Page 14 of Dirty Behavior

He took more lives than the honest hand of death.

And he bathed himself in the glory that power had given him.

That's who he was, he wasn't a father.

Flicking my eyes up at my uncle, I arched a brow and shrugged, letting my head drift back to the window.

“Your old man was a good guy, Dante. It's hard, I understand that, and after everything with Ses—”

Cutting him off, I ground my teeth down hard. “Don't.” My eyes felt like they had suddenly been pierced by hot needles. A pain filled in around the rim, setting my pupils on fire. “You know as well as I do what my father was. And as for that asshole, Sesto, he's dead too as far as I'm concerned.”

Holding up his hands in defense, his head jerked back quick. “I get it, your life sucks, Dante. You've lost all your family, that's not easy for anyone—regardless of who you are. I was just going to say that if you need to get away, you're always more then welcome to come stay with me.”

My uncle wasn't a bad man, but he wasn't a good man either. The suit could attest to that. I mean, who wears pure Al Capone gear to a fucking funeral?

When I said we had a family business, I meant it's a family business. Two states were run from behind the scenes by the Pisani's.

Huffing under my breath, I drew my hand down over my jaw. “Yeah, no thanks.”

“Dante, I don't want to come off as an asshole—”

“So don't and just shut up.”

Wagging his finger at me, Uncle Carlo tilted his head. “I see, I can see it now.” Falling forward, he rested his elbows on his knees, and folded his hands together. “You think you're going to go out there and get the fucker who did this?”

I didn't answer. Keeping my eyes firmly on him, I kept my lips blade thin.

Yes, I am. Of course I am.

What kind of fucking question is that?

Did he expect me to just sit back and forget it ever happened?

Letting out a soft chuckle, he kept talking. Even though I really wanted him to just keep his fucking mouth closed. But he was a Pisani. . . That wasn't going to happen.

“Dante, that's not how it works. You know I want whoever did this just as bad as you, but it doesn't work that way. We need to find outwhobefore we can act. Your father played with fire, we both know that. This is the game, kid.” Leaning back, Carlo rested his arm against the window. “You of all people should know that.”

That would have been something I could understand before Ivy. But this was different. My uncle didn't know the real reason why this happened. He wouldn't understand what I had done, and why. But that didn't make it any easier to swallow.

“Look,” I said, tugging at my lower lip. “I appreciate the advice, but I'll handle things the way I see fit.”

Clucking his tongue against the inside of his lip, my uncle stared right through me. “You sound just like your father.”

“Then you know what I have to do.”

Nodding, his jaw popped out as he looked back at the window. “Just use your head, don't be stupid, Dante. Every cop is going to be watching you like a fucking hawk now that you're back.” From the corner of his eye, he watched me. “I don't know where you disappeared to, but I hope it was worth it.”

“It was. . .” Pausing, I looked down at my hands. “And it still is.”

The limo slowed to a stop, and I was more than happy for the ride to be over. I didn't want to spend any more time talking about what I planned on doing. I knew he was family, but blood or not, I didn't want him involved.

My uncle loved my father, but this was my fight. I could have asked him for help, filled him in on what I knew, and who did this.

But I needed this.

This was my battle, my war, and I was going to be the one to finish it.

If he knew, he'd have people here in less then an hour, and I wouldn't get to have the satisfaction of doing it with my own two hands.

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