Page 19 of Volatile King (The Kings of Wayward Academy #6)

T heo

I loved my mom, I really did, but she was over the top.

Ren had already said she didn’t want anyone fussing over her, but Mom hadn’t listened.

She’d restocked the entire kitchen with all of Ren’s favorite foods, redesigned and decorated a spare room—so she would feel more comfortable—and now I was in a text battle trying to stop her from buying Ren an entirely new wardrobe.

T: Mom, please stop.

Mom: Theo, this is a very traumatic time for Ren. I want her to feel like this is her home.

The sad part was that, at this point, Wayward would feel more like home for Ren than anywhere else. But saying that would have made Mom cry.

T: I know, and I’m sure Ren appreciates it. She just wants things to feel normal and for you not to go out of your way.

Mom: It’s not out of my way. I want to do this.

This was going nowhere.

T: I understand that, but look at it from Ren’s perspective. She may feel indebted, and that will stress her out.

There was a long pause, and I nodded to Nash when he came out of the hospital with cafeteria coffees. He handed me one.

“Everything okay? You look stressed,” Nash said, taking a sip of his drink.

“Yeah, just my mom being…overly loving. I’m afraid she’s going to smother Ren with affection.”

Nash shrugged. “Ella is awesome. I’m sure it will be fine.”

I looked Mr. Pessimistic up and down. “Why are you so calm? What happened?”

He shrugged. “Nothing. I’ll see you inside.” Nash turned around and walked away, ignoring my glare. What the hell was he up to now? My phone dinged, and I looked down.

Mom: Fine…I won’t buy her anything. But I don’t like this one bit, Theo.

T: How about a compromise? Once she is settled in, you and Ren can go shopping together. It will get Ren out of the house, and you can buy her whatever makes her happy.

Mom: Oh, I do like that idea. We can make a whole day of it. I can take her to lunch, and we can get our nails and hair done. Theo, you’re a genius.

T: Technically, I am considered a genius every day.

Mom: Uh-huh…you do know that no one likes a braggart?

I smirked, picturing her annoyed expression.

T: It’s all part of my charm, Mom. We’ll be heading out as soon as the nurse gives us the discharge papers. She is getting them ready right now.

Mom: See you all soon, and Theo…drive safe. I love you.

T: Love you, too.

Stuffing my phone into my pocket, I took a sip of my coffee and almost choked as I looked out at the parking lot. Lawrence and Christov were getting out of a car. Oh shit.

I sprinted for the entrance and tossed the coffee in the garbage as I passed.

The sliding doors had never moved this slowly before, but as soon as they were open enough, I slipped through and ran for Ren’s room.

My sneakers squeaked, and as I turned the corner, I almost wiped out on the newly mopped floor.

Grabbing the wall, I managed to stay upright and kept going, my legs eating up the distance of the long hallway. I had to dodge between a man out walking with his IV pole and an older woman in a wheelchair.

She let out a startled scream while he grumbled curses at me.

“Sorry,” I called out.

Blake and Liam were standing in the hall, and when Liam saw me, his eyes hardened.

“Lawrence and Christov are here,” I said, sliding to a stop.

“Shit,” Liam growled and opened Ren’s door. “Myles, Nash, can I speak to you for a minute?”

“We’ll be right back, Snowflake,” Myles said.

They stepped out of the room, shutting the door behind them. The smile fell from Nash’s face.

“What’s wrong?”

“Your father and Christov are here.”

“Those fecks are not gettin’ in to see Snowflake. Over me dead body,” Myles growled.

“Fuck…one more hour. They couldn’t wait for one more hour, and we would’ve been gone? Blake, go sit with Ren and play her a song on your guitar or something.”

“I don’t have my guitar.”

“Think of something, just go keep her distracted and make sure she doesn’t leave,” Nash ordered. Blake nodded his head and went to sit with Ren. “Which way were they coming from?”

“The front.”

“Okay, so they’ll come down this hallway.”

“Do we even know if they have the room number,” Liam asked.

“He’ll know it or at least the wing. They wouldn’t be here unless he did,” Nash said, retracing my path. We stopped on the other side of Mr. Genovese’s room just as they reached the end of the hall.

Lawrence looked our way and paused. It wasn’t long, but his stride faltered as we lined up shoulder to shoulder. I smirked and crossed my arms. Myles was right, over my dead body were they getting through.

I hadn’t seen Christov in person, but aside from the twenty years added to the pictures in Yulianna’s boxes, he looked the same.

They stood a few feet away, and it was like the showdown at the O.K. Corral. No one moved or spoke.

Nash stepped up and faced his father.

