Page 383 of Savage Bosses

“I heard Richard,” Bryce’s father said. “I still need to hear from you, Bryce. Are you willing to give me his life if he doesn’t pay?”

Bryce took a deep breath. Was he willing to do the one thing he’d promised Tatianna he’d never do?

“I don’t have all night, son.”

Was he willing to take this man from his wife and two little girls?

“Are you willing to kill him if he doesn’t give you my fucking money?” his dad yelled.

“Yes,” Bryce whispered, heart beating fast.

“Alright. Give him one week. But don’t step a foot out of that town until you have my money or his head.”

“Yes, sir,” Bryce replied.

A click sounded. Then the line went dead.

His cousin, Cas, sighed. “Looks like we’ll be staying in your guest house, Mr. Jensen.”

“But my family,” Richard started.

“We’re staying in the fucking guest house,” Bryce told him.

Richard nodded. “Okay. I’ll… I’ll get it ready for you. I’ll tell my family you’re friends from out of town who are visiting for a week.”

“I don’t give a fuck what you tell them,” Bryceson yelled, angry that it would be a week before he could see his woman again. “Just get it done.”

“Okay. Okay.” As Richard stood and led them to the guest house, Cas approached Bryce.

“You’re too soft,” Cas told him. “You should’ve just cut his pinky off. Then we could’ve gone home.”

“I know,” Bryce whispered, knowing Tatianna would be upset with him for being away for so long.

“It’s alright.” Cas patted his back. “I’ll think of it as a vacation. I need a break from Raz and Rome,” Cas told him, speaking of his brothers, Bryce’s cousins.

Bryce chuckled as he tried to think of something to tell Tati. The text he sent her once they were settled into the guest house was short and simple.

Bryce: Hey, babe. This is going to take longer than two days. I’ll be back in a week. Don’t worry. All is fine.

Tatianna: Be safe. Call me every day when you get time.

Bryce: I will. Don’t work too hard. I love you.

Tatianna: I love you too. BE SAFE.

Bryce stared at those two words.Be safe. His woman never asked for much. She didn’t ask for jewelry or money. She didn’t want him to buy her the latest fashions. All she ever wanted was for him to be safe.Fuck. He had to get away from this life fast. And he would.For her.

Days turned into nights, and the week passed in a blur. Richard Jensen, motivated by both fear and the desire to protect his family, managed to gather the money owed to the Cattaneos. Bryce didn’t know where the businessman got the money from, and neither did he care. He just accepted it when Richard delivered it to him in the guest house.

“All of it’s there. I swear.”

“If it’s not, I’ll be back,” Bryce told him.

Richard shivered but said nothing. Bryce and his team left the Jensen’s estate and began their drive back to Biloxi, Mississippi. Deep down, he knew his decision to give Richard more time would have repercussions. His father wouldn’t let this go. In the unforgiving world they inhabited, acts of mercy were often seen as signs of weakness.

Never let an outsider learn of your weaknesseswas one of his father’s rules. His father would consider Bryce giving Richard an extra week a sign of weakness. For that, his father would insist on punishing him. And Bryceson would accept the punishment like he always did when he refused to kill.

For Bryceson, every day was a struggle to maintain balance. It was a tightrope walk, and he was always tiptoeing between honor and ruthlessness, between family loyalty and the desire to be a better man for Tatianna. Though living this way could be tiresome, he would continue doing so until he found a way out.

---