Chapter 8 Florian #2
He doesn’t like me to mention the deal we made.
He doesn’t like to admit he needed his bastard’s help.
My little brother owed ungodly amounts of money due to his drug habit, but Olan wanted to save face.
He didn’t want the other families catching wind of a Larsson being addicted to drugs, although I’m sure everyone already knew.
So, he asked if I would pay my brother’s debts because even though I held the Larsson name, no one at the time knew I was his son.
And if they did, they didn’t speak of it because he threatens anyone who questions who I am.
He believed he was using me, but I saw it as my opening to take him down, and I took it. He put Larsson Industries on the line, and now I own it while Olan’s precious image remains intact.
I don’t mind helping my youngest brother.
In fact, I would have done it for free. Out of all my family, Didrick’s the only one I will ever help, but Olan presented me with an opportunity I couldn’t refuse.
I saw it as my chance to destroy my father.
I saw it as a chance for all of us to be free of him.
“You ungrateful little shit!” He takes a step forward, but Asva and Alrick grab him by the arms. “This is my company!” He struggles against their hold. “We are supposed to be a fucking family, and you stole it from me!”
Family?
“Let him go.” I wave my hand dismissively, and Alrick glares at me.
“There’s nothing he can do to me,” I assure both Asva and Alrick.
When they release him, I tilt my head, smiling at my old man as he smooths non-existent wrinkles from his expensive Armani suit.
“I haven’t stolen shit from you, Olan. If you would’ve paid your debt like everyone else who comes to me with their fucking hand out, you’d be in a different position. ”
“You tricked me!” He points his finger at me. “And you know it.”
I smile, and he narrows his eyes at me. “Tricked would not be the term I would use, Olan. No one tricked you. You knew exactly the terms of my deal before you agreed to it.”
He isn’t as smart as he thinks, and as a businessman, you should always read the fine print.
Olan didn’t. He automatically assumed I’ll do anything for him, that I crave any kind of attention he’s willing to give me.
Maybe when I was a kid, but I haven’t wanted his attention for years.
I only want what is owed to me as his firstborn son.
The Larsson empire. I want it all, including his life.
When I was old enough to learn that he was nothing more than a money-grubbing bastard who couldn’t care less that I have his blood running through my veins, everything changed for me. That knowledge stripped me of any hope he’d be the father I need and deserve.
He made it clear I wasn’t his son, and that’s when I knew I had to do things my way.
Getting close to Olan and pretending to beg for whatever scraps of attention he’d give me, was the easiest part of my plan to oust him from his company and claim my place on the Larsson throne from the age of sixteen.
Every day, I groveled for whatever scraps he was willing to give me, inching my way closer to my goal. After I did the dirty work for him with the Larsson Syndicate, gaining the trust of some of his soldiers, I took it, along with Larsson Industries. Everything he cares for is now mine.
I wouldn’t change anything I’ve done to get to where I am today, and Olan got everything he deserves.
He left my mother with nothing because, to him, she was only good enough to be his whore.
Even though he had no interest in her or me, Olan mistreated her and prevented her from moving on to a better life.
After she took her life when I turned eighteen, he refused to acknowledge who she was to him.
I stood alone as they lowered her white casket into the ground, the only one who mourned her death and shed tears that mixed with the cold Swedish snow as I said goodbye.
I’ll never be able to forget that day, a day which fuels my anger today.
The day the loving, caring boy turned into Beast.
Just as he took the most precious thing in my life away from me, I took the most precious thing to him. Although she pulled the trigger, he’s fully responsible for her death. If it’s the last thing I do, I’ll be the cause of his.
“Olan, you and your friends aren’t exempt from the rules.
” I try to rub away the building tension in my forehead.
This conversation is wearing my patience thin, and when it comes to him, I already have very little tolerance.
“Everything I do is legitimate and legally binding. Arthur knew the terms when he took my money, and so did you. If you were so concerned about Arthur’s predicament, why didn’t you put up the money to help him?
Why don’t you put up the money now so he can keep his business, and life can go on as it should? ” I ask, although I know the answer.
Olan doesn’t help anyone who isn’t a Larsson. Well, except for me, the Larsson bastard. The one who is a perfect likeness of him.
Arthur and Olan have been friends for decades, but that doesn’t matter to him. Arthur isn’t his blood. So, Arthur came to me for help like so many others.
When Olan doesn’t reply, I shake my head.
Every shred of empathy for him was wiped away a long time ago.
His threats and pleas for people who don’t deserve them are useless.
He didn’t listen to hers. Why should I help anyone because he asks?
He refused to help the one person I needed in my life, so now, I will repay the favor.
My mother, Freja Ek, begged for our freedom.
She pleaded for him to let us go so she could find someone who would love her and me in return.
But he refused and threatened to kill us both if she ever found another man to be her husband and my father.
To him, we were his property even when he didn’t claim us. Even if he didn’t want either of us.
He stripped her of everything she ever knew.
He forbade her from seeing her family or having friends.
She couldn’t come and go without his permission or without a guard who was supposed to report her every move to him.
So, she became isolated from everything and everyone she loved.
With my birth, the restrictions became worse.
She was his prisoner until she took her own life.
The only way to escape him.
