'I don’t know. That’s what I got Harmon lookin’ in to.'
'You sure you can trust Harmon?' Bobby asked.
'I’ve done business with him before,' Nick told them. 'Let’s see what he’s got. I’ll be right back.
Until a month ago, Jack Harmon was a decorated New York City homicide detective. He was under investigation for use of excessive force. The charges were dropped, but not before Jack ran up a huge legal bill. It was only by chance that he ran into Nick and told him about a surveillance job. 'It pays five grand,' Nick told Jack that day. Being broke, Jack couldn’t say no.
'What you got for me, Jack?' Nick asked as soon as he sat down with the detective.
'Your boy Bo is doing business with the Russian mob,' Jack said.
Nick sat back in his chair. Bo having a deal with the Russian mob was the last thing he expected to hear. 'Ex-KGB agents, veterans of the Afghan and Chechen wars; out-of-work but with skills that are useful to criminal organizations,' Nick said and thought about how useful his military experience had been to him.
'Bo’s contact is a guy named Nikolai Mikhailov. He’s a member of the Izmaylovskaya Gang.
'Never heard of them,' Nick said and signaled for a waitress.
'They’re considered one of the country’s most important and oldest Russian Mafia groups in Moscow,' Jack said. 'But they operate here in New York, in Tel Aviv, Paris, Toronto, and Miami.'
'How strong are they?'
'My information says they’re estimated to consist of about anywhere from three to five hundred active member’s worldwide. It’s run on a quasi-military style and strict internal discipline.'
'What are they into?' Nick asked.
'They’re involved extensively in murder-for-hire, extortion, and infiltration of legitimate businesses. A lot like you guys.'
'When is the job goin’ down?'
'Tonight at ten.'
Nick looked at Jack, took an envelope out of his pocket and put it on the table in front of him. Jack opened the envelope and peeked inside. 'Thanks, Nick. This will help out a lot with my legal bills. Any time you need info like that, you give me a call,' Jack said and got up.
'Anything else I can do for you, Jack, you let me know,' Nick said and rejoined Black and Bobby. He wasted no time telling them who Bo was doing business with.
'Bo had made a deal to deliver high-end vehicles to the Russian mob,' Nick said. 'Ever heard of the Izmaylovskaya Gang?'
'I think I might know somebody connected to them,' Black said.
'You mean that Russian you and Angelo drink with sometimes?' Bobby asked.
'That’s right. He’s ex-KGB turned showdown artist.'
'He fits the profile,' Nick said.
'This really doesn’t create a problem for us, does it?' Bobby asked.
'Not from where I’m sittin’. Doin’ business with the Russians is a good thing,' Nick said. 'Only problem is Bo thinkin’ he could get something like this done and think nobody would know about it.'
'How’d you find out about it?' Bobby asked.
'Victor’s fuckin’ Sabrina,' Nick said and laughed.
'That pillow talk will fuck up a nigga’s program every time,' Bobby commented. And he was absolutely right.
'The only time she can get away from Bo is when he got something goin’. She tells Victor, he tells me.'
'What you gonna do about Bo?' Black asked. He knew the minute he told Bo that Nick was in charge that this was coming.
'Don’t worry, Black, I can handle Bo. He can’t make a stray nickel with me knowing about it.'
'That ain’t what I mean. There are some people whose respect you’ll never earn, Nick. You can’t have a mutha fucka like that in your house. Sooner or later you’ll have to deal with him before he comes after you.'
'Mike’s right, Nick,' Bobby added. 'Just him tryin’ some shit like this, it gives other niggas the idea that they can do it too.'
Black thought about Freeze. 'You know what Freeze would do?'
Nick laughed. 'He would go over there right now and kill Bo.'
'I ain’t sayin’ that’s what you should do. You handle Bo any way you want. All I’m sayin’ is sooner or later you’re gonna have to deal with him.'
'I understand,' Nick said and got up. 'I’m gonna go have a talk with Bo.'
'You do that. And then I want you to see what you can find out about Kenny.'
'I’m on it,' Nick said, and Black watched him as he left Cuisine.
'Who do you think’s gonna move first?' Bobby asked.
'My money’s on Bo.'
'Word I get is that Bo thinks he should be running things, and he blames Nick for Freeze bein’ dead,' Bobby said.
'I heard that too. That’s why I told Nick he’s gonna have to kill Bo. But he needs to decide that for himself.'
'You’re right,' Bobby said and sipped his drink. 'Where you goin’?' Bobby asked as Black got up.
'Goin’ to see if I can find out anything about what happened to Kenny.'
'Didn’t you just send Nick to do that?' Bobby said and followed Black toward the door.
'So I wanna ask a few questions myself,' Black said. 'What else you got to do?'
CHAPTER SIX
When Black and Bobby got outside, they got in Bobby’s car. They had driven for a while and Black noticed that Bobby was uncharacteristically quiet. Since he had a lot on his mind, Black didn’t mind, but there was a question he had to know the answer to.
'What’s bothering you?'
'Nothing,' Bobby replied as he drove.
'Nothing, huh? Well, let me ask you this then; what was up with you last night?'
'What you mean?'
'I mean you chopped the guy’s toes off with an ax.'
Bobby laughed. 'The shit worked, didn’t it?'
'That’s not the point.'
'Well, what’s the point then?' Bobby asked angrily.
'I just never saw you like that before, that’s all,' Black said and decided it was best to back off.
They had driven for a while in silence when Bobby looked at Black and said, 'Pam wants a divorce.'
'That’s what’s bothering you.'
'And she’s talking about moving to South Carolina with the kids.'
'That’s fucked up. What did you do this time?'
'I got home one night and the house was fucked up. I mean, shit was thrown everywhere. I looked around for the kids, but they were gone. I finally found Pam sitting in the basement. She said some woman called the house asking for me.'
'Same old Bobby. Didn’t you learn shit from fuckin’ around with Cat?' Black asked referring to the last woman Bobby had an affair with.
Cat decided it was a good idea to call Pam and tell her that she had just gotten finished fucking Bobby, and he would still be there if Black hadn’t called and asked Bobby to pick him up. That forced Pam to have to deal with the situation in a way that nobody ever thought she was capable of.
After that, Pam had a nervous breakdown. When she got out of the hospital, she told Bobby that even after
