Page 104 of His to Have
“How long do you think you can hold your breath? One... two? Maybe three minutes?” I taunted as he squirmed violently attempting to break free. When his body touched the water, the splashing was immediate. He thrashed desperately, trying to keep his head above the surface and the crowd watched in silence. The gravity of the situation sinking in as they each realized the true cost of crossing me.
After about a minute, I said, “Lift him.”
“Damn, you’re a tough one, huh?” I chuckled darkly while he gasped and struggled to catch his breath.
Water dripped from his hair and clothes while the crane held him a few inches from being submerged again. He was so close that his feet could touch the surface.
“Fuck you,” he managed to scream out. “You and your bitch.”
My gesture to release him was barely over before he was being lowered into the water, this time much quicker, dunking him without much notice. Because I still had more to say, I had him quickly raised.
“What was that again?” No words escaped him this time. He was struggling to catch his breath. “That’s what I thought,” I said, my tone cold. “Amore? You have anything to add?”
Ayanna still stood strong, adjusting the simple black frames on her face. “You tried to kill my father. Then you tried to kill me? And for what?”
Her voice was femininely low, but carried the authority and weight of a boss.
“Your arrogance led you here. Not even your greed but your stupidity,” she continued, her gaze unwavering. “You should have been nicer to me. I may have convinced my husband to make your death quick. But...” Her shoulders lifted and her face curled into an unreadable smirk, “you chose the hard way.”
With a nod from me, Orlando was lowered once more, his struggles futile against the inevitable. The crowd remained silent, understanding that betrayal would not be tolerated. Ayanna and I stood side by side, a united front. I left him down there a minute longer than the last time and all of that earlier bravado was gone.
It had set in that he would die painfully slow.
When he was brought back up, I walked down close so he could hear just how foolish he’d been, Just how he chose loyalty to the wrong person. “Betrayal and blind loyalty always come with a price. In your case it was your life.”
It was time to make him truly suffer.
“Let me give you something to think about while the life drains from your body.” I pulled out a sharp curved blade. “You know how I found out about my wife being taken?” I asked casually, like we were having a pleasant conversation. I made three precise puncture wounds on his shoulder blade, his lower rightab, and left thigh. “Wasn’t my men who told me. It was Isabella.”
Orlando’s eyes snapped to mine as he writhed in pain. I also noticed the way Gianni tensed at the mention of his daughter.
“Yeah, that’s right. Your little partner called me directly, trying to cut herself a deal. She knew you weren’t strong enough to takethe south away from me and the Reeds. She used you and your desperate ass wife to get herself blind soldiers. Let that sink in. She played you.”
“I instructed...”
“No you didn’t,” I cut him off. “You didn’t tell her to call and offer your whereabouts with your bitch-ass nephew in exchange for a seat at this table.” I pointed to all of the power players seated here today. “She wanted this Orlando... power. Something she knew your weak ass could never give her because real bosses are born and bred. Not whatever low-level shit y’all been doing since I stripped you of everything years ago.”
I stepped back, watching the blood from the puncture wounds mix with the harbor water dripping from his clothes. Orlando’s breathing was ragged, his eyes wide, wild, and on the verge of popping out of his skull.
“Face it. She sold you out. And you chose to protect her over your own son. Maybe you should’ve delivered her instead of kidnapping and putting your fucking hands on my wife.” I hauled off and punched him in the gut, not being able to help myself. Every time I think about someone touching what’s mine it makes me have a visceral reaction. I shook my head as Orlando’s mouth opened to say something. But not a sound came out, only blood and spit.
I looked around at the crowd one final time, making sure every face understood what they were witnessing. Then I turned back to Orlando and smiled.
“Send him down. And this time...” I paused, meeting Orlando’s terrified eyes one last time. “Leave him.”
The whirring of the crane filled the silence as Orlando dropped toward the dark water for the final time. His struggles were weaker now, the fight finally leaving him as I knew they would. The splash rippledacross the docks, leaving such a chilling feeling in its wake. The water settled, reclaiming its stillness.
The silence was deafening, and my point had been made. Turning toward Gianni, I made my way over and leaned in close, ensuring only he could hear my whispered words. “You and I need to have a discussion.”
Without waiting for him to acknowledge me, or another word, I took Yanna’s hand and left the boat docks.
twenty-seven
Ayanna
“Ineed the jet ready in an hour. Fueled and ready to go.” Teo’s voice was a low whisper as he spoke into his phone, his free hand resting possessively on my thigh. “Yeah. That’s right. Make sure it’s fully stocked.”
I looked at him with my eyebrows raised and mouthed, “We’re going somewhere?”
