastian’s biggest problem. Lopez was more concerned about seeing the sun rise every day than being the reason a host of ministers, presidents, politicians, and royalty from various countries were eventually exposed as sexual predators. Marco Boneiro was cruel but Luca Boneiro wouldn’t hesitate to end his life if the role he played in the sex ring was ever discovered.
“Why wait, Lopez? Do it now,” Luca said.
“I don’t have the access codes with me. Don’t worry, Luca, I’ll Skype you so you can witness their execution once I get home.”
“You do that.” Luca finished his meal. He sipped on his wine as he stared out to sea.
Luca had branched out twenty years ago, infiltrating several crime syndicates with one goal in mind— to become more powerful than Marco Boneiro. His father had been too focused on gaining favor with the leaders of The Commission to notice. Where Marco wanted ultimate power over the American Mafia, Luca was after more. He would become the most feared man in the crime world as he rose to power when he took over The Commission. One man, one way, across the board. Mafia crime, drug, and sex syndicates... all would come to kiss his hand. It had come to him in the early mornings after the usual nightmare of Angelo’s execution. Marco Boneiro didn’t deserve the power he had. Killing his own son to gain favor of the Mafia kingpin at the time had been a mistake— one Luca would never forgive. It was time to kick Marco Boneiro to the curb and he was the one to do it.
Marco Boneiro was ruthless. His effort to mold his second son into a mirror of himself had been successful if only in appearance. Unknown to everyone was that Luca never recovered from the horrific death of his brother, Angelo. The metastasizing anger that had blackened his soul over the years had never abated. To watch his mother suffer and mourn the death of her eldest son had only added to the putrescent hatred for the psychopath who refused to be called father.
Luca firmly believed that Marco denied the existence of his own flesh and blood. To him, they were nothing but pawns on a chessboard— expendable in his quest for attaining total power.
The sex and pedophile ring had to remain secret until the time was ripe... then, Luca would play his trump card and sink Marco for good. He’d either be killed in the raid Luca would initiate or end up in a federal prison for the rest of his life. Alone… without the support of his sons or his wife, Isabella. Luca had set Marco up perfectly. The account the money for the parties and sex trade was deposited in was under his mother’s name. Everything pointed to Marco. She would never forgive him for that. Believing that he’d involved her in his shady dealings, setting her up to take the fall if the sex ring was exposed.
Matias Lopez and Bastian Conti weren’t going to fuck up his plans. His eyes glowed as he looked at the two men.
“This is the only time I will excuse a fuckup from you. If you wish to continue our partnership, you better get your shit in one sock, Lopez. I won’t accept failure.”