Page 81 of Mob Boss's Second Chance

Iwatched red and orange mix together as smoke rose to the sky. I sat in my car, watching the firefighters try to salvage the remnants of a ruined empire. My eyes burned with intensity, and the world turned black—momentarily—as I sank into my fury until it became one with me.

Anthony did not just take the buildings he burned. He stole my legacy.

Mine.

And I intend to take it back.

“Cousin!” He puts on his treacherous grin as I walk into his apartment, arms wide. I see the men standing around—one by the door, the other by the hallway. There’s more lurking, waiting for the command becauseI knowAnthonyknowswhy I’m here. “It’s been a minute. I didn’t think you’dallow me to play host again.”

My thumb brushes against the gun tucked into my waistband, and the cold metal clears my thoughts as I take a step forward.

It’s the emissary of death. I’m just the messenger.

“Anthony,” I say casually as I sit down, crossing one leg over the other. “What have you done?”

He feigns ignorance, scrunching his brows and tilting his head. “Done? What do you mean? Oh!” He snaps his fingers. “If you’re talking about the new deal I made with the Russians, I assure you it was for the best. You’ll thank me after all this is done, and you’re back at the helm.”

My nostrils flare at the word “thanks.”

Thanks? Gratitude? The bastard.

“Royale. The casino,” I push the facts at him, drawing out my words slowly, letting each syllable sink like a dagger. “You burned them down. Why?”

“You—what are you talking—?”

“Anthony!” I growl, slamming my hand down on the couch. “You fucking traitor. You burned down everything you knew you couldn’t control, didn’t you? Just the same way you plotted with the enemies and broke bread with the prosecution’s office.”

I watch shock spread across the faces of the men standing around us, and I shake my head in disgust. These men—who used to take my every word as law—followed him mindlessly.

They’ll have no use for their eyes when I’m done with Anthony.

“What did you think you would gain from this?” I ask as my voice turns cold with rage. The buried urge rises to the surface, devoid of warmth and deadlier than the gun I concealed. “Control over the Cross empire? Your rightful position?”

His jaw tightens at the last word, and I throw my back, erupting with mocking laughter. “Your fucking birthright?! Do you think anybody would respect or fear you?”

“They already do!” Anthony hisses as his facade falls apart. He stands up, towering over my seated position with his shoulders arched and his chest heaving with barely restrained fury. His eyes burn with defiance, but beneath that, I see something else—desperation.

“They follow you because they’re afraid,” I continue, my voice dropping to something lethal, something that sends a chill through the room. “Fear is a leash, Anthony, but respect? Respect is a chain. And you? You’ve never had enough spine to earn it.”

His fists clench at his sides, his nostrils flaring as he glares at me. He’s unraveling, losing control, and I let him.

“I gave you everything,” he spits. “I stood by you, bled for you even though it was never yours to have!”

“You bled for yourself,” I correct, rising to my feet slowly. The room shrinks around us, and the men around us are mere shadows in the periphery. “You’ve always been a fucking parasite, feeding off the Cross name while pretending you had the stomach to lead.”

Anthony’s breath shudders, his rage threatening to consume him. But I don’t stop.

“You wanted this, didn’t you? You thought you could take what’s mine?” I lean in just enough for my next words to slip through my teeth, each syllable laced with venom. “Then take it, Anthony. But you better pray to whatever god you believe in that you never—” I grip the collar of his shirt and yank him close “—fucking lose.”

The silence that follows is suffocating. The men who once followed him blindly now standfrozen, waiting. Watching.

I was going to take him out there to wrap my fingers around his throat until I could no longer hear his traitorous voice. Until the light of a blood betrayal went out.

But Alucard was right.

Someone else will take him out. With a gun to his head. Dumped like trash in an alleyway. I only have to make the path clear.

Anthony exhales sharply through his nose, his eyes darting between mine. He knows. He’s already lost. And now, I’m going to make sure he never forgets it.

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