Page 5 of His Sacrifice

“Rhett, it’s good to see you,” she laughs, and it still sounds just as sweet as I remember. Sweet enough that the hairs on the back of my neck stand up when I hear it.

“Sit down, join us.” Rhett clicks his fingers at the waitress. “A bottle of Cristal over here,” he calls out, offering Evelyn his space and then sliding in beside me, forcing me to budge up.

“Raoul.” Her blue eyes anchor onto mine, and I watch the nervous swallow travel down her throat as she dips her head at me. Her eyes look sad now, and it hurts a little that they don’t sparkle the way they did when she greeted my brother.

“Evelyn, it’s good to see you.” I realize that I don’t sound at all genuine, maybe it's because I can feel the seams of my fucking heart starting to tear apart again.

Why did I summon her up here?

“So what brings you—”

“I’m sorry I’m late,” Fabian interrupts her, making me want to slice through his vocal cords, with the knife I keep strapped to my ankle, for the accuracy of his timing.

“I see you’ve been keeping my guests entertained.” His arm slides behind Evelyn’s body, and when his mouth presses against her cheek, I feel the snarl pull on my lip.

Now, I don’t just want to slit the fucker’s throat, I want to reach down into his chest cavity and rip his heart right out of it.

“Of course.” Evelyn looks up at him lovingly, and I have no idea how I manage to keep all the rage inside me contained. This can’t be happening. I gave up this girl for a reason, and it wasn’t so she could end up with a guy like Fabian fucking Morretti.

“You wanted to talk business.” I reach for the tray on the other side of the table, suddenly feeling the need to take the edge off, then leaning down, I snort the longest, thickest line that’s been chopped out.

It might just stop me from pulling out my gun and putting a bullet through Fabian's skull.

“Surely we should have some fun first, kick back and enjoy the party, Raoul.” Fabian slouches back in his seat with Evelyn still tucked under his arm, and I stare across the table at her, narrowing my eyes before looking back to Fabian.

“You have kept me waiting long enough, do not make the mistake of wasting any more of my time,” I warn sharply, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it up.

My impatience unnerves him. I know his type, Fabian likes to play gangster, he holds himself in much higher regard than anyone else in this city does. In reality, he is just a little rich boy trying to buy himself a reputation.

“My father has officially stepped down from the family business. I’m running things now.” He puffs out his chest proudly. “I want to renegotiate our rates.” Despite his posture, he's nervous, I can tell that by the way he’s sniffing at his fingers and shifting his body. He’s also refusing me eye contact, which is always a clear-cut sign that you’re dealing with pussy shit.

I watch Evelyn for a reaction, she’s nervous too. It may have been a while since I saw her, but she grew up around my family, her father was one of us, she knows exactly what we’re capable of. And I wonder if she has any idea that her boyfriend is a low-life scum-bag whose family have made their money by whoring doped-up women.

I laugh at him mockingly and turn my head to my brother.

“You hear this, Rhett? He wants to negotiate prices.” I switch my stare back to Fabian, straightening my lips and holding him with stone-cold eyes.

“We control the border, we control the city, our terms are non-negotiable. It doesn't matter who’s managing your business, the quality of our product remains the same, and for that reason so does its price.”

“You may want to rethink that price, Raoul. Prizrak is offering much lower rates, and after sampling the product I can’t question its quality.”

“Prizrak, you say?” I huff another laugh at him, this is a name I've been hearing a lot around the city lately, every now and again there will be a usurper. But the Burlusconis have been running Los Angeles for too many years to concern themselves with them.

Many have tried to weaken us, and many have failed at it. This latest imposter will just be another trier who gets squashed like the rest of them.

Prizrak is a word the Russians use for ghosts, and this ‘Prizrak’ isn’t even brave enough to reveal his real name or his face. Am I supposed to feel threatened by a man who chooses to brand himself already dead?

“Then it appears I have wasted my time being here tonight.” I finish what’s left in my glass, slamming it down on the table, and with one last look at the girl I gave up my heart to twelve years ago, I get up and start to walk away.

“Wait,” Fabian calls after me and when I don’t stop, he rushes after me like the pathetic weasel he is. “I don't want to break an agreement that’s been working for decades. I know how much my father respects yours.”

“Do you think I give a shit who you get your supply from? If you want to do your trade with this Prizrak, then you must. You run things your way now. But remember…” I look over his shoulder to where Evelyn is saying her goodbyes to Rhett.

“When he is run out of town, like all the others who came before him, you will have to come back to me and ask me to supply you again… before all those nasty little whores you keep, start finding themselves a new master.” I look down my nose at him, and smirk. I feel sorry for his father. Fabian is his only son and his only option. He will also be the ruin of their family name.

Glaring at my brother, I gesture my head for him to follow me as I make my way down the stairs and toward the exit.

“You really are incapable of a good time, aren’t you?” Rhett says when I burst out the doors into the cool evening air. I need to fucking breathe, I need to steady all the rage that’s pulsing in my veins before they actually explode.

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