“No,” I shook my head. “The Shadows and I have a separate agreement. Instead, we’re more like business partners.”
“Business partners,” he intoned. “For what exactly?”
“We’re creating an empire, which is why, effective immediately, I will take over my father’s business portfolio. Agree to hand it over to me, and you’ll leave here with your life. After that, Makarov and I will come to an agreement to end your war.”
Max scoffed as he looked between the three of us. “You can’t be serious. Business partners? What the fuck does that mean? The Shadows are agents for hire. They don’t take sides. The underworld is never going to stand for this. ”
Obi looked down at me as a smile quirked up his mouth. “I would say that’s not really your problem, now is it, Volpe?”
He straightened his suit. “That’s never going to happen, Leona. I didn’t know jilted, one-sided love could make a person so delusional.”
My hand slipped into the front of my jacket to curl around the brass knuckles. I hadn’t been prepared for the way every word out of his fucking mouth would cut me like a thousand little needles, grating on my patience.
“You act like you’re so fucking great, Max, when you’re just letting whatever my father did persist. You’re weak. You’ve done nothing but drive the Family into the ground since you took over. Trafficking? Awar?” His face tinted red with anger, but I kept going. “You’re a disgrace. You need to back away, give up, and I’ll let you live.”
He scowled. “You have no fucking clue what I’m doing. What I’m trying to do for this Family.”
Beside him, Elio moved to draw a weapon, but instantly, a knife appeared in Obi’s hand, and everyone paused.
“I’ll give you one last chance, Max. You drew first blood when you killed my father and went after me and Cas.” I sat up straight and leaned forward. “But now there’s blood in the water, and you’re about to learn that I’m the fucking shark. Step down. Hand everything over to me. This can be simple.”
Max laughed. “You really think I’m just going to roll over? Absolutely not. I’ve fought way too fucking hard to get here. I’m not giving up simply because you found other men to warm your bed. Speaking of which, where’s Cas? How’s his knee?”
I froze. Rage flared through me, my entire body going hot, vision going red.
Howdarehe? Howdarehe talk about Cas?
I couldn’t hold myself back anymore. My patience snapped.
Before he even had a second to blink, I whipped my hand from my pocket and punched him right in the jaw. His head snapped back, and he collapsed to the floor.
Chaos broke loose.Fuck.That wasn’t exactly part of the plan.
Club patrons shouted as weapons appeared all over the club, but I fell on Max, using every single move Wynn taught me to unleash my fury on him. He’d done far too fucking much to sit there and run his mouth, especially about Cas.
I punched down again, landing another shot on his ribs, but arms looped around my back and tried to yank me off him. More Italians appeared from thin air, engaged with Ryuji and Wynn. I barely registered Konstantin and Obi grappling with Elio while Elio pulled his gun. But I was entirely focused on Max, who was too damn fast.
Using the strength of his legs, he rolled me before I could get a block on him, and pain exploded across my cheek. My head spun, and stars danced across my eyes. As if by luck alone, I got a solid kick right to his balls, and he fell back with a shout. But the reprieve was only momentary. A punch to the stomach had my breath whooshing out of my lungs. I couldn’t let him get the upper hand. He was too strong. When he tried to roll us and get his hands around my neck, I slashed across his face with my nails, leaving four trails of blood behind.
“Fuck you, Max,” I gritted out as I finally got a good angle on my boot. I yanked one of my knives out and drove it into his thigh.
He yelled in pain as he pushed me off.
Elio shouted again for more Italian backup, likely through his own radio, but no one answered. At least that went according to plan.
A gunshot boomed through the club, causing us all to freeze in place. I waited for blinding pain, but nothing came. Instead, Elio’s lifeless body crumbled to the floor right in front of me, his gun clattering across the floor.
We all went as still as the grave.
“What?” Makarov said as he looked at all our expressions, literal smoking gun still in hand.
Ryuji and Wynn were supposed to get all the club patrons out as soon as possible in case bullets started flying, and when I looked up to take a breath, almost the whole club was empty. Thank God.
Max scrambled to his feet with blood trickling from where my knife still lodged in his thigh. I cursed inwardly as I realized the blade was too far on the outside of his thigh to do any mortal damage.
His eyes flickered to the door while he wiped blood from his nose. “I have dozens of soldiers outside. I suggest you run.”
As if on cue, the door opened, but instead of Italians, a tall, brown-haired woman wearing a sparkling starburst necklace sauntered inside. Her three men and Colin followed in right behind her.
