Chapter 27: Why Do You Want the Wild Hounds?

Rowan pulled the rear door open and stepped aside. Leo and Marcus stood a few paces back near the entrance of the Wild Hounds’ headquarters, their figures illuminated by the glow spilling from the building’s windows.

Darius crossed the pavement and slid into the back seat without a word.

Rowan shut the door, walked around the hood, and climbed into the driver’s seat. The engine came to life with a low hum.

"Safe travels, Your Highness." Leo dipped his head in farewell.

Marcus followed with a respectful bow. "Good night, Your Highness."

Darius lazily lifted a hand in acknowledgment.

Then the car rolled away. Leo and Marcus remained standing by the curb, watching the vehicle merge into the light traffic.

Marcus glanced sideways at Leo.

"Do you regret it?"

Leo smiled.

"No." His answer came without hesitation. "It’s not like I handed the gang over and walked away. I’m still the leader. The Wild Hounds are still mine to run, even if Prince Darius is now the owner."

Marcus studied him for a moment before nodding. "I’m glad you can think like that."

His expression softened. "If you’re happy, I’m happy."

Leo’s smile widened. He leaned closer and pressed a quick kiss against Marcus’s cheek. "So..." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. "Do you want to head upstairs and celebrate?" Marcus let out a low chuckle.

"I still can’t believe you have time to think about that after everything that just happened."

"What can I say?" Leo spread his hands innocently. "My man is standing right in front of me. It would be a waste not to appreciate him."

Before Leo could say anything else, Marcus suddenly grabbed him around the waist and hoisted him over his shoulder.

"Hey!" Leo nearly lost his balance as the world flipped upside down.

Marcus smacked him lightly on the backside.

"Let’s go give you what you want, then."

Leo burst out laughing. "You know, most people carry their partners in the princess style."

"Most people’s partners aren’t gang leaders."

"Fair point." Still laughing, Leo draped an arm across Marcus’s back and allowed himself to be carried toward the entrance.

Inside the car, Darius exhaled a long, slow breath and sank deeper into the leather seat.

"Stop at any patisserie on the way back," he murmured, his eyes closed. "I need to get some cake."

"Yes, Your Highness." Rowan kept his tone even, but his eyes flicked to the rearview mirror anyway, unable to help himself.

Darius was staring out the window now, looking entirely unconcerned by the fact that he had just negotiated with one of the most dangerous organizations in the kingdom.

Was he trying to celebrate? Rowan wondered.

Perhaps he wanted cake because of the deal he had just secured. His grip tightened slightly on the steering wheel. He had known there was something terrifying about the new prince. He had known it from the moment Darius started causing a ruckus in the palace only a few hours after arriving, completely without concern for the consequences.

But he hadn’t truly understood the extent of it until earlier. The moment he had looked Leo Valentine straight in the eyes and said:

"I want the Wild Hounds."

Everyone in the room had gone dead silent. Rowan himself had struggled to maintain his composure. He couldn’t comprehend why a member of the royal family would want to take direct control of a criminal syndicate.

Rosé had been the first to break.

She had shot up from the sofa, all the earlier fear curdling into something sharper.

"Darius—" No title. No Your Highness. Just his name thrown like a slap.

"Have you lost your mind?"

Her face had been flushed with anger. "I know what I did to you was wrong. I own that. But this..." Her hand cut through the air toward her brother. "...has nothing to do with him. Why are you trying to take what he built with his own hands just because I made you angry?"

She scoffed and crossed her arms tightly over her chest. "Being a prince now doesn’t mean you get to walk in and take whatever you want. And what do you even know about running gangsters? You were a freaking waiter."

Leo had been too shocked by the Prince’s demand to immediately stop his sister’s outburst.

Darius, however, hadn’t reacted at all. He had simply looked at her. Not angry, which was somehow worse than angry. "Careful, Rosé."

He had said. "You already owe me for your impressive list of mistakes. I’d hate to add disrespecting royalty to that list." His voice had remained perfectly pleasant.

Rosé had visibly stiffened.

Darius shifted his attention back to Leo as though she had already stopped existing. "And for the record, this has nothing to do with what your sister did to me. The Wild Hounds were always going to end up mine. I would’ve taken them over eventually. Your sister’s meddling just happened to intertwine with my plans and push things forward a little sooner than expected." His eyes had cut back to her, cool and final. "As for what you did to me, don’t worry. You’ll pay for every bit of it."

He leaned back into the sofa.

"You don’t get to walk away from that just because your brother wrote a nice apology letter. So sit down and wait your turn."

The color drained from her face.

"I’ll make sure you receive a punishment worthy of what you put me through."

Rosé looked as though she wanted to argue, but Leo cut her off with a glare.

"Sit down," he commanded, his tone leaving no room for argument. "And don’t make another sound, or I’ll throw you out myself."

Rosé swallowed hard, bit her lip, and slowly sank back into the cushions, her eyes fixed on the floor. Leo turned his attention back to Darius, his posture tense.

"Why do you want the Wild Hounds?"

There were no formalities left in his voice.

"You know as well as I do that even for the sake of my men sitting in royal prison right now, I wouldn’t hand this over easily."

Leo leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he studied Darius.

"I built this from nothing. I bled for it. The people under me are family. There’s no way I’m handing my family over without a fight."

A thoughtful pause followed.

"From the short time we’ve spent together in this room, I’ve learned enough about you to know you’re not a man who does things without a damn good reason."

His eyes narrowed slightly.

"So if you’re not doing this because of what my sister did, why do you want to take control of the Wild Hounds?"