Chapter 254 · My Hockey Roommate’s Filthy Desires

Chapter 254

JULIAN'S POVThe silence that stretched across the boardroom was suffocating. Every eye at the long mahogany table was anchored to me, waiting.The red lines on the projector screen continued their steep, merciless plunge, bleeding out millions of dollars every second, but right now, the real danger was the man standing at the head of the table.My father’s chest heaved. The veins in his neck were bulging, a terrifying contrast to his usual perfectly composed, aristocratic demeanor."I asked you a question, Julian," he repeated, his voice vibrating with a terrifying, suppressed rage. "What the hell did you do?"I couldn't speak. My throat felt like it was coated in ash. The arrogance that had carried me into Aria’s office yesterday, the confidence that had made me think I could easily handle her security detail, had completely evaporated.My father looked around the room, taking in the wide, panicked expressions of the board members. He slammed both hands flat against the table, the loud crack echoing like a gunshot."Everyone, out. Now." The shareholders didn't need to be told twice. They scrambled, throwing their tablets and files into their briefcases, practically knocking each other over to escape the heavy atmosphere.Within thirty seconds, the massive double doors clicked shut, leaving only the two of us in the sprawling, cold room.The moment we were alone, my father walked around the table. He didn't stop until he was mere inches from me, his eyes wild."Look at that screen, Julian!" he roared, pointing a trembling finger at the crashing market data. "Vance Enterprises is being torn apart limb from limb. This isn't a standard market dip. This is a meticulously planned, multi-layered execution. Victor Sterling is just the executioner—someone else is holding the blade. And your face just told me everything I need to know. You know exactly who is behind this. So tell me.”I swallowed hard, the expensive suit I wore suddenly feeling like a straightjacket. "It's Brandon," I whispered, my voice shaking. "It's Brandon, dad."My father blinked, a look of profound confusion crossing his face before it hardened into disbelief. "Brandon? Aria’s boyfriend?Yes, he is wealthier than us, Julian. Yes, his investment capital dwarfs ours. But a legal corporate hostile takeover of this magnitude, backed by highly classified internal leaks that only government-level intelligence could pull off in an hour? How could Brandon possibly have the resources or the connections to destroy us like this overnight without leaving a single legal footprint?"I looked at my father, seeing the complete ignorance in his eyes. He thought we were playing a game of numbers, of stocks, of board votes. He had no idea what kind of monster I had accidentally dragged into the light.I took a slow, deep breath, the alcohol I had consumed earlier finally losing its numbing effect, leaving only raw, cold reality."Because he's not just a billionaire investor, Dad," I said, my voice dropping to a low, hollow whisper. "We've been blind. Brandon isn't just a businessman playing by the rules."My father’s brow furrowed, his impatience flaring. "Then what is he, Julian? Spell it out!"I leaned forward, the terrifying truth finally spilling past my lips. "He is The Phantom Don," I said slowly, watching the color begin to drain from my father's face."The ghost of the Chicago underworld. He controls the syndicates, the shadow banks, and the streets. He didn't use corporate strategies to break us, Dad. He used his empire. And he's going to bury us.”"The Phantom Don?" My father repeated the words, his voice a high, strained whisper that sounded completely foreign. He staggered back a step, his hand gripping the edge of the mahogany table for support."A mafia kingpin? How is that even possible, Julian? How could a shadow empire like that exist right under our noses?”"I don't know,” I yelled back, the panic finally breaking through my defense. "I don't know how he did it, Dad. But it’s real. The money, the connections, the terrifying reach—it’s all him. He has the underworld in his pocket."My father ran a trembling hand through his hair, his breathing coming in ragged gasps as he stared at me. "If you knew this... if you discovered what kind of monster he truly is, why didn't you come to me? Why didn't we save the company? Why did you keep this a secret?”I bit my lip, looking away from his piercing glare. The guilt was suffocating. "Because I thought I could use it," I confessed, my voice dropping. "I found out, and I immediately told Aria. I thought she would be horrified. I expected her to fold, to realize how dangerous he was, and come running back to me with Amelia just to stay safe. I thought it was my winning card.""And?" my father demanded, stepping closer, his eyes narrowing. "What did she do?""She didn't," I whispered, the memory of her defiance burning in my chest. "She didn't leave him. She didn't crawl back to me. So... I went to her office yesterday to force her to see reasons with me.""You went to her corporate headquarters?" My father’s voice dropped into a dangerous register. "Julian, what happened in that office?""She wouldn't listen to