The Devious King: A Mafia Romance (The Hale Mafia Book 1)

by BL Mute

  Teddy replies once he’s settled in beside me, “You do have a choice. If you don’t want this life, you can leave. But you want people to take you serious, right? Get away from all the stigma of being the chief’s daughter?”

  I think back to a conversation I had with Sloan not long after my dad’s death. I talked to so many people and tried so many things to get to the bottom of his murder but got nowhere. I told him I was sick of the stigma that came with my name. Now I wonder how many conversations Sloan relayed to Teddy.

  “Sloan told you that.” I don’t word it as a question, because I already know the answer.

  Teddy nods, looking out the window. “He’s told me a lot of things.”

  I try to think back on other things I’ve mentioned to him, but there is too much to shuffle through. Sloan has always been a big part of my life. Before my dad died, he was one of his best friends. I grew up looking at him as an uncle rather than my dad’s colleague.

  I push away the thoughts and try to focus on everything happening now. I’m about to meet Teddy’s dealer, a man probably more corrupt than him. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t scared.

  As we pull up to Omar’s house, I glance to Charlie. Her chin is held high, but her knee bounces uncontrollably. I’ve laid so much on her within such a short amount of time, and she’s taken it in stride. Nothing has broken her. Being raised the way she was, I was skeptical that she would follow me so willingly, but I guess that’s what happens when you want something bad enough. Everything you believe in goes out the window and you morph into a new person. She’s hungry for answers and the truth, something I said I would bring to her, something I promised her dad. I just hope when everything is said and done, she still stands high and sees the bigger picture of why I have to do things the way I am.

  I open the door and step out, reaching behind me for Charlie. Once her hand is in mine, we walk across the dirt drive and up the steps of Omar’s home. His place isn’t as nice as mine, but with what he does for a living, he likes to keep a low profile.

  I grab the metal knocker and bang it against the door a couple times. An older woman opens the door and urges us inside, mumbling in Spanish. Every time I make a trip here, I fall more and more in love with it. The hospitality everyone in the town shows me is incredible, and the rich culture is something I want to learn more about, but not right now. Right now, I have to handle business and show my woman how it’s done.

  We’re escorted to a sitting room to the right where Omar and his wife sit. His arms stretch across the back of the leather couch, one resting on his wife’s shoulder. “Hale, it’s been too long, my friend.”

  His thick accent makes everything he says sound friendly, when I know that isn’t the case. Omar is a gun dealer and drug pusher. Only unlike the cartel, he doesn’t sell on small scales. He sells in bulk to the cartel and people like them, and in turn, they take it to the streets for their own profit. I know I’m not his only client, and I know if the cartel’s money speaks louder than mine, he’d set me up in a heartbeat. Cedric always said keep your enemies close, so that’s what I do. I buy more product than I would ever need and throw extra money his way, to stay on his good side.

  Omar is a powerful man in this business. He knows something about everyone and keeps their secrets as ammo, which is one of the reasons I don’t trust him. Knowledge is power, and he has a lot of it.

  “It has, hasn’t it?” I smile and pull Charlie into my side. “This is my wife, Charlotte. She’ll be handling all of my deals in the future, if I’m not available.” Charlie nods to him with a smile.

  He tilts his head and stares into my eyes. The small smile on his face tells me he knows something is up, but he won’t pry. “Well.” He moves his head toward Charlie while keeping his stare locked on me. Questions burn in his eyes before he snaps them to Charlie. “It’s nice to meet you.”

  “Likewise.” She nods again as we sit.

  Omar leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “So, what do you need from me?”

  “The usual,” I state, not wanting to drag this meeting out longer than it needs to be. I only need to be here long enough for him to see Charlie.

  “Well, I already have trucks ready and all the right people paid off to get across the border. I can have them to you in a few days. Is there anything else you need?” He grins, and I know exactly what his sinister smile is implying.

