Old Lady of the Apex Crown

mel

red Suburbans rolled through the Rust Hounds gates, the

ustin Harrington, leaning heavily

his face carved into the cruel, unyielding mask of a f

by four heavily armed lieutenants, he

patch guards arrived outside

ping his eyes carefully averted from Garrison's towering silhouette.

doors, Garrison," I said, pulling on

s the Church threshold during an internal vote without trigg

eavy Glock holster. "I'll be standing right against the oak woo

into the

red of prospects, suffocat

uble oak doors leading int

ck with stale cigar sm

e sat Augustin, his silver cane

brackets, his crushed right arm bound in a tight sling,

g Hettie's trembling hand lik

able and stopped, standing tall wi

Augustin commanded, his voice a dry,

traitors," I replied, my voi

to the table with an explosive crack

the Harrington name!" Augustin roared, his

ourself out to an unpatched vagrant in a roadside dive! Your sister Hettie carri

egal severance pack

r your mother's titanium mining claims to French and Hettie, surrend

said, looking straight into his cold reptilian eyes. "You came because Fr

ngerous, mottled crimson, ve

Augustin spat, slamming

mediate Mayhem vote! We strip your name, break both your legs

behind his wired jaw, his good left hand shoving the thic

issed from the corner. "Or you won't

of the paper, a massive, apocalyptic shudder

O

rity crossbar shattered

orced brass hinges, crashing flat against the floorb

armor poured into the Church chamber, their suppressed assa

inted the chests and foreheads of every s

ll, immaculately dressed man in a bespoke charcoal thr

tly combed, radiating the terrifying, lethal

Secretary and second-in-co

shock, his mahogany cane tr

r. "What is the meaning of this armed invasion?! This is a sovereign

en glance in Augu

e foot of the table where I stood, placed his right hand flat o

on's refined, cultured baritone cut t

ly had severely misunders

ulling out a heavy parchment scroll bound with black leather

nt SNAP, Winston bro