Kayden Armani had been Charlotte's right hand for years. He crawled into the lower ranks of her mafia five years ago, but his talent allowed him to prosper. It was almost as if he did work like that before because of his efficiency, and Charlotte promoted him to underboss within less than a year. Of course, she had heavy background checks on him and even hired her most trusted to stalk him for a full week to ensure he wasn't an undercover cop. But nothing came up, and she decided to trust him with her life.

Not anymore.

Her office door swung open as she entered, and the first thing she saw was her empty desk. It was void of anything. No decorations, only her closed laptop was planted on the wood. She could see the dust settling on the corners from here. Both dust on her laptop and on her desk.

Kayden was sat in the corner of the room, his legs crossed over one another. The tawny-shaded chair matched his skin tone. The color palette of her office matched his narrow eyes, his hair not quite black, but not quite a deep chocolate either. It was somewhere in the middle. His build was wider than Jimin's, taller too. He was a bit above average height, and his agility was admirable. His core strength was the best in her entire organization. That was why she chose him as her right hand. She didn't regret her decision, but she did regret that his reign as her right hand had to end like this.

She shut the door, and he snapped up into an attention position. She didn't let him ease up. "Care to explain what the hell you were thinking?"

Kayden's posture didn't falter by an inch. His shoulders were set, his eyes burning through the wall across from him. "Ma'am, Jericho Novak is a dangerous man."

"That you have a history with."

That time, his posture did slip. His shoulders slumped, his eyes twitching and flickering down for a beat. "My history with him has nothing to do with this." Ah, he really did have not only a history, but an important history with Jericho. Wonderful, her right hand knew her rival this whole time and never bothered mentioning it. "He's been trying to get into our territory for the longest time. Why aren't you trying to kill him?"

"You know the system. Killing a leader leads to a new type of war where it doesn't end until revenge is taken. Why do you think he hasn't tried to and won't kill me? There's no purpose. We're equal in firepower, and a war would bring mutually assured destruction."

"We're already in a territory war."

"I'd rather a territory war than a war where they're actively hunting down my men. Even if we manage to beat them in a war, the other, smaller mafias will come in after our war is finished so they can have a chance at taking us down. Peace is our only option."

"There's no such thing as peace in our world," he said, keeping his eyes on the wall instead of on her. "What if peacefully doesn't work. Did you ever think of that?"

"Then you let me deal with that. This isn't your call." She paused, crossing her arms over her chest. "Jimin was right. He should be my right hand."

That was what brought Kayden's eyes over to her. "What? You can't be serious. You're just saying that because you love him."

She circled around him like a predator hunting its prey, her reaching her desk and leaning against it. "Look at you. Denying what you did because of your past with Mr. Novak, but claiming I'm agreeing with Jimin because of my past with him. Oddly hypocritical, don't you think?" At his silence, she clicked her tongue and continued. "Mr. Novak lives. That's an order. Don't you dare try to manipulate Mr. Seong into doing your bidding again, or you'll find yourself out of this operation permanently. Consider yourself demoted. You're lucky I'm not executing you for this."

"You're demoting me for doing what was right?"

"I'm demoting you for trying to murder a man after I gave him my word he wouldn't be harmed. You were going to get both me and Mr. Novak killed. That's unacceptable. I expect you to be cleared out of your office by tonight and trade with Jimin. Report back to me tomorrow. Don't think this is the only punishment you'll be getting. I hope you don't mind scars, Mr. Armani."

She pushed herself off the desk, shoving his shoulder as she went to the door. As soon as she turned the golden knob, Kayden spoke up with words she expected, but not the ones she wanted to hear.

"He was my friend," he said, his voice almost cracking. "I don't want to kill him. I loved him, Char. But I thought of what was best for us. I left him because I didn't want to watch him die. He was my family. This mafia, you, Jimin? You're my family now. And if I have to sacrifice my old family to protect my new one, so be it. If we don't kill him, he'll slowly take more and more of our territory. I truly believe this is a mistake. I want to be wrong. I really do, but I don't think I am. Please believe me."

Charlotte let his words replay in her mind until they clicked. The silence bounced around the walls, Kayden's breathing too heavy to be natural. She didn't so much as peek at him from over her shoulder. She let him suffer in silence, opening the door.