  “You know I don’t fuck around with that shit. Keep the smack for the cartel.” I wave my hand.

  “Come on, Hale. Consider this an invitation to take on some more responsibility. The cartel is slacking. They’re not buying as much product which is cutting into my funds.”

  “Then why do you still deal with them? If it’s that bad, drop them.”

  “You know I can’t do that. If I say fuck ’em and cut them loose, then I’ll lose your business too. I know you have a connection in Europe who supplies everything I do, but you choose to come here instead. Why is that?” He smiles like he already knows the answer. “Oh!” He claps his hands together “It’s because you think I can give you information, right? Maybe a name?”

  I suck my teeth and clench my fist, trying to remain cool. “Who is it, Omar? You give me the name of the one barking orders to the Morenos and everyone else running that shit, trying to take my territory, and I’ll handle it. Your hands will stay clean.”

  “You know I can’t do that, Hale. It’s bad business.”

  I huff and let out a laugh. I can feel Charlie stiffen next to me. I know she’s aching to open her mouth and ask all of the questions she can, but unlike her, I know Omar can’t be trusted and most of what he says aren’t facts. Nothing he says will bring us any closer to figuring out who is running shit. It won’t help us find her dad’s murderer. He’s an instigator who gives you just enough so you know he has answers, but he will never spill them.

  “You can’t try and plead silence when you’re already spilling secrets,” Charlie states with a look on her face that could kill.

  “Well, girl, nothing is a secret in this business. You have to fight really hard to hide things you don’t want coming to the light. It’s unfortunate that some people happen to fight harder than others, now isn’t it?” He looks to her with squinted eyes.

  He opens his mouth to talk again, but before he can, I stand and pull Charlie up with me. “I think we’re done here.”

  Omar follows suit and reaches for my hand over his coffee table. “Next time keep the woman at home. I don’t do business with cops’ daughters.” He seethes.

  I leave his hand dangling in the air as I walk away, trying to hide the shock on my face.

  I trek down the steps and across the dirt drive again, pulling Charlie behind me. Once we finally get situated back in the car, I release a breath.

  “What the fuck was that about?” she asks, looking at out the back windshield as we drive away.

  I rub my fingers over my temples. “That was him showing us he knows more than we think.”

  The entire plane ride home was silent. Every question I asked went unanswered as Teddy stayed deep in thought or on the phone with the twins, telling them what happened. They seem just as confused about Omar knowing who I am as Teddy.

  “Are you going to talk to me now?” I ask as Teddy ends another call and tosses his phone to the center console of his car.

  He shakes his head and grips the steering wheel. “I’m sorry. I’m not trying to close you out, but I don’t know how much this complicates things. People like Omar don’t deal with the cops. The most they do is pay them off to get what they want, and now that he’s made it clear he knows who your dad was, I wouldn’t be surprised if he knows about the deal I made with him too.”

  I cock my head to the side. “I don’t understand what the big deal is.”

  “If he knows about me conspiring with your dad, even though I never had much contact with him, he will see me as untrustworthy. No one does business with pigs, especially not good ones.”


  The weight of his words crushes my chest as I’m reminded who I am. “But I’m not a cop,” I whisper.

  “Your dad was, and that’s just as bad in this business,” he murmurs.

  Tears sting the back of my eyes, but I refuse to let them fall. When I was younger, I was proud to be the chief’s daughter, but as I got older, I realized it wasn’t something to be as proud about as I was. I was labeled a snitch and fake all through high school and my adult years, simply because of my dad. No one ever took the chance to get to know me. If they had, they’d know, unlike my dad, I sleep perfectly sound at night no matter what I do. Fuck the law. If I feel something is right and just, I’m not going to wait for a jury to determine it. I’ll handle it myself.

  “Why did you take me there, then?” I ask, letting the anger in my voice crack through.

  “I needed him to see you. I need him to tell the cartel I have a woman in charge. They will think I’m becoming weak and make a move. We can’t just keep sitting around hoping for them to show themselves.”

