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Rage contorts Remy's features, aging him twenty years in a heartbeat. "You ungrateful whelp. After everything I've given you, everything I've done to make you into a man, this is how you repay me?" His hand clenches around the knife, knuckles white. "You'll have nothing. Do you hear me? Nothing!"
Spittle flies from Remy's lips, the final shreds of his control unraveling. I stare at the knife in his grip, heart pounding. He may be old, but Remy has always been dangerous.
One wrong move, and this could end in blood.
I swallow hard, trying to keep my expression neutral. "There's no need for threats. We both want what's best for the company."
"The company is mine!" Remy snarls. "You'll get nothing. Do you hear me? Nothing!"
He raises the knife, eyes glinting with madness. My heart leaps into my throat, pulse racing as I calculate the distance between us. If I move fast enough, I might be able to knock the knife from his grip before he can—
A crash shatters the tension. We both start, turning to find Tripp crumpled at the foot of the bar cart, broken glass and amber liquid pooling around him.
Remy's face contorts with rage. "Look at you! You useless, sniveling drunk. Get out of my sight before you embarrass us further!"
Tripp flinches, scrambling to his feet and bolting from the room without a word. I stare after him, an odd pang in my chest. When did the disappointment I've always felt toward my father morph into something else?
Was it a pity? Guilt?
I shake off the thought, meeting Remy's gaze. His fingers flex around the knife hilt, eyes glinting with warning. The threat is clear: push me, and you'll end up worse off than him.
My jaw clenches. "If you won't hand over the reins willingly, I'll take them by force."
"You?" Remy laughs, a harsh bark that grates on my nerves. "You don't have the spine. You'll always be that pathetic little boy begging for my approval." His smile is razor sharp. "And you'll always be denied."
My fingers curl into fists under the table. "We'll see about that."
Remy scoffs, waving a dismissive hand. "Enough of this nonsense. What have you done with that brother of yours?"
I shrug, feigning nonchalance though my heart kicks into a gallop. Does Remy suspect I had a hand in Burn's recent beating? "He's recovering. Nothing to concern yourself with."
"Hmph. Useless, the both of you." Remy saws into his steak, juice dripping onto the plate. "At least your wife's proven useful. An heir at last, even if the timing's inconvenient."
I grit my teeth against the urge to slam Remy's head into his plate. "Talia is not a broodmare for your empire. Our child will have nothing to do with you."
"You seem to forget, boy, that you and everything you hold dear belong to me." Remy levels me with a glare, mouth twisting into a sneer. "Including that wife of yours and the bastard she's carrying."
Rage blisters through me, searing away all pretense of civility. How dare he threaten what's mine? I surge to my feet, chair crashing behind me, and slam my hands on the table.
"I will tear this whole goddamned family apart before I let you touch them!" I snarl, heart pounding as Remy rises with predatory grace. We're nearly eye to eye, generations of hate and violence stretching between us.
All at once, Remy smiles. "There's the spine I've been waiting for." He sits, picking up his knife and fork. "Prove you have the guts to take what's yours, and the company is yours."
"And if I refuse?" I ask warily.
Remy shrugs. "Then you'll always be that pathetic little boy." His eyes glint with menace. "And I'll always be the one holding the knife to your throat."
I grind my teeth, staring at the old bastard. He's laid down the gauntlet, daring me to make a move against him. If I don't, he'll always see me as weak. But if I do...
The doors burst open with a crash, startling us both. Felix strides in, eyes wild behind his glasses.
"We have a problem," he announces, barely sparing me a glance.
Remy's gaze sharpens. "What is it?"
"The board is planning a coup. They don't think either of you are fit to run the company." Felix's fingers press together in front of him like a monk praying to his god. "They're going to call an emergency vote during the meeting this afternoon to remove you from your position. I’ve heard chatter about bringing in an outside CEO. Someone from New York."
"Over my dead body," Remy snarls, shoving away from the table. He storms toward the door, pausing only to spew venom over his shoulder. "If you want your birthright, boy, you'd better grow a spine… and grow it fast!"
