Kieran: Why do you care if they are?
Flynn: I don’t care if they are, except that they hate each other and we should probably make sure they didn’t hate fuck each other to death.
Rowan: All of you mind your damn business. Declan when you see this meet me on the patio.
There’s so much to unpack in that group chat, but I don’t have time for any of it. I see two more text notifications and click on Jake’s name first.
Chaos: At work. I had a good time today. Don’t ghost me again.
I smile as I type out a quick response.
Declan: I won’t. I had a good time too. Have a good night, Chaos.
Chaos: Goodnight, Beast.
The next text is from Natasha, and I have to force back down the rising bile in my throat.
Natasha: I have to go handle business.You’ll report to Mikhail and Anya in my absence. Don’t do anything stupid.
A shiver rolls down my spine. I hate dealing with the two of them. Regardless, I don’t have to do anything for a few more days, so I push the impending doom to the back of my mind and go in search of my brother. Firmly pulling the mask of under boss in place to hide the man who’s scared of a woman half his size because of the heinous shit she has done to him when he’s unconscious.
15
Chapter Fifteen
MacQuillian
“Quill! Get away from there.” Lelonie whisper-hisses from behind me as she grabs the back of my shirt. She’s attempting to pull me away from the front window, where my trusty binoculars and I are trying to see if my brother is still atherbrother’s house. Spinning around to face her, I can’t contain my smile, she’s so damn beautiful.
“Why are you whispering? Does your brother have supernatural hearing powers I don’t know about?” I ask in a teasing tone while leaning down, wanting to steal a kiss from her.
She reaches up and pushes my face away playfully, “Shut up.” She grumbles. “Leave them alone and let them fall in love in peace.”
“Have you ever even met me before? What part of me screamsleave it alone? My job is literally getting in people’sbusiness for other people. Not to mention, he didn’t let us fall in love in peace.”
“That was years ago, get over it. Also, you look ridiculous staring out ourfrontwindow with binoculars like a creeper. People are going to think you’re looking to steal someone’s kids, Mac.” She’s being completely serious, but I’m having to put maximum effort into not laughing.
“No one’s going to think that, Beautiful.” She starts to protest, but I cut in before she can. “But— I will lay off and refrain from doing anything more than hacking into your brother’s security system.” I wrap her up in my arms and pull her tightly into my embrace.
She tries to push away from me. “You hacked into his security system?”
I press my lips against her forehead and hold her tighter so she can’t escape. “Shh. Don’t ruin the moment.”
She pulls her arm back as far as my grip will allow before hitting me in the side, causing me to grunt. “You let Kieran get such a bad rap as the middle child, but you’re just as bad as he is. You just hide the crazy better than he does.”
I can’t even deny what she’s saying. “Well, yes. But too bad for you, you’ve already fallen in love with me, and now I have squatter’s rights.”
She’s giving me shit, but we were creeped on too. It was just way less discreet. When Lee and I reconnected and fell in love, she was extremely sick and waiting on a new kidney. While I was an alcoholic in active addiction. It was a mess full of struggles and near failures, but we made it. Now we’re just weeks away from tying the knot, and looking back at that time feels like a terrible movie we watched instead of a life we lived through.
Now it seems as if my older brother and hers are getting pretty cozy. I’m not surprised. The tension between the two of them is enough to choke you if you’re in the same room as them. People who are in love— genuine, true, ‘we’ll go to the afterlife together’ love— always have a look in their eye when they watch their spouse. It’s the same look Rowan and Kieran have when they look at Clara and Phoenix. It’s the same look I have when watching Lelonie. And it’s the same look Jakob and Declan have always had when they watch each other. Even back to when we were all kids, their souls have always called to each other.
Declan is my real life hero. That sounds so childish, but it’s true. I’ve always wished to be just like him. I’m not sure if my other brothers even realize how much Dec sacrificed for us. He changed the entire trajectory of his life solely because he loves us. Now he has his shot at love, and I’ll be damned if I let anyone throw a wrench in his plans.
I know everything. That’s not a subtle brag, it’s just the truth. Which means I know exactly what Declan’s been hiding from us. Not killing the masses as a result is nothing short of a miracle. As much as I want to swoop in and save the day, I know he’d hate me for it.
He’ll come to us when he’s ready, and by inserting myself I’m taking away more of his choices. In the meantime, Natasha’s men will continue to pop up dead all over the city. They’re moles for her that are with other organizations; some are even with ours. But they’re all slaughtered the same. Her ‘kingdom’ will diminish before our eyes, and when it’s time, I’ll gladly hand her to Kieran to skin alive.
My brothers have been capturing more of her people recently. They think that these guys are responsible forthe murders. She thinks that she’s clever for recruiting people who speak different languages so they won’t snitch. Meanwhile, I’m the one behind it so that my brother can live in peace.
