Chapter 134

• I gave him a nod of apology. "I'm sorry, padre. But it's true. You know the kind of man Mario is. You know what he did. You're not stupid. And yet, you let him get away with whatever the fuck he wants to." I held his eyes with mine. "You always have. You've created a monster. And now it needs to get put down to protect the rest of us."
• Pure fury held him stiff as he stared me down. I wasn't afraid, although maybe I should've been. "You have no idea what you're talking about. Your brother has done nothing but act on orders, MY orders, all these years. He's a good boy. Loyal. And he never questions me the way you do."
• Ah. So that's what this was all about. I shook my head as the truth slowly dawned on me. "You want him to take your place so you can still rule the family through him. Because Mario would lick the piss off your balls if you told him to." It all made sense now. Again, I faced the men in the room. "You heard what my father said. This isn't right. Our family is better than this. Mario is a rat. And we have a code of honor to uphold. You all know what needs to be done. We were lucky the last time. Mario's goal was only to fuck with me. To bring me down a peg or two. But what if it's you next time? What if it's your son or your daughter he decides needs to be taken out? If he becomes the boss of this family, what will you be able to do?" I paused to let that sink in. "I'm not doing this to try to worm my way into my father's position. If any of you think someone else would be a better boss for this family, then that's fine. I would be more than happy to step aside, give them my loyalty, and continue on as the Underboss."