"There were only a few names that had names starting with 'Sen'. I think the boss is right and it might be a senator," Erik said as he began playing with his device connected to the screens. "Luckily for Congress, they only have a select few that are on Diablo's payroll. The House of Representatives is a different story, but let's worry about that for another time."

Three profiles showed up on the screen.

"We have Senators Delilah Demetrius, Senator Theodore Asinine, and Senator Anthony Wiseman."

Xavier stood and pointed. "There. Senator Wiseman. I've been watching him for years now. He's from old money and is running for president. If Campbell wanted to brag about a powerful politician to sway our fake deal in his favor, it's this guy."

"He does run a strong campaign on gun rights and leans more conservative. He's popular in the polls." Erik said as he pulled up Wiseman's files. "No former arrests or charges. Works with multiple world organizations, squeaky clean."

"You mean he's good at covering his tracks. There's no way a guy like that hasn't run into any trouble." I said. "Do you think he could be the head? Xavier, you said you've been keeping an eye on this guy. Why?" I asked curiously.

Xavier scoffed incredulously.

"Because he's too clean, too nice. Especially with his policies in this political climate, no way that he doesn't have any dirt. Do you know how many politicians are honest people and want to do 'right' for the people? Practically none. Everyone has secrets.

"I mean, look at us, Asshole! We run a criminal organization that goes after other criminals. We are no angels and neither is he. Something about him has been nagging at me and we may actually uncover the monster behind the mask," Xavier began pacing, keeping his eyes on Wiseman's face on the screen.

"He has to be a key player, possibly in charge. A man in a high position taking control of local governments and parts of the federal government? Even if the people the Diablos bought aren't aware of who's in charge, they're still puppets he could control. Becoming president of the United States would be a big score, gaining him access to an incredible amount of information and resources." Xavier said.

Damn it to hell. That would make it virtually impossible to take the Diablos down. Lorenzo could then be completely out of our reach.

"How do we take him down? He'll be protected. Lorenzo most likely informed him about Rosaline, the thorn in his side. Why don't we leak the list to the media, revealing all the names? The public can easily turn on people if there is an accusation and strong evidence." I suggested, angry at the situation.

"If we put it out now, they'll all run. Some will be able to talk or buy their way out of it. No, we need them all to be pinned down, either in one location or already surrounded and can't get away." Xavier informed me. He sighed. "Erik, where is Wiseman now?"

"He is doing visits for his presidential campaign– currently in Georgia. He will be in New York next weekend for a public event." Erik put up pictures of Wiseman on the screen.

"Then that's our window. And we'll have to be ready." Xavier said firmly, his eyes glossed over as he began running plans through his mind. There was a reason he was the mastermind, able to come up with a million scenarios and find ways to win each and every single time.

I studied a photo of Wiseman speaking into his microphone, the audience cheering for him.

He was a middle-aged man, attractive by society's standards with thick blonde hair and blue eyes. His pale complexion was flushed as he smiled for the audience.

I already despised the man, maybe even hated him. It didn't matter what actions he had done to help society, all the charities and donations he had done for different causes.

He was a fake. I had seen my fair share of them in the past– other marks and people we were protecting others from. While their appearances varied, they were all the same.

The tense atmosphere was broken as the door was pushed open. John entered the room, the twins trailing behind him.

"We have arrived!" Josh announced as he skipped over to Erik and started to play with his device. Erik smacked him away with a glare.

"Did you get anything from our guest?" Xavier asked, covering his amusement.

Julian pouted. "John wouldn't let us torture him. He was wearing a red t-shirt. You know I despise the color red–"

"Except for blood!" Josh cut him off and Julian agreed with a nod.

"We only were allowed to scare the guy, threaten him, and yada yada. Eventually he talked. Military training was wasted on the man." Julian waved dismissively.

"You do know that psychological torture is still a form of torture, even though you didn't physically hurt him, right?" Erik asked, but the twins disagreed.

"I mean, does pushing and making him run into walls count?" Josh asked.

I decided to cut it off before they started an argument. We had other things to deal with. "I am not having this conversation right now. John, what did you find out?"

John, focused as ever, went straight to the point.

"Nothing vital, but we learned that they've been tracking down Rosaline. They've been following our fake trail for weeks with no luck. Their orders were to kill on sight. He did confirm that they planted the bomb in Rosaline's apartment and she survived. Beyond that, they're just the muscle. They get a call and they take out their mark. Basically a bunch of bounty hunters claiming to be a security organization."

My mind flashed back to the gala. "They wore shirts that had a logo. It was a red triangle that said 'YSA'."

We all ignored the shudder and noises of disgust from the Andersons.

Erik typed the information in. "The York Strategic Agency. It's a small security company. But there is no other information on the company. They own the rights to the name and have a website, but they don't have a history and list of clientele."

"It's a cover, a way to bring them in. Are there any other people that work there?" John asked.

"There's a list, but I am running the names through the system with no matches. They're fake." Erik answered.

"Their information probably goes through fake emails and burner phones; no way to trace them. But these could be people the Diablos use. Keep an eye on the emails." Xavier ordered.

John's phone beeped, and he pulled it out. "Got a message from Marco. Rosaline is contacting Agent Adlai. Marco is sending us updates on the conversation." John passed the phone to Erik so he could connect it to the screens.

