“Those fuckers are Python prospects. It didn’t take a lot of background checks to figure it out.”
He glanced up at me. “Why? Why would they want to take Alyxandria?”
In my head, I could see Alyx frowning. She hated her name, which was why she preferred Alyx.
“Jesus.” He pulled his hand over his head, panic written all over his face, and I knew exactly at which picture he was looking. One of the pictures Neon took of Alyx earlier today.
He hunched down, still clutching the images. “What did they do to her?” I’d never seen the police commissioner so close to tears. During the last five minutes, I’d seen more emotion in this man than I had during the last ten fucking years.
“Is she…” he bit his fist, “is she still alive?”
I nodded. “As far as we know.”
“How…how did you get these pictures? What do these fuckers want?”
I glanced over my shoulder at Ink. “It got delivered this morning by another Python prospect. My guy here took care of that fucker.”
The PC stood straight. “What do they want? Ransom? Blackmail?”
I slipped my hands into my pockets. “They know about our business arrangement.”
“What?” He narrowed his eyes.
“They know we’ve been assassinating criminals around town in exchange for you turning a blind eye to our business with the Sixes.”
He clutched the envelope tightly, his knuckles white and cheeks red. “Why? Why in God’s name would they take my daughter?”
I straightened and squared my shoulders. “They want our business with the Sixes. They tried to infiltrate our club, tried to take us out, but they don’t have the balls or the manpower.” I lit another cigarette, trying my best to remain calm and not seem too overeager. “Now they’re pushing our asses into a corner by forcing us to choose.”
He frowned, sweat running down the side of his face even though the early autumn chill was in the air. “How in God’s name are they forcing you in a corner by kidnapping my daughter?” He gritted out the words between clenched teeth, his emotion something between anger and fear. “Why the fuck would they hurt my baby girl?”
I blew out a cloud of smoke. “They want the Sixes, and they won’t give your daughter back unless we walk away. In other words, they’re forcing us to choose.”
It was easy to see the exact moment the penny dropped, blue eyes that mirrored his daughter’s staring at me as he put the pieces together. “They know I’ll come to you. They know I’ll ask your help to find her. In other words, they’re blackmailing you. Not me.”
“Exactly.” I took another draw from my cigarette before exhaling. “They will only give Alyx back if we agree to walk away from our business with the Sixes. If we don’t, there’s no way they’ll let your daughter go…which would ultimately end our alliance with the police commissioner of New York. In other words, we’ll be fucked.” I faked a worried expression. “In fact, the Kings are fucked either way.”
“Jesus,” he muttered, leaning his head back, staring up into the sky. “Sly bastards.”
Ink stepped in next to me. “We can take these fuckers. Give us until dawn tomorrow, and you’ll be picking up their bodies across town for a week.”
“No!” His glare cut from Ink to me. “No. Not until you get my daughter back. I don’t want her getting caught in the crossfire. This is your fucking war, not mine.” His anger was taking the lead over his fear, and right now we were easy targets.
“Everybody calm the fuck down.” I flipped my cigarette across the road before I turned my attention to the commissioner. “We’ll get your daughter back.” I spat out some built-up mucus in the back of my throat as if I was already standing on a Python’s grave. “But once we have her, once she’s safe, Pythons are open game for us with no interference from you or your department.”
“Done.” He didn’t even hesitate.
I grinned then stepped closer. “You do understand that it’s war? It’s no longer just a battle for power between them and us. It’s a full-blown war, and there will be casualties. There will be blood. Are you prepared to bury the body count, no questions asked?”
He took a step forward, matching mine, his eyes hard and determined. “I don’t give a fuck if you kill half the goddamn town, just as long as it’s not my daughter.”
Deep down, I was fucking smiling like the Cheshire cat. The police commissioner just gave me the free pass I needed to take out those motherfucking Pythons with the entire goddamn police department behind me.
I looked him up and down, sizing up the poor bastard. If only he could have shown such balls when it came to his wife starving and mind-fucking his daughter.
Dutch moved closer, and I knew he was keeping an eye on the commissioner’s bodyguards, watching their every move. The day my father died and I took his seat at church, Dutch stepped up asking for the enforcer rank. He wanted to be my personal fucking bodyguard without the added responsibility the sergeant-at-arms would carry. For him, protecting me and my brother was like breathing. Loyal fucker.
Taking a step back, I kept my gaze on the old man. “Keep the uniforms off our asses over the next week, and we’ll get your daughter back.” I turned to walk away when he called me.