Chapter 43
C H A P T E R
NIKOS SIGHED AS HE STEPPED OUT OF THE CAR, SLAMMING THE DOOR BEHIND HIM.
He used his hand as a shield against the sun that beamed down on him this sunny afternoon.
He walked over to his uncle, who stood along with thirty of his men, waiting outside of his enemy’s home.
Melvin Cook had made the wrong choice in not paying Antonis once he returned to commission, even going as far as to shoot at Antonis’s men when they came to collect, which was an act of war in itself.
They now stood outside of the storage center they had been tipped off about, ready to end Melvin and collect the debt that was owed.
But Nikos had to admit he was surprised to see his uncle here.
Though it had been a month since his return, he was still recovering and still walked around with a cane.
Although he did not walk around as haggardly as he had before as though he was one step away from falling on the ground, he still wasn’t fully back to health.
“You know, you could have left it to me or Christos,” Nikos told Antonis. “That’s what you have men for.”
Most people would take their time to recover after being shot multiple times, but it seemed his uncle was on edge and felt the need to prove himself, even by doing things that he wouldn’t normally do.
Melvin Cook was no Ricardo, and his uncle usually didn’t lead in these events and left it to his men to handle.
The one time he had gone to be the person to put a bullet in his enemy, it resulted in him being in a coma for months. Nikos was certain that it was something Antonis probably regretted now.
“This is nothing,” Antonis said, tapping his cane against the pavement. “I have survived plenty of bullets with your father before when I was younger. My enemies thought this could stop me, but no one could. No one can stop me from what I want.”
Nikos arched a brow, feeling there was something hidden in those words, but he decided to make no mention of it, knowing fully well that he was on his uncle’s enemy list now. Although, he wondered if he was on it after his uncle came out of his coma or before. It was hard to tell.
“It’s clear,” Christos said as he walked over to them. “He’s in that building and the rest of his crew is in the warehouse.”
Antonis nodded before he clacked his cane against the pavement twice, gathering the attention of every man there as he turned to speak to them all.
“You know the drill. All of you go in there. Shoot first and ask no questions later. Anyone in that warehouse is an enemy of mine. Destroy everything and anything valuable you find, bring it to me.”
Everyone nodded, heading to the warehouse with their weapons in hand, and Nikos and Christos followed, knowing that it was their job to lead the charge.
“Not you, Nikos. You’re coming with me,” Antonis said as he stayed behind with Roberto, Georgios, and six other men.
It looked like there were more than enough of them to handle Melvin, who probably had no more than five other men with him, but Nikos didn’t question it. He wasn’t in the position to.
Christos, who had been walking to the warehouse, also paused in his steps, a question in his gaze. Nikos nodded, and Christos hesitated before he continued forward.
“Theo,” Nikos called. His cousin jogged back to them. “Come with me and leave it to Christos. He can handle it.”
“You’re sure?” Theo asked, and Nikos nodded.
If Antonis had a problem with Theo coming along, he made no mention of it as they headed inside the building.
As they did, Nikos pulled out the necklace beneath his shirt that Honey had given him, kissing the Jesus piece as she always did before she performed.
He tucked it back beneath his shirt as he pulled his gun out from behind his waistband.
It was as Christos had reported, and Melvin Cook was in the warehouse with three other men.
Melvin barely had the time to register their presence before he was shot down along with his men.
It was anti-climactic, but it was as Nikos had expected.
Melvin Cook was no Ricardo and did not have nearly enough resources or men to have gone against Antonis or anyone in their brotherhood, for that matter.
“Is everywhere clear?” Antonis asked as Roberto came back into the room, and Roberto nodded. Nikos stepped to the side and pulled out his phone, seeing that he had received a text from Honey. When he opened it, he smiled, seeing a photo of Kai wearing a Captain America costume.
The real Cap will be coming back to you soon, Nikos texted back with a grin, thinking to himself that he couldn’t wait to get back home to them, so he could eat Honey’s amazing food, and play a game with Kai before he spent the night with Honey in his arms.
Nikos put his phone back in his pocket, laughing to himself when he imagined the eye roll Honey would make when she received his text. He turned around ready to ask if everything was wrapped up, but to his surprise, his uncle pointed a gun at him instead.
“I thought you already killed your enemy,” Nikos joked mildly, wishing that he hadn’t already slipped his gun back into his pants.
“The only enemy of mine is you,” Antonis said and nodded to his men. “Beat him.”
Nikos barely had a chance to move before the first punch was thrown, and immediately he threw one back and another and another, knocking the closest one to the ground, but also leaving himself open to take a jab in the gut.
Growing up as the younger brother of two older brothers made it so that he had to know how to fight.
