Page 77 of Corrupted Empire

Alexis grabs a wipe from the kit and starts to swab at the slash on my chest. It’s not deep, but it stings like a motherfucker when the disinfectant hits it. I hiss in pain.

“Should it upset me?” Alexis asks, eyes trained on the task at hand.

“It would have before.”

Before what, though? When did Alexis first become desensitized to the realities of mob life? Was it when she was kidnapped? When the Irish hit man tried to kill her? Or maybe even before all of that?

Alexis glances up at me briefly. “Let me make this clear—I don’t like this. It worries me when you don’t come home, and it would worry me a lot more to see you come home covered in blood if I didn’t know that the alternative was so much worse. But I am a part of this now, and if I’m going to be a part of this, I need to toughen up.”

She finishes wiping the wound and quickly presses a bandage to it before it starts to well with blood again.

“Do you resent that?” I ask. “Do you resent that the only way for us to be a family is for you to descend into the underworld to join me?”

“How much blood have you lost?” Alexis jokes. “You’re getting awfully deep.”

I grab her chin and lift it to face me. I look deep into her blue eyes, my own expression deadly serious. “Answer me, Alexis.”

I think she might hesitate, but she doesn’t.

“No, I don’t resent it,” she says. “I thought I would, but I don’t. I never wanted this life, but I’m not ashamed of it. Your world exists in a dozen different shades of gray, but there’s good in it too. We’re the only people who can fight back against the Cartel and push purple heroin off the streets for good. Our charities help more people than I could have ever reached through other means.” She licks her lips. “And if you want me to be really honest, I find it all to be quite thrilling. I know I should be scared after everything I’ve seen, but I’m not.”

I smile and release her chin. She grabs another wipe and starts dabbing at the cut on my cheek.

“Good,” I say.

“Good,” she repeats.

I reach out and press a hand against her belly. “You know I will always keep our family safe, right?”

She rests her hand over mine. “I know. I trust you.”

Her words hang in the air between us, their sincerity surprising me.

I clear my throat, pulling my hand back. “So, what are you hoping for?” I ask. “Boy or girl?”

“I will be happy with a healthy baby,” she says. “Though it might be nice to have another girl around.”

“And what would you name the little princess?”

Alexis chuckles. “I don’t know. I think you should get to choose the name this time, since I named our firstborn after my father, who was secretly a sadistic criminal.”

I chuckle. “I’ve always liked the name Serena,” I admit. “It was my grandmother’s name.”

Alexis’ eyes meet mine, and she smiles. “I like that.”

A brisk knock on the door interrupts the moment, and then Antonio bursts into the room. His expression is like a brick wall.

“Sir, I’m sorry, but I have important business to discuss,” he says.

Alexis gathers up the bloody wipes and garbage from the desk, preparing to leave.

“Whatever you want to say, you can say it in front of Alexis,” I reply. “What happened?”

Antonio clears his throat. “Silvano’s crew was ambushed,” he says. “He’s downstairs. The doctor is on his way, but I don’t know if Silvano will make it until then.”

I shoot to my feet. “Show me.”

The three of us dash out of the office.

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