The Rise of Mackin Jones

Chapter 31

The city skyline was a kaleidoscope of lights flickering as night began to settle. Mackin Jones stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows in his office, arms crossed, the weight of his newfound power heavier than ever before.

Everything he had fought for, every betrayal he had endured, had led him here — to the top of the Mackin family empire. But standing at the top didn't mean the battle was over.

Behind him, Lambo entered quietly, the usual swagger of his steps replaced with cautious hesitance. In his hand, a thick file of documents bound in leather.

"Boss," Lambo began, clearing his throat as he approached Jones, who didn’t turn from the window.

“Is it done?” Jones asked, his voice calm, but there was an edge to it—the kind that always preceded the storm.

“Yes, sir,” Lambo replied, laying the file on Jones' desk. “It’s all here. I found the connection between Bruno and those offshore accounts. It goes deeper than we thought.”

Jones finally turned, his dark eyes narrowing as he approached the desk, flipping open the file. His brow furrowed as he scanned the papers, the numbers, and the names. "Bruno's been funding shadow operations with this for years." His jaw clenched.

"And not just that," Lambo added, stepping closer. "These accounts... some of them are tied to your parents’ old businesses. He syphoned off a fortune before their downfall. Bruno's been playing a long game."

The room fell silent except for the faint rustling of papers as Jones leafed through the evidence. His grip on the edge of the desk tightened. His parents had died under mysterious circumstances, and every shred of truth he uncovered brought him closer to the realisation that their deaths were no accident.

“I want everything,” Jones said coldly, finally closing the file. “Every last detail of how Bruno betrayed this family.”

“There’s more, boss,” Lambo continued, hesitating before pulling out a sealed envelope from inside his jacket. “This came in earlier. Anonymous tip.”

Jones took the envelope, his fingers lingering over the wax seal before tearing it open. His eyes flicked over the contents, and his expression darkened.

“Is it about my parents?” Jones asked, his voice lower now, almost dangerous.

Lambo nodded. “It points to someone still out there, someone connected to their deaths. We might be closer than we thought.”

Jones’s breath hissed through his teeth. "Then it’s time to finish what we started."

Across town, Lana sat at a dimly lit café, staring down at her untouched cup of coffee. The guilt that had plagued her for months now seemed unbearable. She had betrayed the man she loved—or had loved—and now her family was crumbling under the weight of their treachery.

Her phone buzzed on the table, the name Mother flashing on the screen. Lana’s stomach twisted. She knew what the call was about. She ignored it, letting the buzzing subside.

The chair across from her scraped against the floor as her parents, Bella and Gesh, sat down without asking.

“Lana,” her mother began sharply. “You’ve been avoiding us.”

“I’ve had a lot on my mind,” Lana muttered, stirring the coffee for the sake of movement. “Why are you here?”

“We need to talk,” Gesh said, his tone a mix of warning and desperation. “Things with Jones—”

“Don’t,” Lana interrupted, her voice icy. “Don’t say his name like it’s your business.”

“It is our business,” Bella snapped, her face red with frustration. “We’re your family. What happens to us affects you too. Do you think you can just walk away from this? Jones is going to ruin us.”

“Maybe you deserve it,” Lana said softly, looking up at them for the first time. “Maybe this is the price for everything you did to him. Everything you forced me to do.”

Bella recoiled as if slapped. Gesh shifted uncomfortably, his fingers tapping on the table. “We didn’t force you to do anything,” he said, but there was little conviction in his words.

“Stop lying to yourself,” Lana whispered. “We all knew what we were doing.”

A tense silence followed, broken only by the sound of Lana’s phone buzzing again. This time, it wasn’t her parents. The name Lambo flashed across the screen.

Lana hesitated before picking it up. “Yes?”

“Jones knows everything,” Lambo said without preamble. “Your parents... their involvement, the accounts... it’s all coming out. You need to decide where you stand.”

Her heart raced. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, he’s coming for all of them. If you’re not careful, you’ll get caught in the crossfire. He’s giving you one chance to walk away from them, Lana. You need to take it.”

Lana glanced at her parents, who were watching her with a mix of suspicion and fear. She stood up abruptly. “I have to go,” she said, brushing past them without another word.

Later that night, in the dimly lit study of the Mackin mansion, Jones sat across from Bruno. The older man looked pale; his usual commanding presence diminished, though his arrogance remained intact.

“You think you can just take everything, don’t you?” Bruno sneered, his voice hoarse. “You’re just a child playing a game far bigger than you can handle.”

Jones leaned back in his chair, unphased by Bruno’s outburst. “You’ve been playing the long game, Bruno. But you underestimated me. I know what you did. To my parents. To this family.”

Bruno’s lips curled into sneers. “And what are you going to do about it, boy? Do you think because you’ve got a few documents, you’ve won? You haven’t even begun to fight.”

Jones stood up slowly, crossing the room to pour himself a drink. “I’m not here to fight, Bruno. I’m here to bury you. And trust me, when I’m done, no one will remember your name.”

Bruno’s eyes widened, panic flickering behind his bravado. “You don’t have the power to destroy me.”

Jones smiled coldly. “You’ll be surprised at what I can do.”

The door to the study opened, and Lambo stepped in, holding a stack of papers. “It’s done, boss. The press will get the story in the morning.”

Bruno’s face went ashen. “You... you wouldn’t.”

Jones turned to him, his gaze steady and unyielding. “I already have.”