Mob Sorcery 2 - Ch21v2

There are a mixture of small and large changes here. A big section has been added where Nina and Vince talked about relationship stuff, just before he brought up the Yakuza. There are a number of smaller changes, including adjusting the tail color of the Houou clan guardians mentioned.

Chapter 21

“I think you need to keep your girlfriend busy,” Fia said, staring at the camera feed. “Before ‘somebody’ does something stupid and she flattens them.”

“You’re calmer than I expected,” Vince said.

“Pola left her gauntlet back at the tower. I doubt she’s raring for a fight, and she deserves the scare. Go give Nina a kiss to make up for last night while I deal with my supposed boss.” She gave him a push toward the door.

He still needed to grab his drink, so he resisted. Once equipped with his magic milk drink, he relented and slipped outside.

Nobody waited for him in the foyer, so he entered the elevator and hit the ground floor button. Which was also the only destination. This was the dedicated elevator for Pola’s penthouse, after all.

Once again, his brain reminded him that it could be the dedicated elevator for his penthouse. That little voice wouldn’t be shutting up anytime soon.

The elevator doors opened upon reaching ground floor and Nina’s face greeted him. She blinked at him. The enforcers and building security seemed just as surprised to see him, rather than Pola or anyone else. He recognized a couple of the enforcers, mostly because he’d bumped into so many last night.

“V, wait—” one of the enforcers shouted, holding out her hand.

Nina tried to enter the elevator.

Vince simply held a hand out, palm open, and said, “No. Bad lion.”

Nina stopped. The looks on the faces of the enforcers were the stuff of legend, and would make for great memories that would warm Vince on cold nights. If only Fia had been watching on the camera feed.

“I should hit you for that,” Nina growled.

“But you did stop.”

She prodded him in the chest hard enough to nearly push him backward. “Because I’m worried if I didn’t, you’d turn to dust. I bet your legs are jello.”

Close enough, but he wasn’t telling her that. He took a sip of his milk drink. “I’m good enough. Now, why don’t we wander over to one of the fancy cafes around here and get out of the enforcers’ hair before the police show up?”

“No. A certain princess put out a challenge and I’m going to put her in her place.”

Well, shit. Nina seemed pissed. She towered over him, intent on getting into the elevator.

Vince held his ground, but her words caused the enforcers to take several steps forward. While they seemed confused by the current situation, they at least knew Nina wanted a piece of Pola.

“That’s not happening. Not today, anyway,” he said. “Nina, we’re leaving. I’m sure you’ll have plenty of opportunities to intimidate Pola later, but we’re done for today.”

With the way his girlfriend loomed over him, he genuinely worried he might have chosen the wrong words. He was all talk right now. His headache meant he wasn’t about to use magic to stop her.

Not that he could. With literal inches between them, she could put him down before he could even attempt to cast a spell even if he had been in top form. It’s not like he’d come down here ready for a fight.

Then she clicked her tongue and looked away. One of her hands flicked her massive mane of hair.

“Fine. But you’re spending the whole weekend with me,” she said. “No ifs, ands, or buts.”

She grabbed him by the arm—gently—and yanked him out of the elevator.

Only for the Lionetti enforcers to immediately form a wall in front of her. The building security showed no such bravery and scattered like ants as Nina approached. Whatever Alessia or the building owner paid them was far too little to deal with somebody like her.

“You’re not going anywhere with V,” one of the enforcers growled, her barrier crackling with energy.

Nina stared at the assembled wolfgirls, then looked at Vince. “Um, I thought you said you weren’t doing orgies last night?”

He ran a hand down his face. This was awkward. “Uh, it’s fine. I know her.”

“You know her?” The enforcer’s jaw dropped. “But she’s… You know… What?”

“Fia can explain. She’s with Pola and knows as well. I imagine she’ll be down shortly.” Vince waved at the elevator.

