“MISTER… MAY I EAT WITH YOU?” MY HOUSEKEEPER’S FOUR-YEAR-OLD ASKED TO SIT IN MY DEAD DAUGHTER’S CHAIR—THEN HER FATHER’S PENDANT EXPOSED THE MAN WHO HAD BEEN BESIDE ME FOR TEN YEARS

The foyer of the Romano estate was a war zone. Smoke hung thick in the air, illuminated by the flashing strobe lights of the emergency security system. Bullet casings littered the pristine white marble like brass confetti.

Dante and Silas were pinned behind the overturned grand piano, returning fire against a dozen of Julian’s men who were using the front pillars for cover.

I emerged from the lower levels like a ghost. I flanked Julian’s men from the eastern corridor. They didn't see me coming until it was too late. I moved with lethal precision, dropping three men with calculated shots before they even realized they were being attacked from behind.

The tide turned instantly. With their flank exposed, Julian’s men panicked. Dante and Silas pushed forward, routing the remaining traitors out the shattered front doors.

“Where is he?” I roared over the dying gunfire. “Where is Julian?”

“He retreated toward the greenhouse, Boss!” Silas yelled, clutching a bleeding arm.

“Secure the house. No one follows me,” I commanded, ejecting my spent magazine and slamming a fresh one home.

The glass greenhouse was a sprawling, tropical labyrinth my wife had built. It was pitch black inside, the rain drumming violently against the glass panes above. I stepped through the shattered doorway, the heavy scent of orchids and damp earth filling my lungs.

“Julian!” my voice boomed in the darkness. “There is nowhere left to run! Your men are dead or dying. The families will know of your betrayal by dawn!”

A gunshot rang out. The bullet clipped the fleshy part of my shoulder. I grunted, dropping behind a massive stone planter.

“The families only respect the man left standing, Leo!” Julian’s voice echoed from the far end of the greenhouse. “You’re a dinosaur! You think you can protect that housekeeper and her brat forever? Once I kill you, I’ll finish the job I started two years ago. I’ll wipe the Bennett bloodline off the earth just like I wiped yours!”

The mention of my family, of Sophie and Maya, triggered a rage so profound, so absolute, that my pain vanished entirely.

I didn't shoot back. I holstered my weapon. I wanted to feel him break.

I moved silently through the dense foliage, tracking the sound of his ragged breathing. Julian was reloading. I lunged.

I tackled him through a wall of exotic ferns, sending us both crashing onto the brick pathway. His gun skittered away into the dirt. Julian roared, throwing a brutal punch that connected with my jaw. I tasted blood, but I didn't stop.

I grabbed him by the lapels of his ruined suit and slammed his head into the brick floor. He dazed, trying to push me off, but I was fueled by two years of compounded grief and hatred. I struck him across the face, shattering his nose.

“This is for Elena!” I roared, striking him again.

“This is for Sophia!” My fist came down like a hammer.

Julian choked on his own blood, desperately grasping at my throat, but he was a businessman who played at being a soldier. I was the monster in the dark. I pinned his arms beneath my knees, wrapping my hands around his throat.

“Leo… please…” Julian gasped, his eyes bulging as the air was cut off. “Brother…”

“You are not my brother,” I whispered, squeezing tighter. “You are a parasite.”

I watched the life begin to fade from his eyes. I wanted to snap his neck. I wanted to squeeze until his head separated from his shoulders. But then, an image flashed in my mind.

A four-year-old girl in a pale blue dress, pushing a pea across her plate.

If I killed Julian with my bare hands like an animal, I would never be able to look at Sophie without seeing the blood on my skin. I would become exactly what Julian was.

With a guttural yell, I released his throat. Julian gasped violently, coughing and wheezing on the ground, completely broken.

I stood up, breathing heavily, looking down at the ruin of my former best friend.

“Dante!” I yelled into my radio.

Within moments, flashlight beams cut through the darkness of the greenhouse. Dante and three loyal men rushed in, aiming their weapons at Julian.

“Don't kill him,” I ordered coldly. “Take him to the basement. Call the heads of the Five Families. We hold a tribunal tomorrow. They need to hear his confession. Then… feed him to the dogs.”