  “So, I’m nothing more than a pawn for you?”

  Teddy slows the car and pulls over to the shoulder. He jerks it into park and unbuckles his seat belt to face me. “You’re so much more than a pawn. In order to figure all of this out, we have to play their game. We have to try and determine how they’ll react to certain things and hope for the best.”

  I inhale through my nose and let it out. “That’s why Omar knowing who my dad was is bad? Because then they’ll think there is more to me than meets the eye?”

  “Exactly.” He squeezes my knee. “But we can still hope Omar won’t tell them. I know the cartel knew your dad, and I’m positive that’s why they killed him, but I guarantee they don’t look into things the same way I do. I’m hoping they won’t know he had a daughter; I’m hoping they don’t know it’s you.”

  I nod as everything finally starts to click together in my head and make sense. “Omar won’t tell them,” I remark as Teddy fastens his seat belt again.

  “Why do you say that?” he asks, pulling away from the shoulder and back onto the road.

  “I can just feel it. When he looked at me, I saw something in his eyes. He may hate me, but he wants them gone too. Why else would he drop the small bombs he did about them? I’ve sat and watched enough interrogations by my dad to know the only time anyone gives you anything is because they want something in return. His whole reasoning of not wanting to lose them as buyers is nothing more than covering his own ass for when shit goes down.”

  Teddy chuckles and glances to me before looking back to the road. “Let’s hope you’re right.”

  After a few minutes of driving, we pull up to Victory Bank, one of the largest and most well-known banks for criminals. I mean, it isn’t well-known to the public, but it is to everyone who works in law enforcement. Many men and women who have gone down for various crimes have something in common. They generally have accounts here and safety deposit boxes filled with millions.

  Teddy pulls up to the curb and kills the engine. He reaches into the back seat and pulls the black duffle bag from this morning into his lap. “Come, Monkshood.”

  Without any question, I exit the car. He meets me by the hood and grabs my hand as we walk inside.

  He pushes through the glass doors and takes a few steps inside before stopping. I look around and marvel at the inside of the building. Although I’ve known this place, I’ve never been inside. Gold bars separate every teller at a long counter, giving each person who comes in their own space. Glass walls encase a few small offices, each with their own personal touch. Some have couches and pictures sitting on their desks, while others have nothing more than a few succulents and books on theirs.

  “Mr. Hale, it’s so good to see you.” I look to my right and see an older woman with blonde hair standing a few steps behind us. I glance to the golden name tag pinned to her shirt. It reads “Eden” in a pretty cursive font.

  “Indeed,” Teddy replies with a nod. “Eden, this is Charlotte.”

  Eden beams with a vibrant, genuine smile. “It’s nice to meet you.”

  I shake her hand and return the smile.

  “Did you gather what I need?” Teddy asks, drawing her attention from me.

  “I did. You can come to my office to sign all of the paperwork.”

  Teddy shakes his head. “I’d like to see my deposit box first.”

  “Sure thing.” She reaches into the tight pocket of her pencil skirt and pulls out a golden key, then hands it to Teddy.

  He leads the way to a small door tucked off in the corner as Eden shuffles behind us.

  Inside the room are walls that stretch more than thirty yards, lined with various sizes of gray, metal post-office-looking boxes. Teddy walks directly ahead, not stopping until we are in front of a medium-sized one with 338 engraved across the front. He inserts the golden key and turns it, pulling it open. I expect only the one with the keyhole to open, but instead, a good portion of the other boxes come with it. It’s hidden and disguised to look like numerous boxes, but in reality, it is one large door.

  He steps inside and flips a switch, illuminating everything inside the small secret room. Some rifles lean against one side while stacks of money tower up the other. My eyes bulge out of my head with the sight. I look behind me, and Eden seems unfazed and completely composed.

  I walk to the side with all of the money and run my fingers over a few of the stacks. “This is unreal,” I mumble.

