Page 97 of Emperor of Wrath

We ride in silence as the car winds from the airport through old Kyoto to the mansion I’ve recently taken over.

Until recently, it belonged to the man that I thought had killed my father.

This city has been my home since I was eighteen and came to Japan to discover the Yakuza side of me. Everyone knew who I was—the gaijin that Sota had taken in like a stray. But they didn’t know who I was. That I was heir to the Mori throne, I mean.

That’s how I was able to infiltrate the Ito-kai: a rival Yakuza family led by Orochi Ito and his shit-bag nephew, Takato. Both “men”—I use the word loosely—completely without honor.

When my father tried to leave the world of the Yakuza, it was Orochi who turned on him and made moves to take over my father’s empire before he’d even left. It ended in the car crash that killed Hideo’s wife—Fumi’s mother. I thought the crash had killed Hideo, as well.

Sota alone knew I was Hideo Mori’s son. Meanwhile, Orochi was a stupid, vain man. So when I told him I was “tired of Sota’s leadership” and “looking for a stronger, more powerful oyabun”, the fool bought it hook, line, and sinker and welcomed me to his inner circle.

I spent a year “undercover” in the Ito-kai before the night I cut them off at the knees. Though it was Fumi who ended up dealing the final blow that ended their empire.

Since then, I’ve stepped out of the shadows. I’m still fiercely loyal to Sota, and I always will be. But after that night, the Yakuza world learned that the Mori-kai was on the way back to its former glory.

I took what I wanted from the wreckage of Orochi’s organization: his warehouses, his connections, his politicians, his businesses.

I also took his fucking house.

I turn and watch with smug satisfaction as Annika realizes the stunning home sitting high on the cliffs overlooking Lake Biwa on the outskirts of Kyoto is our destination.

“This is where you live?” she whispers, her brows arching.

The mansion is a mix of contemporary and old-world Japan—soaring balconies, distinctly Japanese kirizuma gabled roofs, lush gardens. But it’s also got walls of contemporary glass windows and all the modern luxuries.

It’s also a fucking fortress.

High walls with electrified fencing at the top surround the grounds, which are patrolled by some of my most elite, highly trained guards. The front gate could hold off an army, and cameras cover almost every square inch of the place. Yet you’d never know most of these security measures and fortifications were in place unless you were looking for them. A person never feels like they’re living in a prison while they’re here.

I fucking love the place. So do my siblings, which is why they live here, too.

God knows it’s big enough.

I allow the smug feeling at Annika’s shocked expression to simmer inside me as I shrug.

“Do you like it?”

She tips her head, not looking at me. “It’s…fine, I guess.”

I roll my eyes.

The guards wave us through the front gates and onto the grounds. The driveway curves up from the lakeside road, winding through gardens, past staggered koi ponds, and under huge Japanese red maples until we get to the house itself.

I step out and smile.

Fuck, it’s good to be home.

Hana is exhausted from the trip, and after giving Annika a hug and me a perfunctory nod, she heads off to the wing of the house she’s sort of claimed as hers. Mal heads to one of the out-buildings on the property that he’s adopted, and Takeshi grunts something about “seeing if the ladies missed him” before he saunters off to the huge garage that houses the car collection I “inherited” from Orochi, as well as a bunch of motorcycles.

Those would be Takeshi’s “ladies”.

An apartment over the garage is where he lives when he’s here, because of course it is.

Sota’s already back at his home in Minami Ward in central Kyoto. So after my siblings take off, it’s just Annika and I standing by the front doors.

She glances my way. Go figure, she hasn’t been able to meet my eyes fully since I made her orgasm four times on the plane.

“What, you don’t have servants or whatever to show us to our rooms?”

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