"I told Rosaline that she can contact him. I don't think she knows what to tell him though. She doesn't want anything pointing back at us." I explained to Xavier.

Xavier made a sound of agreement.

"Ro needs this. Best she can do it in an environment that we have control over. We can talk with Ro before the meeting. Erik, give Rosaline the option to have him either her or somewhere we can secure."

We watched the updates on the screen and saw that Rosaline asked Agent Adlai to meet at Elysium.

"Clever girl," Xavier said with a smile. "A place that's familiar ground but wanting to keep the property and Maria safe. I would kiss her on the mouth if I wouldn't get smacked by Maria– and you."

"I'd better call Frank to let him know." I said and pulled out my phone.

"We get to party!" Josh said in excitement.

"Can we bring Jasmine? Please, please, please!" Julian pleaded to Xavier, jumping up and down.

"If you can control yourself, you can ask her," Xavier snorted. "But no distractions. Your focus should be on Ro, not Jasmine."

"Mhm," Julian hummed, not even trying to sound convincing as he ran out the door.

John sighed as he rubbed his eyes. "You really need to partner me with someone else besides those two."

"Hey!" Josh pouted. "We're the Triple J's! You love me and need me. Your life would be way too boring. I am the light to your darkness, the peanut to your butter, the wind beneath your wings, the balls to your–"

"Enough!" John snapped.

"I was going to say hoop. You sure are naughty, Johnny." Josh sang, but scampered out of the room when John took a threatening step towards him.

"You are one of the few people who can keep them in line. That's why you're stuck with them," Xavier snickered. "Be more reckless and immature, and I'll separate you. Someone needs to make sure they don't blow everything up just for fun."

While they bantered, I focused on calling Frank.

"Cohen, haven't heard from you in a while." Frank answered.

"I've been busy, but I need a favor."

~*~

"All right, remember to take your evening vitamins and if anything is off, call me and I will come running–"

"Xavier, you're going to be gone for only a few hours. I think I will survive. I'll make sure that everything I do is stress-free." Maria reassured him, rolling her eyes.

"I know, Sugar, but you know that with the baby coming so soon, I don't want to leave you defenseless." Xavier stressed, rubbing his hands over her belly lovingly.

"I basically live in a fort. I don't consider myself defenseless and I can throw a mean punch," Maria retorted. "Besides, I have Marco. We'll probably spend the evening watching The Mentalist."

"You're going to watch it without me?"

"Hey, you're going to be playing Patrick Jane all night. It's only fair that I get my own dose of him." Maria drawled out, giving her pouting husband a peck on the lips. "Love you, have fun, be safe, and if you don't come back I'll knee you in the balls."

"While this is great, I would really like to get this over with. The faster we do this, the sooner Rosaline can get back here." I interrupted.

Where was my Flower? I checked my watch. Rosaline had arranged the meeting for nine o'clock and we still had an hour to get there and ready.

We were waiting for her at the front entrance. Rosaline told me to wait while she got ready with Jasmine.

"Sorry! We're ready to leave!"

The sound of heels made me turn around and I was sure my jaw dropped.

Rosaline wore a short black dress, reaching mid-thigh and showing off her long legs. With her gold heels and hair curling down her back, she looked absolutely beautiful.

Rosaline walked toward me nervously.

"Jasmine helped me with this. She said it would help me blend in and not make my conversation with Agent Adlai as weird. What do you think? I'm just happy I can walk in heels after all my lessons with Jasmine, or else I would've fallen on my face by now." Flower laughed nervously.

"I think you look ravishing," I purred, kissing her pink-painted lips. "I may hit some people if they get too close to you."

Rosaline giggled as I helped her with her coat.

She thinks it's a joke, but I've never been so goddamn serious

Saying our last goodbyes to Maria, we went to the car, where the twins were waiting. John and Erik had already gone to the club with a few of our men to start perimeter checks and get in position.

"Wait, where's Jasmine? She was right behind me." Flower said, her face furrowing in confusion.

I was about to say something when Jasmine made an appearance.

My eyebrows rose.

The woman was decked out in red, wearing a tight red dress along with red heels. She finished the look with red lipstick and a ruby necklace.

I immediately turned to the twins to see their reaction. It was obvious Jasmine was doing this to spite Julian.

Josh looked at her outfit in disgust, unhappy with her color choice. Julian on the other hand looked pained. Jasmine stalked right up to him, her expression defiant.

I looked at Xavier, who watched the interaction with amusement. Clearly, he was enjoying the show as much as I was.

"Good grief, I just hope they don't tackle her like poor Elmo." Flower whispered in my ear, her warm breath sending a shudder down my spine. I gripped her hips to keep myself still. This woman was dangerous.

We watched Jasmine and Julian square off, Julian's face blank while Jasmine looked a bit smug.

"As much as I despise the color red, I will make you an exception. Now you and blood are my only exceptions. Nice try, though." Julian stated, causing Jasmine to gape as he opened the car door for her.

"And I thought this night couldn't get more interesting." Xavier laughed before hopping into the car.

While the others got themselves situated, I turned to my Flower.

"Are you ready?" I spoke softly.

Rosaline let out a shaky breath.

"As ready as I'm ever going to be. Let's do this." She grabbed my hand, and we went back to where it all started.