Death Kings

Chapter 7

Ryder

"Why are you calling me, old man? Did you find out I wasn't dead yet? That must make you beyond livid," I deadpan to my sperm donor. Calling him 'father' would only be dishonest for me. He never once considered me as his son. I am more of a disappointment turned to hindrance.

"What's the matter, Ryder? I can't phone my son to inform him I will attend his high school graduation?" Son? Yeah right.

"Why? I don't need you around pretending you care to boost your selfish image and agenda. Since I'm no longer gay in your mind, I'm suddenly having elite girls propositioning me so we can blend families with money. Or are you going to use these little puppets to get rid of me? Pin the murder on the woman and you get everything." I'm onto his twisted game of chess. Checkmate, daddy dearest. I know you're trying to kill me off.

"Come now, Ryder. Why would I kill my only heir?" I scoff, aware he has a bastard child he has been training to take over, a perfect little puppet. The only person standing in the way is me, his eldest son.

"Are you ever going to let me meet my half-brother you're puppeteering? Are you fearful I might corrupt him with my homosexual ways?" I enjoy playing this card, it makes Gerhardt enraged. I revel in playing poke-the-wolf.

"He is a decent son who does what he is told," Gerhardt declares with a snarl. I'm not convinced.

I sneer, "I figured as much. An ideal patsy. Bet he has rutted with all your favorite little maids just as you wished for me to do. Only the hottest sex slaves will do, after all."

"I pay them well for all their services, son." I can just hear Gerhardt preening. I wager my half-brother is in the room with him. It is seven o'clock in the evening. The scent of Dominic's cooking wafted into my room. He tried Thai food tonight and we are all here for it. Especially since he cooks everything from scratch. It smells delectable.

"Good luck paying them after graduation," I retort, to get a rise out of him. Optimistically, this conversation will lead me to listen to what his plan for me might be. Just one more week to go.

"It would be problematic for you to gain the company if you don't make it to graduation or to marry that gangster trash whore of yours." Hmmm... I smell a threat with that sentence he uttered. The war has already begun, and my trigger finger is getting prickly. I hung up the phone.

I have a sense he is going to struggle to separate me from my family to kill me off. I glance at Callum sitting on my window ledge smoking a joint. I amble to him, and he passes it to me.

"Guess I'm going to have to keep a closer watch on you than Ali, huh?" Callum queries.

I nod, handing him back the joint and exhaling that sweet, calming smoke. "He is gunning straight for me, not our wife. He knows if he attempts to kill her, he will disappear swifter." I take the joint again for another inhale.

"Not only would we all be after him, but so would the Death Riders and the former Cards' Royalty as well." I pass the joint back to Callum. "The Blood Angel is too well venerated for him to gamble. Revealing that card was the most logical factor we've done so far."

"Keeps our Queen secure but leaves our leader at a greater risk," Callum rasps, blowing out the smoke through his nose. "Putain d'enfer," he curses with a long sigh. Fucking hell is correct. This is not at all how I pictured senior year going for any of us. First Vaquero Muerte, now Gerhardt Fuchs. I hope we don't have to resume fighting for our lives while establishing our domination of the criminal underbelly over the summer.

"Since you're the King of Clubs now, would the Royalty now and previously have to intervene to kill him if he killed you?" Callum asks then takes another drag the hands it back to me.