Something big was coming. I could feel it.
“They’re here,” Colin said, peeking out the front window.
I gave him a look. “Sit down, you ass.”
He shrugged and returned to his seat. “It’s Colm with some muscle I’ve never seen.”
I nodded and turned back to my drink. “Go do your runs, Colin.”
“Why? I should be here for this.”
I gave him a look and didn’t answer.
“Fine. Call if you need me.”
He stood and walked into the kitchen, probably heading out the back. I watched him go, frowning. I knew he’d be a problem, but he was already starting to second-guess my orders. I’d have to take care of that sooner than I expected.
As I looked back, the front door pushed open and Max walked in, followed closely by Dean. He nodded to me and I nodded back as they moved into the space. Dean was a bit shorter than Max, though by no means a small man. He had a long scar down his cheek, and the rumor was that he got it knife fighting his first kill back when he was a teenager.
Colm Brennan came in last. He was about my height, though a bit thinner, with dark hair slicked back along his skull, piercing blue eyes, crooked teeth, and a wicked grin. He flashed it at me as he entered, spreading his arms out.
“Liam, how’s my favorite boss doing?”
I stood and greeted him, returning his hug.
“I’m fine Colm, though your visit has me worried.”
He stood back, still grinning. “Nothing to be worried about.”
I gestured at a nearby table, and we took our seats across from each other.
“Can I get you anything? Food, drink, whatever?” I asked him.
“I’m fine, thanks.” He looked back at Max and Dean. “Boys, go check out the kitchen. Get something to eat if you want.”
They nodded and walked into the back room, pushing open the kitchen door. I was suddenly alone with the most powerful and dangerous man in the entire city, and I had to admit that I was feeling nervous.
“So, what can I do for you, Colm?” I asked.
“Getting down to business already?” he said softly, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms.
“Won’t pretend like you visiting in person isn’t strange.”
He nodded. “We have a problem, Liam.”
There was a short pause as he stared at me, and I returned his gaze. With a man like Colm, no matter how on edge he seemed, you couldn’t show too much weakness. Deference and respect were necessary, but weakness was something else entirely. You needed to be able to show you followed his lead, but you could handle whatever he asked of you, no matter what.
“You know I respected your father, everyone did. He was a good man and a good boss. Smart, and ruthless when he had to be,” Colm said.
“Thanks for saying that. I appreciate it.”
He leaned forward. “But you’re not your father, Liam. You know that, right?”
I nodded, trying to keep my anger off my face, and said nothing.
“Good. You’ve been protected for a long time because of your father’s influence. True, you’ve been a damn good boss on your own, one of the best. But it’s time you started pulling your full weight.”
“What’s this about, Colm?”
He leaned back and smiled. “You did a good job the other night, hitting that junkie scum. I was proud of you.”
“Just following orders,” I grunted.
The mention of that guy sent chills down my spine, and I could feel sweat spring up along my chest. I struggled to keep the memory of his last breath from my mind.
“Of course, you always have.” He paused and looked down at the heavily lacquered table, running his fingers over its smooth top. “As you know, there has been a lot of shit lately in the gang. People fighting over scraps, making chaos. And chaos makes more chaos, all around us in waves. I don’t have to tell you how many bodies that’s making, and how big of a problem it is.”
I nodded, understanding. As soon as one minor boss was knocked down, two more stepped up to cause problems in his place, and the deaths were beginning to mount. Colm was barely clinging on to power, mainly through his willingness to cut the head off any snake that appeared. That meant his men were working overtime, trying to get rid of bodies, and there were only so many places to dump them.
“Do you need me to start helping out with disposal?” I asked.
“No. You have a more important job. Two days ago, I sent out two of my guys on a hit. Everything went smoothly, no problems, the fuckers are in their graves. But when they went to dump the bodies in the river, some bitch walking her dog saw them.”
I blinked, letting that settle in. If the civilian went to the cops about what she saw, the heat could make the entire chaos worse, and could potentially give the other bosses enough of an advantage to wrench Colm from power. He wouldn’t be able to handle both the police and his internal issues.