Chapter 19 - Bowing to the Queen
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Devan engaged the motor of his wheelchair, gliding smoothly around the table until he stopped right beside Naya. He looked down at Rossi, who was groaning in pain amid the broken glass.
“You broke a syndicate treaty when your daughter ran,” Devan said coldly. “You attempted to assassinate me at a charity gala. And you conspired to usurp my territory through a fraudulent vote.”
Devan looked up at the other four bosses, who were standing frozen in fear.
“The penalty for treason is death. Does anyone dispute this?”
Falcone shook his head rapidly. “No dispute, Devan. The territory is yours. The vote is nullified.”
Devan pulled a sleek, silver handgun from his waistband. He didn't hesitate. He didn't gloat. He simply aimed down at Rossi and pulled the trigger.
A single shot rang out. Don Emilio Rossi lay dead on the ballroom floor.
A profound, suffocating silence fell over the six hundred men in the room. They had come to watch a paralyzed man be stripped of his power. Instead, they had watched him outsmart them all, executing a rival boss with chilling precision.
Devan holstered his weapon and turned his chair to face the massive crowd of enemies.
He reached out and took Naya’s hand, lacing his fingers through hers.
“You came here today because you believed I was weak,” Devan announced, his voice carrying to the darkest corners of the room. “You believed a wheelchair made me a victim, and that marrying a woman without a bloodline made me vulnerable.”
He squeezed Naya’s hand, looking up at her with a fierce, burning pride.
“But it was this woman who saw through your trap. It was this woman who commanded the army that currently holds your lives in her hands. She is not a prop. She is my Queen.”
Devan’s hazel eyes swept over the remaining four bosses.
“Bow to her.”
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Falcone was the first to drop to one knee. The other bosses quickly followed.
Then, like a wave crashing across the ballroom, all six hundred armed men dropped to their knees, bowing their heads to the paralyzed king and the penniless maid who had conquered them all.
