Page 63 of Giovanni the Savage

He flinches slightly before exploding another round of laughter.

“Did I hit a nerve, brother?” he taunts.

“What are you doing here, Rocco?” I go straight to the point.

His presence is making me boil with anger, and it’s taking every ounce of effort to keep from lunging at him and duplicating the scar on his face.

He shrugs. “Nothing much.” He brings out a pocket flask and takes a swig. “Just here to take back what’s mine.”

This time, it’s my turn to laugh. He stares at me blankly while I laugh sadistically.

“And what’s that?”

“Don’t act clueless, Giovanni.”

“It’s Don to you!” I shoot, slamming my fist on the table again.

“Well, it should have been the other way around,” he cries.

I raise my brow questioningly.

“It should have been me behind that desk, me as the CEO, and me as the fucking Don.”

“But it’s not!” I bellow. “So, get over it.”

He laughs manically. “You think it’s that easy?”

“You tell me.” I fold my arms. “You think it’s easy to run the mob for years and have some criminal come to take it from you?”

“I’m a free man!” he yells.

“Free on parole!” I shoot back. “You’ll probably be back in there in a few months if you’re not careful.”

“This is all your fault,” he says calmly, taking another swig from his bottle.

One look at him, and I can tell he’s drunk, from his red-rimmed eyes to his haggard appearance.

“You really think Dad would want a drunkard to take after him?” I taunt.

“Don’t you dare bring my father up!” He rises angrily.

“Did I hit a nerve?” I smirk, throwing his words back at him.

He’s staring at me, and his eyes mirror my anger.

“Where were you when Father died?” I ask, watching him closely.

“What are you implying?”

“I’m saying I wouldn’t put it past you,” I retort.

“And I wouldn’t put it past you either to kill him so all this could be yours.”

That’s it.

The anger boils over, and all I can see is red as I glare back at Rocco. The overwhelming need to put him in his place overpowers my need to be mature.

“You fucker!” I yell, lunging at him and delivering a punch to his face.

---