But by now, their shock transformed into strange smiles and knowing smirks. A couple of them looked at each other and nodded. He recalled the powerful noses of the wolfgirls, and that many of them had already known about his lion acquaintance.

“Ohhhh. So she’s the one we’ve been smelling on you.” The enforcer looked Nina up and down. “Huh. Explains a lot.”

“Uh huh. Keep it to yourself,” Nina grunted. “Now get out of my way.”

This time, the enforcers did scatter.

Vince reached up and scratched Nina behind the ear. “Good girl.”

The glare on her face attempted to melt his face. Yet she didn’t bat his hand away even as her lion ears lowered and the fluffy tip of her tail bat against him.

“Save it for later,” she muttered after a few seconds, then stalked off. He caught up.

As befitted a heavily gentrified and wealthy part of town, more than a few restaurants and cafes occupied the shopfronts on street level nearby. He gravitated toward the chain store, which bustled despite the early hour, but Nina ignored him and went straight toward the fancier café. Vince polished off his drink and tossed it in a bin before they reached it.

A waitress stared at them when they entered, her eyes dead and expression wooden. While Nina might be dressed well enough to fit their usual clientele, her magical clothes and huge gauntlet set her apart. Vince likely just looked cheap.

Even so, they got a table. Somehow, he doubted anyone was going to refuse Nina service unless they had some very imposing security. Not to mention that the place looked pretty empty.

A handful of customers sat indoors, including a wolffolk in a business suit and what appeared to be a pair of catfolk sisters. At least, Vince assumed they were sisters given their matching blonde hair and similar facial features. One winked at him when she saw him watching. Vince didn’t react.

He and Nina settled in after ordering coffee. Desperate to keep them away from the regular patrons, the waitress seated them outdoors, as close to the street as possible.

“Not ordering food?” he asked Nina.

“Already ate. You think I’m going to get into a fight on an empty stomach?” she asked. “I came ready to kick that Lionetti princess’s ass. Honestly, I expected her to come down. She seemed willing last night with your dick in her.”

Another patron looked over and Vince ran a hand down his face.

“I thought you wanted a… big pride,” he said, hoping he hadn’t fucked things up.

“Sure. But I’m on top.” Nina straightened up in her chair and jabbed a thumb into her chest. “You didn’t do anything wrong, Vince. I just need to set things straight with the bitch who’s all bark and no bite. Even if I don’t deal with it right now, me and her have business.”

“Given Pola just survived an assassination attempt last night, I think she has plenty of bite,” he said, aware that he was throwing himself out of the frying pan and into the fire.

Nina’s expression turned from annoyed to stony in a flash. Fortunately, the waitress returned with their drinks. Vince finally got his hands on some normal coffee.

While he pumped caffeine into his system to make up for his lack of sleep and to soothe his aching body and migraine, Nina eyed him. She said nothing for close to a minute.

In that time, he spotted a couple of the Lionetti enforcers slip into the café. Despite the rough and tumble looks of the wolfgirls, they dressed well and kept their foci hidden. The waitress appeared more than happy to seat them indoors, but the enforcers took seats just outside.

He wondered if they were spying on him or making sure nothing went wrong with Nina. Hard to say. They’d been surprisingly protective of him earlier and very welcoming last night.

“Last night, huh,” Nina finally said after a long slurp of her drink.

She flagged down the waitress and ordered another coffee, as she’d demolished her first. Once finished, Nina leaned back and began rocking in her chair.

“If you fall over, I can’t catch you,” he said.

Nina rolled her eyes. “Some boyfriend.” She slammed her chair into the ground. “The names of the independents you and the Lionettis iced are surfacing today.”

“That fast?” He failed to hide his surprise.

Sure, everyone usually found out about dead enforcers at some point, but not in less than a day.

“There’s not much action taking place in the city right now and this was a massive hit,” she said. “When the city canceled seven registrations this morning of some fairly high-profile independents, everyone noticed. The cops haven’t released any names officially but they’ve leaked. I’m curious who you iced, as there’s not much news about who fought where.”

