Midnight Vigilante, Leonor Bass [top business books of all time .TXT] 📗

temper and used alcohol to get the stress out of his system. Like at the moment, when he was positively enraged at the lack of assistance he was receiving from the men who worked for him. They were scared, and that had never happened before.

“You know why I called you,” Julius began, pacing around the group of his remaining men. “Explain to me why the fuck y’all motherfuckers are afraid.”

The men looked at one another, unable to respond.

“Leo and Landon are dead,” one of the men eventually replied.

Julius approached him, standing inches away. “What the fuck did you just say?”

“They, they were found dead on the street this morning, sir. They were murdered.”

“By the Midnight Vigilante,” another added.

The room fell into an uncomfortable silence. Julius was quiet, as if processing the information slowly, until he threw the glass in his hand at the floor. His men flinched and he saw a shadow of fear cross their faces. They were ready for him to scream at them. Instead, Julius turned to his desk and made the line of coke disappear in seconds.

“I’M FUCKING TIRED OF THAT MOTHERFUCKING WANNABE SUPERHERO!” Julius roared, each syllable echoing off the cavernous office’s walls. “These are my fucking rules, and this is my fucking town! No one’s gonna take that away from me!”

His men stared at him as he rambled, none daring to speak, only breathing again when Dorian interrupted.

“Sir, your brother is here,” Dorian announced as Adrian stepped from behind him.

Julius’s angry mood suddenly shifted. “Brother, you’re here!”

“You’re high again. Of course.” Julius shook his head too vigorously and almost tripped on his own leg, but managed to regain his balance before he could fall to the floor. ”And drunk. Perfect.”

“I only had one line and one drink. Or maybe two, but that has an explanation. It’s the Midnight Vigilante’s fault,” Julius said.

Adrian sighed and rubbed his forehead. “You all should leave now,” he said, turning to his brother’s men, waiting until the door had closed behind the last one before he spoke again. “Okay, what is this Midnight Vigilante thing?”

“He’s killing my men! I don’t know who the fuck this guy is, but he’s out and about, murdering my friends, and that’s a crime. A crime you should be solving!”

“First of all, I don’t need you to tell me how to do my job, is that clear?” Adrian snapped.

“Jeez, chill out bro. Have a drink with me. Oh wait, you can’t!” Julius giggled in his drunken state and stumbled as he made his way toward his desk.

“Is this why you called me, to mock me? Because if it is, I have a job to get back to, and–”

“And what job is that? Anything but catching the Midnight Vigilante?”

Adrian sighed. “My job is to be a cop and protect this town from anyone who threatens it,” he replied. “Now, if that’s all you needed to know, I’m gonna go.”

“You know, if you don’t do your job, I’m gonna have to take care of this business myself.”

“Are you seriously telling me that you’re about to commit a crime? Right to my face? Is your brain working at all right now?”

“I’m just saying. You do your job properly, and I stay away from your beloved town.”

Adrian closed the remaining distance between them and slapped his hands against the desk. “I’m getting really tired of your bullshit, Julius, so just remember one thing: I won’t be around to protect you forever, and you’re gonna have to deal with your BS on your own.”

Julius wasn’t afraid of Adrian; he knew his brother would never leave him behind, but it was the first time he had seen Adrian so angry, so tired of Julius’s antics, that he might actually fulfill his warning.

Julius wanted to think Adrian wouldn’t, but he was definitely not the same little boy who used to follow Julius around. Little Adrian was a grown, confident man, so perhaps Julius needed to be cautious this time around.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

“You killed again,” Paige quietly said to Riley as soon as she walked into the bar.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Riley replied, focusing intently on the stack of glasses before her.

“I’m talking about the bodies you left behind on the street for everyone to see. The one whose face was so destroyed they couldn’t even identify him.”

“I didn’t hit him in the face, and for what it’s worth, he barely suffered. He died quickly.”

“My God, Riley! Why don’t you just stop?”

“Because if I want to get rid of Julius, I have to get rid of his gorillas first,” Riley said calmly.

“You’re out of your mind,” Paige said. “You’re telling me you’re going to kill a bunch of very strong men, all by yourself, all without getting hurt.”

“I never said I wasn’t going to get hurt. You saw me a few nights ago. If that’s the price I have to pay, so be it. If that’s what it takes to make Julius disappear, I don’t care. I know what I’m doing is wrong, but wouldn’t you kill someone bad to save the world? Even if it turned you into a criminal?”

Paige shook her head. “God, I don’t understand how your mind works.”

“Good, it’s better that way,” Riley nodded, pulling out a knife to slice some limes.

When Marcus was transferred to LinHill two months ago, he’d been told it was the perfect place to live and completely unlike the big city where he’d begun his career. That was also part of the reason he had been transferred in the first place: to work someplace quieter, less violent. He’d gotten too involved in a murder case, which was not the right way to live. But ever since Santino Marcone’s men had died Marcus couldn’t stop investigating, night and day, until the killer was found. Though the death of a mob boss and his crew was not as important to his supervisor as he thought.

LinHill was certainly a different sort of town. People were pleasant, happy, and hardworking. They