  “It is most definitely real,” Teddy chimes from behind me. “This is a portion of the money that has come from not only me, but all the generations before me.” He walks to the far end of the wall and picks up a small stack of the cash, then walks back to me. “Look.” He grins, placing it in my hand.

  I look at the bill on top and know it has to be old, but I’m not sure how old. Andrew Jackson’s face sits in the left corner, while the number five sits in the right. It almost looks fake with its splashes of red from the seal and serial number. I’ve never seen anything like it.

  “When is this from?” I take the old five-dollar bill and flip it in my hand, amazed at the great condition it’s in.

  “The 1900s, I think.” I can hear the question in his voice. “I’m not a money buff. Some of our money doesn’t get pushed how we would like it to sometimes, so we bring it here.” He stretches his arms around the room.

  “This is so cool.” I grin.

  He turns his back to me and sets the duffle bag on the floor, then opens it and starts pulling money from it. Each bundle he pulls out is neatly rubber banded and set in different stacks along the wall.

  “After we pay all of the club expenses, our personal expenses, and make our loans for the month, the rest of the money either comes here or is sent to an offshore account. I’ll show you how to do that later.”

  My mind spins with his words. This seriously can’t be real. I look behind me again and see Eden still standing with a small smile on her face as she watches our exchange. There is no doubt she is paid to keep her mouth shut.

  Before I can reply to Teddy, he closes the bag and walks to me, leading me back out of the room. After closing the door, he locks it, then hands the key back to Eden.

  “I need you to sign some papers for me, Monkshood. It will give you access to all of our accounts here and offshore.”

  I nod with a bit of confusion as Eden leads us to one of the offices across from the door we entered.

  We sit at the chairs across from her desk. As she shuffles through files stacked on the other side, I study the pictures propped neatly in black frames. One shows Eden with a man kissing her, his head buried in her neck. It’s a dated picture and a little grainy, so there is no making out his face, but her blonde hair and bright smile are unmistakable. Others have things like classic cars and small children.

  I pick up the picture with a little girl in a pink dress holding a baby in blue. “Are these your kids?”

  She beams. “They are. Both are much
older now, in their twenties. That’s when we brought my son home from the hospital.”

  “They’re beautiful,” I say, setting the picture back down in its place.

  “Thank you, Mrs. Hale…” She raises her eyebrow like it’s more of a question than a simple thank-you.

  I make no move to correct her. Instead, I cross my leg over my knee and smile.

  “Here they are.” She pulls three papers from her stack and hands them to Teddy. “Each account number is there along with what they’re for. I’ll just need your signature here, and hers here.” She points to the bottom of the papers that are highlighted in yellow.

  Teddy lays them on her desk and grabs a pen from the small cup next to her and signs the papers, then slides them to me. “And the rest?” he questions as I sign.

  Eden nods and pulls a white Prada tote from under her desk and hands it to me. “What is this?” I weigh it in my hands, trying to figure out what’s inside without opening it.

  “Don’t open it. When the right time comes, you’ll know what to do.” He turns from me and looks back to Eden. “Thank you for everything. I’ll be seeing you soon.”

  “Likewise.” She smiles.

  Teddy returns her smile and pulls me up from my seat and leads us back outside and to the car.

  Back in the car, Teddy stays silent as he drives, and I use the time to admire the way his hands grip the steering wheel, showing off every vein and muscle as he turns.

  We pull into the industrial side of Northridge Heights that houses all the major warehouses and factories. Big gray tin-colored buildings loom high into the sky as trains whistle in the distance. With the sun starting to peek below the clouds, it gives off an eerie vibe. Teddy slows the car to a crawl in front of a smaller building, almost hidden between two bigger ones. He steps out and slides open a ten-foot chain-link fence, then gets back in and continues. He pulls through the gate, revealing an alley with nothing other than a single light swinging on a cord above a door that has no identifying markings.