Page 20 of Dangerous Contract: Part 2

Orazio couldn't help but grin at his brother, admiration and pride surging through him. Rome had outplayed their father.

"Smart move, Rome," Orazio praised. "Thanks, brother."

"Anytime, brother. I couldn’t leave you and Cas in the clutches of a man who clearly doesn’t give a fuck about your safety. He sent you out on a mission without telling you all the details. If you ask me, the wreck is his fault."

Their father's anger simmered beneath the surface, a volcano waiting to erupt. But for now, they held the upper hand. And they had their father to thank for that.

"I should also thank you, Dad," Raz said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "You told me to build my own team over the years so that when it was my turn to take over, I'd have loyal people beside me. Without your advice, I'd be in quite a bind right now."

He eyed Leo, who still had his gun trained on Don Cattaneo. "Leo, keep my father here until I return. Make sure he doesn't cause any trouble. And security..." He gestured toward Rome's men. "Come with us. It's time to find my wife."

And Monique was indeed that,his wife. He didn't need a ceremony to confirm what his heart had already decreed. But he'd give her a ceremony, so she'd never doubt that she was his and he was hers.

The security team nodded to him, ready to follow his orders. Don Cattaneo's face flushed red with fury, his eyes wild like a cornered beast. He tried again to assert his authority.

"I am still the head of this family!" the don yelled.

Orazio dismissed him with a nonchalant wave of his hand. "For now. Step aside, dad." Raz strode forward. His father didn't move. He kept walking until he was face to face, toe to toe with his father.

"Know your place, Orazio," Don Cattaneo growled, his face inches from his son's. "Don't get cocky. This isn't over."

"Isn't it?" Orazio whispered back, a dangerous smile playing on his lips. He could feel his father's hot breath on his skin and smell the stench of betrayal on him. It was intoxicating, a twisted game of power and deceit. A game his father started, but Raz intended to finish. "Move, dad, while I'm still being respectful."

"And if I don't?" his father snarled.

"Then I'll treat you the way you've treated me these past days."

"How have I treated you?"

"Like a stranger."

"That's a damn lie."

"Of course, you'd think that. To you, Monique is no one. She's a weakness that I need to get rid of. But when our family wanted you to leave Mom, you fought for her..."

"And you should learn from my mistakes."

"Monique isn't a mistake. And she's nothing like mom. Come, Rome," he said, no longer wanting to explain the love of a woman to a man who'd never properly loved a woman. "We've got business to attend to."

Behind him, he heard Rome gathering his belongings. Raz continued glaring at his father, who no longer looked like the strong Don Raz had always known him to be. He now looked tired, exhausted, old.

Which pained Raz's heart. But Raz knew if he weakened his stance even a tiny bit, his dad would unleash hell on his life. He couldn't give his father an inch. Not if he wanted to protect Monique.

"Dad, when I get back, we'll talk about what you and uncle have been up to. And me and my brothers will figure out a way to get us out of whatever mess you've gotten us in. And after we're done, you'll step down as the Don of the Cattaneo family."

"I will not," his father whispered.

"You will," Raz said with a sigh. "You have no choice. Don't make this harder than it has to be, dad. And don't do anything else to piss us off. I'm trying my best not to hate you right now. Don't force me to truly treat you like a stranger. You won't like that."

Together, the two brothers strode out of the room, a united front against their father's tyranny as they brushed past him.

"Wait," Don Cattaneo called out after they stepped over the threshold. His voice was low and menacing, but it had an edge of desperation to it. "You'll never be the Don of this family. Not without my approval, which you no longer have."

The brothers halted, and Orazio slowly turned back to face his father.

"To some, I'm already the don," Raz told him.

Don Cattaneo's face twisted with rage, but Orazio didn't flinch. Instead, he let his smile widen, revealing the predator within him, the predator his father raised him to be.

---