But there was a difference between fighting a few men versus fighting six and it wasn’t long before Nikos found himself on the ground, getting kicked and stomped down by six grown men.
“Uncle, stop this. You can’t do this! They’re killing him!” Nikos heard Theo yell.
“Shut up, Theo.”
“But Uncle—”
“Shut up before I do the same to you,” Antonis snapped.
“Fuck!” Theo yelled, but that was the last Nikos heard of his cousin as he lay on the floor getting beaten.
It felt like it was going on for an eternity, and Nikos wondered if his uncle really planned on having him beaten to death until finally, it was over.
Nikos lay on the ground, barely able to move.
It felt like his rib had been cracked open, and the only thing he could do was cough up blood.
Nikos chuckled.
Fuck his life. Only he would get beaten for falling for a beautiful woman. Clearly, it was his destiny.
“I don’t care if you’re the son of someone who is like a brother to me. You shouldn’t have touched what’s mine,” Antonis said as he looked down on him.
“Nikos would never, uncle! Tell him, Nikos,” Theo exclaimed, looking to Nikos for help, but when their eyes connected, Theo stared at him for a moment in disbelief before he closed his eyes.
“How did you find out?” Nikos asked curiously.
He thought he had been doing a good job of keeping his relationship a secret from everyone.
He had made sure to lose the men that his uncle had tailing him every night.
He also knew that Christos wouldn’t have said anything to Antonis because he was loyal and was his friend.
“One of your girlfriends told me,” Antonis said frowning, and instantly, Nikos knew it was Rheagan.
Besides Christos, she was the only other person at the club who had suspected he had a deeper relationship with Honey.
Plus, she was an impulsive brat and probably wanted to take revenge on him, and even though Nikos lay on the ground right now feeling closer to death than he had ever before, he couldn’t blame her.
If he hadn’t used her as a tool for revenge, she wouldn’t be all alone now without her family. She thought he would be that for her when he never had any intention of doing so. His karma was finally catching up to him as Antonis cocked his gun at him.
Theo looked like he wanted to do something, his eyes flickering back and forth between them both, but when Nikos caught his eye again, he shook his head.
He didn’t want his cousin to get caught up in this.
He knew that right now his uncle was capable of doing anything, and that threat he had given Theo earlier was just that— a promise to act on if Theo got in his way.
“You made a mistake touching what’s mine,” Antonis said, and Nikos chuckled, even if it made more blood spill from his mouth.
“You’re crazy,” Nikos said. “Even if I’m dead, Honey will never want you.”
And Antonis knew that.
Honey was disgusted by him and hated everything about him.
She would never be with Antonis, never see him, never want him, never love him.
It didn’t matter how much wealth and power Antonis possessed.
Honey would never want him, and everyone in this room knew that as they watched the exchange with unease.
After all, this wasn’t just some random man that Antonis was punishing for looking at Honey the wrong way.
It was Giannis Drakos’s son. Nikos must admit that his uncle was crazier than he thought to try something like this.
“She’ll have me, whether she wants me or not,” Antonis said before he pulled the trigger.
The first bullet hit him in his chest, knocking the wind out of him, and Nikos felt that he couldn’t breathe.
The second bullet pierced him in the leg, causing his body to jerk, and a third bullet hit him in his stomach.
As Nikos lay in excruciating pain, he wondered how many more bullets his uncle would put in him.
Wasn’t it enough that he was already killing him with three?
But Antonis looked murderous, like after having him beaten to near death and shot three times just simply wasn’t enough for having his woman.
He was ready to pull the trigger again until one of his men barreled into the room.
“They’re finishing up over there now, and they’re getting ready to come over here.”
Nikos realized then what his uncle’s plan was and why he was being so bold to kill him like this.
His uncle had planned this raid against Melvin Cook to make it seem like their enemy had killed him.
All of the men here, besides Theo, had pledged their allegiance to Antonis.
None of them would speak a word about what truly happened here, and none of the men that Nikos had on his side would know or have proof that he hadn’t been shot to death by the enemy.
It was a smart move, one that he hadn’t anticipated because if he had, he would have come more prepared. He was already regretting not being smart enough to have seen through this. He felt like the world was spinning off its axis and no matter how much he tried to blink, his mind would not focus.
He knew he had been playing with fire the moment he started his relationship with Honey, and now he was burnt.
Nikos felt consciousness slip away from him as he blearily saw his uncle stand over him and snatch Honey’s necklace off his neck. Nikos watched as his uncle pulled out his phone and could hear him speaking in Greek. He heard the words sorry, son, dead, and thought he heard his father’s voice.
“What about his body?” someone asked.
“Throw him in the ocean,” Antonis said scornfully.
It was the last thing Nikos heard before everything faded away.