Chapter 102 Le Nouveau Conseiller (The New Councillor)

(Arthur POV)

The once feared Maximus is now my favorite disguise. We concocted the story of how Maximus was able to escape the annihilation of The Rogue Lord and his army and since he was no longer welcome on American soil, had fled to Europe,  bringing with him the many jewels, gold and cash that once belonged to The Rogue Lord. In reality, we gave most of it to the surviving rogues who joined Hope's pack as payment for services rendered to the Rogue Lord. The rest I used to create my own syndicate, smuggling goods into the country.

This meant I had to be careful and could only have a small group with me who knew of my true identity. Damian Lancaster for one was sent here to serve as my butler. I had told him if he ever betrayed me, I would kill him like I did Maximus. He thought I was joking at first, but when Hope confirmed his death by my hands, Damian acted cautiously. Good thing Damian was easy to please. All he wanted was a nice room to stay in, complete with meals and alcoholic beverages and a monthly stipend to purchase his necessities. Hope made sure he was rewarded handsomely and he has never complained. He enjoyed being part of a villainous scheme and asked to be part of future endeavors if needed.

Ava, on the other hand, was a she-wolf with a bad temper. She fit the role of being the COO of my little operation. Cunning, ruthless with an appetite to punish, the little blonde minx has made the human men of the other organizations bow to her every whim. She always wore a tight fitting dress showing off her Goddess given endowments, with matching high heels that clicked loudly on the floor signaling her arrival. The clicking sound has now become her signature...when men hear that sound, they panic, knowing she is coming.

Yuri, is my left hand man, the Zeta. He does Jacques' bidding and wherever Jacques went, he was two steps behind him. I have to give credit to Yuri, he was very protective. So much so, when Jacques was "invited" to fight in the pits, Yuri made sure the other fighters wouldn't and couldn't fight his master. The Parrain had to close down his death match events after that since he no longer had any fighters to participate.

Then I had Jacques, known by his alias Fang, playing my Beta. He wore amber colored contact lenses to hide his eyes and made sure his scent was masked. For a young man, he had a lot of pent up anger inside of him and it took much of his willpower not to kill his Uncle Jean Luc. I had to always impress the need for patience. It has been 3 years, what is a little more of waiting?


I was glad, though, Jacques had that one night at the pits. He actually felt, uhm, satisfaction. He was able to unleash some of that anger that has been plaguing him all these years. Good for him, not so good for the two fighters he killed in under 30 minutes.

Jean Luc, as I studied his vast empire, was just as terrible as the Rogue Lord. The members of his pack were treated as slaves and any wolf who tried to escape the horrible life as a pack member, was killed. To augment the dwindling number of his pack, he would kidnap healthy human women to bear the children of his men. After childbirth, the human women were discarded, either killed or sold to work as slaves.

But unlike the Rogue Lord, he never underestimated his opponents and kept a good watch on everyone. At the moment, I was his biggest competitor for the good graces bestowed by the French Mafia. I rose in rank quickly and had a good standing with the Caïd. He knew if he was not careful, I would replace him. So, he kept me under his radar at all times which was the same thing we were doing to him.

I knew of the scouts living in the building fronting my estate who reported to him. I actually put some men to watch his men and they followed their every move, in and out of the vicinity.

Hope came to visit the other day before she went off to celebrate her birthday. She was wearing a cloaked robe which hid her face. I had hoped Jean Luc's scouts would take notice of her. Fang's beautiful sister. Jean Luc needed an heir. However, he needed to find the right woman.

No woman has caught the fancy of the High Councillor. Well, let's just wait and see if we could change that.

_______________

Jacques and I sat in the car quietly looking out of our windows. It was a rainy night and we would have preferred to stay at home, however, we were called to see the Caïd.

The Caïd was a middle-aged man. He rose to power for being a cruel, merciless young man back in the day. He was still cruel and merciless, but growing old changes you. He was not as strong and agile as he was in his youth.

While Jean Luc controlled most of the western region of France, the Caïd controlled the northern central region where Paris is located. Paris has always been key to the French Mafia. Whomever controls Paris was usually given the rank of Caïd.

During his youth, the present Caïd took control of every crime organization by chopping off the heads of each of the mob bosses. His final victim, the former Caïd.

He has been the Boss of the French Mafia for almost 3 decades. He owns the police, the mayor of Paris, some of the council members and contributed hugely to the campaign of the current president of France. Technically, he was invincible.

The Parrain or the second in command in the mafia was the one who helped him take control of the northern region of France. He was another heartless sonofabitch, putting up the pits and having humans fight to the death. He governed the eastern region and some parts of the south until I came in.