Then, she left.

~~~

Ivan Belmour was the most useful person in New York. He was a neutral party who ran most of the services, such as the weapon markets, the body cleanups, and the neutral meeting grounds. One of those grounds was the one Charlotte and Jimin were in now. It was a hotel with a nightclub hiding in the back. It wasn't the normal nightclub, however. There weren't flashing lights and dancers. There were circle-shaped, carmine booths with matching walls and a ceiling that mimicked the one in her estate.

The floorboards were hard, creaking under the weight of her sneakers. There was a bar on her left, a male bartender cleaning a glass while whistling. Ivan was the only one there, and he was sitting all the way in the back. Seeing as the space was massive with chandeliers hung on the wall, people could be hiding in plain sight. But Charlotte didn't care. Neither did Jimin.

Despite being a fully grown, hardcore mafia, Jimin sprinted to the booth. Charlotte followed with less spring in her step, but her grin matched Jimin's. Ivan stood and met Jimin halfway, the two embracing with little laughs spewing free from their throats.

Charlotte arrived in time for the two to part, Jimin keeping his hands on Ivan's thick shoulders. Ivan was the most secretive and manipulative of them all, yet somehow Jimin, the purest, was able to befriend him. And not only that, they were best friends as well. Opposites did attract sometimes, huh? Her mind flickered to Jericho, but she pushed the thought away as soon as it came.

"Char, it's been a long time," Ivan said, opening her arms to her. She was happy to give him a side hug, and together, they piled into the booth. Ivan sat across from them, the cushions of the seats squeezing against Charlotte's skin. "Thank you for coming."

"Whenever Mr. Belmour calls, we answer," Jimin said, his grin a refreshing sight. Seeing Jimin happy brought her relief. It was an illusion. An illusion of thoughts that told her he was getting better. But he wasn't. He never did, and he likely never would. Jimin only ever smiled around her and Ivan. Even then, he didn't smile as much as he should. As much as he deserved to.

"Careful Seong, I might start thinking you're in love with me."

"I won't confirm nor deny those claims," Jimin replied, almost bouncing in his seat.

"Alright lovebirds, let's get into the monthly report," Charlotte said, brushing them off despite their stares of disapproval. "So, Ivie..." He grimaced at the nickname, but she could see a smile toying on the corners of his lips. "Any of those smaller mafias at risk of overthrowing us?"

"Now Miss Evermore, you know I love you, but I swore an oath to all the mafias in this area, including yours, that I don't give up information like that."

"So what can you tell us?" Jimin asked.

"The High Council needs another person at the table. There's no easy way to say this, but a member was assassinated."

Jimin froze up, his hands clamming up from the claim. Charlotte remained still and pretended to be shocked, her mouth bobbing open and closed. It was an expected death. One she needed to happen if her plan was to work. If only she could admit that to the others. Regardless, she kept her façade for Jimin's sake.

"That's impossible. No one's assassinated a Council member in years. It's been at least a decade by now, right?" she asked.

"11 years. Incredibly rare, but not impossible. No one bothers trying to take out the High Council. There's no point."

"I wouldn't say that. Without the Council, the Underworld falls apart and goes into complete disarray. I bet the ones on death row would love that. Run free while the mafia regains its footing. They'd be forgotten," Charlotte said.

"Hm, I didn't think about it like that. Seems like there's more pros to taking down the Council than cons. But the point is, someone did this for a reason. The last time someone did this, it was for a chance to get that Council member's gold coins. It didn't work, so I doubt someone would do it again. There has to be another motive."

"To be honest, I don't really care about their motive. I just want to know how it impacts us," she said, grateful that Ivan was sparing Jimin from the truth just like she was.

"Can't blame you. New York City is filled with criminals, some of the most notorious ones at that. You and Mr. Novak are two of the best leaders in the Underworld's history. My bet's on one of you two."

"For?"

"Becoming the next Council member. They need another. They're not complete without the 12th, so the odds are they'll come here searching for someone new. I'd be surprised if they choose somewhere other than New York, but it's possible I guess. Be ready for a meeting."

Charlotte rubbed her lips together for a moment before answering. "And if I get chosen, what happens to me?"

"You'll go to London and become a member of the esteemed High Council. It's still a choice, as far as I'm aware, they won't force you to go if you're not prepared for a position like that. Frankly, it'd be stupid to say no though. That's a once in a lifetime opportunity. Your right hand would take over, so I hope you trained Kayden well." It went quiet, and Ivan glanced between the two of them. "Did something happen to Mr. Armani?"

