15I.
There's a lot of blood.
It's warm and wet, and there's enough of it that he instinctively tries to wipe it away with his hands only to realize that he's still cuffed to the bed.
"Charles..."
Shaw is half slumped across the bed and Erik kicks him, his body landing face up on the floor. There's a clean bullet hole right between the eyes and a smug expression still plastered on the bastard's frozen face.
Charles grabs his robe from the bed and slips it on, tying the knot before tossing the gun casually on the couch. He ignores Erik and walks over to his pile of clothes, pulling the cell phone from his pants pocket and hitting the speed dial.
"Logan. My room. Now."
He hangs up and throws the phone next to the gun then crouches next to Shaw and gently closes the dead man's eyes. "Darling. I'm so sorry."
"Charles," he yanks on the cuffs to try and get the other man's attention. "Charles let me up so we can get out of here quick before the others come."
"Oh Erik, you still don't know do you, love?" Charles grabs the key out of his desk drawer and uncuffs him from the bed. "I really thought you'd have figured it out by now."
He tries to reach for Charles – to hold him, or to grab him so they can get away he doesn't really know – but his lover pushes him back and scowls. "Stop, you're going to get blood all over me too."
The bedroom door opens and Logan stalks in with gun in hand. He takes a moment to look over the scene, Charles in his robe next to Shaw's dead body, Erik still naked on the bed.
"You alright, Boss?"
"I'm fine Logan," Charles heads over to the bar and pours two glasses of scotch. "I need you to handle this. Be discreet."
"What do I tell the others?"
Charles frowns and takes a sip of his drink. "Tell them I gave Sebastian an early retirement."
Logan sighs and then asks, "And everybody else?"
"Terrible business we're in really. Yet another hit on Sebastian and this one actually got to him, poor thing. The Hellfire Club will certainly find out who did this and make them pay."
"Sure, sure we'll make it good." He waves the gun in Erik's direction and gives him a look that's decidedly unfriendly. "You need me to handle him too?"
Charles laughs and hands Erik the other drink before grabbing the sheets off the bed and mopping the blood off his lover. "That won't be necessary, my friend. Erik and I need to talk."
"Alright, I'll go get the cleaning crew then."
"Oh Logan," Charles calls after him. "The funeral arrangements, have Raven handle them. She'll know to make it special."
The man grunts and walks out the room, closing the door quietly behind him. Erik stares...and stares at Charles and doesn't know what to say to the man he's only meeting now for the first time.
"You...you run Hellfire."
"Yes."
"But why? Why hide behind Shaw?"
Charles sighs and nudges him to take a drink from his glass. "It's a long story and I'll tell you another time. For now...there's something I want you to know, Erik."
He tenses and yanks his arm away from Charles' grasp. "Are you going to kill me?"
Charles wraps his arms around him and kisses him, pulling back slightly so he can look into Erik's eyes. "I love you."
"And I'm supposed to believe a word that comes out of your mouth now?" he sneers. "Answer my question! Are you going to kill me?"
"Not anymore."
"What?"
Charles sighs again and hops off the bed to grab a refill of his drink. "For a while...yes that was the plan."
Erik glares at him and thinks about the gun still sitting on the couch. "But not now."
"No."
"What changed?"
"I love you." Charles shrugs and sits next to Erik again on the bed. "And I had to choose. So I chose you."
There's silence for a few minutes as Erik tries to digest Charles' words, wondering what else he doesn't know about the man he's in love with.
Whether the man he's in love with exists at all.
"So what happens now?"
Charles smiles and kisses him again, seemingly unaffected by Erik's lack of response to his affection. "Now we talk. How would you feel about a new job?"
II.
It takes Alex Summers an entire year, working undercover and calling in favors before he finally gets a face to face meeting with Erik Lensherr.
He's nervous; the info he's gathered from both Hellfire members and his own guys paint the same grim picture of Lensherr; a ruthless man with a violent temper, running the Hellfire Club with an iron fist. The man is reportedly hard as stone with no potential weaknesses to exploit except one – his lover Charles Xavier.
Looking at the two of them now, sitting side by side in their private booth, holding hands and sipping champagne he can see what they mean. Lensherr has the kind of face that's naturally intimidating and the fierce scowl he wears would have made the rookie he used to be shake in his boots. But Alex is good – MacTaggert gave him this job for a reason – and he can read the body language well enough to know that Lensherr's affections for Xavier aren't just for show.
He takes a quick moment to absorb the details. Lensherr is tall and thin, projecting a dangerous air that's been well earned since he took over from Sebastian Shaw five years ago. Xavier in contrast is shorter if well put together – he looks more like a lawyer or boring business man than a mob boss' lover.
He'll be easy enough to handle.
They stop in front of the booth and the man – Logan – introduces him.
"Here's your next meeting Erik."
Lensherr looks pissed off at being interrupted, giving Logan a glare that the other man ignores with a grin. He turns his attention to Alex next and his eyes narrow dangerously. "You're Gabe Alexander."
He puts on his most charming smile and tries not to be intimidated. "Mr. Lensherr. Mr. Xavier."
Lensherr's eyes narrow even more but Xavier turns to him with his wide baby blues and a smile that's warm and inviting. "Oh Erik, I like him. He's so courteous."
He catches Lensherr rolling his eyes before yanking his lover close and growling in his ear. "Careful Charles. If you like him too much I'll have to take him out back and shoot him."
Xavier just laughs and kisses Lensherr full on the lips. "Don't worry, love. I don't like anybody the way I like you."
Lensherr snorts at that but his expression softens and he returns the kiss with enthusiasm. He turns to Alex again and waves at him impatiently. "Well? You got a meeting. What do you want?"
"I'm looking for more responsibilities in the organization, Sir."
"Is that right?" Lensherr stares at him for a few moments, looking him up and down. "What makes you think I'd just give some punk off the streets more access to the business?"
Alex puts as much bravado as he can behind the response, hoping it doesn't get him a bullet in the head. "Give me a chance to prove myself, Sir. I swear you won't regret it."
"Erik," Xavier gets up and walks over to Alex, looking him up and down with eyes that have lost all the warmth from just a few minutes ago. "You should give him a chance, love." He smiles at his lover as he pats Alex on the back. "I think this one's got potential."
THE END
Author's Note: And there we have it! Thanks for reading my little mob au; I hope you liked it as much as I enjoyed writing it. :)
For those who are interested, here's a quick rundown of the inner circle:
Charles Xavier - Inherited the business from his father Brian Xavier. The Hellfire Club is the illegal portion of his vast holdings. He made Kurt the face of Hellfire first, followed by Shaw and now Erik while he fronts the 'legitimate' Xavier empire.
Logan - Is Charles' personal bodyguard and has been since Charles was 10.
Raven Xavier - Is Charles' adopted sister and the Hellfire Club's top enforcer.
Azazel - Runs 'logistics'.
Janos - He runs the numbers.
Darwin - Is Hellfire's #2 enforcer.
Emma Frost - Is Charles closest business associate and Shaw's old flame :)
