Page 39 of The Viper

I place the spoon in the coffee and stir it once, before resting it on the saucer. “I’ve been thinking about something,” I start. I look up at Ruben and can see he’s already losing patience with me. “Why did you change the brothels from what they were to what they are now?”

“Are you questioning my methods?” Ruben’s voice darkens. His eyes narrow and his jaw tightens.

I have to be careful in my choice of words, because even though he’s my uncle he’s still the Don. “I can easily see that the direction you’ve taken the brothels is much more profitable than the way others conduct their businesses. Besides, I’ve been doing the books for the last eleven years since I turned eighteen, and all I see is it’s increasing. I’m trying to figure out why others don’t follow your path.”

“Huh,” Ruben scoffs as he sits back in the seat and stares at me. Steepling his hands together, he taps his fingers to his lips. “The way brothels were run weren’t making us as much money as the way I run them now.”

That’s still not answering my question, but who am I to challenge the Don on giving me a more in-depth answer? “Okay,” I say as I look to my coffee, accepting his non-answer answer.

“I may be the Don, and I may be a man, but I abhor violence toward women.” I’ve known this for a long time, but again it’s not answering my question. I decide to leave it alone because he’s still not telling me anything I don’t already know. “Women are to be cherished like a queen outside of the bedroom, and treated like a high-class whore between the sheets.”

“But she’s still a whore,” I say.

“She’s a whore for the man who leads her. She only offers that to someone who’s man enough to accept the responsibility. Her body is his honor, not the other way around.”

The words resonate with me, especially considering what Adrian said last night. That still deeply bothers me, and I’m not sure what I’m going to do yet. My alliance is to my brother, my uncle and the Don. “One of the nightclub’s expenses and income hasn’t been adding up. Adrian and I were there to see where the discrepancy is, and Adrian was going to take care of it.”

“He hasn’t told me about it.”

“He hasn’t?” the words leave my mouth quicker than they should’ve. “I was going to let you know, but the fire kind of...” I lift my hand and slightly twist it near my head. “My apologies, Uncle Ruben I was distracted.”

“Rose is lovely,” he says in a softer tone.

“She is.” I feel my lips tugging into a smile.

“She’s yours.” I take in a sharp breath and slightly tilt my head to the side. “I see.” Ruben chuckles before he sips on his coffee. “She’s not yours.”

“She’s stubborn.”

“She’s not part of this world, so she needs to be taught.”

“Rosa is...” I look out the window behind Ruben as I think about the best way to describe her. “Spirited.”

Ruben barks a loud laugh. “Dominic, all I can say is, good luck.”

“I think I need more than luck.”

“Women like your Rose shouldn’t be broken. She should be nurtured to understand that in this world, we can only rule with them by our side.”

“You don’t have a wife, Uncle. How do you do it?”

“I have no wife but I have many...” He smirks and waves his hand to the side.

“Friends with benefits. Goomahs. La padrona. La puttana.”

Ruben laughs louder. “All of the above. None of the above.” He shrugs. “They scratch an itch.”

“Can I ask another question?”

“I have a feeling it doesn’t matter what my answer is, you’ll ask it anyway.”

“Nephew to uncle,” I say in an attempt to distinguish our roles.

He sits back and nods once. “Nephew to uncle.” Ruben lifts his coffee and takes a sip.

“Why didn’t you take a wife?”

The corner of his lips turn up and he stares at one of the two screens. A flash of something crosses his eyes while I suspect he’s reflecting or considering a thought. He lifts his eyes and intakes a breath. “No woman has ever caught my attention long enough to deserve my mother’s ring.” Not what I was expecting. “Do you have plans on fully claiming Rose?”

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