“They hit twice—” he tried to say.

“I know the basics, Vince.” Nina bared her teeth. “A convoy, presumably with the bitch I need to hold down while you stuff her, and the tower. What’s missing are the details. I only know a couple of enforcers from the list. Hamelin was the only one famous in my time. A meister-tier necromancer isn’t somebody you mess with without a plan.”

Vince stared at Nina. She stared back, then reached over and flicked him in the forehead.

“Idiot,” she said.

He rubbed his face. “I didn’t have a choice. She had the tower entrance on lockdown with her undead. Besides, she went down easily to my dragon and being mobbed by all the Lionettis. And Hamelin, really? What kind of name is that?”

“The Pied Piper of Hamelin, idiot. A mousegirl who controls the undead with a flute. It was a pretty good name. Better than V.”

He agreed with that internally.

Nina twirled her empty cup on the table. “So, you took out the biggest name on the list. How many others?”

“I chased off Juliet, plus took out some other chump. The Lionettis dispatched another pair before I even got there,” he said. “Pola and her capos dealt with the other three, I’m guessing.”

“Hmm.” Nina narrowed her eyes. “One must have escaped. I can’t imagine they’d send less after Pola given her rep, even if they had Juliet for the tower. This was easily a half-mil job. Eight enforcers, plus Juliet on her own contract. Maybe even double that, once you account for the premium due to the police reaction due to the conference. Then again, seemed the police didn’t do anything. Trippych and his goons were ripping them a new one last night.”

Half a million… That meant each enforcer was essentially being paid as much for a night’s work as what Alessia offered him for the entire job to retake all their turf from Kaziern and protect it from Houou.

Vince recalled Ronin’s comments and the laid-back reaction of the cops. “I’m pretty sure the police were intentionally ignoring the assassins. They didn’t even react to the hit on Pola. Would that reduce the going rate?”

“Maybe. It would make the job sane,” Nina said. “Taking out a company—even one on the ropes like the Lionettis—isn’t for independents. The mafia has an army of enforcers, plus their own elites like Pola and Fia, and who knows how many magic tools. Everyone knew you were around, with your fancy-ass dragon. Plus there are the defenses of the tower itself. Finally, the police would be forced to respond no matter the bribes involved. Being caught would mean an immense fine and possibly jail.”

“Wait, even as a registered enforcer?”

“Alessia Lionetti is a civilian, even if everyone knows she’s the head of a crime family. You kill her, you’re a murderer if you’re caught. Blowing up her building would have insurers after you as well, as it holds regular businesses. You can’t just throw some flyers outside the building telling them to evacuate, then say everyone’s a bad guy when you bury hundreds in the rubble.” Nina scoffed. “I imagine Houou hired the assassins through a lot of intermediaries, but it’ll be lawsuit central. Somebody might pay you to capture Juliet alive, given she’s supposedly wealthy.”

“Other than Salome?” he asked drily.

“Somebody with an interest other than watching you shove your dick into her, yes.” Nina crossed her arms over her breasts.

The waitress nearly spilled the coffee she brought over in response to Nina’s comment, but both of them ignored her.

Vince realized he didn’t fully comprehend the rules of corporate war. He’d always worked in the backstreets, where the cops largely ignored him so long as he kept a low profile.

But he supposed Nina’s words made sense. The entire purpose of the enforcer system was to enable companies to battle over the underworld without troubling the civilian population. Once it spilled into the public and threatened the general public—or even worse, those companies that didn’t participate in underworld dealings—the appetite to accept enforcer shenanigans evaporated. Especially with the federal government waiting in the wings with their own law enforcement.

“Let me run a couple of things past you,” he said. “The hit on Pola. That would have been fairly safe for the enforcers, right?”