"He disobeyed a direct order not to kill Mr. Novak, so I demoted him," she said, turning her eyes from Ivan to Jimin.

Ivan laughed, coming a bit closer while staring at Jimin. "No shit."

Jimin scratched the back of his neck, fighting off a grin while his ears went pink. "You're looking at the next in line."

Ivan held up his hand, and the pair high-fived, Ivan leaning across the table to pat Jimin's shoulder before his attention fell on Charlotte. "Good decision, Char. Jimin's a perfect pick for the job. Not that I'm biased or anything."

"Oh please, you're so biased to Jimin and me. We're your favorites in the Underworld, right?"

Ivan played with the collar on his shirt, shaking the air with his free hand. "Uh... no comment."

Before Charlotte could say anything else, the door to the nightclub opened, and the air felt like it dropped 10 degrees. A chill settled on Charlotte's flesh, sinking into the bumps of her arms and biting down on her body. She attempted not to tremble as she glanced back, noticing who came through the door. Her lips curled upwards, and Jimin had to grab her shoulder to prevent her from dashing out of the booth.

The man who came in was as tall as Kayden, but about as muscular as Theo Spade. His chest was large, his shoulders set back and wide. He was covered in gear, but his face was uncovered. Tattoos littered what visible skin he had. There was ink on his hands and arms, rips in his gear (likely from his job) exposing them. A serpent coiled along the side of his neck, and he had an eyebrow and lip piercing to top it off. Oh, and his hair was a mess. Long and on the fluffier side, thrown in ten different directions.

He noticed the trio in the booth and snickered, approaching much to Charlotte's dismay. He straightened his torn attire and slid in beside Ivan. Ivan made room for him, but even he curled his hands together and averted his eyes from the one next to him.

"Mr. Byun, it's good to see you," Ivan said after clearing his throat. His eyes still didn't so much as touch the man's side profile.

"Good to see you too, Mr. Belmour. I must admit I missed that boxy smile of yours," he replied, his voice only a hair higher than Ivan's signature low pitch. He shifted his gaze to Charlotte, his smirk causing her stomach to churn. "Miss me, princess?"

She decided against replying to that. "Mr. Belmour, Mr. Seong, and I were having a private conversation. If you don't mind, we'd like to get back to that."

"A private conversation in a public place? My, getting bold now, are we, Miss Evermore?"

"Let me make myself clear. Leave us. Now. I won't ask again," she said.

"Oh? What are you gonna do about it, sweetheart? Send your boy toy after me?"

"Don't talk about Jimin like that." Jimin glanced at her, but she ignored it to instead narrow her eyes on the man sitting across from her. The man she hated with every fiber of her being.

Mr. Byun stared at Jimin for a beat, then chortled and got up. He tapped his fingers against the table, licking his lips. "I just came to get a drink. I'll be seeing you, Miss Evermore." Mr. Byun gave a nod to Ivan before departing to the bar.

Charlotte observed the way he exited, her face drawn in a grimace. Ivan and Jimin kept their gazes on her, but Ivan was the one who spoke first. "Jesus, what was up with that?"

"June used to work for us before going to Unmei," Jimin said, sighing. "He used to be my friend."

Byun June, an assassin who was a neutral party, but primarily worked for Jericho Novak. He used to work for Charlotte. That was because of his connection to Ivan, and since Ivan and Jimin were close, June chose to take most of his assignments from Hakai instead of anywhere else.

Charlotte believed Mr. Byun and Ivan were lovers, but even Ivan didn't confirm that. He refused to talk about it, which probably meant it was true, but she didn't know for sure. She assumed that was why June cut off all connections with them and even started taking assignments going against them. It was insulting to Charlotte to have had a friend go after her most trusted men when at one point, he was bowing to her and thanking her for taking him in.

"What's with this world and broken friendships?" Ivan asked, staring at the door as it shut behind June. "First Kayden and Jericho, now this. Seems like even the big bosses can't escape heartbreak."

Charlotte knew that was true. Jimin, Ivan, and Kayden were the only ones she'd consider her friends. Now Kayden betrayed her. How long would it take for Ivan to betray her too? She trusted Jimin with her life and doubted he would betray her, so she pushed the thought away. It hurt to even think about.

The Underworld was a shitty place, and she wished she could leave. She had been trying to for years. As a leader, most thought it would be easy to stand down. It wasn't. She had constant pressure on her from a family legacy she didn't want, and her peers who looked up to her. She tried to get out. Every day for years she had been trying.

But nothing ever worked.

~~~

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