Chapter 63 - 67
Akio POV
The car slows to a deliberate stop before the secluded estate, its structure, gaudy and overcompensating, is framed by the dying light of dusk. My gaze tracks every visible point of entry, noting the two guards stationed at the front—Botan’s personal detail—now standing like statues flanking the massive front door. Their presence, a body without a head, is as unusual as it is telling.
I’d suspected something was amiss the moment I received word: Botan had summoned the cleaners. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t care, but their deployment to his current location—the estate of an associate with whom Botan was supposed to broker an arms deal and secure the Baltic shipping routes—for some reason—and none of them good. The cleaners were sent.
"Stay here. All of you."
I exit the car, pushing the door close without looking back as I make my approach. There are no guards, not Alessio’s men, nor do I see a contingent of our own. The front parking bay is decked with luxury vehicles, exotic sports cars that I’m sure belong to the Gianni men. The SUVs with blacked-out windows and reinforced exteriors—bulletproof—must belong to their security. I’m sure.
"Where are the others?" I ask, climbing up the short flight.
The two guards keep their eyes fixed ahead, their expressions unreadable, but there are tints of tension in their minor muscles, whether in their jaw or the strained cords in their neck.
"Perimeter sweep, clearing the area on Botan’s command," one of them answers.
"So why are you two posted outside?"
"On Botan’s command," they say in unison.