Volume 1 - Chapter 10

Donovan's Deal

I believed completely that Samuel Donovan thought I was working with Stalvek Dyomin.

My mind raced to process what he had just told me.

I already didn't like that smug, intense man from the night before who issued the ominous warning about The Green Fists. Our chance meeting had apparently got me in deeper than I wanted.

Stalvek had honestly wanted to kill me, and working with any of them was the last thing I wanted.

I shifted uncomfortably in the old chair. I was aware of the sweat beading on my brow. Donovan's piercing gaze felt like it was boring straight through me.

It was just a game, I told myself, but everything felt so lifelike. The pressure to convince this old man I wasn't working with Stalvek or The Cortez Family was almost too much.

"Look, Mr. Donovan," my voice shakier than I liked. "I swear to you, that thing with Stalvek last night was nothing. Just a chance encounter on the street, like you said. I don't know the first thing about The Cortez Family or what they're into."

Donovan held a up a hand, his expression unreadable. He had already done this to me a few times and I had only been in his office for half an hour.

"Save it, kid. Why don't you show a little backbone for once. Own up to what you've seen and what you said."

I was preparing to argue with the man, and I started by saying, "I already told you the truth."

The old man laughed. I didn't know what was funny. He was the one challenging my story.

He said, "Truth is, we already heard through the grapevine that Stalvek tried to strong-arm you into picking a side. I'm only giving you a hard time cause I already know you didn't pick one yet.”

Relief washed through me and I smiled instead of getting angry. The old man already knew. I guessed he was testing me to see what I might say.

After realizing Samuel Donovan wasn't threatening me, I relaxed again.

He wasn't actually concerned that I'd joined The Cortez Family or Stalvek Dyomin. The police officer I saw last night must have spread the word about both of us. He'd been the only other one there that night.

Donovan leaned forward, bracing his elbows on the desk. "I wanted to see if you'd change your story under pressure, and you stuck to it like a young man humping a good-looking dame."

I laughed.

"So here's the deal, Jones. I need you to work for me."

Shaking my head, I said, "no."

"Why not?"

"I don't want to pick sides. I already told you that. I'm not interested in working for any of the gangs."

Donovan furrowed his brows. "You already work for Mr. Gallagher. That means you work for us."

I raised my voice. "Not after you kill him! I did my part. I was honest. Now you can take out my boss and I'm out of work!"

Donovan's face twisted up even more confused than it was before.

"Why would we kill Mr. Gallagher?"

"Um… Hello… He offed your number three guy Owney!"

"We already know, which reminds me. You don't say a damn thing to no one about the truth of that. Not even Thomas Gallagher, or you'll be the one that gets offed, you get the drift?"

My mind went numb for a minute.

"You dragged me all the way in here to put me through all this when you knew it was Mr. Gallagher the whole time?"

The old man smiled. "Had to make sure you was telling the truth, and had to put the fear in you not to tell anyone else!"

"Why would you kill your own guy? I thought mobsters were all about loyalty?"

Donovan shrugged. "Maybe The Owl wasn't so loyal and got what was coming to him, and maybe The Cortez Family learned that one of their own guys, Billy Sadler, was a dirty rotten no good traitor just the same. Ever think of that, Jones? Ever think that two loose cannons might have been up to no good together?"

I gulped. Things made a ton more sense then. There was no wonder Samuel Donovan hadn't made any facial expressions when I told him what I’d seen.

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Owney "The Owl" Johnson's death had been planned by The Green Fists all along. They were just trying to cover their tracks, and if I didn't play along, I was the only outsider who knew the truth.

"Your face looks like you're getting the drift, kid, so here's what's going to happen. You're in this now, no argument about it. You don't got much choice. You can either help us, or you're gonna bite the bullet as soon as it makes sense."

I nodded, believing him. The Green Fists suddenly had the leverage on me.

"You learn more about Stalvek Dyomin, and I'll make sure you get a nice little finders fee when we close this case. Plus..." He paused for effect. "I'll put in a good word with The Greenies.

“That favor you was asking me about? How about we say, you don't have to join us officially. You can stay off the books. You're not affiliated with us outside of your work for Mr. Gallagher, but you better not piss him off. That means you show up to work on time and you do what he tells you, pronto, you get me, Jones?"

I considered the offer, suddenly realizing he meant some type of unknown perk for completing the mission.

Leveling was going slow for me. I figured Stalvek had been able to progress so quickly in the middle of the night because he learned where his mission giver hung out after work hours.

Some type of bonus to get me moving up faster would be nice.

Squaring my shoulders, I met Donovan's calculating gaze head-on. "You got a deal. But I have one condition."

He smiled. "What?"

"If I agree to this, I want to ask you some questions that might help me. I'm falling behind right at the start here and I need information. Answer a bunch of stuff for me honestly and I'll play ball for you."

A smile played across Donovan's craggy face as he extended a calloused hand. "You got bigger balls than I expected, kid. I'll give you that much."

