Page 18 of Merciless Obsession

His jaw ticked. “So what? You want me to live in solitude for the rest of my life?”

I smirked. “Would you rather live in solitude right now or behind bars for twenty years?”

Defiance bled from his eyes. In reality people like Felix entertained me, they thought they knew everything and couldn’t be touched. While I would do my job and make sure they got off or the minimum sentence offered, I always enjoyed knocking them down a peg or two. They didn’t call me “The Shark” in the courtroom for no reason. I’d been bred and groomed to be the best lawyer in the city. My services didn’t come cheap and my clients weren’t low budget petty crimes. People came to me because they knew I would do whatever I needed to make things happen. Because of my family, mainly my father, there were a lot of connections built which I used shamelessly. People like Felix, however, I had to play it smart. I would do everything in my power to defend him, but I wouldn’t use resources that could later come in handy with other cases for someone who would burn them before the trial was even over.

____

Me and my brothers—minus Lucas because he was called into emergency surgery last minute—our dad, and Cashlynn sat around the table at the house in front of The Barn. A few days had passed since my brothers came to my house to talk with Ziora.

“Are you gonna tell me what I’m doing here, hijo?” Dad asked, his eyes circling the table before going back to Nazai and stopping.

“Yeah.” Nazai sat up in his chair. “Recently we received some news that we know is bogus but still I would like clarity on what exactly happened.”

Dad’s face gave away nothing. With all his years in the courtroom, he had mastered the ultimate poker face.

“Go on.” Dad nodded calmly.

Nazai turned to Emmet and nodded. Emmet hit some keys on his computer and soon pictures popped up on the large screen on the wall in front of the table. The Barn was used for more than just keeping people captive and disposing of them. The family often met here when we had jobs that required all hands on deck or when something serious needed to be discussed.

“Do you remember this guy?” Nazai asked.

Dad’s eyes flickered to the screen, still his face gave away nothing.

“Or this girl?” Ziora’s sister’s face popped up on the screen next to the guy accused of her kidnapping and murder.

Dad studied the screen. “Should I?”

Nazai turned and glanced at the screen then cleared his throat. “The girl’s name is Charlie. She was thirteen when she was kidnapped, sexually assaulted, and murdered. The guy is the man charged with all that. You were the judge on the case and his case was deemed a mistrial. Before he could be recharged he was found dead. Allegedly it was suicide.”

Next, documents popped on the screen. “Ziora, who runsShadow of Silver Stone, is the older sister of Charlie. She believes you were paid off to dismiss the case. Which we all know is bullshit. We clean up trash like this, not defend them.”

Dad’s brows furrowed as he read the police report on screen before relaxing. “I remember this case,” he finally mentioned. “The guy was obviously involved with someone bigger and hiding something, but the cops who handled the case were sloppy. Evidence was misplaced and mishandled; it was a real shit show.” Dad leaned back and crossed his arms across his chest.

One reason I always looked up to my father was because of his ability to always keep a cool head. He was brutal when he needed to be, firm, and confident. Many knew not to cross him because he was also an unforgiving man. The impact he made in the courtroom from his days defending criminals to putting them away is phenomenal. Nazai, while groomed to become the head of The Bloodline, never had an interest in law. But me? I wanted to be just like Dad. Being a judge didn’t appeal to me, but I understand he did it to further the connections of the family and protect what we did.

“This Ziora girl, what exactly does she think I covered up?”

Nazai rubbed his jaw. “A child trafficking ring. From what she told us, the stream of unsolved kidnappings of young teenage girls is bigger than what’s being reported.”

“You didn’t tell me that.” Cashlynn spoke up, setting her glass of apple juice down and glaring at my brother.

“Not now, Cashlynn,” he said.

“Yes now, Nazai! Why didn’t you mention this to me?” Her nostrils flared and her eyes flashed.

I chuckled lowly. My sister-in-law gave my brother a run for his money and since becoming pregnant it seemed her temper had gotten worse. She didn’t back down like most when the twosquared off or disagreed. It always kept me entertained when I was present.

“What difference does it make, Wildfire?” I could tell Nazai was attempting to keep his cool. It was comical seeing him practice patience. He didn’t like to be challenged or defied. That was one reason he and my dad butted heads so much.

“Did you forget who my parents were and what they were involved in? They tried to even sell my brother into that shit!”

Nazai narrowed his eyes at his wife. “Your brother is a boy, these people seemingly target teenage girls.”

“Doesn’t matter! My parents still were involved in shit like that! You should have told me.” Cashlynn pushed her chair back and shot up before storming away and snatching open the door to the room.

I laughed. “Sis-in-law gon’ fuck you up, big bro. You better be on guard when you get home.” Nazai shot me a look.

“You need to get her under control. She’s too emotional and that can lead to mistakes,” Dad mentioned.