Page 103 of Relentless Sinner

Chapter Twenty-Four

Jaxon

I follow my father into his study.

He's back in his wheelchair, maneuvering it ahead of me. I close the door behind us and watch him as he moves toward the long French windows overlooking the lake.

Hours have gone by since the ceremony and night has fallen.

He wanted to see me before he heads off to bed. Honestly, I thought he would have retired well before now. That walk took a lot out of him.

I give him credit for his efforts. He walked to hand me the ring and the position then walked back to his wheelchair as if he didn’t need it. The men cheered for him. One last cheer for the road. Now he looks frail again.

He swivels the chair around to face me and gestures with his chin for me to follow and sit in the chair opposite him.

I do, loosen my tie, then we stare at each other in silence. A silent contemplation of what we're going to say to each other.

I decide to go first. “You walked well today.”

He gives me a half smile and nods. “I needed to. I wanted the men to remember me as a fighter. Not like this.” He motions to the wheelchair.

“I understand. But regardless of your illness or the chair, they still see you as a leader.”

He looks like he appreciates my words. “Perhaps, but I needed to do it for me.

As a memory of how I once was. Everything will change now. Including me. I won't get better. Things will only get worse after this.”

I want to tell him not to be so negative, but he's right. Hewillget worse. He's already getting worse.

“I wanted to talk to you about the plans for the next few weeks. We've already been doing a lot of work together but now that you are Pakhan, we have the final handover. I want to join you at the Bratva and Creed meetings to ensure we maintain certain loyalties.”

“Father, you don't have to be there to ensure that. I already do that by myself.”

“Of course, but some people need that extra push to remind them of the oaths they took. Your grandfather did that for me. I felt I didn’t need him either, but it helped. I want to do the same for you with whatever energy I have left in me.”

I understand, so I decide to oblige him and nod. “Alright. We’ll do that.”

“I'm hoping we can do everything we need to within a month. The bulk of the work is with the company. Then it’s all up to you how you go on from there.”

I’m glad he said that because I have a controversial idea he won’t like. “I hope that means I’ll be able to finalize the leadership structure.”

His jaw stiffens and that defensive look fills his eyes. “I had hoped we’d wait until our investigation was complete beforedoing so. We don’t yet know if Levka, Magnus, or Yuri were involved with Damian’s plot.”

I don’t know why the fuck he thinks he should give these people any chances just because they’re his family. “I agree to waiting, but I think it’s reasonable to assume that they’re all in on it together.”

He doesn’t like me saying that but knows I’m right. “Alright. You do that. I guess this is where I must step back and let you run things the way you see fit. One thing I’ll ask is that you wait for more evidence before you strike.”

I grit my teeth. “Why? We have evidence.”

“Damian is my brother. I know him. He'll find a way to get out of the situation with lies and will even find evidence to counter what we have. Better to watch them all for a little longer and catch them in the act.” He pauses for a moment. “Now that you're Pakhan they will either stop what they're doing to get in your good graces and secure their positions, or they'll still try to take it from you.”

He means they can still try to kill me.

“Okay, I’ll wait a little longer.” It may do no harm, especially when I’m watching their every move. “But not too long.”

“Not too long. I guess by the time you finalize your subordinates, you’ll know more.”

That means I have eight weeks starting from today. “Just so we’re clear, regardless of what the investigation shows, I won’t be choosing Levka or Yuri to be part of my elite. I need people I trust. It’s enough that I believe they’re all working together. Even if I’m wrong I still need people I can rely on.”

---