The Tyrant (Banker Book 3)

by Penelope Sky

  “That’s cowardly.” To live deep underground to avoid a fight that he started in the first place was pathetic. What kind of life could he have down there anyway? There was no sunlight. Just women and booze.

  “I’m sure he’s comfortable. It’s better than death, I’ll admit.”

  “Maybe we should lure him out. Bait him.”

  “And how do we do that?” he asked. “The only way that would work is if he thought he couldn’t lose.”

  Bates and I talked about the bank, the estate, and Micah almost every day. I seemed to replace Cato as his sounding board for ideas and solutions. The past really seemed to be a distant memory now that we’d established this camaraderie. It was hard to believe he pointed that gun at my head and pulled the trigger. “Then make him think he can’t lose. We can pretend Cato passed away from his injuries. Micah will think you’re alone and grieving. When he comes out to take you down, that’s when you take him out.”

  Bates stared at me blankly as he considered it, going over my idea in his mind. “Cato would never go for it.”

  “Why not?”

  “He’s too stubborn to let people think something so small killed him. He would also think it’s cowardly.”

  “Well, it was cowardly for them to break the truce Cato offered them.”

  He shrugged. “True…”

  “Unless you want to storm the hatch. I got down there before. I might be able to do it again.”

  “They’ll have changed the code by now—at least a dozen times.”

  “It’s still possible to get down there. I’m sure he has women visit him all the time. I could slip in there—”

  “You’re really going to put Cato through that again?” he asked incredulously. “I’m not on board with that. Cato and I are finally on good terms, and I’m not going to screw that up so soon.”

  “It’s still a good idea. Get one person in there to get the hatch open. Then the rest of the team moves in, takes out all the men on the bottom floor, and then we go underground and hunt down Micah. Sounds like a good plan to me. I know the area better than either one of you. It makes sense that it should be me.”

  “Not gonna happen.”

  “And they’ll never expect it. Since it’s been six weeks, I’m sure he thinks we wouldn’t bother storming the hatch.”

  He didn’t disagree with that. “It’s not a bad idea. But you aren’t going down there.”

  “Well, someone has to go unnoticed to get the hatch open. The second the men realize they’ve been hit, they’ll probably override the system so no one can get down there at all. It’ll be on lockdown, and the game will be over.”

  “Then I’ll go.”

  I rolled my eyes. “They’ll shoot you the second you walk up to the door.”

  “They recognize you too.”

  “Not if I change my hair, makeup, and clothes. I’ll go in with a few other women and blend right in.”

  He shook his head. “I’m not going to say no again.”

  I would just do it anyway, but since I needed his team to back me up, it was pointless. “I have another idea. But it’s more difficult.”

  “Difficulty isn’t an obstacle. But stupidity is.”

  “It’s gotta be possible to either break through that door or override the system.”

  “Overriding it will be impossible. From inside the hatch, there’s got to be some kind of protocol to shut it down. Even if we know the code or force it to open, they must have some fail-safe on their end.”

  “Then maybe we can drill through it. All we need to do is make a hole big enough to drop a bomb. Problem solved.”

  Bates watched me for a long time, considering my words carefully. “Like shooting fish in a barrel.”

  “Yes.”

  “How big is it down there?”

  “Not that big. The drop to the bottom is pretty long, hundreds of feet. We should be able to drop anything without it affecting us. But this all depends on the drilling part.”

  “I hate Micah as much as you do, but that’s pretty cold.”

  “I agree. But he won’t face us like a man.”

  “Because he knows he’ll lose.” He rubbed his coarse beard with his palm. “And why fight a war you can’t win when you can hide instead?”

  It seemed Micah was giving us no choice. We couldn’t live knowing he survived, so this war would never truly end. He could either die like a rat or as a man on his own two feet. The choice seemed obvious to me. “I say we give him the option.”

  Bates raised an eyebrow.

  “Call him and tell him what we intend to do. He can decide how he wants to die.”

  “Or if he knows what we intend to do, he could prevent it.”

  “How?” I crossed my arms over my chest. “By getting out of the hatch? That’s exactly what we want anyway. At least this way, we can instill fear in him…and also have complete control.”

  Bates lowered his hand and looked at me with new eyes. “You know, you would be the perfect leader for a mob.”

  “I get that from my father…not that I’m proud of it.”

  “I think you should be. Cato needs a woman who’s tough like him. In fact, I think you’re tougher.”

  I didn’t have to be tortured until my knees buckled underneath me, so I couldn’t agree with that statement. “So you agree with my idea?”

  “I guess so. And I think Micah will give us the answer we want anyway.”

  “That he’ll meet us face-to-face?”

  He nodded. “No man wants to die in the bottom of a hole… never to be seen again. We’ll talk to Cato.”

  “What do we do with the rest of Micah’s men?”

  “That’s obvious,” he said.

  “Kill them?”

  “No. They’ll become our men. We’ll take over their cigar and drug business and keep it as our own. More money in our pockets. That’s what conquerors do. They don’t invade countries then burn them to the ground. They utilize those resources.”

