He nodded, his eyes twinkling like a snake’s. “Of course you are.”
I shifted the conversation. “But that’s not why we’re here.”
Gabriel leaned forward slightly. “Mind telling us exactly why wearehere, what your intentions are?”
I regarded them all solemnly. “War is coming to our doorstep, and I fired a shot across their bow.”
He and the other Xyst men visibly stiffened.
“Delgado’s not just pushing dope and trafficking bodies. He was cocky enough to steal fromme. First, his men hit the Moretti’s warehouse on the docks, and now he intercepted one of my shipments from some Turkish friends. MS-13 isn’t satisfied with taking Harlem. They want the docks. The clubs. They want everything the old families built and much more.”
Julian tapped his fingers against his glass, then stopped.
“It’s time to become made men, gentlemen,” I said.
Lachlan frowned. “What? We’re supposed to just join up? Start calling each otherbrotherand forget we were just regular guys running a club?”
“You crossed that line a long time ago,” I said, propping my elbows on the table and clasping my hands together. “Like I said yesterday, you chose to step into the darkness when you opened that basement casino and started selling privacy to powerful men.” I chuckled and leaned back. “You invited the devil to your table. Don’t act surprised he raised the stakes.”
Lucian wiped his mouth with a napkin.
But I didn’t give him time to argue. “You’re out of options. Walk through the damn door, or walk away and live with whatever’s coming for you.”
Luca swirled his wineglass again, clearly enjoying the show. “He’s right, boys. The moment you touched blood money, you signed a contract.”
I leaned forward.
“From this point forward, there are rules,” I said, my voice calm but razor sharp. “Orders are never questioned. Loyalty iseverything. You do what you’re told, when you’re told, or you die for it. That’s not bravado. That’s how this works.”
Gabriel clasped his hands together, leaning his elbows on the table, and swallowed hard.
“You keep your business close and your mouth shut,” I went on. “You protect the family. You protect each other. You don’t take money from politicians we don’t own. You don’t start side hustles. You don’t fuck someone else’s woman. Ever. And if I find out you did—”
“You’ll end them,” Luca said easily. “Just like you should.”
I made eye contact with each man one by one. “You don’t get to half-ass this. The moment you take the oath, it becomes your life. You’ll be watched, followed, and tested. Every move matters.”
Lachlan’s eyes narrowed. “And who’s our boss? You? Or him?”
He tilted his head toward Luca.
“Luca handles the politics, the unions, the old-world business,” I said flatly. “I run the digital underworld—the money, the networks, the intel. Luca’s the face. I’m the man behind the curtain. And you? You’re mine.”
Luca lifted his glass to me, pleased.
A server stepped in with dessert—some old-school Italian pastry I couldn’t name. Plates were passed out and coffee poured. Whiskey followed.
None of the guys reached for their forks.
Luca sipped his espresso. “Eat, boys. It’s not your last meal.”
“Yet,” I muttered, my tone dry as a bone.
“So…what happens now?” Julian asked, raising a brow.
“Now you decide—stay or go,” I said.
“And if we decide to go?” Lucian asked.
