Submitting to My Best Friend's Dad-Chapter 983 : This is not a democracy

*Leo*

“So, what’s this meeting for?” Darion asked only half-interestedly as he followed me down the hall to the upper meeting room. Hands shoved into his pockets, he suppressed a yawn as he idly walked behind me at my request.

“I told you. It’s to discuss our next moves against the Angels so that everybody is on the same page,” I repeated for the sixth time, sending him an irritated glance. I pinched the bridge of my nose, trying to stop myself from snapping at the kid.

At least he was finally showing interest in how the business part works.

“What next moves? Don’t you just go and shoot the place up? Y’know, kill their leader, badass one-liner, roll credits,” Darion said, and I didn’t even need to look behind me to know he was back to doing stupid finger-guns at the walls.

“You’ve seen too many movies,” I grumbled. “Real life isn’t like that.”

“Oh, come on, you’ve got the firepower and the numbers? Isn’t this where you take a stand and show those assholes these are our streets?” Darion protested. I halted in my tracks, feeling him slam right into my back before I slowly turned around.

He gazed up at me wide-eyed, as dumb and clueless as I knew he’d be.

My eye twitched from the effort it took not to cuss him out right here and now for how utterly childish he was acting. These were real people’s lives - not something to play action hero with.

But I took a deep breath, calming down slowly by thinking of Bianca waiting for me after the meeting. It’ll all be worth it if I just get out of here as fast as fucking possible.

“Doing that would start a war between us and the Angels,” I said slowly, enunciating each word so he could keep up. “That would result in a lot of bloodshed, loss of many of our men, and would shake the trust placed in me to keep them safe. We do not attack unless absolutely necessary. Do you understand?”

Darion nodded and I sighed a breath of relief, turning back around to head to the meeting now.

“Good. Now let’s get this over with,” I snapped, finally coming to the double doors leading to the meeting room. I thrust them open, heading inside without a single look at the full twelve-seater table in front of me.

Many of them still chatting and catching up amongst themselves. I took my seat at the head of the table while Darion stood silently behind me.

Franky took my left, with Tomas, our main finance accountant on my right. Many of the others were all the main parts it took to keep our global operations running here in LA and some worked in cooperation with us but were mainly Al’s men.

“Alright, let’s make this quick and easy,” I said, slamming my palms onto the table as I took control of the room. I knew I’d said something wrong when Giorgio, the head of our munitions and a guy twice the size of anybody else in the room with dark skin covered in scars grinned widely.

“Just like Tom’s wedding night, eh?” Giorgio joked, grinning at Tomas.

Franky just closed his eyes and leaned back as I sighed. Tomas, on my other side, bristled up like he always did, eyeing Giorgio as snickers flew across the room.

“It was long and hard, I’ll have you know!” Tomas refuted, falling into the trap just like he always did. I heard Darion barely keeping it together behind me as Giorgio just grinned wider.

Like a cat who’d finally gotten the canary he’d been eyeing, Giorgio said “That’s what your wife said when she saw my –”

“Enough,” I cut him off, already knowing how long this would go on normally. “We actually have things to discuss, enough about Tomas and his marriage, G.”

Giorgio opened his mouth but I just gave him a sharp look and he quietly sulked in his chair, glaring at me in an attempt to be intimidating. The big guy actually looked more like a bear put in time-out in a tiny ass chair but I wasn’t going to tell him that.

“Our issue is the LA Angels. They’ve been encroaching more on our territory after winning the last territory dispute,” I saw Darion flinch from the corner of my eye but I said nothing, continuing onward. “We’ve lost 250 pounds of product already and our investor is pissed.”

“No kidding. The settlement is going to cost us fortunes,” Tomas inputted with a scowl. “I barely managed to stop them from reporting us.”

“So we lost a little bit of product, so what?” Renzo shrugged, leaning back casually. He inspected his nails with nonchalance though I did spot a new gold necklace around his neck. He gave me a fanged grin when he noticed my eye was on him. “They’re just a dirty gang, after all. Drugs and guns are all they’re good for. They’re not high-class like we are. Plus we’ve got reach everywhere - they’ve got nobody.”

Murmurs of agreement swept across the room but I wasn’t going to let that happen.

“They may just be a gang but we shouldn’t underestimate them,” I insisted, glaring at each and every one of them firmly. “They outnumber us and have more reach than it seems.”

“Oh, please, ain’t nothing they can do to us,” Oscar piped up with a scoff. “I vote we just decimate them now.”

“That would be breaking the truce, Oscar,” I reminded him, rubbing my forehead. “May I remind you how that went last time? We don’t want to start another war!”

