Pretending to Be an Untouchable Crime Boss-Chapter 69: Death’s Cruel Joke.

"Let’s eat some ice cream." James said as they neared the hospital.

Hector didn’t speak at first, he just stared at him, looking at the blood covering his body, his face, and practically everywhere.

"What?" James asked, glancing down at himself. "Oh, I almost forgot." He slowly took off his suit, revealing a shirt underneath that only had a few blood spatters. Still, he looked like someone fresh out of a slaughterhouse. "Better?"

Hector nodded and informed the driver through the radio to head to an ice cream shop instead.

After a short drive, they pulled over and stepped out of the car.

The shop was empty except for the employees behind the counter. As James walked in, his presence alone sent a wave of terror through them.

His shoes left bloody footprints on the floor, but he didn’t care and strode up to the counter like everything was completely normal.

"I’d like one scoop of chocolate ice cream, please." He said.

The worker froze in place, the scent of blood making her stomach churn.

"Is there a problem?" James asked.

"...no…" She replied, forcing a fake smile as she shakily scooped his ice cream without asking any questions.

"Hector, tip her generously." James said as he took his ice cream and sat down at one of the tables.

Hector stepped up and handed over 600 dollars for the ice cream. "You saw nothing, okay?"

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"I’m blind…" She whispered, slipping the money into her pocket.

James casually ate his ice cream completely unbothered by the scent of blood on him.

Hector, however, remained standing.

"You’re not getting anything?" James asked, glancing up at him.

Hector shook his head.

James chuckled. "What a shame. Ice cream is one of the few joys in this miserable world."

"What’s next, James?" Hector asked as he sat down across from him.

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James didn’t answer right away. He simply licked his ice cream.

"You know." He finally spoke, "when people are very ill, like lying in a hospital bed with no chance of surviving, they sometimes have this… sudden burst of energy." He glanced at Hector. "They start walking, feeling better, laughing… and then, the same day or the next, they just die. Like life gave them one last moment to remember what it felt like to be alive." He paused, staring at the ice cream in his hand. "I feel the same way right now."

Hector’s eyes widened. Suddenly, James’s erratic behavior, his carefree attitude, it all started making sense.

"You’re saying that—"

"Yeah, Hector." James exhaled slowly, a hollow smile on his face. "I feel like putting a bullet to my head."

There was no hesitation in his words, no trace of humor.

"When I first entered this world of crime and blood, I told myself that no matter how hard it got, I would never let my anger control me nor anything else." James said, his voice quieter now. "Think about it, if I were just a normal guy, I wouldn’t be able to do shit. No revenge, nothing. I’d just mourn, and that would be it."

Hector remained silent processing James’ words.

"But the power I hold right now… it’s slowly taking control of me. Demanding more blood, more death. And I know Rafael’s death is the reason for it. I can’t even imagine what would happen if Mom died." His voice tightened. "But I do know one thing." His gaze locked onto Hector’s. "A day will come when her life will be in danger. And I’ll be powerless… just like I was when Rafael died." His voice was steady, but there was something beneath it, something raw, something unraveling.

James’s hands clenched into fists. "When Rafael died, I had power." He said, his voice filled with anger. "Money, influence, soldiers. Everything I needed to destroy those who wronged me." His breathing grew heavier, his chest rising and falling with barely contained rage.

"And yet…" He continued, his voice cracking slightly, "none of it mattered. Not one bit."

Hector swallowed, feeling a tightness in his chest.

"And now, I know it’s going to happen again. One day, someone’s going to come for mom, because of me." His voice wavered, just for a moment, before he steadied himself. "When that day comes, I’ll realize all over again that power doesn’t mean shit when it actually matters."

His fingers trembled slightly, and for a second, just a second, he looked lost.

"What would happen if I just died?

James’s words echoed in Hector’s head.

The man who saved him, the man who saved the others, who never killed without reason, slowly cracking under the power he holds.

"You think you can just say that and I’ll ignore it?" Hector said, his eyes locked onto James, his face full of anger.

James just looked at Hector with that same unreadable expression. Like it didn’t matter.

Like he didn’t matter anymore.

Hector’s chest tightened, and his voice broke as he spoke. "You want your mother to lose all her sons?"

James stiffened, his smirk faltering.

Hector’s breathing was ragged. His eyes were wild, desperate. "You want her to go through that pain again? To stand over another grave, bury another son?"

James didn’t say a word.

"She’s already lost Rafael." Hector nearly shouted, his hands trembling. "She barely hold herself together after that, and now you…you are thinking of doing the same damn thing to her?"

A flicker of something passed through James’s eyes.

But Hector wasn’t done.

"And Bella?" Hector’s voice cracked. "You gonna leave her too? You think she’ll be fine without you? Just move on like nothing happened? "She loves you, James, you gave her a new life, you are the life for her. She needs you. Are you seriously thinking about abandoning her like she’s nothing?"

"What about Charlotte?" Hector’s voice was barely above a whisper now, but it cut deeper than anything else. "She adores you. Looks up to you like you’re the strongest person in the world. Do you have any idea how much it would destroy her if you were gone?"

"You think your death wouldn’t change anything? You think we’d just move on? That I would just move on?"

James couldn’t meet his eyes anymore.

"You think I’d be fine? That I’d just keep going like nothing happened?" He let out a laugh, shaking his head. "If you ever do something that fucking stupid, James…I will drag your ass back from hell myself."

Silence.

James exhaled, but it came out shaky, uneven. His lips parted slightly like he wanted to say something, but no words came.

Hector turned away, taking in a deep breath. He needed to calm down. His chest felt tight, his hands still trembled.

After what felt like an eternity, James finally spoke.

"I just… I don’t know. Sometimes it feels like nothing I do matters. Like no matter how much power I have, it’s never enough. I couldn’t save Rafael. And one day… one day, I won’t be able to save mom, or Bella, or Charlotte. And when that day comes… what was the point of any of it?"

Hector took a slow breath, his own anger slowly fading into something else, something just as painful.

"You always act like you’re carrying the whole damn world on your shoulders, but you don’t have to do it alone. You have people, James. People who follow you, not just because they fear you, but because they respect you." His gaze darkened. "Because I respect you."

James said nothing back, just licked his ice cream for a while then spoke.

"What a sentimental talk that was, Hector. I like how you have the audacity to raise your voice at me." James chuckled before his expression darkened. "Do you remember when I almost killed myself with that gun that jammed?"

Hector nodded.

"You know, I believe in death because it never hesitates, never shows mercy. But at that moment… do you know what happened?"

"What?"

"Death whispered, ’Your time has yet to come, James Bellini.’" He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. "I’ve been shot multiple times, fell into a coma, and yet, Death refused me again. I’m starting to believe it’s toying with me, playing some cruel joke. ’Look at how he suffers,’ or something like that." His smile faded. His gaze grew distant. "But–"

Hector’s phone suddenly rang, stopping James to say what he wanted.

As he pulled out the phone from his pocket, and looked at it, it was Bella.

He answered it and gave the phone to James.

"Yeah?"

"James…" Bella’s voice was filled with worry "Your father is here."

"My father?"

"He just showed up."

The man who had walked out on them,on him, on Rafael, on their mother, had dared to crawl back after all these years? Now?

"Don’t do anything. I’ll handle him myself."

Bella hesitated. "James, I don’t think—"

Click.

James hung up and handed the phone back to Hector. But he saw the rage in James’ eyes.

"James…"

"Oh, don’t look at me like that, Hector." His voice was low, controlled, but it was a lie...he was anything but in control. "I’m not going to kill him."

He stepped toward the door looking back.

"But I will make him wish he never came back."