Page 5 of The Assassin
“Are you going to ask for permission?” Franco’s voice wavered.
“No. I’ll be in and out before they’d even know I was there.” At least Ardan hoped so. He’d only met the president of the Norse Lords MC once and it’d been brief, but Santi had said he was a hard-ass. He ran the city of Pleasant Beach like a business, and everyone who lived there knew who was in charge. Even the Society made it clear going into Pleasant Beach for business meant they needed the man they called Odin’s permission, and forgoing it could end with death. Ardan didn’t have time for that, though. As soon as Mancini knew Ardan was in town, he’d run again. Ardan needed to go in hard and fast. He had no other choice with the hitman. He could beg for forgiveness later.
“Give me the hotel address, Franco. I’m at the airport.”
Franco grunted. “Your funeral.”
The phone buzzed and Ardan grabbed it, opening the message to an address in Pleasant Beach. “Thank you,” he said, before ending the call.
Chapter Two
Isabella was beautiful, a little girl of six years old and identical to her mother in every way. Gabriel could see his sister, Mia, in his niece’s face and smile. His heart ached, another reminder that he wasn’t there to watch her grow up, or hear her call his name with joy every time she saw him. Right now, little Isabella had no idea he existed.
Gabriel sighed and scrolled down the social media platform, taking in the photos of his family. His mother. Father. Sister. Brothers. They were all there, the sorrow of his death had passed. He shouldn’t look, but he couldn’t help himself. He wanted to know they were all okay.
Footsteps made him raise his head and he smiled at the waitress who brought him his coffee in a thick glass mug.
“Thank you.” He winked at her, and she giggled. She couldn’t have been more than twenty-one, and reminded him of his sister when she was younger. Dark curls, gentle brown eyes, and a smile that could light up the room.
“Is that your family?” the waitress asked, nodding at the screen of Gabriel’s laptop. She grabbed the skirt of her baby blue dress in her fists, shifting her weight between her feet nervously.
He closed the lid of the laptop, and watched her smile disappear. “Yes.”
“I’m sorry if I was rude,” she whispered, glancing toward a lady that Gabriel assumed was her manager. The boss glared at the waitress from behind the sales counter, her hands on her hips. She looked like a mean old bat. “I’m new here. I’m trying real hard not to get fired.”
He read her name tag,Jennifer, and smiled. “It’s fine. You’ve done nothing wrong, Jennifer. I’d just rather not talk about them. Here.” He grabbed his wallet out of the pocket of his pants and opened it, passing her a fifty as a tip. “Thank you for your good service.”
She gasped, a blush spreading across her cheeks, and nearly skipped away from the table. Gabriel chuckled and brought the mug to his lips, taking a deep swallow. It was a hit of caffeine he needed and warmth slithered through his body. It wasn’t cold outside because Pleasant Beach never really had a winter, or in this case, a spring, but Gabriel enjoyed the AC in the room, which blasted too high, and the extra heat in his veins. California was the place to be this time of year.
The bell tinkled as the door to the café opened. Gabriel smirked when he saw who walked inside and raised his hand. Santiago Garcia was a handsome man with his hair shaved short but kept longer on top. He had a strong facial bone structure, lending him a model-type appearance, and only wore his MC cut, with no shirt underneath, which left his sculpted collarbones and arms at the mercy of the people in the café. Some weren’t ashamed to eat him up like he was one of the eclairs in the display case. Gabriel could see what Ardan Murphy saw in him.
Santiago strode through the café, past a table of ogling women, before he fell into the seat on the opposite side of the table. He slid off his dark sunglasses and threw them in front of him, leaning back in his chair to cross his arms. Even though the position was defensive, he grinned at Gabriel, eyes dancing with mischief like he knew exactly why they were both there. “You must be the famous Gabriel Mancini.”
“You know about me. I’m charmed.” Gabriel held his hand out across the table and Santiago slid his palm into it. His hand was warm and bigger than Gabriel’s, and he had a strong grip, the kind Gabriel expected from a fellow hitman. “And you’re Santiago Garcia, also known as Fenrir.”
Santiago snorted and released the handshake, dropping his arms on the small, round table covered in a navy cloth with a small pot of flowers in the center. “Don’t pretend I’m here for anything other than who I am to Ardan.”
“Ah, you know, then.” Gabriel gestured to the menu. “Would you like something to drink? I’ll pay.”
Santiago waved his hand. “I’m fine. I’m not here to play nice with you, Mancini. What do you want? If it’s Ardan, you’ll need to find someone else to help. We haven’t been in contact for a few years.”
“But he has mentioned me.”
“If you mean that he wants to slit your throat, then yes,amigo, he has mentioned you.” Santiago leaned his elbows on the table, a smirk playing on the corner of his mouth. “Le encanta odiarte.”
Gabriel laughed. “He loves to hate me. I feel honored.”
“You speakEspañol.” Santiago raised his eyebrows.
“Spanish, Italian, English, Russian, German, and Polish.” Gabriel took another sip of his coffee and raised the mug in Santiago’s direction. “It’s best to know as many languages as you can when you travel as much as I do.”
“I’m impressed.”
Jennifer shuffled toward them and stopped beside Gabriel. She smiled between him and Santiago. “Can I get you anything?”
They both shook their heads and her gaze lingered a little longer on Santiago than necessary before she left again. They watched her go and Gabriel didn’t miss the way Santiago’s gaze slid to her ass and appreciation passed over his face.
“Bisexual?” he asked nonchalantly, adding another sugar to his coffee and stirring it in, even though he’d drunk half of it.
