I set the glass down on the marble stand behind me, the quiet click echoing through the penthouse. “Fear is faster than loyalty. From what I’ve personally witnessed, it spreads the word quicker and tends to be more useful.”
Dante straightens slightly. “How?”
I smile, “We bleed them quietly.”
His brow furrows. “Financially?”
“Yes,” I agree. “We do our best to kill their access and intercept their shipments. Make them think the police are watching them.” I cross my arms over my chest, “Then we isolate the heads. Turn their inner circles against them. The paranoia spreads and the wives start talking. It’s fun to watch when no one knows who to trust.” A small laugh falls from my lips, “Maybe they’ll just kill each other and save us the time? Think we’re that lucky?”
Dante exhales slowly through his nose. “We’ve been lucky so far.”
I turn fully then, meeting his eyes. “Can’t break our record this early in the game, Dante.”
I watch his dark eyes search my form.
I don’t think he expected us to get this far with all of the plotting we’d done over the last year.
It’d taken me the last three years to convince him to turn on my father.
But when Finnic killed Marco, things really shifted into place faster than initially planned.
More in my favor, thankfully.
“And if they try to come after you?” He questions.
I take another sip, then exhale a breath, “They’ll learn not to do it again.”
Dante continues to study me as he stands only inches away now.
A chill seems to spread through the room when I speak, “They won’t fear the Genovese name anymore.”
I look back out at the city, at the streets that will soon whisper my reputation instead.
“They’ll fear mine.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chloe
“Chlo-Bear.”
His whisper in my ear sent a fearful shudder down my spine. I could feel his lips on my skin, barely caressing it but enough to be far more intimate than a father should be with his child.
“Are you awake, sweetheart?” He asked as his fingers lightly grazed my collarbone.
I nodded faintly as I continued to stare forward at the wall in front of me. My body faced away from him, so I luckily couldn’t make out the sick expression on his face as he looked at me.
I was sure it wasfull of desire.
For his only child.
How sweet.
His hand gradually moved from my collarbone to my arm before trailing down it slowly. “It’s after midnight.”
My eyes watered as a nauseating feeling washed over me. I stuttered out the next few words, “M- my birthday.”
He chuckled bitterly, “That’s right, sweet girl. You’re growing up so fast.” He continued his movement across my stomach, carefully lifting the bottom of my camisole up. “Sixteen years old, you’re practically a woman.”