Nina nodded. “Kinda showy, but almost everyone in those cars would have been enforcers and the hit was at night. The news is making a fuss, but it only looks bad because of the big hit on Lionetti Tower and the conference. Given the feds don’t like enforcers at all, a corporate hit is a bad look right now.”

“But an open assault on Lionetti Tower is bad at all times?” he asked.

“Oh yeah. Houou weren’t willing to touch it years ago. That big shitfest had the cops on edge, but everyone largely stuck within the rules. Sure, a lot of dead Lionettis were civilians, but nobody turned main street into a firestorm. The cops played softball with most of the homicide cases.” Nina fixed him with a hard gaze. “If Houou or Immanuel had pulled a stunt like last night, a few elementals would have swept in and ended everything instantly. Softball league graduates into the real deal.”

“Ronin told me that’s what’s happening.” Vince leaned back and sighed. “Does that mean the show’s over?”

Nina whistled. “Might as well be. I can’t imagine any independents will take Houou’s bait after all the corpses last night, but an elemental will stop them from deploying the Golden Path. If they lose a bunch of enforcers and get hit with a massive fine, another conglomerate might swoop in and steal territory elsewhere.”

“Won’t the mayor be pissed about that?”

“Fines are temporary. Territory is everything. Houou just burned a lot of their cards to take out the Lionettis.” She narrowed her eyes. “Don’t count them out for a second, but the foxes are absolutely not going to start throwing their resources into the fire. The only counter to an elemental is one of their hotshot seven-tail clan guardians.”

Vince knew exactly who and what she was talking about. Houou’s foxes were hot stuff, in more ways than one. A few had done photoshoots to raise their public profile. He still had photos of the golden-tailed twin guardians that supposedly did a lot of Houou’s intel work, mostly because they’d done an underwear shoot for charity once.

“That gives you time off,” Nina said, leaning back and placing her hands behind her head. “Or, arguably, a successful job. You took the turf and it’s easily in the hands of the Lionettis. There’s no way you’ll be protecting it forever.”

“I agreed to hold off a counterattack from the Golden Path,” he said.

“What if it never comes, does your boss never pay you?”

“The timer runs out a week after the conference ends, as we figured Houou might wait until afterward to launch their counterattack.”

Nina clicked her tongue. “Damn. I’d hoped you could pull a fast one.”

“Alessia’s been playing hardball. Technically, I protected her for a ‘bonus’ last night. Although I imagine it will be a big one given how shaken she was.”

The hard look on Nina’s face suggested she thought very little of the idea of working for “bonuses” as an enforcer. Yet she said nothing.

On the street, Vince saw a series of black Benzes swing past. Almost certainly a convoy coming to collect Pola.

He raised his hands to deflect Nina’s annoyance. “I mean it. Alessia was more open last night than she’s been for a while, and between that and how Fia and Pola behave, I’d say it’s pretty clear they’re very interested in keeping me on board.”

“But not so interested to offer you a proper job and the pay to compensate.” She shook her head at him. “You don’t need to be accepting Alessia’s scraps if you like their work or vibe. Hell, if your interest is in dicking the wolfgirls, I’m pretty sure they’ll fuck you even if you’re not working for them.”

“I think you’re making an assumption there.”

Nina snorted. “Sure I am. I’ve been smelling Fia all over you for the past week. Honestly, I’ve been waiting for the day I smell deeper, so I can rib the hell out of her for getting railed. I’d certainly prefer her over the mouthy bitch in that penthouse.”

This time it was Vince’s turn to order a new coffee, as he finished his off to hide his reaction.

“I guess we should talk about that,” he said.

A sigh slipped out of Nina before she reached over and tried to mess with his hair. He leaned back, just out of reach. So she stood up and planted a hand on the top of his head.

“Something wrong?” he asked, staring up at her. The sheer size of Nina’s everything became very obvious when she loomed over him like this.

