Page 123 of Brutal Heir

The problem was my father’s plan was to then kill her as a favor to the judge to get him to back off.

He leaned forward and lit his cigarette. Resting back in his chair, he blew a smoke ring. “What’s one dead whore?”

Violence was always the simple solution for my father.

It was why the House of Diamanti was now in danger.

I snapped the lid over the flame with a clack before looming over my father’s sitting frame. “Call her a whore one more time and see what happens, old man.”

He raised his hands, backing down. “Basta, fai quello che vuoi! Play your little game with the wh—with the judge’s daughter. I will be ready to clean up your mess when it doesn’t work.”

I took the seat across from him with the custom chess set carved from chocolate and black diamonds between us.

Moving my knight, I said, “Father, I will not tolerate any interference from you.”

He advanced his bishop. The Diamanti black diamond signet ring, identical to my own, glinted on his finger. “Handle the woman and the situation, and I won’t need to.”

I countered with my bishop.

He moved his pawn.

I moved my queen while keeping my eyes on him. “Coming from the man who can’t handle his own woman.”

With his fist raised to his mouth, he covered a deep-throated smoker’s cough before angrily retorting, “Don’t you lecture me about women, boy.”

He picked up his rook and slammed it down.

I slid my knight into position, exposing a direct threat. “I’m not lecturing you about your women. I’m talking about my mother.”

The ash on his cigarette lengthened as he stared at me. “Your mother is none of your concern.”

He moved his pawn.

I moved my queen. “Checkmate.”

My father swept his arm across the board, sending the precious chess pieces scattering across the polished wood floor. “You cheated.”

I leaned back in my chair and folded my hands. “If I did, I learned from the best.”

Snatching the table lighter, he lit another cigarette then blew the smoke in my direction. “I’m calling an emergency meeting of the board to stop this bullshit about the fake diamonds.”

I crossed to my desk, needing distance from my father.

Already fully aware of his objections to my launching a line of lab-created diamonds, I lacked the interest and energy to argue the point again.

While it was a fallacy that diamonds were a scarce commodity—an illusion designed to create artificial demand and drive up prices—that didn’t mean we weren’t facing a supply crisis.

With the House of Diamanti’s industry-leading commitment to avoiding conflict diamonds and rising costs, it was foolish to ignore the growing market for reasonably priced lab-created diamonds.

Leaning against the desk, I crossed my arms. “I’m aware. It’s a waste of time. The board is on my side.”

“Are you certain of that? They are going to find out about several of our executives getting dragged from their beds for questioning by the judge two nights ago.”

Fuck. I’d hoped he wouldn’t find out about that.

He smirked as he blew a ring of smoke in my direction and pointed at me with his cigarette hand. “Didn’t think I knew about that, did you, boy?” He then thumped the center of his chest. “I know everything.”

“I’m sure I don’t need to inquire about how the board will find out?”