To play dirty you have to be dirty and every plan is a means to an end. Jacques was against killing the mob bosses of the south, but it was the easiest thing to do to gain control of the south. So, one by one I visited the mob bosses. And one by one, I killed them.

I love Paris, I do and some would argue that there is no other city that can compete with Paris. If you're given the opportunity to visit the southern region in France, you'd probably change your perception in a heartbeat. Because it is in the south, where wealth can be seen.

Nice, Marseille, Cannes, Antibes, St. Tropez, Bordeaux... those are just a number of places in the south of France and they are all thriving with wealth. I personally feel, the Caïd should come from this region. Maybe we could make it happen.

The car stops at a hotel owned by the Caïd. The driver exits the car to open my door while Jacques secretly spritzes me with Maximus' signature scent.

Yuri followed us here in the car behind us and was already waiting for Jacques and I at the entrance. He bowed low and opened the door, allowing us to enter first where a young lady stood by to guide us to the meeting's venue.

We took the elevator to the top floor and when it opened, several ranking mafia officials were already seated at the bar. The young lady escorted us to our chairs and Jacques handed her tip. She politely said no, but batted her eyelashes at Jacques to notice her. Unfortunately for her, Jacques had his attention on his uncle who was seated near the Caïd.

"My apologies Maximus for asking you to attend knowing you would travel far. I hope your trip went smoothly?"

"Yes it did, Caïd. Thank you for keeping us comfortable." I said.

"The gift you promised me, did you bring it?" One his men walk towards me and I point to my coat pocket. He pulls out a small pouch filled with diamonds. "Thank you, Maximus. You are such a generous friend." I nod my head in acknowledgement and the bartender puts our drink in front of us. I smell the drink making sure it wasn't laced with anything and I take a sip. Jacques and Yuri does the same.

"Now that everyone is here, let me take the opportunity to express my gratitude to everyone for attending this last minute meeting."

"First of all, the event of the mafia is an intimate event.  You may bring a plus one, however, I need their names so they can be placed on the guest list."

"Second, I want to commend our new Conseiller, the shipment arrived on time and complete. I have another one for you, Maximus. The cargo needs to be shipped before the event. Do I need to go through that she-cat again?" He was pertaining to Ava. The first time they met, he tried to grab her ass, but had his arm twisted behind his back instead.

"No, Caïd. I will personally handle the cargo this time. If that's what you want." I say, giving him the option. Ava had told us that he liked she could fight his advances and has piqued his interest. The Caïd laughs. The others laugh with him. He raises his hand for silence.

"I do not mind the she-cat. She is someone I would like to tame." He chuckles. "Tell her to expect me. Same time, same place."

"Consider it done." He nods, anticipating his next encounter with Ava.

"Now that business is finished, I would like to inform you, I have found the traitor. The past few attempts at my life, was made by someone here." He looks around at everyone else seated at the bar, then looks at his watch. Jacques and I looked at each other knowing full well that someone's drink was laced with poison. We could smell it from where we sat.

The others were looked at one another, wondering what was going to happen next. We waited quietly, until one of the councillors falls down from his barstool followed by his righthand man. The Caïd's men surrounded the bodyguards of the councillor and they were disarmed and were forced to kneel on the floor. One by one, they were shot in the head.

"Maximus, I like you. You are an asset to this organization. His turf is now yours." Jean Luc's face turned a rare shade of purple. He was clearly upset, but was not allowed to voice it. Since I was given the dead councillor's territory, some of my territory now overlaps a portion of Jean Luc's.

He knew I was wolf and if there is something a wolf doesn't like, it is sharing territory.

The Parrain obviously shared the same sentiments as Jean Luc, but unlike Jean Luc whose lips could not move without the blessing of the Caïd, the Parrain could complain as much as he wanted even if he sounded like an old lady.

"Pierre, may I suggest you think this through before you award anyone... anything." The Parrain never liked me from the beginning and has always been a hindrance.

"I have, Andre, and I have decided to give it to Maximus." He frowns at the Parrain, he didn't like the tone the Parrain had just used when he spoke. "Whatever...'issues' you may have with Maximus and his man, was your own doing. You must learn to live with your mistakes."

"I was just saying..." The Parrain started to explain, but was cut off when the Caïd raised his hand to silence him. He may be foolish at times, but knew when to stop when he was with the Caïd.

"Enough, Andre. It is already done." The Parrain downed his shot of scotch in frustration. "My secretary will pass around a sheet of paper. Please write down the name of your plus one. Fang," The Caïd addresses Jacques, "I'm curious. A handsome man like yourself must have women drooling. Who will be your plus one?"

"My sister."