Chapter 374: Chapter 158 Debts Die Here
Dominic’s POV
The weekend was approaching, and despite the treacherous week navigating family territory disputes, I couldn’t help but feel a surge of anticipation. In just days, I would be taking blood oaths at the altar, binding my life to the woman who had completely transformed my world from the shadows of the underworld. Though our mafia wedding ceremony would make it official before the family, what truly united us was something far deeper - our unbreakable bond, forged through bullets and betrayal, growing stronger with each passing day of violence we survived together.
If anyone had suggested to me some time ago that I’d be eagerly counting down to my wedding day and anticipating fatherhood while running one of the most ruthless money laundering operations on the East Coast, I would have put a bullet in their skull for the insult. Yet here I was, impatient for our blood ceremony, anxious about the future heir growing in Gemma’s womb, and rushing back to our heavily fortified compound every evening just to see her radiant smile behind bulletproof glass. I had become a man who had everything he could possibly want in this blood-soaked world, and somehow, even more than that.
"Good morning, Boss!" Zoe’s voice carried its usual steel wrapped in silk as she strode into my secured office at Zenith Systems, our family’s legitimate tech front.
"Good morning, you dangerous little viper. What’s got you so pleased with yourself?" I asked, studying her carefully. In our line of work, excessive enthusiasm usually meant someone was about to get their throat cut.
"Oh, I don’t know," she said with mock innocence, tapping her encrypted phone against her chin. "Could it be the ladies-only war council tomorrow? Or perhaps the wedding next week of the once-untamable Dominic Frost, former heartbreaker and notorious family enforcer?"
I couldn’t help but laugh at her theatrical performance. Even in the deadly serious world of organized crime, Zoe managed to inject her twisted sense of humor. "Speaking of this ladies-only gathering, what exactly are you all plotting? Gemma seems pretty excited, which terrifies me more than any rival family’s threats."
"Oh, Dominic," Zoe waved dismissively, her ring catching the light - the same ring that had once belonged to a rival family’s daughter before we eliminated their bloodline. "You know how these things go in our world. Erica and Audrey are handling all the security arrangements and entertainment, so literally anything could happen."
My smile instantly vanished, and I felt the familiar cold dread that came with potential threats to my territory. "Wait, what? Those two psychopaths are in charge?"
"Of course!" Zoe burst into laughter that would have chilled civilian blood. "You didn’t know?"
"Hell no!" I growled, feeling the rage that had made me legendary in family circles.
"They’re promising it’ll be the bachelorette party of the century - complete with enough firepower to level a city block!" Zoe’s eyes glittered with that familiar bloodthirsty anticipation she always had when violence was imminent.
"I need to contact Nadia immediately," I muttered, retreating behind my reinforced desk while Zoe’s lethal laughter echoed through the office. Predictably, my calls to our family’s communications specialist went straight to an encrypted voicemail system.
Shortly afterward, my bodyguard informed me through our internal security network that Kellen Curtis was requesting an audience. This was unexpected - we had no current business dealings with his legal practice. Then I remembered his connection to that waste of flesh Marcus, and I braced myself for whatever pathetic attempt at extortion was coming.
"Good morning, Dominic. How are the family affairs?" Kellen greeted me with that calculated formality typical of lawyers who made their living dancing around organized crime without getting their hands too bloody.
"Good morning, Kellen. You’re here quite early for someone not on our payroll - I assume someone’s life depends on this being urgent," I replied, making no effort to hide the threat in my voice.
"Yes, Dominic, unfortunately. I take no pleasure in this visit, but as you’re well aware, your biological father is currently enjoying state hospitality, and I find myself in a rather precarious financial position." He began what promised to be a lengthy sob story.
"Kellen, you have a few minutes before my patience runs out and this conversation takes a much more physical turn. Speak plainly or don’t speak at all." I let my hand drift casually toward the drawer where I kept my preferred negotiation tools.
"Very well. Dominic, you should understand that your father and I have had extensive financial dealings -" he started again, apparently determined to test my legendary temper.
"What do you want from me, you bottom-feeding parasite? Cut to the chase," I interrupted, my voice dropping to the tone that had preceded numerous unfortunate accidents in our territory.
"I provided your father with substantial loans for his various enterprises, and I’m currently representing him in his legal difficulties. He specifically instructed me to approach you regarding settlement of his debts and my considerable legal fees." The sheer audacity of his statement made me release a sound that was part laughter, part growl.
"Kellen, do you have any idea who you’re attempting to shake down?" I asked, noting the first flicker of fear in his calculating eyes.
"Listen, Dominic, blood is blood in this business. You carry the Frost name, and in our circles, family debts -"
"I wouldn’t piss on that name if it was on fire! Feel free to tell every scumbag from here to Chicago that Marcus doesn’t honor his debts. But understand this with crystal clarity - you won’t extract a single bloody cent from me or my operation. And I strongly advise against approaching my mother or sister with this pathetic extortion attempt, because if you do, I’ll have you charged with harassment before I personally demonstrate why they call me the family’s most creative problem solver." My voice carried the deadly calm that had made grown men soil themselves.
"Dominic, be reasonable. If word spreads through our networks that a Frost has unpaid debts, it could create serious complications for your standing in the organization," he continued, the threat wrapped in legal terminology.
"Kellen, if you dare attempt to transfer that genetic mistake’s problems to me or my household, I will erase you from existence like the insignificant insect you are. You know damn well I have the firepower, connections, and complete lack of moral restraint necessary to excavate every dirty secret in your miserable life and end your pathetic career in the most unpleasant way imaginable." My voice remained conversational, which somehow made the threat even more terrifying. "And for your information, spread whatever lies you want through the underground. Marcus was blood-exiled years ago. In our family’s terms, he’s a walking corpse. His debts died with his membership. Am I making myself sufficiently clear?"
"Crystal clear as fresh blood!" he replied, sweat beading on his forehead despite the air conditioning. "I sincerely apologize for this intrusion. Perhaps it would be wisest if I withdrew from Marcus’s defense entirely."
"Do whatever you think will keep you breathing, just never darken my doorway again."
Kellen practically fled my office, looking like he’d just received a personal visit from the Grim Reaper. He wouldn’t risk provoking our family further; everyone in the legal underworld was well aware of my reputation for creative solutions to persistent problems.
"Damn, he left here looking like he’d just been measured for a coffin," Zoe remarked, entering with that predatory smile that had intimidated countless rivals.
"He received exactly the response his stupidity deserved," I replied simply.
"Dominic Frost laying down the law with maximum intimidation? I absolutely love it!" She narrowed her eyes with genuine appreciation. "Look at you now, commanding your empire with an iron fist. Nothing like that perpetually hungover playboy who used to stumble into that chair every morning, reeking of cheap perfume and regret, when I first started managing your disasters."
"You terrifying little genius, you saved my worthless life!" I smiled genuinely at the woman who had transformed me from a liability into one of the family’s most valuable assets.
"You should be saying that to Gemma," she responded with a knowing smirk that suggested she was already planning something lethal.
"If you hadn’t beaten some discipline into that self-destructive mess of a man, I wouldn’t have had even the slightest chance of winning my goddess’s heart. You literally resurrected me from the dead, Zoe."
"Stop it, you’re going to make me emotional!" Zoe pretended to wipe away a tear with exaggerated drama, though we both knew she was more likely to shed blood than tears. We dissolved into the kind of laughter that would have sent civilians running for their lives, all tension from Kellen’s pathetic extortion attempt completely eliminated by our shared understanding of just how thoroughly we owned this blood-soaked world.
