mob au | the beginning in the end: chapter 4
Annabeth only lets the phone ring once before answering it. âDonât you know itâs impolite to keep a lady waiting?â
âLetâs skip the pleasantries, shall we?â Octavian says, his tone harsh. âI have one of your goons, and you have the harbor.â
âShould I call you Augur or Captain Obvious?â
Octavian laughs, but itâs a hollow imitation that makes the hair on Annabethâs arms stand on end. âI knew you must be a charmer. How else does one woman get a whole city to look the other way?â
âIâm afraid youâll never know what itâs like,â she answers. âAnd I thought we were skipping pleasantries?â
âYouâve already seen what I do to people who donât cooperate.â
âEveryone has. Very theatrical.â
âI want what I want when I want it. If I donât get it, bad things happen. Simple, really.â
âAnd what is it you want now?â
His voice is cold as ice when he answers. âI want a meeting with this notorious queenpin I keep hearing so much about. Youâll come alone.â
It is Annabethâs turn to laugh, but hers is real. âWe both know I wonât be showing up alone. But since you sound so scared, Iâll only bring one guard with me.â
He is silent for a moment, but Annabeth can hear his breathing. âIâll allow it.â
âSo generous.â
âThe old airfield in one hour.â
âWill that leave you enough time to make it home before curfew?â she quips.
âSee you soon,â is all he says.
âWait. I need proof of life,â she says. âLet me talk to my guy.â
Again, there is silence, and then a different kind of breathing on the line.
âTravis?â she asks, her voice changing to something soft and scared.
âItâs me,â Travis answers, sounding winded. âHeâs got eight ugly fucks with him.â
The familiar sounds of a punch and someone gasping for air fill her ear, and Annabeth can perfectly picture the smug smile that is no doubt on Travisâs face.
She hopes Octavian can hear her smile on the other end of the call. âSee you soon.â















