Page 106 of Wrathful King

“Hiroshi planned to have Amon killed by the Cortes cartel.” Everyone’s attention turned to me.

Hana shook her head profusely as she stared at her son, then me. “No, I’d never risk his life.”

“You wouldn’t, but Hiroshi would. He wanted to be the guy to take over, and using Amon’s cousin made his elimination possible too. Once Amon was eliminated, he’d blame Itsuki and have him killed. Two birds with one stone. But Amon survived.”

Hiroshi sneered. “It should have been very easy, but this fucking asshole refused to die and swapped the paintings. Itsuki was too stupid to realize he no longer had the original, so I needed the only other copy of that document.”

There it was. “It sounds like he trapped Hana into marriage and then set the wheels in motion. Have Amon eliminated. Take over the Yakuza upon Amon’s death,” I summarized. “Surely he knew he’d never be elected like Amon. But one thing I don’t get… Why come here?”

“The stupid cow”—he shot his pathetic eyes at Hana and I almost rolled my eyes—“has been blabbing about the document her father gave to Romero for years. We thought it was here. I needed that document to present to the syndicate. Allyouhad to do was fucking die.” He pointed a meaty little finger at me and Amon, spit flying from his mouth.

“That document was destroyed a long time ago,” Amon sneered. “So you lose on that front too, Hiroshi. No marriage, no document. It seems you’ve done it all for nothing.”

Sobs tore from Hana, full of agony. I imagined it had something to do with her poor choices, missed opportunities, lost loves. I couldn’t be sure.

“You…” Her lips trembled and her hands shook as she looked at Hiroshi. “How could you… My son… My whole life… I trusted you. My father trusted you.”

Hiroshi sighed, shaking his head, and his lips curled up. One second he was glaring at all of us and the next he was reaching inside the couch. I let out a string of curses. It was one of Papà’s hiding spots.

The next second, he held a gun and pointed it at Amon.

“Not another move. I’ll kill you but let your woman live if you don’t fight it.”

“You’re delusional if you think you’re getting out of this alive. My men have this place surrounded,” Amon said with a harshness that rattled my bones.

“We’ll see who’s delusional when I’m sitting on the throne.” He glared back at Amon. “It’s your time to die.”

“Noooo—” Hana screamed.

“Nooo!” I screamed as the shot echoed in the air.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

Everything happened too fast. Amon shot at the same time as Hiroshi, and I jumped toward my husband. Hana shoved me down.

Blood splattered all over me, but I felt no pain. I thought the world spun, but it was me. My head whipped left and right as I tumbled to the solid ground. Then I watched in horror as two bodies hit the floor with a loud thud.

37

AMON

Bang. Bang. Bang.

I shot Hiroshi in the heart. Twice. He got one shot in before he crumpled to the floor.

It happened so fucking fast.

The slimy bastard must have pulled a gun out of his ass.

My eyes flitted to my wife, relieved to find her unharmed. But then my gaze fell to my feet and my heart twisted in my chest.

My mother.

She gasped for air, blood pooling around her and staining her white shirt.

I fell to my knees, my chest twisting with pain. This was not how I thought my mother would meet her end. Her sweaty hair stuck to her forehead and her lips moved soundlessly while the bloodstain grew with each passing second.

Her eyes fluttered shut and her lips were turning an alarming shade of blue. It was a bad sign. We were running out of time.