Jack wouldn’t kill you. He’d probably just hide you away somewhere till he smoothed things over.
“London is waiting for the right moment to come and see you,” Olivia adds. “She’s been steering clear of Jack.”
I nod. “Good.”
A heartbeat later, the door swings open, and Jack steps in, not a hair out of place. He keeps one hand in the pocket of his pants, and the other holds the phone to his ear. He hangs up and moves closer to me, and a shiver of unease races through me.
“Since you’ve managed to screw up the alliance with the Thayers, I’ve been on the phone trying to secure another alliance.”
I raise an eyebrow. “You’ve convinced the Harrisons to come to the table.”
The Harrisons haven’t been at the forefront of anything for years, and while the thought of allying myself with an ill-prepared family doesn’t sit well with me, it’s better than the alternative. Now that our understanding with the Thayers has gone up in flames, we don’t have another choice.
Tonight’s ambush is proof of that.
Time is no longer a luxury we have.
Jack’s eyes sweep over me. “I’ve also managed to convince the Fitzpatricks and Everetts to restart negotiations. You shouldbe thankful they’re still willing to come to the table after the shit you pulled.”
“The shitIpulled? They tried to have me killed.”
A shadow settles over Jack’s face. “And they’ll be brought to heel. We’ve already compromised several of their locations.”
I clench my hands into fists. “It’s not enough.”
“I’ll be the judge of that.”
“Like fuck you will. I’m the one who was almost made into roadkill.”
Jack scowls. “A Payne doesn’t let his feelings get in the way of business. This needs to be dealt with—”
“Fuck you.”
Olivia wedges herself between us and throws one hand up on either side of her. “Stop it. Mason almost died. Instead of bickering about that, we should be trying to figure out how the hell they keep flipping people from the inside. You can worry about revenge later.”
“Your sister makes a good point.”
I stare at my father and say nothing.
A short while later, he leaves, the phone pressed to his ear again, and I glance at Olivia. She nods and leaves the room. I press two fingers to my temples, the bright fluorescent lights making the pounding in the back of my skull worse. With a frown, I let my eyes dart around the room, taking in the table under the window and the patches of silver light pouring in from outside.
The hospital bed dips and creaks as I sit up, and a sliver of pain races up my side.
Carlisle pokes his head in a short while later. His arm is in a sling, and he’s favoring one leg. There’s an angry red welt on the left side of his face, and it comes into harsh focus when he stops a few feet away.
“What’s the news?”
Carlisle shifts from one foot to the other. “There’s no chatter. It’s too quiet.”
I scowl. “Find me whoever did this, Carlisle. In the meantime, see if you can reach out to any of your contacts to find out about this other traitor.”
I open my mouth to say something, and Olivia comes in with London in tow. Carlisle’s hand darts out to hand me an envelope. in one quick move, I shift to hide it under the pillow. London waits until Olivia’s gone before she approaches me, her red-rimmed eyes drinking me in.
When I pull the cover back, London looks at the white wrapping around my side, and a sob falls from her lips. I pat the bed and shift. After a brief pause, she kicks off her shoes and carefully perches on the side. She lets out a low, startled noise when I pull her against me and exhale, some of the knots in my stomach unfurling.
London got me through the fight.
Even in my delirium, she remained clear and focused, a beacon guiding me back home.
