5 Chapter 4.

January 17, 2016.

Luke's POV.

She was in pain and there was nothing I could do about it.

Seeing her in tears really broke my heart but once the boss made a decision, no one could undermine it, not even his own daughter.

***

January 16, 2016.

I knocked and pushed the door to Antonio's office open.

"You sent for me, boss?"

"Read that letter." He pushed a piece of paper towards me.

I picked the letter off the table. It read:

"An eye for an eye,

a tooth for a tooth,

How dare you exchange the life of my daughter for a worthless piece of shit.

I give you a choice today, the hand of your daughter

Or the life of your men.

Choose wisely.

You do not have much time, give me a reply or you might lose both choices."

For as long as I lived, I would never forget the words on that note.

"Funny, isn't it? James was not one to write letters when we were much younger, now he sends me a letter." Antonio laughed. He leaned back, swiveling in his chair.

I personally did not find anything funny about the situation.

This could mean war and he was telling jokes?

"What are you going to do, boss?" I asked.

"Sit down, Luke."

I did but I did not get too comfortable, He leaned forward, propped his elbows on big mahogany desk and looked at me with his gray eyes, his usual penetrating stare that told me he was serious.

"I love my daughter, I love her very much. James is right, I can never pay for the death of his daughter, not with money, not with anything but I also love my sons. Did you know that the letter came with the decapitated head of Seth?"

I didn't say anything.

"I have made my decision, Luke. I choose to protect the lives of my men."

Maybe I didn't hear him correctly.

"What?!"

"I cannot bear to see my sons suffer."

"What about your daughter? What about Ophelia?!"

"Ophelia is a young woman now, she can take care of herself. Besides, he's not going to kill her. He just wants her married to his son. It's an alliance."

"Baddo would never want an alliance with us." I said, already mad.

"That may be true, Luke but my mind is made up."

I stood up. "Please, Antonio. Reconsider, we can win this war." I lowered my voice, pleading.

"That's enough from you!" He pounded his fist on the table, startling me.

I took two steps back.

"I will not risk the lives of my men for a stupid battle, when the problem can be solved by an exchange. He wants my daughter, he can have her, and that's the end of it, my mind is made up and there is nothing you or anyone can do about it! Tomorrow, I am sending my reply to Baddo. The wedding preparations will commence! And that is final!"

"Should I inform her?" I bowed my head. Ophelia wouldn't like this at all.

"No, I will do it myself. I'll make her come home in time for the engagement party, she's less likely to make a fuss then. I'll make her understand that it is for the best."

I raised my head and stared at him for a long time without breaking eye contact then I walked out of his office and slammed the door behind me.

Fuck the consequences, I was infuriated.

I walked out of the house and went straight to the garden, it was the only tranquil place I could sit and collect my thoughts. I sat on a bench and crossed my arms over my chest. A bee buzzed until it settled on a dandelion.

There was nothing I could do about the situation even though I wanted to, it was Antonio's call. It was his daughter but Ophelia was my friend. And I knew deep within me that something wasn't right about the whole thing. James Baddo had an ulterior motive.

My phone vibrated in my breast pocket, startling me a little.

Who was the unfortunate fool that decided to interrupt my thought process.

I took it out of my pocket and looked at the caller ID.

It was Brandon. The caporegime of The Empire in London.

I sighed deeply, what did he want this time. I mean, he was incapable of making decisions on his own. He always checked in with me, which was good but was now on the verge of becoming annoying.

I put you in a position because I trust you would be able to make the best decision on behalf of the group.

Jesus Christ.

I swipped my thumb across the screen and put the phone to my ear.

"Talk to me."

"She's on the move."

I frowned. "Who?"

"The Miss, Miss Antonio, Antonio's daughter."

I stood up. "What do you mean she's on the move?"

"She's on her way to the airport. We're enroute. I just called to know what our next line of action will be, she refused to take the jet and she refused to let us go with her."

"How did she know?" I just read the letter a few minutes ago. Antonio must have gotten it not long before that.

"Know what?"

I forgot I was on the phone.

"Has anyone contacted Ophelia? In the last twenty-four hours? Has she received any kind of package, a letter?"

"None that I know of."

"Then why did she decide to leave."

"I don't know, she told me it was coming home to spend a few weeks. I thought you knew."

"No, I'm not aware and neither is her father. It must be a surprise visit of some sort."

"Oh, what do you want me to do now?"

Maybe there was a way out of this, thanks to Ophelia's convenient timing. If Antonio wouldn't listen me, then he would definitely listen to his daughter.

"Play along and do whatever she wants. I'll pick her up at the airport.

"Yes sir. Goodbye."

I put the phone down and hung up.

***

I unlocked my door, stepped into my room and headed for the bathroom.

It was back to square one now that Ophelia couldn't convince her father to change his mind.

I couldn't do anything to stop the situation but what I could do, was to help Ophelia get through it.

It was time to get ready for dinner.

avataravatar
Next chapter