Page 52 of Monstrosity

Runes nods to me, and I pull out the tablet we prepared. "Two days ago, I had a conversation with one of Bembe's surveillance guys. He was very informative."

I slide the tablet across to Liam, showing him the photos from Carlos's laptop. "These are screenshots from his files. Detailed surveillance on our women, our operations, and—" I swipe to the next image, "—your warehouses."

Liam studies the images, his face giving nothing away.

Doran leans in to look as well, though I suspect he's already seen them.

Revna would have made sure her husband was informed.

I swipe to the shipping manifests. "Bembe's bringing in a massive shipment in two days. Enough heroin and fentanyl to flood the entire country. He needed a distraction, something to keep us busy."

Liam is quiet for a long moment, and the tension in the room ratchets up another notch.

His men shift slightly, hands moving closer to weapons. Our side tenses in response.

"This is bloody nuts," Liam says finally, "what are you proposing?"

This is the crucial moment.

Runes leans forward. "We hit Bembe's shipment together. The drugs go to you for distribution through your networks. We split the profits and eliminate a common enemy."

"You want me to help you steal from the cartel we already destroyed?" Liam's laugh is sharp and humorless. "What the fuck. I guess it doesn’t matter. It might be dangerous, but?—"

"More dangerous than letting Bembe succeed?" I counter. "If his plan works, we go to war. Both our organizations get weakened. And he moves his product while we're distracted."

"The boy has a point," one of Liam's lieutenants says.

He's older, with the look of a man who's survived by being smart rather than brutal.

"Shut it, Connor," Liam snaps, but I can see he's thinking.

Doran clears his throat. "Uncle, if I may?"

Liam waves a hand, granting permission.

"The Raiders have always been straight with us," Doran says carefully. "When there was trouble, they came to us first. When the feds were sniffing around our gambling operations, they gave us warning. They've earned some trust."

"Trust," Liam repeats the word like it tastes bad. "Trust doesn't bring back three million in inventory."

"No," Runes agrees. "But taking Bembe's shipment would, plus more. Street value on that much product? We're talking twenty, thirty million. Your usual cut would more than cover the warehouse loss."

I watch Liam process this, can see the exact moment his rage transforms into greed. "Thirty million, you say?"

"Conservative estimate," I confirm. "Could be more, depending on purity."

"And you need us why?"

"Distribution," Ivar says bluntly. "We can take the shipment, but moving that much product isn't our specialty. It's yours. Wecan move a small amount of it, but, if we got rid of that shit fast, it’d tip off the feds."

It's a calculated compliment, acknowledging the Irish's superior smuggling networks.

Liam's ego accepts it readily. "What's your plan?" he asks.

Runes smiles for the first time. "Rio?"

I pull up the next set of files. "The shipment comes in by boat to a private dock in two nights. Bembe will have security, but he's expecting to be dealing with locals, not us. We hit them hard and fast, take the product, leave bodies."

"How many men?"