Page 106 of Hell and High Water

19

MARCO

“Mr. Vice, he’s here.”

It’s been a long road to this point in my life.

A life I hacked out from blood and sweat, dragging myself up out of the gutter to take what I wanted. What was owed to me.

Sacrifices stacked on sacrifices. Bodies paving the road I’ve traveled to get where I am today.

The blood on my hands is for nothing if I do not succeed. And I will.

I deal in power.

It’s the law of the world, the universe. It can’t be snuffed out, only taken, shifted. Traded.

Collected. I’ve collected a lot.

“Take us in, then.” I wave to my driver, closing my eyes to focus for a time.

I need the silence to calm my nerves, to ease the discomfort in my gut.

Because I hate the way things went. The way I left things.

Unfinished.

It settles in my gut like a stone, and I need to purge it, no matter how painful.

We pulled back. Got ready.

I took my time. I had patience, for a change.

Everything's in place. Every aspect of my plan is set to perfection. A plan that will get me to an echelon of power that I only ever dreamed of. Almost limitless.

However, there are loose ends to tie up.

Two in particular that I was hoping to finalize before we headed back up the coast to take my prize. Two potential thorns in my side.

Or assets, if I can play my cards right.

Waiting, patience, has always been my biggest weakness. I want what I want, when I want it.

But this will be worth it. Sanctum Harbor and the treasures it hides are worth waiting a lifetime for.

Another car sits at the far door to the warehouse.

This place is a stone’s throw from where I holed up after we fled Sanctum Harbor after the unfortunate events of that nonsense at the Ball. We should have taken the town then, but I had to be sure my victory was certain.

Xavier Clive and Oliver Devonde could each offer me far too much resistance. And I had to know if one of them was gunning for me.

So I reached out. Waited for them to come to me.

Of course, the snake came.

The wolf, on the other hand…

In the meantime, I secured myself a small estate, a guarded mansion a few hours south of the city to turn into my base of operations. The pissant movie producer who lived there was eager to let me stay once I offered him a chance to live if he let me have it.

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