Page 65 of Dangerous Seduction

The callous disregard in his tone made my stomach churn. I knew my father was nothing but a ruthless monster who placed no value on innocent lives, all in the name of protecting his precious empire, but to go against his own blood.

“You son of a bitch,” I growled, taking a menacing step forward. “You set me up as bait to draw them in, knowing full well people would die.”

Ricardo’s smile widened, cold and predatory. “Of course I did, mijo. This is war, and in war, there are always casualties.” He spread his hands in a mock gesture. “Sacrifices must be made for the greater good of our organization.”

“Sacrifices?” I spat the word like a curse, my hands balling into fists. “You mean cold-blooded murder.”

He waved a dismissive hand, that maddening smirk never wavering. “Call it what you will. The fact remains that your little DEA girlfriend and her partner made the mistake of crossing me.”

Something in me snapped, the last thread of respect I’d harbored for the man who had sired me fraying and unraveling. I lunged forward, slamming my palms down on his desk with enough force to make the heavy oak shudder.

“You lying, manipulative bastard,” I snarled, leaning across the expanse of polished wood until our faces were mere inches apart. “You used me as a pawn in your twisted game. Put me in the crosshairs without a second thought.”

Ricardo met my gaze unflinchingly, his cold, dead eyes betraying not a shred of remorse. “I did what was necessary to protect our interests, our legacy. If a few expendable pawns had to be sacrificed along the way, so be it.” His lips curled into a sneer. “Don’t try to act so high and mighty, Dante. You’re cut from the same ruthless cloth as the rest of us. It’s in your blood.”

I recoiled as if he’d struck me, his words hitting me like a physical blow. Was he right? Had the poison of this life, this brutal existence, corrupted me so thoroughly that I was no better than him—a soulless monster concerned only with power and self-preservation?

No. I refused to believe that. Not after everything I’d seen, everything Natalia had shown me about honor and justice and doing the right thing, no matter the cost.

“You’re wrong,” I rasped. “I’m not like you, old man. Not anymore.”

He leaned back in his chair, steepling his fingers again as he studied me with cold calculation. “I must say, I’m surprised seeing you jeopardize everything we stand for, all for a piece of ass with a badge.”

White-hot fury lanced through me at his dismissive words, his utter disregard for the woman who had shown me there was more to life than this twisted world of violence and depravity.

“Watch your fucking mouth,” I snarled, my body coiled tight with barely contained rage. “Natalia is worth more than you could ever comprehend, you soulless prick.”

A cruel smile twisted Ricardo’s thin lips. “Such passion,” he mocked. “Tell me, does she know what you’re capable of? The atrocities you’ve committed in service of this ‘twisted world’?” He tisked again, his eyes glittering with malicious glee. “I’d be careful if I were you, mijo. Wouldn’t want your little girlfriend to see the real Dante Reyes, now would we?”

I clenched my fists, my nails biting into my palms as I fought to maintain my composure despite my father’s taunts. “You don’t know a damn thing about Natalia,” I ground out. “She’s more special than you could ever imagine, old man. Stronger than both of us.”

A cruel chuckle rumbled from deep within his chest, the sound grating on my frayed nerves. “We’ll see about that, won’t we?” He leaned forward, his eyes glittering with malice. “I’m going to enjoy watching her break.”

White-hot rage surged at the implied threat, boiling my blood. I saw red, focused on a primal urge—to wipe that smug grin off my father’s face with my bare hands.

In a blur of motion, I lunged across the desk, my fingers closing around the starched collar of his shirt as I hauled him bodily out of his chair. Ricardo’s eyes went wide with shock and fear as I slammed him against the wall, the heavy thud reverberating through the room like a gunshot.

“You listen to me, you twisted piece of shit,” I snarled, my face mere inches from his. “If you so much as breathe in Natalia’s direction, I’ll put you in the ground myself. Do you hear me?”

For the first time in my life, I saw a flicker of genuine fear in my father’s eyes. Gone was the cocky bravado, the unshakable confidence that had allowed him to commit atrocity after atrocity without a shred of remorse. At that moment, he was just a sad, pathetic old man staring down the barrel of his mortality.

“You wouldn’t dare,” he rasped, his voice thin and reedy. “I’m your father, your blood.”

A bitter laugh tore from my throat, harsh and mocking. “Blood? Is that what you think binds us together, old man? All I see when I look at you is a twisted, soulless monster who would sell his offspring to the devil if it meant clinging to his precious power for a little while longer.”

Ricardo opened his mouth to spew more of his venomous rhetoric, but I cut him off with a vicious shake that snapped his head back against the wall.

“Not another word,” I growled. “From this moment on, you and I are done. This whole bloody empire you’ve built on a foundation of lies and corpses—it’s over. I’m going to burn it all to the ground, and there’s nothing you can do to stop me.”

His eyes widened, the tendons in his scrawny neck straining as he fought for breath. “You ungrateful whelp,” he choked out. “After everything I’ve done for you, for this family-“

“This isn’t a family!” I roared, giving him another vicious shake. “It’s a goddamn crime syndicate, a blight on the face of humanity! And I will be the one to put it in its grave once and for all.”

With a snarl of disgust, I released my grip, letting the withered husk of the man who had once struck fear into the hearts of entire cartels crumple to the floor in an undignified heap. My father coughed and sputtered, his bloodshot eyes swimming with rage as he glared up at me.

“Mark my words, boy,” he gasped, his voice a rasping croak. “You turn your back on everything we’ve built, and there will be consequences. Dire ones. I’m coming after you.”

I met his gaze without flinching, my jaw set in a hard line. “I’m counting on it.”

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