1.1 | The Yakuza Bride

Chapter 55

'Leon, Kai's on the line,' Val said as he popped his head into the office.

Leon jumped from his chair, his eyes wide. He took the proffered phone in his hands, let out a lengthy exhale, then placed the device at his ear.

'Kai?'

'I heard you're making a move,' he said. 'Let's work together.'

'What?'

'What are your plans?' he went on.

Apparently, he wasn't very eloquent when it came to the other Yazumi sibling. Leon relayed their plans in a few sentences, after which Kai reported what he could contribute. Mickey would keep in touch with him after that to firm up when and how they would act.

When the call ended, Leon raised his head, surprised to find that Val was still at the door.

'Are you scared of him?'

'Of course not!' he exclaimed, handing the phone over. Then he wrinkled his nose. 'Maybe a little. Do you remember the party we had after the wedding?'

Val nodded, the side of his mouth quirked in expectation of a story.

'When the guests were leaving,' Leon went on, 'he came up to me and said "For every time you hurt my sister, I'll cut off your finger. For every time you break her heart, I'll cut off more than that."'

It was a while later when Mickey met him at the passageway with a last minute confirmation of their plans. His cheeky grin was gone, replaced by serious features that one would normally see on Val instead.

"That's good," Leon said, when Mickey had finished the explanation, "We'll do that."

"Just remember the air freshener, alright?"

"I will," he said with a slight smile as he patted the other man on the back. "Don't worry."

~

"Good luck."

He nodded his head and let out a grunt as he stepped out of the warm car and into the snowy sidewalk. The streets were quiet on both sides, with not a soul to be seen. Even the neighbouring houses were as empty as ever, with 'For Sale' signs hammered into their front lawns.

Juan's squat, brown house he'd been to just a month before seemed as decrepit as ever, and looked like as if it were about to collapse under its thick layer of snow. He heaved a sigh as he tilted his head up to the structure, and let out a long, drawn out breath. He couldn't spot any movements; not even a shadow behind the windows, or a shift in the curtains.

"Seems like nobody, boss," one of his men said, immediately confirming his thoughts.

They couldn't have suddenly moved out, could they?

Meanwhile, the car that was their transport slowly backed out before driving away. The sinking feeling in him grew even larger as he watched its tail lights disappear into a curtain of snow. If the plan went well today, he and his crew of five wouldn't have any contact with the rest of his men for the next few days until the next snowfall. And why did it have to snow today? He tugged his red scarf even higher up his face and blinked the snow flakes out of his eyes.

Slinging his rifle over his shoulder, he gestured to his men.

"Come on. Time to find out if anyone's home."

They crossed the street cautiously, their eyes shifting left and right, watching out for guards. A sense of foreboding settled in him as he took the first step into the front lawn, with his men right behind him. His rifle was held tight in his cold hands, and he had a finger Just at the trigger, ready to fire.