Chapter 177

• The leather strap cracked against Alberto's back, the sound echoing through the room. His cries were all that was heard, his pleas for mercy drowned out by the relentless cracking of the belt.
• "You should have taken the throne," Sergio repeated, each word punctuated by another strike. His expression remained impassive, his eyes glinting with cold intensity.
• In rapt silence, the men who had been ordered out of the meeting room and the soldiers watched, witnessing Alberto's public downfall. They all knew Sergio was merely toying with him. An actual fight would've ended in minutes, with Alberto broken and covered in bruises. But instead of using his fists, the Don had chosen to wield his belt as a tool of discipline.