Chapter 2

Alex’s POV

I took the last sip of the shots in front of me, closing my eyes as I welcomed the burning sensation in my throat as it went down my system. I was through a bottle of bourbon and three shot cups and just like that, I was ready for the day. I was going to walk down the aisle today and get married to the lady I had never met because I wanted my father to finally step down from his throne as the Crow Cartel king and give it to me. I wasn’t the one that was supposed to inherit it when my father stepped down. It was supposed to be my brother and now that he was dead, I was next in line.

Ever since I was a kid, I had always wanted it, and for most of my life I thought I was never going to get it. Now, it was happening for me and I was celebrating with alcohol, my best friend since before I was of age. All it took for my father to agree to give me the crown as the king was to get a fiancée and get married with a two weeks deadline. It wasn’t a problem because I had a lot of women that would agree to marry me without me even asking them, but I didn't want someone that has an emotional relationship with me.

I would prefer to have a woman that barely even knew me as my wife because it was only for formality. I didn't want her to be interested in me or my lifestyle, because I wasn’t interested in forming a bond with anyone any time soon. I thought hard and after a few days, I had a breakthrough. I was going to get one of the people that were awaiting punishment after betraying the mob and black mail them into giving me a relative of theirs to marry.

When I checked the black list my father had curated, the first name was a man called Ronaldo. I asked for him to be brought in and then I told him to find me a wife if he wanted his mistake to be forgiven by the mob. He was caught stealing a few thousand euros, so it wasn’t that big of a crime. He offered one of his step daughters, a fresh graduate and didn't have a job. She was the perfect candidate, so I asked him to start preparing for the wedding which was going to be set in a week's time.

Several days later, I was going to get hitched with her. I didn't even want to see her until when we were on the aisle so I wouldn’t have any reason to call it off. I didn't care about the way she looked. As long as she was going to stay out of my business and be quiet, then we were going to live together in harmony.

“Boss.” One of the guards called out to me. I dropped down the shot cup and turned to face him. His face twitched when he saw the way I looked. I knew I looked drunk but my senses were perfectly alright. I knew better than to get drunk till I couldn’t think straight on my wedding day.

“Is it time?” I asked him.

He shook his head, “You won’t want to hear this.”

“What happened?” I asked him.

“I just got news from the bride’s side of the family. His daughter had ran away. There is no bride.” He said.

I thought my head was slowing down and didn't hear what he said as I stared right at him. How could he say that? I spoke with Ronaldo a few hours ago when he needed money to buy some of the bride’s attires and I gave him. Everything was okay until now.

“How is that possible?” I asked him.

“They said that she ran away, probably when she figured out that she was going to be married into the mafia.” He replied.

My blood started to boil in my veins as I thought of what was going to happen when my father heard of this. This couldn’t be happening. I was a few hours from getting what I have always wanted, a damn girl cannot come in my way and spoil it all.

“Bring Ronaldo in. Now.” I told him.

He nodded before he hurried out. I stood up and started to pace, thinking of what the hell I was going to do if she doesn’t come back or I don’t get a subtitle bride. The alcohol had vanished in my system, replaced with waves of panic. I needed to find a solution. I was about to head out of my room when I heard the stomping of shoes I knew too well approaching my room, and I already knew who it was. Blake Crow, the mafia boss and the worst father in the whole damn world. I guess he had heard about the situation.

I was rooted on my spot as he approached my room and kicked open the door, nearly making it fly off the frame. His eyes had a condescending glare on them as his chest rose and fell in anger. He looked like he was about to rip my head off.

“What the fuck did I hear happened to your wedding?” He barked, his hands curling into fists. A little part of me shuddered, reminding me of the trauma of growing up under a man like him.

“There is a setback but I am going to take care of it. You have nothing to worry about.” I assured him.

“I have everything to worry about when the only son I have left is nothing but a complete goddamn failure. I asked, for one thing, Alexander. For one thing, and you couldn’t even get it right like everything you have done in your life. No wonder the hockey team didn’t even want you again because everything you touch results in massive failure all of the goddamn time.” He snarled.

It was his favorite thing to say. To bring me down because of my failed hockey career that started promisingly until I had an injury and I was forced to retire early. My brother, on the other hand, who had spent all of his life until it ended a few months ago trying to learn about how to become the perfect boss, was his favorite. He had always been his favorite since before our mother left us.

“I said I am going to make it right. Just please have some patience.” I mouthed, looking away from him.

“You think I am going to give you the mob now?” He scoffed, eyeing me. “Look at you, you reek of alcohol. I am not going to give you the mob knowing that you are going to drive it into the ground or even out us to the government because of your carelessness.”

“This is just a minor misunderstanding. Please let me solve it.” I added.

He shook his head, his face hardening even more than it was a few moments ago. He looked like he had just made up his mind at the moment.

“Your brother would have never allowed this to happen. It was just a goddamn wedding, I wasn’t asking you to shoot someone in the head.”

My eyes twitched, and I guessed that was what made him make the final decision, “You don’t have it in you. You will never have it in you to be the king I am because you are too soft. You are an alcoholic and a failure at everything you do. I shouldn’t have given you or anyone hope. This mob might fall and I am not going to allow you to be the cause of it.”

My heart felt like it was about to burst in its rib cage. From his words, to the look on his face, to the realization of what had just happened, it hurt like a bitch. I knew it was going to hurt more when the booze had cleared up, and I wasn’t ready for it.

“Just give me another chance to make it right, father,” I asked, but he shook his head.

“No. I am not signing up everyone for failure because of my incompetent son.” He shook his head, giving me a once-over before he turned around and left, banging the door behind him.

My heart sank even further as I turned around and stared at the bottles in front of me. I could go ahead and act the way he expected me to act. I could lock myself in the room and drown myself in alcohol, but I wasn’t going to do that. I wasn’t going to allow the decisions of a traitor and his daughter to make me drown the rest of my life in nothingness. I needed to act, and I needed revenge for what they did to me.

I headed out of my room, reeling slightly on the way out. When I reached the sitting room, I realized that the guard had brought in Ronaldo. He was staring at me, fear in his eyes as he begged and cried for his life. I felt nothing. It was like I was staring right at a corpse begging to be brought back to life, knowing there was nothing I could do to save it. He was already a dead man.

“Please don’t do this. I have another daughter, I can make this right. Please spare my life, Alex.” He begged.

One of the guards hit him and he fell to the ground, yelling in pain. The guard that I asked to bring him in came forward, “What are we going to do with him, boss?” He asked.

Without an ounce of remorse in my veins, I blurted out an answer, “Kill him.”

He waited, looking at me, probably thinking I was going to change my mind because I was the only one who was against killing in this family, but I didn't move a bit. My expression was cold and it remained unchanged.

“Okay.” He nodded before he turned around.

I remembered the one thing I was going to do too. The fucking woman that escaped marrying me. Just like her father, she deserved death, but I wasn’t going to kill her just yet. I was going to track her down, shatter her entire life until she begged me for death, and then I was going to give her the gift of the most excruciating death she could ever think of.

“Guard,” I called out to him. He turned back and faced me. “Find me the lady, where she had gone, where she is going to stay, down to what she is going to have for dinner tonight,” I told him.

He nodded, “On it, boss.” Before he headed back towards Ronaldo.

I left the sitting room, drowning out the pleas of forgiveness Ronaldo was shouting with my own pain that was brewing up in my chest.