Page 50 of Boardwalk Queen

What a fool?

They were all so misguided.

The twins had relied on my advice and parenting for more than half of their lives. And the bastard brother was always trying to win my favor. Nicodemus would have done anything to make me like him. But when it came to the girl, they wouldn’t budge.

We drove for twenty more minutes before Stefan parked at the edge of the woods. It was pitch black out in the wilderness, the moon hidden by the trees.

“Where are we?” Ava whispered, her voice shaking.

I ignored her question and got out of the SUV. Angelo grabbed a shovel from the trunk, slinging it over his shoulder like a baseball bat. Ava stood frozen between us, her lips parted.

“What the fuck is going on?”

Nico laid his hand on her shoulder. “Remember when you asked if you’ll ever have to help me dig a grave?”

“Yes,” she croaked.

Nico tapped his fingers on her back. “Well, today is the day.”

Her eyes widened as she looked up at him. “You can’t be serious.”

“Dead serious,” Angelo added. “Now, let’s go. Time to work.”

Ava wrapped her arms around herself, unable to hide how much she trembled as we walked into the woods. I let my brothers do shit their way for a while.

My dad wanted me to get closer to Ava to make her feel more welcome and part of our family. But letting her shadow me at the casino was about as close as we would get.

Ava whimpered whenever an owl hooted, or a branch snapped beneath an animal’s weight. Angelo put his hand on her back and guided her forward. She kept asking questions, none of which we answered.

About ten minutes into our walk, we stopped by one of many gravesites. You wouldn’t know it by looking at the wooded area. But this was one of many places we buried bodies.

I gripped Ava’s arm and curled her fingers around the shovel’s handle. “Start digging.”

Her entire body shook, causing her teeth to chatter. “No, I don’t want to do this.”

“You don’t have a choice.” I pointed at the ground in front of her. “Dig.”

We reserved this type of punishment for our worst enemies. Our tradition was to make them dig their own grave. If we had to waste our time covering their bodies with dirt, digging the hole was the least they could do before leaving this world.

“Why aren’t any of you helping me?” Her gaze shifted between us. “Why are you all standing there, staring at me?”

“Get to work.” I stuffed my hands into my pockets and nodded at the ground. “The longer it takes, the angrier I will get.”

Ava groaned as the shovel cracked the dirt. She had her back to us and sniffled, wiping at her face. Crying was not going to get her out of this situation. That shit didn’t work on me, anyway.

I’d watched grown men drown in tears, begging for their lives. When I made up my mind, the decision was final. My father said I was a born leader because I could do the hard shit. I had no problem sentencing a man to death.

I had no conscience.

No remorse.

“Nico, help me,” Ava muttered, glancing over at him. “Please.”

He shook his head. “No can do. It’s time to spread your wings, little sparrow.”

She breathed harder, her hand flying to her chest. I couldn’t tell if she was panicking or having another asthma attack. “But I need help.” Looking at the twins, she sniffed back more tears. “Why are you making me do this?”

“No more talking,” I warned. “Or I’ll cover your mouth with my tie.”

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