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While Angela faced her mother and half-siblings, Gael, on the other hand, took his time with Ivanovich. 

A small smirk cast on Ivan\'s face, and he leaned back on his chair, looking smug. "You? You\'re going to make me the next Pakhan? With what power?"

"Of course…" Gael shrugged. "I can\'t guarantee your seat. That will totally be up to you. But if you agree with my terms, Pakhan will surely notice your…newly found network."

Prior to today\'s meeting, he had no idea who he would meet. But whoever it would be, his strategy was the same: offer something they couldn\'t refuse. It just so happened that the person was heavily inclined in the Bratva that Gael could already feel the sweet deal right at his fingertips.

He still didn\'t like that it was Ivanovich Volkov. This was mainly because he was associated with…well, he was Angela\'s mother\'s husband. And in many ways, he hurt Angela when she was a child, witnessing the library incident and then later, her mother making a family with him.

But Gael knew that getting what he wanted would never be easy. He had already anticipated that. But it didn\'t matter. However and whatever it would take, he\'d do it.

"Let\'s say I take you up on your terms. What will you do for me?" Ivan asked.

The door to the private room opened, and in came a server, pushing a tray of food and tea, and there was a temporary pause in their conversation. When the server left, pu erh tea and dim sum delicacies in bamboo steamers filled their table.

Gael took a sip of the black tea, set it back in its place, took a pair of chopsticks, and picked up a piece of dumpling. He leisurely dipped it in the chili oil sauce before putting the whole thing in his mouth, chewing it while closing his eyes. The delicious, savory dumpling burst flavors inside his mouth; he couldn\'t help let out a satisfied sigh. Meanwhile, he could sense Ivan getting impatient with his dawdling.

Opening his eyes, he met Ivan\'s scowl, and he had to suppress the urge to chuckle. So instead, Gael gestured for the other to eat. "Help yourself. This one, in particular, is exquisite," he said, pointing at the dumpling he just ate with his chopsticks.

There was no reason for slowing down, really, other than wanting to reel in Ivan more. The longer the man waited, the more desperate he would feel—and Gael needed him hungry.

Ivanovich grunted as he picked up his own chopsticks and began eating. "I don\'t have all day, De Luca."

"Neither do I, Mr. Volkov. My time is precious." Gael smiled.

"Why are you interested in my share, anyway? It\'s only two percent. It\'s nothing compared to your investments in your properties and other businesses."

"I\'m expanding," was all Gael offered. Ivan didn\'t have to know the whole story. However, Gael was surprised that Ivan asked. Shouldn\'t he have heard from Kline and Morgan about the purchases?

"And you expect me to just hand it over to you, believing you saying that you\'re \'expanding\' and that I\'ll be the next Pakhan?"

Gael grabbed the table napkin and made a show of wiping his lips clean before putting it back down. "This is a business transaction. I buy the shares from you—on top of that, I\'ll offer you something that will make you and your Pakhan happy."

Setting his chopsticks down, Ivanovich took a sip from his tea, never taking his eyes off the other. Then he steepled his hands at the edge of the table and made an \'I\'ll give you a chance even if you don\'t deserve it\' look. "Let\'s hear it."

Keeping his expression neutral, Gael tilted his head to the side and said, "I\'ll give you the Pennsylvania route."

Ivanovich instantly straightened his spine, and his eyes shone as he considered the offer. For years, the Russians had wanted the secured route through Pennsylvania that would get them to the West—something they had failed to acquire because of pride.

The Cubans took over the Pennsylvanian territory for some time now, and the Russians had some petty war against them a couple of decades ago, so the Russians hadn\'t dared touch that area. Around the time Gael\'s grandfather—Severino—died, the Cubans reached out to the De Lucas, and since then, they had been good friends. The Cubans were the same ones who took care of Mario Morelli\'s car "accident" that sent the former Don into a coma and caused Lauretta\'s left knee fracture. Both were still in the hospital.

If the Russians got the Pennsylvania route, that would give them better access to the areas they otherwise took a long route for. They could\'ve made a deal with the Cubans a long time ago if they lowered their pride. But with Gael being a bridge between the two, the Russians wouldn\'t feel like they went out of their way. The Cubans had a new leader who was easier to deal with than their previous Boss. 

The new partnership would strengthen their bonds and widen their network. Ivanovich would be stupid to pass this up because the Russians had so many to gain and nothing to lose—probably only lowering their pride and a small fee to pay to the Cubans for using their route, but it would be all worth it. All of these, Gael didn\'t have to elaborate to Ivanovich Volkov. The look on the older man\'s face already showed how much he wanted this for himself.

A small chuckle escaped Ivan\'s lips as he averted his gaze while thinking. "I\'ve got to say… You drive a hard bargain." Gael could see the wheels turning in the other\'s head as if Ivan imagined the future, sitting on the throne as the new Pakhan in New York. He loved it more here than in Boston.

Gael could already taste victory at the tip of his tongue. "Shall we shake on it?"

Ivan shifted his gaze back to Gael, and his smile was gone. "I don\'t decide right away. I\'ll consider it. Don\'t celebrate early. You\'re not the only one who wants to buy me out." And with that, he got up from his chair and headed out of the private room. "If you offer this to someone else, I\'ll know," was the last thing he said before he left.

Gael drew his brows together. Ivanovich was a complicated man. He just warned that Gael shouldn\'t bring his hopes up as if hinting that another party—possibly Keith Perry—had also already found him, but then Ivan also warned not to give the offer to someone else. What a strange man. Gael thought about what this meant. It could mean that his proposal was better than the other party—that or Ivanovich Volkov was a greedy son of a bitch.

Just then, his phone beeped, and a message notification from Trigger alerted Gael.

[ Trigger: We just left the room. Ms. Su is pissed. ]

Quickly typing his response, Gael said:

[ Gael: Bring her here. I\'ll wait for you out front. ]

After leaving cash for the meal and a generous tip, Gael made his way out of the restaurant to wait for Angela, wondering what went wrong with her meeting with her mother this time. Despite the uncertainty with Gael\'s deal with Ivanovich Volkov, he could sense that he wouldn\'t have to wait too long. Huh.. It looked like he and Angela had to deal with the Volkovs today—they were a pain in the ass.