Mainly because I don't fucking know.
In my study, I do more of the work Dad gave me because I enjoy this side of it. I like shifting money, reinforcing the system I set up for him to keep it up with modern times. And I fucking love hacking.
But the thing I'm loathe even to admit to myself is that now he's making me help him for the bullshit payback for getting Lyndall free using his men, I'm not under pressure from Dad. And I like it.
When I don't agree with something, I say it. I offer solutions that are better, work better in a changing world, and he listens. Mainly because he thinks he has me, but also because he's smart and can see I can expand his empire, make him more money.
Dad loves that. Obviously.
When he tries to give me shit, I shut him down.
It's liberating, and something I should have done a long time ago.
I sit back and take a bite of my burger, washing it down with some whiskey.
Fuck, if I hadn't spent so much time fighting him and the legacy forced on me, I could have been using it and shaping it to my advantage.
Dad doesn't want anyone taking over. Not until he's dead and gone, and I've got a feeling that's a long, long way away.
But he likes control.
He thinks he has it over me.
I know differently.
And I'm in a position here that can fit right into the Syndicate's needs.
I'll be making the rules that matter, not Dad.
As I go over some things, I see a name, one that's been connected to Dom.
The man is an enemy of my father's, but deals are always there to be made if you do it the right way. Plus, it will piss Dad off.
I broker a deal with the man in exchange for intel on Dom.
He wants stakes in a piece of Dad's territory. There's nothing there, and he wants to expand his gentlemen's clubs, girls who strip and serve businessmen during the day and service the men who play high-stakes games at night.
He'll pay Dad a reduced amount, but it's a plus as we're not making a thing in that part of Queens.
Then I sit back and finish the complex hacking job I've been hired to do.
My phone rings, and I hit speaker.
"What the actual fuck, Enzo? I just heard from Ferez's lawyer. You know I hate that man. He's wanted to have a business there for ages, and I've said no. You know why I've said no?"
"Yes, but I don't care. It's time for the old men to step aside with organized crime. None of this bullshit. He knows the score. I'll finish him if he double-crosses me, and it's a good deal for him on a site he's coveted, and us earning money for nothing."
"No. And you know why? I'm the one in fucking charge, Enzo. Not you."
"Maybe that's the problem."
"You're reckless. You don't know what you're doing."
I look at the numbers on the screen. "I made you a hundred mil today doing above-board shit. I can make more, too. And the other stuff? Tack on fifty mil. Not bad."
"It's not your decision, Enzo."
I get up, drain my glass, and refill it.
