down with Mia almost a week ago.
I just didn’t think it would take this long but, here we go.
“Why the fuck am I here, John? Word on the street is your son killed my first born.”
“Lukas, as you already know, I invited you here so we could open talks on—” Dad is saying but I cut him off, staring intently at Matthews Snr. The asshole who has a breed of disgusting sons that thought it was a good idea to hurt what’s mine.
“Do you really believe that?” I demand, keeping my voice low.
“Excuse me?” Lukas Matthews says. He has a hint of a European accent to his voice, probably Polish.
“I asked if you believe the rumors and what Nathan Montague told you, that I killed your son in that warehouse.”
We stare at each other. I can see the doubt in his eyes. This is a mafia man, that’s for sure. His family is part of some shady shit, but as I glance at my father, I realize something as well, so is this family.
“What do you have that proves otherwise?” he asks, watching me with curiosity.
“The disappearance of your other son, of course,” I say.
“Shane?” he quickly says. “What do you know about Shane? Do you know where he is?”
“I’m sure you already know that he’s in hiding because he did what you already know.”
“Your son killed your other son, Lukas,” Dad says stepping in. “Not my son.”
At those words, Lukas Matthews falls silent.
“You don’t look shocked about that,” Liam says with a frown.
“Well, it was only a matter of time,” Lukas says, shifting in his seat. “They never really got along or liked each other. They’ve always fought since the beginning.”
“In public they sure did look like best friends though,” Liam continues, strolling over to lean on the opposite side of the wall, staring at Lukas Matthews with obvious contempt.
“It was only on my orders,” the man says, rolling his r’s. But after I gave Sean the heir to my empire since he was the first born, Shane seemed to just lose it.”
There’s silence in the office, all eyes on Matthews.
“Your sons have rivaled against mine for years, Lukas. I warned you that if that issue ever got out of hand, I’d come for you,” Dad says, pushing his chair back. He starts pacing slowly behind his desk, his jaw ticking. “And now, not only did your sons attempt to murder both my sons, twice, they conspired with Nathan the fool, to set up my other son.”
“Hold on, John, listen now,” Lukas says, tripping over his words.
Holy fucking shit.
The power dynamic has since shifted. I glance at Liam for a second and then at Cole as what’s in front of us become fucking clear.
Dad, John fucking Fitzgerald, the man who I thought was a fucking asshole all these years, is actually something else entirely.
I see it in the way Lukas Matthews starts shifting in his seat, looking up at Dad with something close to fear in his eyes.
“I didn’t know they would attempt to take out your son,” Lukas rushes to say. “At the time, I was out of the country, dealing with business.”
“Yes, but this rivalry with my sons, Lukas, how did it start?” Dad demands.
“Come on, Fitzgerald, they are just boys,” Lukas says, now sitting literally at the edge of his seat. “You know how we were when we were boys. Pranks were the rule of the day, it’s been a tradition between St. Jude High and Clintwood Academy. It’s just high school, John.”
“Yeah? Only I remember pranks being sucking the petrol out of your rival’s car and filling it with water instead or pouring paint in the front seat, but I don’t remember high school pranks being setting fucking bomb in their rival’s fucking cars!”
In that moment I catch a glimpse of myself. My father is a mirror image of me in a few decades. His anger, his rage, everything… just like me. Before, I thought we were different. That where he failed to keep the woman he loved, I would succeed, but now, after Mia refused to kiss me, rejected me and practically reduced me to nothing, I don’t know anymore.
I guess the adage still holds.
Like father like son.
“Tell me how it fucking started!” Dad demands.
“It was your brother!” Lukas quickly says.
“What?”
“Yes, your brother! Nathan! He came to my house years ago for a poker game. He saw my sons fighting that night and I swear, he incited them, talking about his step-nephews and how