  Micah would be replaced by Bates and Cato, and then they would have another business to run. It seemed like their influence stretched on infinitely, never stopping. Every time someone challenged them, it seemed like their power grew, not shrunk. “I guess that makes sense.” Micah and Damien had destroyed my family’s business and absorbed it. Now it would be Cato’s, and by extension, mine. But the last thing I wanted was to be involved in that world again.

  It should stay in the past—where it belonged.

  Martina had fallen asleep beside her father, the keys still clutched in her tiny hand.

  Bates sat in the chair at his bedside while I sat at the foot of the bed.

  “I think it’s a good idea,” Bates said. “Like Siena said, it gives us all the power. We’re basically manipulating him into doing what we want.”

  “And if he doesn’t cooperate, can we make good on our threat?” Cato asked. “Where we are gonna find a drill that can even accomplish that?”

  “The Beck brothers,” Bates said. “They’ve got all that stuff.”

  Cato nodded in agreement. “That’s true.”

  “Micah knows we know people. He knows we know everyone.” Bates rested his ankle on the opposite knee. “I say we make the call and see what he does. It’s been six weeks. I’m getting anxious. We’ve never let an enemy live this long.”

  “We’ve never had a rat as an enemy,” Cato said. “I want to make the call.”

  “Are you sure?” Bates asked. “You’ve been through a lot—”

  “That’s exactly why I want to do it.” Cato glanced down at Martina, probably remembering what it was like when he thought he wouldn’t see her again. “This is personal. Very personal.”

  Bates didn’t try to talk him out of it. “Alright. Do you want to wait until you’re feeling a little stronger?”

  “I’m fine,” Cato barked.

  “Because when he’s out in the open, we’ll have to move in—”

  “I want to be the one to do it,”
Cato said. “I can handle it.”

  I didn’t want Cato to exert himself, but I knew reason wouldn’t stop him. He’d been beaten nearly to death. Until he had his revenge, he wouldn’t stop. Even if Micah wasn’t the one to drive that hammer into Cato’s body, he was still responsible. I decided to keep my mouth shut this time.

  “Alright,” Bates said. “When do you want to make the call?”

  “Tonight,” Cato said. “Then we’ll end this—for good.”

  I fed Martina before I put her in her crib. She’d gotten better at sleeping alone, especially after spending all day with her father. I activated her mobile, made sure the baby monitor was on, and then returned to the bedroom.

  Cato stood in front of the mirror, fully dressed in black jeans and an olive green t-shirt. It was the first time I’d seen him dressed in nearly two months. He was usually in his boxers or sweatpants because he was too injured to leave the house. He stood upright, his back perfectly straight and his broad shoulders tight. He didn’t look like the man who had been returned to me six weeks ago. His muscles had depleted a bit because of his immobility, but he was still the same strong man he used to be.

  Instead of telling him to get back into bed, I let him be. I enjoyed taking care of him every day, nursing him back to health so he would be strong once again. He hated being so dependent on another person, thinking he looked weak in my eyes. So I let him have this moment—a moment of triumph. “You look good.” I came up behind him and ran my hand down his back.

  “Thanks, baby. Clothes are a little loose, but I’ll make them fit again soon enough.”

  “Let’s take it easy, alright? No need to rush.” I moved in front of him and placed my hands around his wrists, careful not to touch his core in case his ribs still hurt.

  The blood lust slowly faded from his eyes as the affection took over. “I can’t wait to make love to you.”

  “Neither can I…”

  He grabbed my chin and lifted my head so he could kiss me on the mouth. “I miss you.”

  “I miss you too.” My hands slid up his arms, feeling the muscles that still thrived.

  He sucked my bottom lip before he spoke again. “Don’t go back on birth control. I want to make another baby with you.”

  “You’re being serious?” I wasn’t sure if that was just sexy talk, stuff he blurted out in the moment.

  “Dead serious.”

  “Maybe we should—”

  “You want more babies, right?”

  “Well, yeah. But I just gave birth to Martina a few months ago…”

  “I’m ready whenever you are. If you want to wait, I understand. Think it over.” He kissed the corner of my mouth before he turned away and walked out of the room.

  I watched him go, wondering if he thought about the obvious thing he never addressed. Martina had been an accident, the product of our insatiable lust and affection. But this baby would be planned, another addition to our family. If that was the case, shouldn’t we be married first?

  Did he want to marry me?

  17

  Cato

  We congregated in the office, and Siena and Bates wore earpieces so they could hear the conversation with perfect clarity.

  I sat near the window and made the call, truly feeling like myself for the first time in six long weeks. I helped Bates with the business, but he did all the heavy lifting without me. All I could do was handle emails in bed and take care of a few phone calls. But I was always in bed, always incapacitated.

  But now I was back in the game.

  The line kept ringing.

  By the fourth ring, Micah answered. But he answered with his silence, probably because he was too afraid to speak first.

  I certainly wasn’t. “You’ve been in that rathole for a long time. You must like it down there.”

  He kept his tone cool like mine, like we weren’t two adversaries who wanted to kill one another. “You get used to it. As long as there’s booze and pussy, it feels like home. Isn’t that all a man really wants?”

  “And freedom,” I jabbed.

