Page 16

F uck . When I received the call that Benjamin almost died at Tennant’s hands, I was not expecting to walk in on Lio going crazy. I suppose I should have. After all, Benjamin has been claimed by Lio—and I thought, vice versa.

The two of them are sitting in the limo, silent. Lio refuses to look at Benjamin, who appears to be trying to find a way to reach out to his best friend. Good luck to him on that. Offering yourself up to a psychopath? Yeah, that's not going to go down well in Lio’s books. And I do not want to know how Ignacio will handle this.

To be honest, I feel for Ignacio. I know how much he loves Benjamin. Did he fuck up? Yeah. But that doesn’t turn his love off. He thought he was doing the right thing, and fuck knows, I’m not sure how I would have reacted if Marcus had been the one kidnapped and tortured. It’s bad enough with how Marcus’s daughter died. He still wakes up in the middle of the night, needing reassurance.

When the limo rolls to a stop, I get out first, before almost dragging the other two out with me. I barely acknowledge the guards as I push the two troublemakers into the house.

Fuck , Cole’s teenage years are going to be easy compared to this. This is giving me experience as a father. At least that’s what it feels like with these two.

Lio tries to pull out of my grip, but I refuse to let him. Thankfully, none of the other Boys are around at this hour. “Nope. We’re going to the study. You will both be talking this shit out. We cannot afford to be divided when we’re under attack.”

“Fuck,” Lio mutters, but stops trying to get away. Instead, he walks with his head held high, pretending this isn’t a problem. Considering what I walked in on, I call bullshit.

Benjamin doesn’t say a word, which could be because his throat is hurting. I’ll need to call for ice chips. Sighing, I push them into the study and make the call for those and some coffee for Lio. Maybe that’ll help him.

The oppressive silence continues, and thankfully, the maid shows up quickly with what I requested. Thrusting the respective cups into their hands, I sigh.

“Will the both of you sit the fuck down? You’re both acting like children. I already have one child, I do not need two more. Especially when you're supposed to be our Boss and Second. We just lost all of the dignity we had in front of the Amatos.”

They shuffle into opposite seats and I’m ready to lock them in here and throw away the key. Benjamin speaks up and decides to make things so much worse. “We did not. If anything, I made our relationship with them stronger.”

Lio scoffs, and I pinch the bridge of my nose because, fucking really? “Benjamin, despite your…whatever it is you have going on with Tennant, our Boss just stabbed one of the Amatos. This is not conducive to an effective truce, much less allies.”

“Hell, it would have been even worse if he let himself get killed. Oh wait, he tried to do that.” Lio’s quick rejoinder causes Benjamin to blanch, but he doesn’t look at his friend.

Growling, I pace the room. I don’t even know where to start with these two. I’d call for backup, but I don’t have a clue who could help me on this. “Alright. This is what we’re going to do. You are going to take turns listening to each other. I want you to actually look at each other when you’re speaking. There will be no miscommunications under my watch.”

“Why?” they say in stereo, and I’d laugh if it wasn’t so serious.

“If you cannot play nice, then Benjamin, you need to step down as Second, and have someone else take your place. We cannot have the two of you fighting when we’ve got serious shit going down.”

Both of them let out a wounded cry, and I breathe easier. It’s a matter of hurt hearts at this point. Neither of them really want to be away from the other, which is a fucking relief. This can be fixed, if they're only hurt. It’s indifference that can’t be.

“Now, wait just a moment. I picked Benjamin as my Second for a reason. I just… Why would he try to die? Does he not love me anymore?” Lio’s pout is ridiculous, and I struggle not to roll my eyes.

“Alright, that’s an appropriate question. But, it should not be addressed to me. Talk to your friend. And don’t give me any bullshit about this breaking your friendship. Shit happens. People fuck up. You’re still friends. Now, I’m going to trust that you won’t kill each other and I’ll step out. You both need to actually talk, which means, Lio, you cannot stab him, and Benjamin, you need to stop making shitty comments.”

With that, I stride out, closing the door behind me. I slump against the wall, exhausted from them both, but not able to leave yet. I can’t have our Boss killing our Second. Or hell, with the way Tennant has trained Benjamin, the other way around.

Growling under my breath, I realize I need to figure out the Ignacio situation as well. Once he sees the bruises on Benjamin’s neck, all hell will break loose. I don’t think a sparring match with Marcus is going to help with this one. I know if it was the love of my life, it wouldn’t.

Fucking Tennant. Fucking Amatos. And fucking Benjamin. I thought the Martellis took sex to a whole other level, but nope. I now have to contend with another Family that somehow is more fucked up with it than this one.

I do not deserve this. Those two better get their shit together. Fuck knows I don't need to be the one shuffling Benjamin off his position when both of them claim they want him there. I’ll do it, but Marcus will kill me if Lio stabs me…