Page 18 of Legacy

“You shamed the Xenos name, and that requires restitution. Decide who administers your punishment. Leonos or me?”

My head lieutenant and I used different methods for discipline. It would hurt either way.

A beating was a small penance for Marcos, considering who I was. Our world worked based on power and reputation. I wielded a considerable amount, and allowing Marcos to live wasn’t something I did.

“You,” Marcos said, his voice sure and eyes direct.

Thirty minutes later, I walked down the halls of the facility to my car, tired and wondering if I was too hard on Marcos. Logically, I knew I hadn’t been. I’d lose control of the territory by giving him too much mercy.

But then I thought again about how I might react if I were in Marcos’s place. I definitely wouldn’t give anyone like Anna a second chance. Her death would come fast and clean, and I’d make it clear never to mess with my children or the memory of my wife.

Fuck. What was wrong with me? All this wife and child shit was ridiculous.

I needed a shower and a stiff drink.

Running a frustrated hand through my hair, I stalked to my car and opened the door. I barely sat inside when a series of texts appeared on my phone.

“What now?” I muttered to myself.

I unlocked the screen to read the messages.

Ozias: Get to the estate. We have a crisis.

Ozias: Stop ignoring me. When I send a message, I expect an immediate response.

Ozias: It is life and death.

Of course, it was. Everything from a broken chair to an actual stabbing was life and death.

Eli: On my way.

It was better to keep it simple than to engage in a back-and-forth with no functional outcome.

I looked down at myself. Blood splatters covered my shirt, my knuckles stung from the activities with Marcos, and sweat drenched my body.

Exhausted, annoyed, and aggravated were too mild of words for how I felt. However, none of it mattered. I’d play the dutiful son for now, then it would all crumble at Ozias’s feet.

When I arrived at the estate my father had stolen for his own, I thought of Avra, wondering how she had felt when she saw the house after fifteen years. I knew how I’d feel.

Pissed as fucking hell. The renovations alone would have enraged me.

I opposed it, preferring the traditional structure and its centuries-old history. However, Ozias wanted to erase as much of Juno Vitalis as possible, so he’d added his own touch to things.

If only a call hadn’t delayed me, I would have loved to have seen her initial meeting with Ozias. I could imagine the fire in Avra’s eyes and the hate burning there when she locked gazes with him. Luckily, I’d arrived on time to see everything afterward.

Her calm and collected manner made it seem as if she was unapproachable and remote. But she was far from it. I couldn’t wait to put cracks in that barrier around her.

Fuck.I ground my teeth as I strode through the house. I had to stop thinking about her. We barely knew each other.

Why the hell were my thoughts constantly going to her?

When I reached my father’s office, I found him pacing and muttering. He shook his head right before he gripped the back of his neck tightly. The redness on his face and puffy eyes made it appear like he’d cried.

That was impossible. No matter how mad or upset he became, I’d never seen him cry.

The man was a selfish, arrogant bastard, and seeing him so unhappy and upset was disconcerting.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

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