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183|Game Changer
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Beautiful Disaster 184|Plan C—Part 1
"Shit! Shit! Shit!" Austin whispered.He was prepared for a blood bath…To kill and possibly be killed tonight. He was even expecting some resistance from Friar John and his associates.But this little human?Austin wasn't ready for him, and he could only stare at him in horror as his mind raced, trying to come up with Plan C because Plan B—wiping out everyone in their path—was pretty much a no-go now."What do we do?" asked Tim, echoing Austin's thoughts as they watched the boy.He was roughly Orlando's age, about six, maybe seven, and something about the way he sat so still, his eyes fixated on his puzzle despite all the chaos around him, troubled Austin deeply."What's wrong with him?" Angelo asked in the background as he and Tim carefully moved through the room, sussing out possible danger.But after a few minutes and no one had come running in guns blazing, it became apparent to Austin and his men that they were alone.Friar John and his accomplices had to be nearby, though. After
Beautiful Disaster 185|Plan C—Part 2
"кум," Friar John stammered as he moved away from the table.He quickly bowed at Austin, gesturing at his accomplices to do the same."Please don't!" Austin waved them off as he dumped his bag on the concrete floor, pulled one of the metal chairs away from the table and sat down. "Don't insult me by pretending to respect me, John!""кум, it's not what you think," Friar John said, running quickly to Austin's side, but Angelo stopped him as he pointed his gun at his chest."Back the fuck up!" he growled, cocking his pistol when Friar John attempted to take another step forward."Listen, this is all a huge misunderstanding," said Friar John, holding out his hands pleadingly."A misunderstanding, you say?" Austin murmured, tapping his index finger on his cheek while he ran his gaze through the room. His eyes lit up when they fell on three familiar faces—Nadia and her two youngest sons. The oldest, Josef, was nowhere to be found. Austin could only assume he was still out of commission after
Beautiful Disaster 186|Blood Will Have Blood
"Why did you do it?""I don't know what you're talking about!" Friar John kept up with the lie, which only infuriated Austin.Before his capos or handlers could stop him, he squeezed the trigger, the bullet whistling out of the chamber as loud as Friar John's howls when it ripped into his thigh, sending him crumpling to the floor.Martha, clearly not used to the violence and carnage, couldn't control the blood-curdling scream tearing through her lips."Shut the fuck up if you don't want to join him," Angelo warned her as he pushed her to the corner, where Nadia and her sons were huddled in terror."Now, let's do this again, shall we?" Austin said as he motioned at Arno and Benji to drag Friar John to the other free chair in the room.The whole time they carried him to the table, the third most powerful man in the Hawthorne family screamed like a little bitch as he clutched his thigh, and Austin was so tempted to finish him off then and there. But he still needed answers. And the consig
Beautiful Disaster 187|Path Of No Return—Part 1
They all dispersed and returned to the barn after the Van Staden boys had finished burying Friar John. Austin, though, hung back at the burial site for a few minutes, staring morosely at the consigliere's grave, his heart splintering into a million little pieces when he realised the man would never have a headstone or even a homemade cross to mark his final resting place.Austin knew he was going to die someday. Maybe even sooner than he'd prefer. After all, nothing was as certain as death. But when it was his time, he hoped he'd have something a little fancier than an unmarked grave, and he prayed Marybeth would visit him from time to time and place flowers on his grave.The mere thought of his wife filled Austin with a yearning so intense he didn't realise he'd pulled out his phone and called her until he heard her groggy greeting, "Hello?""Were you sleeping?" he asked, stuffing his free hand in his pocket as he gazed at the crescent moon looming bright and proud in the night sky."
Beautiful Disaster 188|Path Of No Return—Part 2
"We'll need funding," said Angelo. He'd clearly decided to join Austin on his new venture."We'll need a shit ton of funding!" he repeated, puffing hard on his cigarette."I'm working on it," Austin replied. "But in the meantime, I need you to assemble a crew of share traders. Get me the best in the business.""It will cost you," Angelo warned him."I know, and I'm prepared to give them my inheritance if necessary.""This is crazy!" said Tim as he began pacing. "This is insane. Uncle Lukas raised me. He took me in when I didn't have anyone."Austin had figured Tim would be much harder to convince than Angelo. Not only because they were blood relatives. But his cousin also felt profound gratitude towards Lukas for raising him like his own when his parents were killed. So going against the Hawthorne patriarch was the ultimate betrayal in Tim's eyes.Austin finished his cigarette and addressed his right-hand man, "I'm not asking you to come with me. But when I'm done with my father, there
Beautiful Disaster 189|Set The Cat Among The Pigeons
"Thank God! Thank you, Jesus! You finally know the truth!" Anna was the first to unravel as she rushed from her seat and threw herself at Austin's feet, begging for mercy, to her husband's horror and disapproval."Anna! What the hell are you doing? Get up right this minute!" Willem bellowed at her, but she rounded on him with something Austin could only describe as resentment burning in her eyes."I warned you nothing stays hidden forever! We should have told him from the start when my baby asked for our help! If we'd listened to her, she'd be here today!" Anna ranted at Willem, tears trickling down her cheeks and vanishing into the creases of her wrinkly neck."We agreed—" Willem tried to split the blame evenly between them, but it was clear Anna was exhausted. Not just from the lies but also from the weight of their secret and all the guilt-tripping he'd put her through."I didn't agree to anything! It was you and Lukas!" she screamed, not holding back as she took her husband down me
Beautiful Disaster 190|Set The Cat Among The Pigeons—Part 2
'Devastated' didn't even begin to describe Willem's demeanour as he sat there, processing Austin's announcement. Every emotion under the sun flitted across his face until he finally crumpled in defeat.He held his head in his hands, silently denying what he'd perhaps long suspected but refused to acknowledge, "No! Not Jaco!""Yes, your golden-haired boy may have had a hand in your daughter's death," Austin said, unable to bring himself to feel sorry for the man. "Like you, I didn't want to believe it at first. I mean, they were cousins. But after reading Iris' journal and learning how deep their hatred ran… I've got to admit, where I'm sitting, Jaco's looking good for the job."Still in denial, Willem rose from his seat and paced the length of his den, growling at Austin, "Are you out of your mind? Jaco is family. He loved Iris. He was devastated when she died. He grieved for her!""Did he? Did he really grieve for her?" Austin murmured, steepling his fingers."Of course he did! He eve
Beautiful Disaster 191|His Home
Halfway through the flight, Anna, sitting directly behind Austin, nudged him awake."What is it, Anna?" he growled, annoyed that she'd interrupted his nap."I called around, but all the hotels in Pelican Surf are fully booked because of some conference or event. I can't remember what the booking clerks said—""Get to the point!" Austin said, pinching his nose."I was wondering, would it be possible to stay with you tonight?"Austin turned around, sorely tempted to tell her to make other plans. But as much as he despised her, she was still Orlando's grandmother, and he wasn't a heartless son of a bitch. Not all the time, at least. So he agreed to let her crash at his place, to the surprise of his capos and handlers."You can stay for as long as you want," he told her, settling back in his seat again.Thankfully, the rest of the flight passed by in silence. The ride to the penthouse, too, was just as quiet. They didn't have much to discuss outside their bond, born from their shared grief
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