  Micah didn’t have anything to say to that.

  “Bates and I decided how we’re going to end this war for good. But then my lovely lady made a very good point. So I’m going to extend some charity to you—man-to-man.”

  “It took you six weeks to decide?” he asked. “Or it took you six weeks to get out of bed after what Damien did you?”

  My blood boiled immediately, and all my old wounds suddenly felt fresh. It would be easy for me to snap and dig into this guy, but the second I lost my temper was the second he won the argument. I couldn’t let that happen. I swallowed my rage and kept my tone exactly the same. “It took me six weeks to pick my fantasy—of how I’m going to kill you.”

  “That hammer must have hurt when it broke each of your ribs.”

  He tried to change the subject, but I wouldn’t let him. “We’re prepared to enter your building and drill through the hatch. Once we make a hole large enough in diameter, we’ll drop bombs and poison. You don’t have a filtration system down there, so the toxins will be trapped with you. If the bombs and the fire don’t get you, the poison will slowly kill you. It’ll make you bleed from every hole until you go into cardiac arrest.” I paused for effect. “The hammer doesn’t sound so bad, does it?”

  Micah kept his calm even though that threat must have unnerved him. “You’ll never be able to drill through the hatch. There’s no machinery capable of it in Italy.”

  “No, not in Italy,” I said in agreement. “But the Beck brothers are clients of mine—and they’ve agreed to let me borrow their biggest drill. He’s assured me it’ll do the job. The Skull Kings have also agreed to demolish your building so we can get the drill in place. You know there will be no repercussions from law enforcement or the government.”

  Micah was quiet so long it seemed like he wasn’t on the line anymore.

  Bates nodded to me, telling me he was still there.

  What was Micah supposed to say to that?

  I kept my silence so he would squirm. All the information I gave him was valid, so it would be a mistake to call my bluff.

  He finally spoke again. “What do you want, Cato? You have a solid plan.”

  “If it were me, I wouldn’t want to die like a fish in a barrel. I’m giving you the opportunity to crawl out of your hole and face me like a man. And die like a man. We both know how this is going to end…but at least you won’t die as a coward.”

  “And you get to look me in the eye as you kill me.”

  “Exactly.” He was responsible for killing Siena’s father. Responsible for my kidnapping. Responsible for crimes that needed to be punished. I wanted to see him die at my feet, not wonder if it was the explosion or the poison that got to him first. “And then I want to take your business from underneath your feet—and force your men into my ranks.” It would be a transfer of power, a diplomatic conquering. “Your choice, Micah. It’s very rare for a man to choose his death. Consider yourself lucky.”

  He went quiet as he thought it over, considering something most men wouldn’t be able to think about. Death was difficult for anyone to accept, but particularly when it was at your doorstep. After what seemed like minutes, he finally spoke, his voice weaker than before. “How will you kill me?”

  I knew exactly how. Siena risked herself to save me, and instead of getting my own revenge, I would get revenge for her father. “The same way you killed Stefan Russo.” It had been a gruesome death, disgusting enough to make any man vomit in his own mouth. There was no mercy in the murder—and it was completely unnecessary. They hung him from a noose with his hands tied behind his back—and stabbed him to death in the gut. I never told Siena the details because it would haunt her forever.

  “I suppose I deserve that…”

  “Damn right,” I said. “So, what’s it gonna be?” I wouldn’t want to choke to death on poison, but I wouldn’t want to be killed in such a savage way either. But at least the l
atter let him keep some of his dignity—and made me look like a tyrant.

  Micah was quiet again, probably sick as he contemplated his own death. Handing himself over would give him a more brutal death, but at least he would have more respect than letting all of his men die in the hatch with him. “You win, Cato.”

  I smiled. “I always win, Micah.”

  My body had almost completely recovered, though I still had some pain. But even if I were at my worst, nothing would stop me from finishing this for good. Even if I couldn’t walk, I would still have made this happen.

  I wore one of my favorite suits even though it was about to be covered in blood. I would have the designer make another for me, and I wanted to look like the tyrant I was as I executed my enemy. We would do it in the middle of the night and leave his body hanging from a pole outside my bank—and the world would know I was victorious.

  Siena looked at me in the mirror. “I want to come, Cato.”

  I tightened my tie around my neck. “Trust me, you don’t.”

  “This is different—”

  “It’s worse. You couldn’t stand watching me shoot those criminals in the head. This will be much more gruesome.” I turned around to face her.

  She wore a pained expression. “What did he do to my father…?”

  I would take it to the grave because it was too disturbing. Now that I loved her, it was even painful for me. I wished I’d been able to save her father so she wouldn’t be orphaned. I didn’t need anyone, but it was nice having my mother around. If I ever needed someone to talk to, she was always there. Siena had no one—except me. “That’s why I don’t think you should be there.”

  “I want revenge—”

  “And I will get it for you. Trust me, this is not something you want to see.” I cupped both of her cheeks and forced her to look at me. “Baby, please trust me on this. I know you want to see him suffer for what he did to your father and me, but this will not bring you peace. It’ll only make you think about how much your father suffered…and that’s not what I want.”