Now, I refuse to do anything he asks of me.
He doesn’t deserve my help nor my mercy, and nothing will change the outcome for Arthur Williamson.
I gave him my hard-earned money in exchange for him signing the contract.
Unless he pays me with interest in the next few minutes, I will own Williamson Holdings.
“Your day is coming.” Olan points his gnarled, trembling finger at me, spit flying from his mouth. “And I pray I’m alive to see it.”
“But you won’t be, Olan,” I respond calmly. “If I have anything to say about it, when my time comes, you won’t be alive to see any of it.”
“Is that a threat, boy?” He narrows his ice-blue eyes at me, the same color eyes I stare at each morning in the mirror with disdain. “You would dare threaten your own father?”
“See, this is where you and I differ.” I take a sip of whiskey, enjoying the burn as it slides down my throat, the heat calming the rage boiling in my gut. “I never threaten anyone. I only make promises.”
His face pales.
“Now do you understand, Olan?”
The beast he’s created always lurks just beneath the surface, and now, he sees him clearly. Now, he sees that the threat is real.
“You wouldn’t dare.” The tremble in his voice and fear in his eyes say he knows otherwise. He knows the truth. I mean every word. His time in this life is coming to an end sooner rather than later. “I’m your fucking father!”
“Of course, I would, Far.”
Father.
“You son of a whore!” he shouts. “You can go straight to hell, Florian.”
“You first, daddy dearest.” I wink, and his features darken.
Olan has no idea the destruction I can cause, but he will soon enough.
“Asva will see you out. Oh, and Olan, before you go…” He glares at me.
I’ve never seen so much hatred in his eyes.
“Make sure you stay away this time.” I shuffle the papers on my desk to keep my hands occupied.
Now isn’t the time to kill him, I remind myself. “We have nothing more to discuss.”
“You bastard!” he seethes. “I tried to get your bitch of a mother to get rid of you. I wish I’d done it myself. Put you in the same goddamn hole with her and be done with the both of you. You’re no son of mine.”
My jaw tics.
I can’t kill him now. Stay calm.
I regain my composure. I won’t let him see that he’s gotten under my skin. “You’re right, Olan. I’m definitely no son of yours. That’s the most coherent thing you’ve said in a long time.” I wave my hand. “Asva, escort him out, now. There’s nothing more for us to discuss.”
“This isn’t over, Florian!” Asva grabs Olan by the arm, pulling him toward the door. “This isn’t over!”
Despite the yelling, I try my best to ignore him. It’s not finished yet because I’m not ready for it to be over. Justice for my mother hasn’t been served yet.
Once the door slams shut, my focus shifts to Alrick.
His eyes, a frosty shade of blue, grow narrower.
His features always show concern following a visit from my father.
I understand why. Despite his diminishing power and fragile look, Olan Larsson is an extremely dangerous man.
Alrick thinks I’m reckless and that I don’t take necessary precautions, but I never underestimate him.
“Everything will be fine, Alrick.” I sift through the stacks of papers on my desk, looking for a copy of Arthur’s contract among the many others. “You worry entirely too much.”
“And you don’t worry enough, Odjur!”
Beast.
When I look up at him, he sighs. I lean back in my chair, giving him my full attention.
Alrick is the most vocal of the twins. Although I’m sure Asva has concerns, he keeps them to himself.
While they are my employees, I look at them both as brothers, but Asva understands that, as a leader, I make all the decisions.
Alrick doesn’t care that I’m the leader; he speaks his mind. And that keeps me grounded.
“You know he has men who are still loyal to him,” he continues. “I don’t understand why you’re waiting to take him out. It’ll take too long to weed out the ones who aren’t loyal to you before Olan strikes. You need to strike him first.”
He doesn’t even flinch when I slam my palm down on the top of my desk. “Because he hasn’t suffered enough! He will suffer until he is left with absolutely nothing. Until he grovels and begs for my mercy!”
He sighs. “But it’s not smart to keep him alive, Florian. You are letting your need for revenge cloud your judgment. He’ll gather the others together to go against you soon if it’s not already happening.”
While he might be right, I won’t alter my plan. I need to do this my way.
“I appreciate the concern, Alrick. I really do, but you’re overstepping.” I take a calming breath and remind myself that Alrick is only looking out for me. “I will handle Olan as I see fit. Let it go.”
My plans for Olan are not open for discussion. It has been brewing for as long as I can remember, and nothing will sway my determination on the execution and timing.
Alrick wants to say more, but whatever it is will be in vain, and he knows it. The decision on what to do with my father was decided a long time ago. He’ll die on my terms.
“I’m only trying to look out for you, Florian, as your friend. As your brother.”
“I know, and it’s the only reason I allow you to speak your mind. It’s the only reason I haven’t slit your throat.”
He huffs, rolling his eyes, even though he knows I’m telling the truth.
Alrick doesn’t understand the depth of my hate for my father.
No one understands what he has put me through.
The suffering he caused my mother when she was alive.
The torment. The violence. He deserves no mercy and will get none from me.
I glance at my watch. It’s ten minutes after the time Arthur’s loan was due, and it looks like he’s making no effort to handle his debt.
“Enough about my father. Go pick up Arthur Williamson and bring him to me.”