me, Dad. She stood there defending him, and then... then she slapped me across the face," I stammered, the humiliation choking me. "And I... I lost my temper. I grabbed her, and I..."I trailed off, the words dying in my throat. I couldn't finish the sentence. The sheer weight of my stupidity was crushing me.My father froze. The silence in the room became absolute, heavier than the crashing stock market figures on the wall. His eyes turned entirely dark, devoid of any fatherly warmth, reflecting pure, unadulterated horror."What did you do to her, Julian?" he asked, his voice deathly quiet. "Tell me exactly what you did to Aria."I couldn't speak. I locked my jaw, my chest heaving as I stared at the floor. The harsh reality settled into my bones with the weight of a concrete slab.I had fucked up. I had touched the one woman a mafia don would burn the world to protect. Because of my pride, because I couldn't handle being rejected by a woman, my family's multi-million dollar legacy was crumbling into ash right before my eyes."Look at me," my father roared. Before I could react, he lunged forward. His hands shot out, wrapping tightly around the lapels of my expensive tailored suit jacket, bunching the fabric into his fists.He yanked me forward with a feral strength I didn't know he possessed, forcing my face inches from his. "You absolute idiot,” he screamed into my face, his breath hot against my skin, his eyes wide with a mixture of terror and unbridled rage.“You laid your hands on the woman of a shadow kingpin? You brought a war to our doorstep over a personal grudge? Look at that screen. Look at what your arrogance has done to us.”My father’s grip on my collar tightened until the fabric cut into my throat, his knuckles white. I could see the reflection of my own terror in his wide, frantic eyes.He wasn't just angry. He was looking at me like I was a virus that had infected everything he had spent his life building."Do you have any idea what you've done?" he whispered, his voice shaking with a feral, desperate rage. "You didn't just jeopardize a business deal, Julian. You invited a monster into our home. You targeted the one woman The Phantom Don would burn the entire city to protect.""Dad, I didn't think—""That’s your problem. You never damn well think." He threw me away from him with a violent shove. I stumbled back, my skates-stiffened legs nearly giving out against the plush corporate carpeting.He turned his back to me, pressing his hands against the edge of the mahogany table, his head hanging low as he stared at the bleeding red numbers on the screen.He was breathing in short, shallow gasps, his mind clearly racing at a million miles an hour, trying to find a loophole, a political favor, or a bank line that could stop Brandon’s shadow empire from crushing us entirely."I’ll fix it," my father muttered, his voice suddenly hollow, stripped of all the aristocratic pride he usually carried. "I'll call the remaining board members. I’ll crawl to Victor Sterling if I have to. I will find a way to insulate the company before the closing bell."He slowly turned his head, looking at me over his shoulder with a gaze so cold it made the ice arena feel warm."As for you... get out of my sight, Julian. Get out of this building, go back to your penthouse, and do not breathe a word to anyone. If I see your face again today, I swear to God I will strip you of your name myself."The rejection stung, a sharp poke to my battered ego, but I didn't argue. I didn't say a word. I straightened the lapels of my jacket, turned on my heel, and walked out of the boardroom.As the heavy wooden doors clicked shut behind me, the chaotic noise of the executive floor rushed back into my ears. Employees were still panicking, phones were ringing off the hook, and the entire empire was trembling.But as I walked toward the elevator, a dark, toxic calm began to settle over my panic. I loosened my tie, a bitter, humorless smile cutting across my face.Let it burn. I told myself. I didn't care what happened between my father and me anymore. I didn't care about his board meetings, his stocks, or his precious corporate legacy.He thought the company was everything, but he was missing the bigger picture. Brandon wasn't just trying to bankrupt us. He was trying to isolate me.He wanted to show me that he could strip away my security, my sports career, and my family name with a single phone call. He wanted me to crawl into a corner and beg for mercy. But he underestimated me.If Brandon wanted to play dirty from the shadows, then I would stop playing by the rules entirely. He thought he had won because he controlled the streets, but he forgot that I still knew his biggest vulnerability.Aria and Amelia.They were the center of his universe. They were the only reason a lethal monster like The Phantom Don was pretending to be a legitimate billionaire investor. If I couldn't have my legacy, then he wouldn't have his peace.I stepped into the elevator, the mirrors reflecting the dangerous, unhinged look in my eyes as the doors slid shut. I would get Aria back. I would take Amelia, and I would tear down the perfect little protective shield Brandon had built around them.No matter what it takes.

Chapter 254