Heartless || •OG• ✔️

Chapter 9 - June

Iridescent rays of light glimmered off the rising moon, stale air dancing across the exterior of June's flesh. His hands were steady, the M40 resting in his grip. Chips of metal were residing on the side of the rifle from years of use, but the scope was as pristine as ever.

His mind was brewing with thoughts that made his mission near impossible. Monitoring the Evermore mansion was becoming more of a chore Jericho Novak kept assigning him. Killing Charlotte on her own property was near impossible. He had to set up so far away that the odds of him hitting the shot were slim to none. If she was standing still, perhaps he could land it. But one miss meant he failed and wouldn't have another opportunity.

So, that led him to babysitting.

Jericho was throwing a tantrum over Miss Evermore knowing more about him than the other way around. June was there to monitor the situation, take a shot if he could. The problem with that was Ivan Belmour knew about this arrangement as he did every arrangement that happened under his jurisdiction. Any activity in the city, Mr. Belmour knew about.

Jimin was Ivan's best friend. Jimin would go to Ivan and figure out who killed the woman he loved. Then June would have a target on his head, as would Jericho. Jericho signed the kill order, June carried it out. Killing Charlotte simply wasn't on the table. That was why June devised his own plan to have the queen of New York fall. If he was lucky, maybe he could take out both Jericho and Charlotte at the same time.

All he had to do was leave the mission site and go to Ivan's nightclub, the place he hung around the most. If not there, then one of his dozens of other neutral spots. June weighed his options in his mind, then packed his sniper up and swung the case over his shoulder. He descended down the hill and navigated his way through the alleyways of the city. The nightclub wasn't far from Charlotte's abode, but it was far enough that he had time to fall into his thoughts.

June told Jimin to push Charlotte in the right direction. If June had proof that Charlotte was hiding something, which all mafia leaders did, then Jimin would trust June more. It could tear Charlotte and Jimin's relationship apart and make Hakai weaker. That gave more room for Jericho to do his damn work by himself instead of calling June to do it for him. It was a stretch, but it was worth a try. It was better than sitting on a hill and praying he wouldn't miss the single shot he may or may not have had a chance of. Both options were massive stretches. It was a matter of which choice was the bigger one.

Strolling through the mostly empty alleyways that had occasional beggars and homeless, June went to the nightclub and arrived within 20 minutes. He was forced to leave his rifle at the front desk of the hotel, but he expected that and obliged. The next order of business was getting to Ivan.

The lights were flickering and covering June's tawny skin with beams of rainbow light. The palette switched from hues of maroon all the way to a rich turquoise that he basked in for a moment too long. He raised his hand and allowed the colors to crawl along his body, the other people in the room bumping into him as he pushed his way through the crowds.

A smile graced his lips as the shades kept coming. He had to admit he adored the small things like changing lights and the smell of alcohol. That smell was flying in the air at that moment, the two bartenders frenzying to get the orders out on time. June decided not to make it worse by stopping for a drink. The mission was more important, so that was what he made his priority.
By the corner of the nightclub was a set of stairs that were circular in shape, spinning up to the second floor that was really Ivan's office. June frowned. Memories of laughter and passion rested in the back of his skull, but he forced them away. Right when he approached the edge of the stairs, he was stopped by a dark-skinned man acting as Ivan's bodyguard.

"Access is restricted," the man said, his voice a shout so June could hear over the music."My name is Byun June," he replied, and just like that, the bodyguard stepped aside.

June ascended, not bothering to thank the guard as he went. The music faded, and June found himself face to face with a wooden door with a golden knob. He went in without knocking. What awaited him were the familiar walls painted in burgundy, frames of useless art hung to make the place appear more barren than it was. At the end of the spacious room was the desk Ivan Belmour was sitting behind. Their eyes locked just as June kicked the entrance shut.

"What are you doing here? How did you get in?" Ivan asked.

"I told the guard my name. I think you need to hire better security if he's that scared of me. Unless you told him to let anyone with my name in, that is."

June came over and ignored the rest of the office that was overflowing with a minimalistic style. The pair of chairs in front of Ivan's desk called to him, and June sat himself in the left one. He pulled his right leg over the other and folded his hands together. Ivan slammed his laptop closed and narrowed his eyes.

"Make it quick, I have business to attend to," Ivan replied.

There were papers scattered along the sides of Ivan's desk, his laptop covered with stickers of the university he wished to attend but never did: Boston University. June tapped his fingers on the material of the surface in front of him, grabbing the single framed picture on Ivan's desk and turning it so he could see.

Ivan went to stop him, but it was too late. June took in the colors as he loved to do. It was an exterior shot he recognized. Ivan and June were the subjects of the image, outside in the sun, visiting Italy together. A photographer offered to take their photo since they were tourists, and Ivan agreed despite June's grunts. That was one of the memories that June thought he locked up. So, he turned the frame away so it could remain that way.

