“Yes,” he informs me. “But there’ll be ten different dons present, including their entourages. We’re talking about more than a hundred armed and trained men in one building. If they all turn their sights on us…”
He trails off, leaving the rest unsaid.
But he doesn’t need to continue.
We all know what will happen if I fail.
“Not everyone is happy about Budimir’s take over,” I say. “Not everyone is happy about the bastards he’s invited into the inner circle.”
“We’re betting a lot on that being true,” Maxim acknowledges grimly.
He’s right. But we don’t have a choice.
Strength is the only language that the underworld understands, and I need to walk in there, guns blazing.
“What about Svetlana?” I ask, turning to Vasyl.
“She’s on the thirty-first floor,” he answers right away. “The King’s Suite.”
“Who do we have on her?”
“Luka.”
I nod. “Tell him he’s not to abandon his position,” I order. “No matter what. And if shit goes south, he’s to get Svetlana the fuck out of the building.”
“We might need him,” Maxim interjects. “We’ll need every man.”
“Svetlana is part of the team,” I say. “But she doesn’t have to die today. I’m not going to leave her unprotected. She put her neck on the line for several weeks up until this point. I won’t forget that.”
Maxim nods, stone faced. “I’ll tell Luka.”
“Good,” I say. “That’s it. Let’s get going.”
I jump into the closest SUV, and we head into the heart of the city, towards the Regency. The whole time, my fingers twitch towards my phone.
I desperately want to hear Esme’s voice before I go in there. But I resist the desire.
This isn’t a goodbye.
I will see her again. I will hear her voice again.
I don’t need to hear it now.
Today is just business as usual.
* * *
The moment we get within a block of the hotel, I notice that security has been ramped up. Of course, the general public will assume that a politician or some high-profile celebrity is in town.
But I know better. I see the guns in the jackets of the suited men swirling around the entrances. I see the reinforced armoring of the cars.
This is all the city’s richest criminals here to do their dirt.
And I’m getting ready to crash the party.
We parks the cars in the hotel’s parking lot, but I make no move to get out.
“Hold back,” I tell my men. “We need to wait until everyone is inside.”