The Devil in Her Soul
Prologue
Hiero and Mikio Hamasaki sat in the great room of the house, the room overlooking Biscayne Bay through large, two story windows. As much as they enjoyed sitting outside to enjoy the sun and sea breeze, having the Carter girl sneak up on them had made them take their business discussions inside. They were relatively sure she hadn’t been able to understand what they were saying, but it was still an unacceptable risk.
“I understand, father,” the younger of the two men, Mikio, said. “But the Heartless Devils have been a much larger problem that we expected. I am uncertain how, but they found out that members of Demonios de Sangre killed their leader’s spouse. They have more resources than we gave them credit for.”
If an outsider had been listening they may have recognized the language was from Asia, and possibly even as Japanese, but only someone who could speak Japanese fluently would recognize the rare Hachijōjima dialect they shared.
“Perhaps we should approach the problem another way,” the older man, Hiero, said. “We always knew that we would have to be patient to implement our plans.”
“I understand, father, but with the Devils moving against us, we have to give up our subterfuge and attack the problem more openly.”
The older man grunted in acknowledgement. When they had ordered Melissa Carter killed, they had attempted to pin the murder on the Trifectas to start a war between the two largest clubs in Miami. The Heartless Devils hadn’t taken the bait and the war hadn’t started as planned. They had tried again with Jennifer Carter to increase the pressure on the Devils, but that plan also failed when the Devils arrived in the nick of time to save her. Hiero had wanted to throw her overboard and drag her behind the boat until she drowned and then dump her body on the beach in the Heartless Devils’ territory. He wanted the Heartless Devils unsure if her death was accidental or deliberate to keep them uncertain and confused, but that subtlety had cost them. Hiero acknowledged to himself that he should have listened to his son’s advice and simply had her throat slit and left her for dead in her apartment.
Mikio had continued to play his part as their contact with the Buccaneers, Demonios de Sangre, and the Trifecta clubs while Hiero had stonewalled the Heartless Devils. But, somehow, the Devils had put two and two together and knew that Mikio was connected to both the brewing club war and Jenny’s near death. It was only logical to assume they had made the connection to his father, as well, when Jenny Carter had spotted them together.
“We should use the Demonios,” Mikio suggested. “I no longer trust the Buccaneers or the Trifectas.”
Hamasaki senior grunted again. “Why?”
“It’s a feeling. They haven’t openly defied us, but they no longer seem as eager to do our bidding as they once did."
“Do you think they have joined the Heartless Devils against us?”
“I don’t know. I don’t believe so. A few weeks ago the Heartless Devils hit our distribution warehouse. The Trifectas defended our supply of weapons and didn’t appear to try to hide what happened.”
“And the Buccaneers?” Hiero asked.
“They have fulfilled all our requests as they agreed to, but, like the Trifectas, they no longer seem…hungry. Not as they once were.”
“But you trust the Demonios de Sangre?”
“Yes. They were very upset about one of their members being killed. Two others were wounded. It was Jennifer Carter and a member of the Heartless Devils, Asher Lowe, who did it. The Buccaneers say that this Asher Lowe has gone rogue.”
“This Asher, is he a big man with blond hair?” Hiero asked.
“Yes. Do you know him?”
“Yes, I think so. I believe he was the one who paid me a visit and was the one who saved Jennifer. You said he has gone rogue? As in no longer part of the Heartless Devils?”
“That’s correct, father,” Mikio said. “The Demonios de Sangre have decided to not strike at the Heartless Devils for the actions of Asher and Jennifer. It seems the Americans do have a certain honor among themselves.”
Hiero thought for a moment. They had come far and he didn’t want to abandon his goal now that it was in sight. It always came back to the Heartless Devils. They were keystone that was thwarting his plans to unite the underground clubs of Miami under his control.
“Perhaps you are right,” Hiero growled in annoyance. “We approached the Heartless Devils with our hand extended in friendship, and they rebuffed us. Now, they are working against us. This cannot be tolerated. Contact the head of the Demonios. It’s time for more direct action. Tell them we will back them with our resources and we wish them to engage the Heartless Devils. Once the Heartless Devils fall, the rest will support us or join the Heartless Devils in their fate. Also, put a bounty, say fifty-thousand dollars, on Asher Lowe. I want him alive. He has caused us much trouble and I will enjoy dealing with him personally.”
