Chapter 18
Fendwyr
The reports on my desk painted a grim picture, one I thought would never happen. Three more lieutenants had disappeared overnight, taking significant portions of our operation with them. Motherfuckers.
That made twelve in total since Rodriguez's attack. Twelve trusted men who'd apparently never been trustworthy at all. Who else was with him and betraying me?
I rubbed my temples, fighting a headache. Gustall sat across from me, reviewing personnel files. We'd moved him from the secure room to our actual bedroom, though my instincts screamed to lock him away somewhere safer. But I had promised to try. To trust.
Somethings about me would never change, but I was aware of them now. I was going to do things differently this time.
"Jake's clean," Gustall said, setting aside another file. I trusted his judgment. "He's been approached by Rodriguez's people three times and refused each offer."
"How can you be sure?" The words came out harsher than intended. Old habits.
Despite trusting his judgment, I still needed to understand his thought process. There was no such thing as being too cautious.
Instead of flinching, Gustall met my gaze steadily. "Because unlike you, I actually talk to the staff. They trust me because I don't treat them like possessions."
That stung, but he wasn't wrong. I'd spent years building walls, maintaining distance, exerting control. I'd always thought that was the right way to lead, but now...
"Boss." David, one of my few remaining trusted men, entered without knocking. His face was pale. "You need to see this."
He handed me a tablet. A video was already playing—security footage from one of our warehouses. I recognized Elena, an omega who'd worked for me five years ago. I'd kept her confined to the compound when she'd tried to leave, claiming it was for her protection. She'd eventually escaped, but not before...
"Turn it off," I growled, but Gustall reached across the desk and took the tablet. I really didn't want him to see the footage, but it was too late for that now.
"No," he said firmly. "We need to see this."
The footage continued. Elena spoke directly to the camera, detailing everything I'd done. The control, the manipulation, the psychological torture disguised as protection. Rodriguez stood beside her, playing the role of sympathetic listener.
He loved what was happening. He relished the fact that he could get under my skin and make me look like a fool. But once I had him pinned beneath me, all of that would come to an end.
"He'll do it again," Elena's voice cracked. "He's doing it right now, to his own mate. Because he can't help himself. It's who he is."
I wanted to deny it, to rage against the accusation. But the evidence was right there—Gustall's recent confinement proved her words true. Dammit. I needed to be better.
"There's more," David said quietly. "Rodriguez has been showing these testimonials to our people for months. Elena, Elias, others... They all tell similar stories."
"And our people believed them," I concluded. The betrayals made sense now. My own reputation, my past actions, had given Rodriguez the perfect weapon against me.
"They believed them because they're true." Gustall's voice was gentle but firm. "They've seen how you treat omegas. How you treated me, but you can change and be better."
I stood abruptly, needing to move, to think. The walls of my office felt suffocating. "I was protecting—"
"Stop." Gustall's command surprised us both. "Stop hiding behind that excuse. You weren't protecting anyone. You were controlling us because you were afraid. That's what was really happening and you need to admit it."
"Afraid?" I turned on him, anger flaring. "I'm not—"
"Afraid of losing control. Afraid of being vulnerable. Afraid of actually trusting someone enough to love them properly." He stood too, one hand resting on his swollen belly. "And now that fear is destroying everything you've built."
David cleared his throat. "There's something else. The men who left... they're not just joining Rodriguez. They're helping him establish a new kind of organization. One where omegas have equal voice, equal power."
I laughed. "Equal power? In our world? It's impossible. That's not how it works anywhere."
"Why?" Gustall challenged. "Because you can't imagine giving up control? Because you think strength only comes from dominance?"
His words hit home, echoing what we'd learned about the necklace. True power came from trust freely given, not taken by force. I'd been doing everything wrong, for so long...
And despite learning what I did, I was still clinging to my old ways.
"What would you have me do?" I asked, and for the first time, it was a genuine question rather than a challenge.
Gustall approached me, taking my hand and placing it on his stomach. Our child kicked against my palm, showering me with a warm, fuzzy feeling.
"Start over," he said. "Not just with me, but with everything. Build something new, something better. Show them—show me—that you can change."
I looked at David, who nodded. He wanted to support me now, despite my past miscalculations.
"The men who've stayed... they're waiting to see what you'll do. If you'll be different than the alpha in those videos."
The empire I'd built through force and fear was crumbling. Rodriguez had found its weakness—not in our defenses or our operations, but in my own past, my own failures. He'd shown my people a truth I'd refused to see.
"It won't be easy," I warned, though I wasn't sure if I was talking to Gustall or myself. Maybe more to myself than him.
"Nothing worth having ever is," he replied, squeezing my hand. "But this time, you don't have to do it alone."
I looked down at the tablet, at Elena's tear-stained face frozen on the screen. How many others had I hurt while claiming to protect them? How much damage had my fear caused?
"David," I said after careful ponderation, "call a meeting. Everyone who's left. It's time they heard the truth from me."