"You caused a scene in my nightclub, yet here you are acting like you did nothing wrong," Ivan said, June shaking it off.

"You're still mad about that? Jimin was causing a scene long before I got there. You know him. He was all crazy and obsessive over his ex."

"He protects her with his life. I don't consider that obsessive, I consider that loyal."

"Loyal to someone who shattered your heart into pieces," June said, clicking his tongue after. "I don't understand how that works. I'm not still loyal to you."

"Don't," Ivan whispered, his hands curling into fists. "Don't you dare bring that up."

"As you wish. It's not like I have time for you anyway."

"You used to have time for Charlotte and Jimin. Did you seriously sever your ties with them because of our relationship?" Ivan asked.

"Oh look at that, you're finally figuring it out. Why would I work for people who are constantly at your doorstep? Do you realize how much of the New York Underworld despises Charlotte and Jimin for that? They even despise you for potential bias toward them."

"Are you a part of that?"

"I'm sorry?"

"Do you despise me too?" Ivan said in a murmur, his hands losing their wrath. June sunk in the cushioned, dark seat. His leg fell off his knee, and he found himself digging his sneakers into the polished floors as he scratched the skin on his neck that had his serpent tattoo.

"I'm here to talk about your perfect little angel who can do no wrong: Charlotte. I want you to tell me all the information you have on her, especially something incriminating. Prove to me you aren't biased, and maybe I won't despise you."

"I'm not biased, but I can't do that. Just like I swore to everyone else, I swore an oath to them that I would keep their information confidential."

"I figured you'd say that," June said, leaning forward and placing his elbows on the desk. "But I know you exchange services for information. Someone does a job for you, they get information. I'm cashing in my favor now." Right when Ivan went to speak, June held up his hand. "Six months ago. The nightclub was attacked by a lower mafia looking for power. You called me for help, and I've been saving that favor ever since."

"Fuck," Ivan mumbled, running a hand through his hair and pulling at his locks. "You're seriously making me do this to my own friends?"

"So you are biased..."

Ivan set his jaw and opened his laptop, navigating through it. The screen illuminated his face, and June only just now noticed he had a scar near his hairline. Ivan tried to compensate by parting his hair to pander toward that side, but June saw it nonetheless.

Two minutes passed, then, Ivan pushed his laptop to the edge of his desk for both of them to see. There was a black screen with a play button, likely audio. The audio June needed to accomplish his mission.

"June, I know why you're doing this. I know Jericho put you up to stopping Charlotte, but I beg you, don't do this. Don't use this information."

"I want a flash drive of it," June replied, Ivan hesitating before sighing and pressing play.

"You are aware this conversation is being recorded, yes?" Ivan's voice said over the speakers.

"Yes sir," Theo Spade's voice replied, June knitting his brows together. "I found who I want to hire for an important assassination, I need you to put her through to me."

"Who is she and what assassination is this for?"

"Myra Valencia, she's an assassin willing to go worldwide. I'd like to hire her to assassinate a High Council member."

There was a pause, only soft breaths audible. "You want to hire an assassin to eliminate a member of the High Council? Am I hearing that correctly?" Ivan asked Theo.

"Yes sir."

Ivan ended the clip and pulled out one of his dozens of flash drives, plugging it into his system. June had his jaw on the floor, and as much as this was massive information that would get Theo killed, this did nothing against Charlotte. So, June cleared his throat, drawing Ivan's attention back to him.

"This relates to Charlotte, how?" June asked, Ivan saving not one but two audio files to the flash drive.

"Charlotte was in on it. Her, Theo, and Asa. The second audio file has Charlotte telling me about their plan since she needed me to confirm that the Council would choose from our area if something went wrong. The three of them made an arrangement. Asa was a spy who gave Charlotte info on Jericho so she could stay ahead of him. Theo wants to lead, so he handled hiring an assassin. Charlotte and Theo made a deal. In exchange for giving Theo the extremely high number of gold coins he'd need to make the assassination possible, Theo would back out of their territory when he became the ruler. On the off chance the Council goes to her to elect her as the next member, she would turn the offer down so Jericho would be selected next."

"All of this just so Theo could lead Unmei?" June asked, but it was more of a rhetorical question. "Shit. Does Jimin know about this?"

"As far as I know, no. No one other than those three, me, and now you know this information."

"Not even the assassin, Myra?"

"She only got the payment and the assignment. She doesn't know their plans," Ivan said.

June took the flash drive after Ivan was done with it, and he whistled out a few low notes, staring at the item in his hands. He was holding the key to taking down Charlotte in his grasp. All he had to do was use it. And with that, he grinned.

"Mr. Belmour, would you be so kind as to put me in contact with the High Council, please?"

~~~

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