Sunrise Malice

24. Julien

Chapter 24

Julien

I ’ve never been so angry in my life.

Angry at myself, angry at Dusan, angry at Grandpère for starting this war. Angry at the fucking guards who failed to protect my wife. Those two are being punished as we speak and I suspect they will never fuck up again—assuming they survive.

Jean doesn’t talk as he leads the way to the basement. If Grandpère wants to speak with us down here, it must be something serious. And that’s good, because I have some things I want to say to the old man, things which I know will not be pleasant.

“He’s in here,” Jean murmurs, taking me to the last room on the left. The room of many questions, as I think of it in my head.

Bare concrete floor. Drain in the middle.

Jean steps inside and I follow. Grandpère is standing at the far side of the room with his back to us, looking at something on the table. A fresh sheet of plastic is covering the top.

“What’s so important that you called me down here?” I ask, unable to contain my impatience and frustration.

Grandpère slowly turns around and steps aside.

The object he was looking at comes into view.

It’s a human head. Black blood congeals around it.

And the face is very familiar.

Rene Pelletier stares at me, his eyes blank and milky white in death, his mouth open in a snarl.

Good old Rene must’ve died angry.

“Fuck,” I manage to say as Grandpère turns to look at his former head of security. “How?”

“It was found this morning around the time your bomb went off. He’d been out running errands for me last night and hadn’t come back, and I suspected the worst. This confirms it.” Grandpère stares at Rene’s severed skull. “A waitress that works for one of your restaurants found it on the ground out front. La Palais Gourmet? It doesn’t matter. Rene is dead.”

Well, fuck. Whoever found Rene’s head is going to need a big raise and a fat bonus check to help with her mental anguish.

But for now, I focus on what’s in front of me. Which is a man’s face frozen in his last moments. “What did you have him doing?” I ask out of curiosity. Rene was a strong and skilled bastard, and if someone got the drop on him, that means they must be pretty good.

“He was scouting our adversaries’ positions. There was a rumor that they hired some muscle to help out with the war, and, well—” Grandpère waves a hand at the head. “As you can see, something went wrong.”

“Who did Dusan hire?”

“I’m not sure yet, but we’re working on it.” Grandpère’s tone is sharp. He flips up the ends of the plastic sheeting and wraps Rene’s head up. “This is unacceptable, Julien. You should have finished this already.”

“I told you not to start this war to begin with,” I snarl at the old man. “If some of your people get hurt in the fighting, so what? That’s the cost of your own bad mistakes.”

“Watch your mouth with me, boy. This is still a good strategic move. It isn’t my fault you are incompetent.”

“You doddering old husk of a human,” I say, snarling as I move toward the old bastard. “I can break your spine. You know that, old man?”

“Go ahead and try,” Grandpère says, showing his teeth and turning to me. “I’d love the chance to beat some sense into you.”

“Okay, enough,” Jean says, getting between us.

“My wife was nearly killed today. Her friend is in the hospital. All this because you couldn’t listen when I told you to stand down.” I stare at Grandpère with pure loathing in my heart. “Now I’m stuck with a war I didn’t want.”

“Ah, yes, Julien is whining yet again.”

“No, Pascal.” It feels strange to use his given name, but this man is nothing to me now. He isn’t Grandpère anymore—he’s not the same man I once looked up to as if he were a god. “I’m telling you facts right now. And here’s another: when this is over, you will leave America, and you will never come back. You are through here.”

Pascal sneers and shakes his head. “What makes you think you can give me orders like that?”

“It’s a warning, not an order. When this is through, you will be gone.”

“Don’t be a fool.” His eyes narrow. “You still need me.”

“That’s where you’re wrong. Your drugs are good, and I built a robust import network around them, but I can find other suppliers. I’ve already started making inroads with the Hayes, and there are others. The cartels, the Italians, the Russians.”

Pascal’s smile fades away as what I’m saying registers. “If you keep talking like that, I will pull my support from you.”

I laugh, bitter and rage-filled, and I know I’m making a mistake right now. Even if this was always my long-term play, this is absolutely not the time to do it, but I don’t care.

Brianne’s upstairs in bed with a concussion because of me.

Because I let this old bastard make decisions for me.

Never again.

“You’re done, Pascal. We’ll finish this fight, and then we’re through. Am I clear?”

“Julien,” Jean whispers, eyes wide with fright. “Think for a second.”

I shove my friend away with a snarl. “I’ve thought long and hard. You and I are through, old man. You are nothing.”

Pascal’s smirk comes back as I storm out of the room. “You’re a fool, boy. You’ll come crawling back. We both know you need me!”

Fuck him. I want to shove a rusty screwdriver into his eye socket and twist . The bastard doesn’t know what he’s talking about or what this city means.

Chicago is my home, not his, and from here on out, I’m calling the shots.

“Spread the word,” I say to Jean once he hurries to my side. We walk back up into the main house together. “Tell the men. Pascal’s troops can’t be trusted anymore. I want two of ours for every one of his in this house at all times. We’re in full-on civil war mode, do you hear me?”

“This is going to be bad,” Jean murmurs, shaking his head.

I grab my friend’s shoulder. “If we’re going to walk away from this fight in one piece, this is how it has to go down. Are you with me?” I squeeze tight, staring into his face. We’ve been scrapping, stealing, and getting into trouble together for a very long time, ever since before Pascal took me in, and Jean’s the only person I trust most in the world.

He nods once, looking fierce, just the way I knew he would.

“Good.” I squeeze again and release him. “Now, I’m going to be with my wife. Reach out to Ronan and tell him I want a meeting tomorrow.”

“I can do that.”

“We’re going to win this, brother.” I nod to him and turn away. “Just have faith.”