They ended the call. Ji-Su closed his eyes and pressed the phone screen tight to this forehead. He didn’t want to read too much into the conversation or the gifted suit. But he couldn’t help but wonder, was the attraction that he’d sensed from Raul still there? And if so, why had Raul stopped feeding from him?
The situation was a tangled mess of confusion. Before he could think of how to unravel the snags and knots of his relationship with Raul, his phone beeped with a second alarm.
Stream starting in five minutes.
Putting his thoughts away for now, Ji-Su rezipped the garment bag and hung it in his closet. He had to hurry and get to his stream or he would be late.
Chapter 20
Thursday night arrived. Ji-Su met Raul in the foyer to attend the ballet. Raul waited for him by the front door, looking ruggedly handsome in a black suit and shirt with a tiger’s eye bolo tie.
“Thanks again for the suit,” Ji-Su softly said. “You didn’t have to do that.” He had more than enough money now to buy his own suit, which made him appreciate Raul’s gift even more.
Raul gave him a slow perusal before he responded.
“You look good in it.”
The praise set off a flurry of butterflies in Ji-Su’s stomach. “Thank you. You look nice too.”
Raul nodded once in acknowledgement of the compliment before placing a hand in the middle of Ji-Su’s back to guide him outside to the waiting limo. The driver held the door of the two-tone Mercedes open for them and Ji-Su slid in to settle on the luxurious leather seat. After Raul was seated next to him the driver closed the door and went around to take his place behind the wheel.
They headed down the mile-long drive to the main road, briefly stopping to allow the gate to open. Once they left the ranch and were on their way to the city, Raul raised the partition, closing them off from the driver. The two of them were now in a small, dark space. Alone. Ju-Su was suddenly nervous. In an effort to avoid the entire trip passing in the same awkward silence as their meals, he started a conversation.
“I’ve never been to the ballet.”
“I hope you enjoy it. It’s not my usual genre of entertainment, but it’s a beautiful art form.”
“How often do you go?”
“About once a year. We’ll be joining the other heads of the organization tonight.”
“So, this is a business event.” Which meant tonight wasn’t a date.
“Partially. The heads of our organization have a monthly dinner or outing. It’s more social than business—a way to keep our group bond tight. Usually, we have a private dinner at John’s home. But it’s important for us to be out in public on occasion. We want people see us as part of Dear Lake society because it’s good for business.”
“And your organization is called the Sanguis Syndicate?” Ji-Su asked. With that name, he guessed it was some kind of vampire run conglomerate of various businesses.
“Yes.” Raul was quiet for a moment. “We are not a one hundred percent legal operation.”
That announcement was calm and quietly voiced, but it still had Ji-su twisting in his seat to look at Raul in surprise. “What do you mean?”
Raul met his gaze directly when he answered.
“The Sanguis Syndicate is a criminal organization. We have our endeavors that operate within the bounds of official laws—like the casino that I run—but we have many that operate outside of it as well. Work related topics probably won’t come up tonight since we normally keep the conversation light during family gatherings. Especially the public ones. But I wanted you to be prepared in case they do.”
“Thank you,” Ji-Su said, still stunned. “I appreciate that. Does that mean you’re like the mob?”
“Yes. We are run in a similar fashion. When we relocated here about ten years ago, Dear Lake was already heavy withcrime. But it was mostly human led. We were the first large scale vampire organization. At first, we only established services for other vampires. But soon enough it spread to humans as well.”
“Why criminal activities?” Ji-Su asked.
“There’s money in it,” Raul answered simply. “We’re strong and respected. Our cash flow throughout the community keeps local government happy, a vampire population with its needs met means less danger for humans, and as long as we run a tight ship—which we do—law enforcement has no need to get involved.”
One thing stood out to Ji-Su. “Less danger for humans? You mean the blood pet system.”
“Yes,” Raul confirmed.
“Does that mean if it didn’t exist that vampires would kill us?”