As our hands met in a firm handshake, I felt a reluctant sense of respect for the grizzled criminal.

For better or worse, I was well on my way to getting somewhere, even if I didn't like where that was.

"Alright, before I do anything more, let’s start with some questions. The Green Fists. What do you guys stand for? What's your vision for making this place better than it is now?”

Donovan's jaw tightened, but he nodded. If I was lucky, he was a man of his word, and would fill in some gaps.

“Fair enough. A little knowledge ain't gonna make much difference. The Greenies... We've been running this district's topside for longer than I been alive. Drugs, booze, you name it. If it's illegal and turns a profit, we control it, but we have a zero tolerance policy for vampire business. No blood. No trafficking for blood. That's the truth of it.

“Lately, the other two gangs have been pushing into our territory. We don't like it much, obviously, so the physical showdowns have intensified. Every now and then we can arrange negotiations, but they usually go sour and we end up killing each other. Makes for a violent neighborhood. That's just the way it is."

My brows furrowed as I processed that. It confirmed what I'd already come to understand.

I didn't want to work for a gang that made themselves rich by tearing apart the social fabric.

Even if they were just NPCs, it told me something important about them: they didn't care about anyone but themselves.

"So what, you're real mobsters, then? Only care about yourself and not your neighbors? Let the whole city fall apart as long as you get your cut?"

Something dangerous flashed in Donovan's eyes.

"Don't go thinking you got us all figured out," he said. "We’re more than that, we're a brotherhood, you hear? Got a chain of command, codes of honor, all that jazz. Owney got himself killed for betraying us. All for some cheap deal to transfer blood through his nightclubs.

“That's his fault, not ours. We might be bad people, but we don't do business with vamps. Everyone's got a line they don't cross. That's one of ours."

I nodded. "And what about the other gangs?"

"They're lawless! We got principles. There’s rules we live by, no matter how ugly the job gets. You want to know our vision for the city, Jones? It doesn't involve The Cortez Family or The Borrell Family. They're too dangerous.

“You think it's bad now, that's only half our fault. Some of the other districts are even worse! You let those vampires do whatever they want and this whole planet will become nothing but a feeding ground."

I frowned, visualizing his words. I didn't like vampires either, but the old man seemed willing to do whatever it took to keep that from happening. It might be the only thing I liked about The Green Fists.

“Okay,” I said, “I get the picture. You're the real deal, not just some cheap imitations.”

“That’s right!"

I kept going before he could take over the conversation. “So this whole thing with The Owl. He tried to make some secret deal with Billy Sadler? To do what?"

Donovan barked out a harsh laugh. "Yeah, kid, like I'm just gonna tell you those kinds of details. All you need to know is we don't do that kind of business. Anything but blood. It's not difficult to understand."

I thought about this. The guy sounded like a pain to work with, but not knowing the specifics made it difficult to know for sure.

“What about leadership?” I asked, “Who's in charge of The Green Fists now? Who’s moving up?”

Donovan's expression went carefully blank. "Don't you worry about the upper echelons, kid. All that matters for you is getting the case squared away, you dig? Investigate Stalvek Dyomin and Billy Sadler. That's it for now."

He waved his meaty hand in a vague gesture before I could respond.

"There's... somebody up top, sure. A big boss keeping all the gears turning smooth. Those kinds of details ain't for small-timers like you to know."

I frowned, not liking his answer.

Changing tactics, I moved on and said, "so you're just a grunt, and-"

Donovan cut me off again. He jabbed a finger toward me. "I ain't no grunt, understand? The Greenies, we all know our place. I do what needs doing, and the big guy upstairs keeps the whole operation churning along. That's all you need to focus on right now."

I held my hands up in a placating gesture and let it go. Donovan was clearly touchy about being called a grunt. Whoever the mysterious top two boss figures in The Green Fists were, he didn't want to mention them.

"Alright then," I said, "the boss man wants you to get me to find out how deep Stalvek Dyomin is?”

He glared back at me.

Collecting himself in a businesslike tone, he said, "Way I see it is, Sadler's gonna get what he deserves, either in prison or from Owney’s son, who wants revenge. Official story is we’re blaming Sadler, so you best remember that.

“The Cortez Family's been getting a little too big for their britches, trying to take our business in The Grims."

Nodding, I let the man go on. Framing Sadler made sense from their perspective. It was easily believable.

"You need to learn more about Stalvek Dyomin and then come back to us with good intel. I also want you to visit Officer Packley and get his official statement regarding Sadler. He doesn’t usually talk. Maybe you can get something out of him since you’re not one of us. Do it soon."

Samuel Donovan stood, and I took that as a message. He was done with our little talk even if I wasn't.

"So that's it?" I asked, "what if I have more questions?"

The man shook his head. "You don't, and even if you did, I ain't got your answers."

I almost laughed. It would have been funny if I didn't have more questions to ask him. I did, but it looked like I wouldn't get a chance.