“It is,” I said, straightening up. “But that nonsense is still spreadinglike I warned you about before. I also asked for honesty in exchange for sparing the ones who told me their true opinion.”
I looked him dead in the eyes. “But tonight? Mercy is off the table.”
I gave a nod to Maxim. The room went still. A moment later, Alfonso’s voice filled the air, caught on tape, talking with Giuseppe. The betrayal rang out crystal clear. Even worse, his son’s voice echoed in the background, part of it. No way out now.
Alfonso glanced at his son with worry, then spoke, his voice trembling despite his effort to steady it. “Don Carlo, I swear, I was trying to gain his trust. Get close, set him up. I planned to report back to you.”
“I visited each one of you. In person. Looked you in the eye. Told you to inform me if Giuseppe contacted you. I didn’t send a messenger, didn’t rely on Maxim. I came to your homes myself.” My tone turned to ice. “But you, Alfonso, you went behind my back. You met with Giuseppe. You dragged your own son into it.
What did you think? That I wouldn’t find out? That I was soft? That I didn’t have the balls to make an example out of you? Is that what you believed?”
Alfonso’s eyes darted around the room, wild and desperate. He knew there was no way out.
I slipped off my jacket and tossed it onto my chair with deliberate calm. “It was a good idea to bring your son along.”
Across the room, his wife, Luisa, screamed and bolted forward. My men grabbed her before she got far, dragging her back as she kicked and clawed like a feral animal. Alexander lunged too, fists swinging, crying out for his mother. But he was no match for the guards.
Then Alfonso charged at me. His eyes were wild, fists clenched, fury written all over him. But he was too far gone, blinded by rage. I didn’t move until the last second, dodged his first swing, then planted a brutal uppercut straight to his chin.
The crack echoed through the hall. His body folded instantly, crashing to the floor with a sickening thud. I was on him before anyone could blink, knees on his ribs, fists raining down like sledgehammers. Cartilage crunched. Bone split. Blood exploded under my knuckles, hot and thick. I didn’t stop. His nose collapsed. His jaw shattered. Teeth flew. His skin tore open under the weight of my fists.
I kept going. Blow after blow, until his face turned to pulp, bone, and blood. A raw, ruined hole where his mouth used to be. The same mouth that called Emily a whore.
Luisa’s screams mixed with her son’s, hysterical and raw, but that didn’t stop me. When I finally stood, blood dripped from my fists. My shirt was soaked, my arms slick. Alfonso’s body didn’t twitch. He wasn’t breathing. His skull was a crater, unrecognizable.
I didn’t look at Luisa. I didn’t look at Alexander. Their screams blurred into nothing. My eyes found Emily. She was rooted to the spot. Eyes wide. Staring at what was left of Alfonso. I gave Giorgio a look. A silent command to get her out.
The moment his hand touched her, Emily doubled over and vomited violently onto the floor. Her body shook, knees buckling beneath her. But Giorgio didn’t hesitate. He caught her before she collapsed completely, scooping her into his arms and took her out.
Luisa was still on her knees, begging for her son’s life, voice raw from screaming. I gestured to my men to let her go. She crawled to Alexander, pulling him into her arms. He was stunned, his body heavy against her.
Maxim stepped up and handed me a cloth. I wiped the blood from my hands and walked toward them. Luisa’s voice cracked as she pleaded. “Please, Don Carlo… I’m begging you. He’s only twelve. Spare him.”
“Be quiet.” My voice snapped through the room, sharp and final. She shut her mouth and tightened her arms protectively around her boy. The silence that followed was suffocating. Every man in that room was watching, waiting.
“You’re lucky your late husband brought this up before the oath ceremony,” I said, stopping a few feet from her. “If your son had sworn loyalty to me tonight, I would’ve shattered his skull without hesitation. But he didn’t. He’s not a made man. He hasn’t taken the oath, so I don’t count his bullshit as treason.”
Luisa collapsed in sobs, crying and thanking me over and over, her words frantic and broken.
But I wasn’t finished. “I can’t have someone who speaks against me living in my territory.”
The relief in her face drained instantly. Her mouth clamped shut. Her eyes filled with new terror.
“You’re banished. You have one week to leave Italy. If you, your children, or even your unborn grandchildren ever step foot on Italian soil again, they’ll be sentenced to death. Do you understand?”
Luisa laughed in relief, nodding furiously as she scrambled to her feet, asking for permission to leave. I put her out of her misery. “You’re dismissed.”
Once they were gone, I slipped my jacket back on and returned to my seat. My hands were still wet with blood. The corpse of one of my former underbosses lay sprawled on the floor, his face nothing but a ruined mass of bone and flesh. The room hung in silence, thick, waiting.
I glanced at Maxim. He met my eyes with something close to pride. Then he crossed the room and bent to take my bloodied hand. He pressed his lips to it and spoke, voice steady.
“From this day forward, I pledge my life to the family. Betrayal is a sin punishable by death, which I and anyone tied to me will deserve. My life belongs to you; my death belongs to you. Wherever and whenever you demand them, they are yours.”
“Your life belongs to me. Your death belongs to me. And I will protect and honor both, as long as you stay loyal,” I replied.
He released my hand, straightened, and turned his gaze on the room, a look that could kill. One by one, the underbosses stepped forward. One after another, they kissed my bloodstained hand, sealing their loyalty to their new capo.
The Skull Crusher.
