Chapter 20 - The Empty Throne
|
The line went dead as Evelyn terminated the call, leaving Don Salieri to panic in the dark of his Brooklyn compound. She set the heavy satellite phone down on the leather console and looked over at Gabriel.
He was watching her with a look of pure, unadulterated fascination. The pale amber of his eyes seemed to glow in the dim light of the SUV cabin.
“You just declared war on the entire East Coast with a thirty-second phone call,” Gabriel said softly, a dangerous smile playing on his lips. “You really are your father’s daughter.”
“My father failed because he trusted the wrong people,” Evelyn replied, staring out at the runway lights of O'Hare airport as the Sentinel bypassed the main terminal and headed straight for the private hangars. “I don't intend to make the same mistake. I trust no one. Not even you, Gabriel.”
Gabriel laughed, a rich, dark sound that vibrated through the floorboards. “Good. Trust is a liability in our world, Evelyn. I don't want your trust. I want your ambition.”
The SUV pulled to a smooth halt in front of a sleek, black Gulfstream jet. The engines were already whining, prepped and ready for immediate takeoff.
Evelyn stepped out into the freezing wind of the tarmac. She didn't shiver. She looked at the massive aircraft, a physical manifestation of the terrifying power she had just seized. Twelve hours ago, she was preparing to be discarded by a petty tyrant. Now, she was flying across the country to conquer an empire.
Gabriel stepped out beside her, pulling his heavy midnight-blue overcoat tight against the wind.
“Are you ready for this, Evelyn?” Gabriel asked, the wind whipping his dark hair. “Once we step on this plane, there is no going back. The blood you spill in New York won't wash off as easily as Dominic’s bruised ego.”
Evelyn looked at him, the heavy rubies resting cold against her throat, the Moretti signet ring heavy on her finger. She thought of Dominic, currently wandering the streets of Chicago with no money, no power, and no future. She thought of the men in New York who believed the throne was empty.
They were all wrong. The throne had never been empty. The Queen had merely been resting.
May you like
“I was born ready, Gabriel,” Evelyn whispered, her voice cutting through the roar of the jet engines.
She turned and walked up the steps of the plane, disappearing into the dark interior, leaving the frozen city of Chicago behind her. The war for America’s underworld had just begun, and the devil’s daughter was leading the charge.