“Son, I’m surprised to see you here. I thought you’d be busy with school and trying to salvage your new business. Would be a shame for you to fail school on top of that disastrous grand opening,” Lawrence said.

“That’s why I have employees. And, lets be honest, it wouldn’t have been disastrous if you’d bothered to clean up your mess,” Nash said, his voice uncharacteristically calm. Lawrence’s eyebrow twitched.

“How is Owen,” Lawrence asked.

Nash shrugged and looked at Myles.

“I’m officially emancipated,” Myles said with a smirk.

“Good for you, son. I’m not sure Lip will be as overjoyed as you are.”

The little barb hit the way Lawrence intended as Myles clenched his fists.

“Never mention me brotha again.”

Nash palmed Myles’ shoulder before turning his attention to Christov.

“You look incredible for a dead man, Christov Ivankov,” Nash drawled, and Christov’s eyes narrowed.

“My untimely end was greatly exaggerated,” he said.

“Oh, really? And here I thought you were hiding on purpose. Was your cowardice exaggerated as well,” Nash asked dryly.

I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from smiling. Christov opened his mouth, but Nash held up his hand and cut him off.

“I honestly don’t care. It’s not worth my time or energy to be bothered knowing why you do anything. What I would like to know is what you’re doing here, Lawrence?”

“You dare to speak to me like that,” Christov growled.

Lawrence stuck out his arm to keep Christov from advancing.

Nash didn’t even twitch. I had to hand it to him—Nash was stepping into kingship with a laser precision that I’d never expected from him.

A year ago, a brawl would’ve already broken out, and Lawrence would’ve had him carted off to jail for fun.

“Why we are here doesn’t concern you,” Lawrence said, trying to step around Nash. But Nash moved sideways to meet Lawrence’s advance. They stood nose-to-nose, father and son glaring at one another, not an inch given either way.

“No, that’s not how this works. You tell me why you’re here, or you don’t get past us,” Nash said.

“I think it’s time you reined in your attitude, son. You don’t have what it takes to win a war with me,” Lawrence snarled.

“He may not, but I certainly do,” Mr. Genovese said from right behind us.

I never thought I would see Lawrence rattled, but both he and Christov retreated slightly as Edmundo stepped through our line. If I didn’t know he wore a brace under his dress pants, I wouldn’t have known he had a broken leg. He stood tall as he stepped up beside Nash.

“Lawrence, Christov…I’d say it is a pleasure, but we both know it’s not.”

“Edmundo, what the hell are you doing here,” Christov asked as Lawrence stared at Mr. Genovese like he had seen a ghost.

My attention bounced between the three men with hatred clear on all their faces. I didn’t even know that they knew one another, let alone well enough to detest each other.

“Don’t look so surprised, Christov. I made you both a promise. Just because I’ve bided my time doesn’t mean that I’ve ever forgotten.”

Lawrence looked between Mr. Genovese and Nash.

“He’s the one funding you…I should’ve known,” Lawrence mumbled. You could almost see the lightbulbs turning on inside his mind.

“Yes, you should’ve. Arrogance, greed and gluttony have made you sloppy,” Nash drawled.

Mr. Genovese placed his hand on Nash’s shoulder. “You’ve got an impressive son, Lawrence. And he seems to hate you more than I do. I can’t even begin to imagine what you’ve done to make that happen, but of all people, I can picture you rising to the challenge.”

“Fuck you,” Lawrence growled. “I beat you once, I’ll do it again.”

Edmundo chuckled. He stepped away from Nash, and to my shock, Lawrence drew back. I’d never seen him back away from anyone. I held my breath, never so excited to watch two men square off before in my entire life.

Mr. Genovese rubbed his bottom lip.

“Is that so?” Sweat broke out on Lawrence’s forehead, and his eyes shifted to look at Christov like he might jump in and help.

“Well, then I guess you’re fully aware that Collier Enterprises is no longer in your control?

Or that over half of your bank accounts, including the ones in the Cayman Islands, are now… mine.”

Mr. Genovese didn’t swing with his fist. He didn’t need to.

The strike went straight through Lawrence’s chest, a clean incision where it hurt most. Money and power were his twin obsessions, and Genovese toppled both with a single calculated sentence.

He cut him off at the knees and somehow managed to make it look like he was being merciful.

All of Lawrence’s empire was tied to Collier Enterprises, a house of glass balanced on a single stone.

Granted it had always withstood any blows in the past because no one had the guts to pull it out for fear of what Lawrence would do.

Mr. Genovese didn’t care. He yanked the stone out, and the whole structure caved. No blade or blood. Just a well thought out tactic that had been sharp enough to sever Lawrence’s throat.

Lawrence’s face turned ashen as his mouth opened and then closed.

“What?” Lawrence’s voice cracked.