Hiero and Mikio Hamasaki sat in the great room of the house, the room overlooking Biscayne Bay through large, two story windows. As much as they enjoyed sitting outside to enjoy the sun and sea breeze, having the Carter girl sneak up on them had made them take their business discussions inside. They were relatively sure she hadn’t been able to understand what they were saying, but it was still an unacceptable risk.
“I understand, father,” the younger of the two men, Mikio, said. “But the Heartless Devils have been a much larger problem that we expected. I am uncertain how, but they found out that members of Demonios de Sangre killed their leader’s spouse. They have more resources than we gave them credit for.”
If an outsider had been listening they may have recognized the language was from Asia, and possibly even as Japanese, but only someone who could speak Japanese fluently would recognize the rare Hachijōjima dialect they shared.
“Perhaps we should approach the problem another way,” the older man, Hiero, said. “We always knew that we would have to be patient to implement our plans.”
“I understand, father, but with the Devils moving against us, we have to give up our subterfuge and attack the problem more openly.”
The older man grunted in acknowledgement. When they had ordered Melissa Carter killed, they had attempted to pin the murder on the Trifectas to start a war between the two largest clubs in Miami. The Heartless Devils hadn’t taken the bait and the war hadn’t started as planned. They had tried again with Jennifer Carter to increase the pressure on the Devils, but that plan also failed when the Devils arrived in the nick of time to save her. Hiero had wanted to throw her overboard and drag her behind the boat until she drowned and then dump her body on the beach in the Heartless Devils’ territory. He wanted the Heartless Devils unsure if her death was accidental or deliberate to keep them uncertain and confused, but that subtlety had cost them. Hiero acknowledged to himself that he should have listened to his son’s advice and simply had her throat slit and left her for dead in her apartment.
Mikio had continued to play his part as their contact with the Buccaneers, Demonios de Sangre, and the Trifecta clubs while Hiero had stonewalled the Heartless Devils. But, somehow, the Devils had put two and two together and knew that Mikio was connected to both the brewing club war and Jenny’s near death. It was only logical to assume they had made the connection to his father, as well, when Jenny Carter had spotted them together.
“We should use the Demonios,” Mikio suggested. “I no longer trust the Buccaneers or the Trifectas.”
Hamasaki senior grunted again. “Why?”
“It’s a feeling. They haven’t openly defied us, but they no longer seem as eager to do our bidding as they once did."
“Do you think they have joined the Heartless Devils against us?”
“I don’t know. I don’t believe so. A few weeks ago the Heartless Devils hit our distribution warehouse. The Trifectas defended our supply of weapons and didn’t appear to try to hide what happened.”
“And the Buccaneers?” Hiero asked.
“They have fulfilled all our requests as they agreed to, but, like the Trifectas, they no longer seem…hungry. Not as they once were.”
“But you trust the Demonios de Sangre?”
“Yes. They were very upset about one of their members being killed. Two others were wounded. It was Jennifer Carter and a member of the Heartless Devils, Asher Lowe, who did it. The Buccaneers say that this Asher Lowe has gone rogue.”
“This Asher, is he a big man with blond hair?” Hiero asked.
“Yes. Do you know him?”
“Yes, I think so. I believe he was the one who paid me a visit and was the one who saved Jennifer. You said he has gone rogue? As in no longer part of the Heartless Devils?”
“That’s correct, father,” Mikio said. “The Demonios de Sangre have decided to not strike at the Heartless Devils for the actions of Asher and Jennifer. It seems the Americans do have a certain honor among themselves.”
Hiero thought for a moment. They had come far and he didn’t want to abandon his goal now that it was in sight. It always came back to the Heartless Devils. They were keystone that was thwarting his plans to unite the underground clubs of Miami under his control.
“Perhaps you are right,” Hiero growled in annoyance. “We approached the Heartless Devils with our hand extended in friendship, and they rebuffed us. Now, they are working against us. This cannot be tolerated. Contact the head of the Demonios. It’s time for more direct action. Tell them we will back them with our resources and we wish them to engage the Heartless Devils. Once the Heartless Devils fall, the rest will support us or join the Heartless Devils in their fate. Also, put a bounty, say fifty-thousand dollars, on Asher Lowe. I want him alive. He has caused us much trouble and I will enjoy dealing with him personally.”