Page 18 of Influence

Everyone knew the truth.

“You both drain my very existence.” I sighed, rolling my eyes. “Don’t you have a party to attend in Ibiza or something? Or perhaps you should return to the yacht you took without consulting the proper channels.”

Although I understood the source of their frustrations, I refused to take the bait and escalate into a needless battle. Their jealousy was clear. Everyone knew that aligning with the Vitalis sisters enhanced power. The two of them simmered with envy at the fact that my new union would empower me, not them.

“Don’t overlook us,” they insisted together.

“We play a role in our family’s decisions, Niko, whether you acknowledge it or not,” Stefano added.

“I’m not interested in arguing right now, Stefano,” I warned, the threat palpable in the air.

Markos’s thin lips twisted into a sneer as he shot back, “Let’s discuss your true role, Niko. If you’re planning to marry, it’s your responsibility to ensure the Galanis family name isn’t stained by the tainted blood of a fucking Vitalis, of all families.”

I sat up and replied, “Are you certain that’s what you mean, Markos? Choose your words wisely.”

I released a feral growl, rising from my chair, the tension in my body coiling like a spring ready to snap. Luckily for the fucker, the solid wood desk acted as a barrier between us, or I would charge at him and pummel his face in.

I’d learned to endure their jealousy. They could bitch and complain about me and their situation as much as they wanted. However, they crossed the line when they insulted and attacked Laya and her family.

They pushed me too far and edged into dangerous territory.

I protected what was mine.

Laya was mine.

“We’re not scared of you.” Stefano’s chin quivered in a feeble act of defiance.

“Then why does your voice tremble?” I taunted, giving them only a mild taste of the menace I could unleash upon them. “Nothing you say will alter my choice. My mind is set, and I won’t change it just because you refuse to accept it. It’s in everyone’s best interest if you accept this and move on.”

“Like you’ll do when you’re finished with her,’ Markos sneered.

I tilted my head to the side. “What did you say?”

“Be honest, Niko. You’re only doing this to get into that woman’s pants. I bet she’s nothing more than a slut, just like her little sister,” Markos spat, as if dripping with venom.

“Her sister?” I repeated, feeling the predator inside me coiling up.

“It’s common knowledge that she was whored out during her abduction,” Stefano stated. “That’s not a secret.”

My blood froze instantly, and without hesitation, I rounded the desk. Before they could react, I grabbed their throats, slamming them into the wall. “Say that again!” I shouted, seething with rage.

The urge to kill coursed through my veins.

The loud footsteps of my guards reverberated through the hallway, quickly alerted by my raised voice. They stopped short the moment my brothers and I appeared.

I gripped harder, their frail bodies trembling as my anger turned them into statues of terror.

“You little bastards! If you utter another disparaging word about the Vitalis family, I swear you will regret every beat of your pathetic hearts!” This was a promise of retribution I pledged to my soul. “I am the rightful heir to this family, and you will respect that! You will respect me, my wife, and her sisters. Do you understand me, you disgusting little fuckers?”

Their eyes, once hard and defiant, now gazed at me with a mixture of disdain and broken pride. Under the relentless pressure of my grip, that defiance ultimately gave way to despair.

“Let go,” Markos croaked, as he clawed at the unseen barrier between us. “Please.”

I shook my head, squeezing just a little harder. “Never doubt I’d enjoy killing you both. Cross me again, and your precious inheritance disappears. You wouldn’t want me to cut that off.”

“You can’t—” Markos began.

“Can’t I?” I challenged, raising an eyebrow with cold amusement. “If even a whisper of rumor reaches me that you continue to pour venom from your mouths, I will show just how completely I can ruin your wretched existence. If you’re not careful, you’ll be begging for scraps on the streets like a pair of destitute peasants.”

---