“Just want to reiterate something,” she said, fixing with him a serious gaze. “I meant it when I said I expect you to gather up a pride. Quintus has kept you a secret from the rest of the city, and I’m sure that Salome was more than happy to keep you to herself. Now you’re spreading your wings and plenty of women are realizing you exist.”

“Uh…” He frowned. “Okay?”

She huffed and slumped back in her seat. “Look, I’m saying this because Fia flat out lied to me about Pola last night. Maybe she didn’t want me to know who you were fucking, as if I care that much about an old job. Or maybe she doesn’t understand that I’m not worried if you bend her over as well.”

“This is about Fia, not Pola, isn’t it?” Vince asked, slowly comprehending.

“Duh.” Nina remained quiet as the waitress dropped off a coffee for him. “I’ve known you long enough to realize you’re her type, and the reverse applies. At some point, you two of you are going to fuck—and fuck hard—in the back of her car. I’m making it clear that’s fine from my perspective. She’s fun.”

Ah, the very word that filled Vince’s heart with dread. He swirled his coffee and stared into it.

“Vince?” Nina asked.

“The fact Fia is so much fun is the exact problem,” he said. “She reminds me of a lot of the dumb shit I did when I was caught up in Immanuel’s web.”

“You’re still in their web. Only now you might have a chance to jump to a new web.”

Vince got the impression that Nina might not approve of Alessia the same way she did Fia. “I’m talking about bad habits. Smoking, drugs, expensive food, heavy drinking—”

“You already do most of that. Hell, you smash back energy drinks and infusions so much they might as well count as addictive drugs.” She smirked at him.

“I haven’t smoked for weeks,” he said, strengthening his tone to get across his feelings. “And I’m keen to avoid blowing my new paycheck on steaks and caviar.”

“And the booze?”

“Well, that part isn’t so bad…”

Nina laughed. “I’m sure you’d react the same way if I pointed out how much sex you’d be having if you picked Fia up.” When he glared at her, she shrugged. “I did a lot of dumb shit when I was an enforcer. I’ve cleaned up because I have to, but I don’t think you should avoid Fia just because you worry she’ll make you have too much fun.”

“It’s more…” He ran a hand down his face. “Forget it. At least I know you won’t try to rip her head off if something happens. Anything else?”

“Nicki’s good, too. She at least told me you’d probably end up fucking Pola or Fia last night.”

Damn that harpy. “She brought up Pola?”

“Casually, but yeah,” Nina said. “Perhaps a little petulantly. I find her hard to read, honestly. The fact she changed her appearance so drastically caught me by surprise. When I asked her the other night, she just said something about red not being her color. Maybe stuff her with eggs to help her get over… whatever problem she has.”

“Sex isn’t the solution to every problem,” he drawled.

“No, but I bet she’d have a lot more to think about once full of eggs and waddling around.”

“You realize I need her to fly me around, right?”

“Pfft, harpies are strong enough to carry prey and eggs. You’ll be fine.”

The raw amusement shining in Nina’s eyes left Vince unsure that she was serious. How many years had it been since she’d been so… crass? While she remained as playful as ever, Nina had changed a lot in the past five years. Primarily because of her stuffy office job. Joking about sex wasn’t acceptable office banter. It’s not like she worked in an all-female office or anything.

His eyes latched onto her outfit. When she’d shown up to help him deal with Quintus, it had been a little tight in places. Places that weren’t merely her tits.

And, sure, it still looked half-a-size too small. But he swore that she fit better into it.

“What are you looking at?” Nina growled, covering up the slightly pudgy spots of her skintight white shirt.

“I’ve only seen you wear this maybe three or four times since you quit as an enforcer,” he said. “And two of those times are in the last week. Are you sure you’re doing alright in the office?”

The liongirl slumped over the table. When the waitress looked over and began to walk over, Vince waved her off.

“No,” Nina moaned. “I’m bored, frustrated, and sick of the idiots around me. Hell, I caught up with an old mentor of mine from my old job and she warned me about burnout. I’m fucking thirty, not fifty. The hell would I be burned out? I just fucking hate the place.”