“Says you,” Giorgio shrugged, “I think a war sounds fun.”

“Nobody asked you, G,” I snapped. “We are not getting into this again. We will not lose more men on a pointless endeavor like–”

“But it’s not pointless!”

The new voice rang out through the council and I frowned, looking around at my men to see who had dared to interrupt me. But all of them were staring behind me. I stilled as Franky’s expression darkened.

Darion stepped up with a determined look. “It’s not a pointless endeavor. We’re showing them we’re a force to be reckoned with. That they can’t push us out of our territory!”

“Well said, kid,” Giorgio nodded with a small grin and I saw many of the other members nodding in agreement, considering it.

“Darion...” I cursed under my breath. I knew bringing him here was a mistake. I knew better than to trust him and think that my words had finally gotten through with this.

Franky just turned to me with an ‘I-told-you-so’ look. I really wanted to flip him off at the moment but I held back.

“Darion, stop talking,” I demanded and he flinched, looking a bit unsure.

“Hey, let the boy talk, Leo! I like what he has to say,” Giorgio defended him, more vehemently than I would have thought. He full-on stared me down before grinning at Darion encouragingly. “Go on then. What do you propose?”

Darion grinned, plunging straight in with new-found confidence and I swear I saw his head swell three sizes as he continued, “Well, since they haven’t been respecting us or the agreement which outlines our territory, I saw we break it first. We make them fear us by fighting and reclaiming the territory we lost!”

“You’re the reason we even gave up that territory!” I blurted out, absolutely dumbfounded how they were all buying this kid’s stupid plan.

Darion flinched but he didn’t back down like I thought. “I know,” He said grimly. “It was my fault. I made a dumb mistake and it cost us. I’m sorry to everyone here.”

My jaw dropped.

One because Darion actually took some accountability for his actions and two that he actually sounded sincere about it.

“But I want to rectify my mistake,” Darion announced, gazing at everyone firmly. “To get back what I lost you all. I really feel we can take them on and win.”

“Enough!” I slammed my hand onto the table, glaring at Darion furiously as my blood boiled. I stood up, towering over him but he just faced me head-on, not breaking eye contact. “The last thing we need is another war that’ll only end up in bloodshed. We barely managed to recover from the last one - adding more conflict isn’t going to help! End of story. Now leave, Darion. Now.”

Darion’s face hardened as I stared him down, willing him to back down from this fight because it would be one he would lose.

For a moment, all of the tension flew out of him and he looked ready to give in. But the moment I turned back to the meeting, sure that he wasn’t going to fight me on this anymore, I heard his voice ringing out loud and clear.

“You’re a horrible leader.”

I stiffened, as did practically everyone at the table as they all turned to Darion with wide unblinking eyes, mouths agape. Even Giorgio looked nervous for him as his eyes flickered back and forth between us.

I let out a small breath, using all of my restraint to keep a tight hold over my anger.

“Excuse me?”

“You’re terrified of fighting back and you’re not putting the family first. A terrible leader,” the idiot dared to say straight to my face, looking all tough like he knew what a leader was.

“There is more to being a leader than taking charge into a bloody war. The fact that you don’t see that makes it painfully obvious you’re still an irresponsible spoiled brat,” I narrowed my eyes dangerously on Darion.

All sense of goodwill he’d built up with me faded away as the casual, fun person he knew disappeared and all that remained was the monster beneath. The soldier who followed orders, the general who gave them, the one who did what needed to be done.

No matter how horrific.

“But you-” he tried to respond, still as stubborn as when I bailed him out of jail.

What a mistake.

“I will give you five seconds to get out of my sight,” I said coldly, not playing any games with him any longer. “One.”

Darion held his place, raising his chin defiantly like the idiot facing death that he was.

“Kid, he’s not joking. Leave now.” Giorgio warned him.

“Two.”

“But I deserve to say my piece-” Darion protested.

“Three.”

“This is not a democracy,” Franky said, a flash of uncertainty on his face as he looked at my unmoving stone-cold form. “Leo is the Don. There is no debate unless he wills it.”

“Four.”

A flash of fear crossed Darion’s face as he looked from the silent table back to me and then downward. I watched his face pale as he realized I had my hand on my gun.

“Fi-”

He was out faster than I could finish the count, and the door slammed closed behind him. I watched it for a moment later, regaining myself.

“This meeting is over. There will be no war. We keep to the treaty, is that clear?” I turned to the group with a deadly look and was met with silence. Even as I laid down my verdict, I could see the resentment festering in their eyes.

Disagreement with my choice.

There was a bitter taste in my mouth as I realized for the first time that my words weren’t enough to sway them.