It was time to start dismantling the walls I'd built. Time to learn a different kind of strength.
Time to become someone worthy of the trust Gustall was offering.
◆◆◆
The meeting room felt smaller than usual, though maybe that was because of the tension filling it. My remaining men—the loyal ones, or at least the ones who hadn't left yet—sat around the long table, their faces telling me everything I needed to know about how they felt. Gustall sat beside me, his presence both comforting and challenging. This wasn't going to be easy. I never thought it was going to be, so I was already prepared.
"I'm dismantling the cartel," I announced without preamble. The words felt foreign on my tongue, but they needed to be said. I needed to be direct with them. It was the only way they would respect me.
The reaction was immediate. Shouts of protest, demands for explanation. I never thought it would be different.
I let them vent for a moment, remembering my uncle in a similar situation years ago. He'd chosen differently, had clung to power until it destroyed everything else in his life. I'd found him dead in his study, alone, with a bottle of whiskey and a gun. No one had even noticed he was gone for three days.
I wouldn't end up like that. I refused to.
"Boss, you can't be serious," Jake spoke up first. "The cartel is everything we have. It's all we know."
"It's all we've allowed ourselves to know," I corrected, feeling Gustall's hand squeeze mine under the table. "But it doesn't have to stay that way, and I know you can agree with me."
"This is about the omega, isn't it?" Someone muttered. "He's making you soft."
I stood slowly, letting my dominance fill the room. Some things hadn't changed—I was still their alpha and still commanded respect. "Watch your tone when speaking about my mate."
The room fell silent. Gustall's presence beside me felt stronger somehow, more assured.
"My uncle," I continued, "chose the cartel over everything else. Over love, over family, over life itself. He died alone, and no one cared." I paused, letting that sink in. "I won't make the same mistake."
"But Rodriguez—" Jake started.
"Will be dealt with," I cut him off. "The necklace, the territory disputes, all of it. But on my terms, in my way."
"And what way is that?" Another voice challenged.
"With minimal bloodshed," I replied, surprising them. "With strategy rather than force. And I'll be handling it personally."
Gustall tensed beside me, but didn't protest. The trust in his eyes when I glanced at him made something warm unfurl in my chest. His presence was comforting. I couldn't be doing this without him.
"You're all free to go," I continued. "Take whatever severance you need to start over. Those who want to stay can help rebuild something legitimate. Something better."
"Better?" Jake scoffed. "What's better than our cartel? This is like a family to me."
"Being alive," Gustall spoke up, his voice clear and strong. "Being free to love, to have families, to walk in the sun without looking over your shoulders."
I watched their faces as his words sank in. Some looked thoughtful, others resistant. Change was never easy, especially for men who'd known nothing but this life.
"The boss I knew wouldn't talk like this," someone said. "Wouldn't give up everything we've built."
"The boss you knew was wrong," I replied right away. "About many things, in fact." I looked at each of them in turn. "I'm not asking you to understand. I'm giving you a choice—something I haven't been very good at doing before."
"And Rodriguez?" Jake pressed. "You really think you can handle him alone?"
"I know I can do it," I answered, looking at Gustall. "With my mate, I know I can. The necklace's power comes from trust and partnership, not control. It's time I proved I understand that."
The room fell silent again, but this time it was different. Contemplative rather than hostile.
"You're really doing this," Jake said finally. "Throwing everything away for... what? Love?"
"For my family," I corrected. "For a future that doesn't end in a lonely death. For the chance to be something more than just another crime lord who died for his pride. Even if you don't understand now, you will soon."
Gustall stood then, his pregnancy making the movement graceful rather than awkward. "Anyone who stays will be part of building something new. Something their own children can be proud of."
I watched as his words hit home, especially with the men who had families of their own. The ones who understood what I was finally beginning to learn.
"Take twenty-four hours," I told them. "Think about what you want your future to look like. Those who choose to leave will be taken care of. Those who stay..." I smiled slightly. "Well, we have work to do."
As they filed out, discussing among themselves, Gustall turned to me. "You're really going after Rodriguez alone?"
"It's the only way," I murmured. "To prove to myself, to everyone, that I can handle things differently. That I can be different."
"I trust you," he said, and the words meant more than any declaration of love. "Just... come back to us."
I pulled him close, feeling our child move between us. "I'm not my uncle," I promised. "I choose family. I choose you. Both of you. So, you can be damn sure I'm going to come back."
"I look at you and see you're telling me the truth. I know you're going to be back," he whispered.
Holding him with my eyes, feeling our child kick against my hand, I knew I'd made the right choice. The cartel, the power, the control—none of it meant anything compared to this. Compared to them.
Rodriguez and the necklace could wait until tomorrow. Tonight was for holding my mate, for feeling our child move, for knowing that, unlike my uncle, I wouldn't die alone.
I'd chosen differently. Chosen better.
And for the first time in my life, I wasn't afraid of the future.