Page 24 of Maddening Fixation

The first was older, his broad frame still imposing despite the years etched into his weathered face.

A neatly trimmed grey beard framed features hardened by decades of violence.

Time had silvered his hair, but it had done little to diminish the quiet authority he carried.

Bodgan.

My deputy.

A man old enough to have been my father, yet one who had chosen to follow me without question.

The second moved with the effortless silence of a born predator.

Young. Lean.

His sharp, watchful eyes swept across the prison grounds with the instinctive caution of a wolf stalking wounded prey.

Keegan.

My crew leader.

Fiercely loyal. Ruthlessly efficient.

The kind of man who wouldn’t hesitate to burn the world to ashes if I gave the order.

They came to a halt before me.

Without exchanging so much as a glance, both men lowered their heads in quiet respect.

“Congratulations on your freedom, Boss,” Keegan said, his thick Irish accent unable to conceal the satisfaction in his voice.

A grin spread across his face.

“The men have been counting the days,” he said. “They’ve waited ten years to welcome you home.”

Beside him, Bodgan smiled—a rare, understated expression that softened the weathered lines etched into his face.

“I’m glad you’re finally out, Romeo.”

His deep voice carried the quiet sincerity of a man who didn’t waste words.

“Florida hasn’t been the same without you.”

My gaze shifted from one to the other.

Neither of them looked at me with pity.

Keegan’s smile slowly disappeared as he searched my face, reading the thoughts I hadn’t spoken aloud.

After a long silence, Keegan finally spoke.

“So... what are your orders, Boss?”

I didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, I turned toward the waiting convoy, its line of black vehicles stretching beyond the prison gates like a promise of everything I’d built while the world believed I was forgotten.

A slow, merciless smile tugged at the scarred corner of my mouth.