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When Dante murdered his father, he cut all ties with Augustu and how he ran his business. Sex workers. Slaves. Bad dope. He’d built quite the reputation for himself, and not a good one. I’d taken more than half of his old territory when I entered the city. Territory that was rightfully mine since it had belonged to theBratvaleader before me. The one he had beheaded in the streets.
That was a news day for sure.
From what Leon had told me, his father was unhinged and becoming increasingly so each day. Sitting before him now, I could see that.
“Why won’t you help?” Leon questioned his father. “If the McDonoughs gain ground, it will do nothing but shove you out and kill you and all your men.”
Augustu scoffed. “Let them try, eh?” He spat. “We Sicilians are built of stronger stuff than those Irish bastards. They will have nothing. Nada. You will see.”
“This is a waste of time,” Dante murmured from beside me. His voice was low enough that Augustu couldn’t hear. “He either truly believes that they won’t touch him, or he’s in league with them.”
“The McDonoughs don’t seem like the kind people to make a deal with Augustu.” I snuck a peek at the room. It was simple; barely any pictures on the wall and hardly any memorabilia. The house had been well kept, but there were obviously things missing. I doubted anyone in the household would be stupid enough to steal from Augustu, but I had heard rumors about his famous temper. He had most likely broken most of his things in fits of rage.
Whoever the McDonoughs were working for or whatever they were a part of would not risk making a deal with someone so unstable. One slip was all it would take.
My phone beeped in my hand. A missed call from Liam. My heart raced and anxiety dug through me at the thought of something having happened to Ava. I went to dial him back, not caring about Augustu, when a text message came through.
911 at Dante Romano’s. Kenzi’s after Kendra. Come quick.
“We are done here.” I stood abruptly from my chair, passing the phone to Dante as I buttoned my jacket. “You are obviously not going to help and have very little self-preservation. So we will talk at a later time. Say goodbye, Leon.”
Leon nodded at his father and turned toward the door
“That’s right,” Augustu sneered. “Follow after your master, you littlecagna.”
With a snarl, I lunged forward, ensnaring Augustu’s shirt collar in my grasp, and yanked him toward me. He was sprawled over his desk, the angle forcing his head back. His face was red and splotchy as fury rolled through him.
At his furious scream, the door to the office flew open, his guards storming into the room, but we were ready. With my one hand still on Augustu’s collar, I drew my Beretta from the small of my back and aimed it at the door. Dante and my men followed suit. My eyes never left the man in my grasp.
“Your son is ten times the man you will ever be,” I growled at him, lips turned up in a vicious snarl. “Insult him again, and those will be the last words you ever utter. Understood?”
Augustu paled at my words but remained silent, defiance still sparking in his eyes.
“Understood?” I roared in his face, my hand tightening on his collar, choking him.
“Yes,” he gasped, clawing at my hand. “I understand.”
I tightened my grip, just a little, holding on to him for a few more seconds to make sure he got my point. Then I released him. The old man sputtered and choked as he righted himself. He glared at all of us but kept silent.
Good. If he uttered another word, I was liable to kill him, and that was not a headache I needed at the moment.
“Let us go,” I commanded as I strode through the door. Augustu’s men parted like the red sea as I moved past them, none of them wanting to risk drawing my ire. We’d already wasted precious time, and I was in a hurry to get to Dante’s house. The extra time was worth it, however. It was my job to ensure my men knew I had their backs and would defend them.
“He’s growing bold,” Leon muttered as he opened the driver’s side door to the Mercedes and climbed in. “It’s going to be a problem,” he predicted when I took my place in the passenger seat. Dante was in the car in front of us, and Vas was in the one trailing behind us.
Leon pulled out of his father’s circular drive and sped down the suburban road toward the highway after Dante. Picking up my phone, I dialed Liam.
“Please tell me you’re on your way,” he whisper-shouted into the phone. I could hear yelling in the background and the sound of something shattering.
“We are getting on the freeway now,” I told him. “Less than ten minutes.”
Liam breathed a sigh of relief. “Might want to try and cut that in half,” he warned. “I’m not sure if I can keep either one of the girls from shooting Kendra if she keeps running her mouth like she is.”
“Khristos,” I groaned, telling Leon to step on it. “What the hell are they even doing there?”
“One moment they were talking at the dining room table, and the next, Kenzi was rushing out and Ava was crying,” Liam informed me. “The next thing I know, Ava’s got this grand idea that Kenzi was going after Kendra, and she wasn’t wrong. Bridget caught it a little late because the intrusion came from within our own building. Looks like Kenzi hacked into our database to find her location.”
Rolling my eyes, I groaned, the frustration mounting. “Explains why she suddenly showed up this morning without an explanation.”