As someone who had avoided anything like an office job, Vince honestly didn’t understand the issue she had with burnout. But he’d run into the issue with other enforcers.

“Didn’t you stop being an enforcer for the same reason?” he asked. “I know you’re not the first enforcer to reach the end of your rope and bail, whatever might have been the straw that broke your back.”

“Being an independent enforcer is a temp job. Something that pays well for a few years, then you become a functioning member of society,” she said.

“Thanks.”

She rolled her eyes. “Given your attitude, I bet you’ll go corporate or ease into a cushy job once you calm down. I’m sure you could convince your current boss to pay you a mint every year to be her bodyguard and let her live out some fantasies.”

“I don’t see myself as a corporate enforcer,” he said.

“Sure. Right now. But my point is that enforcer is a job you can walk away from and get a real job. Except I’m in that real job and it’s not like I can just walk away from it, can I?”

“Seems you’re trying, given how often you slap on your old outfit.”

Nina glared at him over the top of her coffee cup. He sipped his own drink.

“Let’s get back to your job. Any other complications?” Nina asked. “Other than the ache in your balls?”

He chose not to tell her about his near-death experience last night. “The Yakuza showed up in force.”

She snorted. “Any actual complications?”

“No, I’m serious. A small army of them protected the depot after Pola panicked and returned to Lionetti Tower. They handed it back to me and said they want to work with Lionetti against Houou,” he explained, watching as Nina’s expression went from amused to puzzled to serious. “They had two immortals with them. A tengu and a… Qilin? Kirin? That’s what Alessia called her.”

“The name depends on the country,” Nina said. “Qilin in China. Kirin in Japan and Korea. I’ve never met one, but they’re supposedly as powerful as elementals and stronger demons. That’s…” She clenched her fists, then slammed back the last of her coffee. “Forget your current job, Vince. If Houou’s old enemies are sending ancient enforcers over here to take them out, this isn’t a simple job. You either need a massive pay rise or walk.”

“Alessia won’t pay—”

“Like hell she fucking won’t,” Nina growled. “If she stiffs you after the past week, she’ll never hire a single enforcer in the city again. Her name will be mud. Especially with a corporate war on her turf. I’ll bet if you ask her to suck your cock to keep you on board, she’d ask you how many of her wolfgirls you want to do it every hour.”

He coughed and looked away. The Benzes swung back around, but he noticed they slowed down nearby. Curious.

“Uh, you’ve been more… aggressive this morning,” he said, watching the convoy of mafia vehicles come to a stop right outside the café. “Hornier. At least in your comments. I’d expect this from Salome, not you.”

“Well, somebody riled me up with a photo of them riding your cock and…” Nina finally turned around and followed his gaze. “Oh, for fuck’s sake.”

Alessia Lionetti stepped out of an SUV, accompanied by Fia and Lucia. She flicked a smile at Vince across the wide sidewalk separating her from the café.

For whatever reason, the mafia don wanted an audience.

- - - - -

Commentary: One of the problems about getting sick is that I completely forgot what I actually wanted to change here, beyond the color of the guardians' tails. I feel it was something related to Nina and her reaction to Pola, so that it was clear where things sat and her attitude to Vince.

Anyway, Nina gets to play experienced enforcer and advise Vince, while also being very sexually aggressive. Definitely fun to write her all riled up like this.

I'm also establishing stuff necessary for the plot as it shifts to Houou and the Yakuza. Houou needs to have threats and important characters now that Kaziern isn't a real threat. Hence bringing up the clan guardians, who act as their elites and problem-solvers. When I planned the series to be quite long, Vince wasn't really supposed to fight any of them for a while (as the conglomerate elites are very dangerous). My plans for settings and series always tend toward the longer, as it allows a more natural buildup.

Anyway, I'm largely back to normal and should be writing full-time again.