Page 40 of Merciless Promise
“And there’s one last thing,” my grandfather said.
“And that is?” I asked.
“The more hits the empire takes, the more I’m reminded that I have no one to even pass this all down to.”
“You have us,” I said to him.
He shrugged. “We’ll see, Garmhac. I expect both of you to marryrespectable partnersand produce heirs. I’m getting no younger, nor are either of you.”
“I was working on that before you?—”
“That whore will never inherit the Brannington Empire. I want you to get rid of her, then find someone worthy enough of our name.”
Months ago, I would’ve agreed wholeheartedly with him, but she had gotten under my skin. It angered me to no end but made it no less true. “You wanted me to wed and produce an heir. I’m doing what was stipulated.”
“And you’re doing her a lot, too,” Cillian chimed in, and I shot him a glare. “I think my cousin might actually be in love.”
“That’s preposterous, Garmhac.” My grandfather looked to me, then back at Cillian. “What is this bullshit you speak of?”
“At my birthday party, Kingston got jealous and lost his fucking mind.”
I remembered the elevator, especially because the moment of no return had taken place the second I had thrust into her. It’d been the moment where I’d lost all control, and I had yet to regain any of it back.
“You’re both going to make me lose what’s left of mine. Get to your posts, and follow my wishes, or this battle might be your very last one fought in the Brannington name.”
With those words, he got up and stormed out of the room. I turned to my cousin, who was smirking at me. I walked over to the bar and made myself a drink before whirling on Cillian. “I’m only with her to fuck with Daideó. We both know I’d never submit wholeheartedly to his wishes and demands, especially when it involves a wife and kid.”
“I’d once dreamed of having both, but they are weaknesses we can least afford, especially right now.”
“What happened to you?” I asked Cillian.
He smirked then shook his head wryly. “I grew the fuck up and realized that love was the biggest illusion of all. It makes men weak.”
“You speak as if it’s from experience. When have you ever been in love with something other than the fucking bottle?”
“Wisdom doesn’t always come from experience. Watch what you’re doing with the Kotov girl is all that I’m saying. Daideó is busy with other things right now, but the more you taunt him with her, the sooner you will realize that he won’t ever accept her into this family.”
“He can call her whatever he wants to, and refer to her as?—”
“He’ll kill her,” Cillian said, and the way his voice changed sent a shiver racing down my spine.
“If anyone is going to take my deceitful wife out, it is going to beme.” I turned and walked to the door, then stopped at my cousin’s next words.
“What would Princeton think?” Cillian asked.
I turned around and smirked. “He’d know that this is all going according to plan.”
“Plans change,” Cillian replied.
“Vendettas don’t. See you in the Big Apple.” I left the room, grabbed my things, then decided to head back to New York City tonight. There was nothing here for me. Beingtherewas another story altogether. After all, I had yet another punishment to dole out.
Ihadn’t known how long Kingston intended to be gone on what he’d called a business trip, but I hated the way things were when he’d left. He’d naturally been furious at me, and I supposed I could understand his point. After all, his keeping his family organization was dependent upon him fathering a child and taking a wife. I’d helped him meet the latter requirement, but not the first. And I had no real reason to go back on a vow I’d made.
In our world, the one of organized crime, no matter which continent or country you hailed from, pride and legacy were all the same. His grandfather obviously wanted to make sure theirs would be passed down to an heir, where it would continue, even if my own father hadn’t given a damn about the organization he’d inherited from his father. Generations after generations of Kotovs, and now it was in ruins because he’d become addicted to gambling and lost our entire fortune.
I guess when I looked at things like that, I could understand where some of this residual anger came from. While I would be helping Kingston expand his own empire by having his child, itwould do nothing for mine. My last name, and one I had always held such pride in, was now synonymous with cowardice, greed, and shame. My father failed us all, and now I had to pay for his mistakes.
It hadn’t always been that way, though. After the incident with Princeton had gone down, my father had flown straight from Moscow, where he’d been, to New York, and he’d been relentless until the authorities cleared me of any wrongdoing. He’d been powerful, productive, and it was one of the only times I could ever recall him being an actual father.
