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Ason
Pressing the accelerator down to the floor, I feel my car jump forward.
Taking the old backroads to my family home allows me to drive recklessly. Right now, I need to feel reckless. After Scarlette had run off from the river front, all logical thinking went away. I followed her back to her house. I knew it was wrong and I shouldn’t, but I honestly felt bad for hurting her feelings. Plus, she had dropped the ten-pound box of baked goods and I didn’t know if she needed them for something important.
The last thing I had expected was for Scarlette to invite me into her house. Being there with her was strange, but at the same time, it felt right. Like I was going home for the first time after a long trip. I saw a different side of her in those few minutes we spent alone, but then an emergency text from Micah had ruined that short-lived bliss I had felt. I could still taste her sweet lips and her lavender scent floated through my car. Kissing Scarlette had been something I had dreamed about for years. Now that I had had my chance to taste her, I knew she was a drug that I would never be able to kick. I wanted more from her, but I also knew that Scarlette wasn’t the type of girl to just fuck after a few times hanging out. She wasn’t like the usual girls I hooked up with. She was special.
I punched in his name on the speed dial connected to my car and waited for him to answer.
“Where are you?” his deep voice asked over the speakers.
Gripping the steering wheel tighter, I took a sharp turn that had my car almost on its side. “On my way home.”
“We are waiting for you down by the swamps,” he stated, and that was when I could hear the sounds of the rest of our crew in the background.
I hung up the call, not wanting to talk right now. I took a right and then went through the gates to our driveway. Instead of taking the driveway to the main house, I turned down the dirt side road that led behind the house and toward the swamps at the back of our property. It was in these very same swamps where my father dumped bodies of those that dared to mess with the mafia. A shudder tore through me as I thought about that. As a kid, I would ride my bike to the swamps whenever I saw my dad or uncles make their way down that road. I would hide out among the tall grass and trees, watching the deadly exchanges take place. At first, witnessing brutal acts by the men who I had looked up to had terrified me. But over the years, I had grown accustomed to the evil and vile acts of my lifestyle. Watching bodies drop into the murky water, only to hear the splash and growls of the alligators as they ripped the bodies apart—only brought on nightmares in my childhood.
As I approached the swamps, the sun was gone and in its place was a silent and eerie darkness. The glowing lights of cars seeped through the trees as I parked. Everyone was already waiting for me, standing around and talking. Talon had a beer in his hand and Gabby was focused in on her phone.
“Look who finally decided to show up. Where were you?” Talon called out.
“Out,” was all I said.
Moving next to Micah, I glanced around our circle. Everyone glared back at me and I didn’t like the vibe of the night.
“Why are you being so secretive?” Gabby asks, finally looking up from her phone.
“I’m not, I just don’t feel the need to tell you assholes where I am at all times,” I said.
“Whatever, but you are a terrible liar,” Gabby retorts, rolling her eyes.
Chuckling, Talon turned to me again. “Anyway,” he says, waving his hands between us. “We called this meeting tonight because we need to know what your plans are for us.” His eyes bore into mine and I hated how they were acting just like our parents. Desperately I wished that we could just be teenagers. A group of friends who hung out and got into trouble, and not the prodigies of the mafia.
“I went earlier today to meet up with Ryder at the casino,” I state flatly. My eyes dance over to Micah and he stands there smugly, his blue eyes glowing against the blackness of the night. “I haven’t made a decision yet, but that’s my business right now. I still have time,” I finish, kicking the dirt beneath me.
An internal clock slowly ticks away at me each and every single day. I am reminded constantly that my fate is counting down to the moment when I must decide what role I want to take in the Antoni Mafia Family. More than anything, I want to scream at them all to just fuck off, but I know that I can’t. I’m expected to be the next capo. To lead my unruly family through the mafia world. It makes me want to throw up.
“My parents worked hard to establish that casino. If you aren’t serious about it, you need to back off,” Micah warns, and I don’t like the tone of his voice or the way he is glaring at me.
Stepping toward him, my fists beg to unleash against his face. We don’t fight amongst one another. We are a solid family, but right now, I am on a short fuse and anything may just set me off.
Talon steps in to stop me. “Ason, you need to calm down. Besides, Micah has a point. It would make more sense for Micah to take on the nightclubs and casinos. People would question his role there less knowing that his mother inherited the casino from her father and his father started the nightclub shortly after that.”
“Hey, can we wrap this up? I have plans tonight,” Gabby cuts in.
We all turn to look at her. Gabby knows that her role in the Antoni Mafia Family will more than likely be as one of our snipers or assassins. Her mother, Gia, is one of the best shooters I know. Well, besides Ryder. Our arguments over our places seem irrelevant to her and I guess in a way, she’s right.
“Yeah, I’ve got about five chicks waiting for me. You all coming to Tucker’s Lake house? He’s got a DJ and keg set up,” Talon says, dropping his hands and completely forgetting that he almost had to break up a fight.
“I’m in,” Micah says, pumping his fist in the air.
“That’s where I am going, just ride with me,” Gabby offers, starting to walk toward her sleek Mercedes convertible.
“Nah, I think I am just going to go home,” I say, pretending to yawn.
“No, you are coming out with us,” Talon says, throwing an arm around my shoulder.
As he leads me to the car, I exhale a deep breath because I know I can’t get out of this now.
