Episode 3

Chapter 2

The music inside the nightclub was loud; women danced on the tables, half-naked, propositioning anyone willing to pay for them. Estefano stared at his watch, the icy expression on his face making clear his dissatisfaction with being there. He had long since given up seeking sexual relief from bodies that sold themselves; the thought of lying in a bed where other men had lain, kissing a mouth whose whereabouts he didn't even know, prevented him from finding true satisfaction during sex.

Estefano stood up. The man he was waiting for was the owner of the place, Leviathan. Like the demon from whom he had inherited the name, Leviathan was responsible for making men become heretics, spreading lust and envy—the kind of ally who was almost mystically connected to Estefano and who made a point of showing respect every time he saw him.

"Estefano."

"Leviathan."

Just words and no physical touch.

"I thought Marverik would come with you."

The man looked around coldly.

"Since when did the Constantinos become my guard dogs? I walk alone."

Estefano lit a cigarette, throwing himself carelessly onto the sofa.

"Besides, you know well he won't go anywhere without that nymphet he married. Love turned him into an idiot; I know of no more useless feeling."

Leviathan smiled, spreading a thin line of coke on the table.

"Apparently, nothing's changed. Marverik is still strangely emotional, and you're still a scoundrel."

"Is your sister still doing 'jobs'? She loved it. I've lost count of how many times she choked on my dick while repeating that it was my lack of character she liked."

Leviathan roared with laughter.

"That was a low blow, even for you, my dear."

Estefano rolled his eyes.

"Why don't you stop stalling and just say what you want? I have an engagement tonight."

A half-smile appeared at the corner of his lips.

"A tasty little distraction; it's been a while since I had some fun."

Leviathan snapped his fingers, and a young woman approached.

"You're in the devil's playground; there's no more fun place."

Estefano stared at the woman; her smudged lipstick made it clear he wouldn't be her first client of the night.

"I didn't find my dick in the trash. I'm not sticking it in that shit and risking losing it. This is an open sewer, Leviathan; I'm not crazy."

Leviathan kissed the woman on the mouth, his tongue sliding perversely inside hers.

"Don't mind him, sweetie. Estefano is old-fashioned despite maintaining this badass act."

The woman smiled, swayed her hips back to the main room, and Leviathan downed a drink.

"I called you here to make an invitation."

"What invitation?"

His hoarse, heavy voice didn't hide his boredom.

"I'm getting married in three months. I want you to be the best man."

Estefano laughed.

"Who's the wretch capable of giving you a daughter?"

"Aiko Ikari."

"The head of the Yakuza?"

Estefano leaned back against the sofa, staring at him coldly.

"I knew you were an imbecile, but suicidal?"

"Don't exaggerate."

"That's a sect, not a summit. Interracial marriages don't fly there, do you understand me? They're setting you up, genius. You'd understand if you started using the head on your shoulders more instead of the one in your pants."

"Yes or no?"

Estefano stood up.

"I'll pass. Invite Marverik."

"He said the same thing as you and told me to go fuck myself."

"I always knew he was the smarter of you two. He's a weirdo nutcase, but he wouldn't fall into a trap like this so easily."

Estefano leaned over the table, used the hundred-euro bill Leviathan had rolled up to snort the cocaine.

"Don't say I didn't warn you."

He rubbed his nose quickly.

"That old man is a bastard, Leviathan. He's handing his daughter over to a pimp, and it's not even for a dirty fuck, it's for a fucking wedding."

"You talk as if you were a saint. You sell organs, Estefano, you traffic women and children."

"I give those children a home, hope to the sick, and a job to the girls."

He laughed.