“Worse.” Levin presses his lips together. “It’s his son.”
It would have taken me only a second to figure out that the man sitting there, surrounded by some of the most gorgeous women I’ve ever seen in my life and holding a chain attached to—afucking tiger?—isn’t Nomura Nakamura. The man can’t be more than my age, if not younger, dressed in tight black leather pants and a black silk kimono left to hang open so that his muscled chest is bare, silver and gold chains layered on his skin. His hair is long, well past his shoulders and dyed blonde, with the black roots showing in a way that’s intentional rather than lazy. His nearly black, almond-shaped eyes are half-lidded, sleepily bored despite the women draped over him, all in various stages of near-nudity, one between his legs with her head pillowed on his thigh and her fingers tracing the outline of his cock through the leather pants.
Oh, and the fact that he’s holding afucking tigeron a chain.
Just that.
Levin bows instantly at the waist, his voice full of grudging respect. “Kaito Nakamura, it’s an honor to meet you in the flesh. Your father—”
“I’m not interested in hearing about my father.” Kaito’s eyes flicker open a little wider, taking us in for the first time, and his hand shifts, the chain moving. The tiger, which I’d deeply hoped was stuffed or animatronic, moves as well. Its yellow-gold eyes turn towards us in a way that tells me it is most definitely both real and alive, if perhaps a bit drugged. “I am, however, interested in hearing why my evening has been interrupted with…you three.”
“My apologies,kobun.”The man who had greeted us on the tarmac steps forward, bowing deeply. “I received word that these three were arriving in Tokyo with intent to arrange for a meeting with your father. I thought it best to intercept them before—”
“Before they could cause trouble. And with my father out of town, it falls to me to deal with it.” Kaito sits up fully, pushing his hair lazily out of his face with one hand and dislodging one of the girls. “Someone get me sake. Enough for my guests and me—if they prove to be guests, rather than nuisances.”
The tiger lets out a low grumble, and it’s all I can do not to take several steps backward, partially because the men behind me are preventing it.What do you feed that thing?seems like an obvious question, but it’s not one I’m about to ask—mostly because I don’t think I want to know the answer.
“We don’t intend to be a nuisance,” Levin says politely. “Nor do we intend to take up much of your time, Nakamura-san. We received a tip from Adrian Drakos regarding some business that your father had done that might aid us in finding someone.”
“I don’t know any Adrian Drakos.” Kaito looks increasingly bored, and something tells me that a man of Kaito Nakamura’s wealth and youth doesn’t take well to being bored.
I have no desire to find out how he might turn us into his entertainment.
“He’s a former associate of mine at the Moscow syndicate. I once worked for them as a—private contractor.” Levin says the last meaningfully, and Kaito’s eyes spark with the tiniest bit of interest at last.
“Sake,” he says sharply and jerks his head towards the low table in front of the divan, where more cushions are scattered. “Come, sit, while one of my women pours for us. Just you,” he adds, narrowing his eyes at us. “So far, the two of you have done nothing to interest me.”
Levin glances at us, but moves forward quickly, taking a cushion as far from the tiger as he can before Kaito Nakamura has a chance to change his mind.
The girl bringing the sake is tall and slender, dressed in nothing but a sheer gauzy kimono that shows her rose-pink nipples and the shaved apex of her thighs clearly, her slim thighs parting the fabric as she moves towards Kaito and Levin with a gilded tray containing four porcelain cups and a bottle of sake. She’s one of the most covered of the girls. A few of them are wearing nothing but gold body chains connected to pierced nipples and, ostensibly, a piercing between their legs, while another pair are wearing only pasties and thong panties. The room smells like feminine flesh and perfume, with the underlying scents of fur, burning wood, and male sweat.
They’re all extraordinarily beautiful. The one between Kaito’s legs is one of the girls wearing only body chains, and she flattens her hand over his crotch, her eyes rolling up anxiously towards his face. He swats her hand away, saying something sharply to her in Japanese, and she pouts before rolling away, far too close to the tiger for my comfort. But instead of lingering near Kaito and Levin, she starts to sway towards us, circling Max and me with a sort of sultry curiosity that tells me that she’s going to be the means with which Kaito toys with us next.
I’ll take it over some other methods he could come up with, but still, I’m in no mood to be faux-seduced by a crime lord’s woman, no matter how gorgeous.
“So.” Kaito tosses back his shot of sake while Levin sips his, holding out the cup for the kimono-clad girl to pour another. “You’ve taken an interest in my father’s business. Risky. My father doesn’t like strangers taking an interest in anything that the Nakamura clan does.”
“Not his business, precisely,” Levin says calmly. “And might I say, this is excellent sake, Nakamura-san. Unmatched by any I’ve had elsewhere.”
“You might.” Kaito looks at him with narrowed eyes. “My father’s business.”
“Yes.” Levin takes another sip. “We’re seeking someone—a Frenchman who is in the habit of paying large sums for damaged items. Art, artifacts, rare books, perhaps—women.” He pauses. “My contact in Greece, Adrian Drakos, suggested that your father might have done business with such a man.”
“So he suggested that my father cheated this Frenchman?” A flush of red appears on Kaito’s high cheekbones. “I should cut out your tongue and send it to this Adrian Drakos, for sending you here to speak such—”
“No, Nakamura-san,” Levin says quickly. “Rather, I was told that it’s the Frenchman who is a laughingstock, both among your clan and other crime bosses who have dealt with him. That he is an idiot who willingly pays a higher price than these items should fetch.” Levin shrugs, taking another sip. “It’s hardly your father’s fault if a man throws money at him. Should he turn it down? A wise man would say no.”
Kaito relaxes a fraction. “You mentioned women,” he says stiffly. “The Nakamura clan does not sell women. We have several brothels, yes. But we do not sell women outright.”
“No, of course not,” Levin says agreeably. “But—”
“But this Frenchman has purchased one.” I can’t keep my mouth shut a second longer. Levin’s words warning me to let him take charge echo in my head, but I can’t stop myself. Listening to them banter is excruciating. Waiting for Levin to get to the point so that I can find out if this is just another dead end or if Kaito Nakamura might give us some hint, at least to get me closer to Ana, is driving me insane.
Kaito’s gaze whips to me instantly, his dark eyes narrowing, and I see Levin go immediately tense, his fingers squeezing the porcelain cup until I think he might actually shatter it.“Liam,” I hear Max hiss, but it’s too late now.
I take a step forward, painfully aware that there’s a live tiger within a few feet of me, and I have no idea when—orwho—it’s eaten last.
“Is that so?” Kaito asks dryly, and I nod.