Her mother passed last year, and her father was killed by bombs last month.Her other siblings had scattered to the winds.
It wasn’t like any of them had been loyal to her, but Donnel had never been able to make her see that.
As Donnel turned and walked out, he fought the urge to immediately wipe the hand he’d shaken Faegan’s with on his trouser leg.
He waited to do that until he was heading upstairs and out of view.He’d planned for this moment, trying to finagle all the parts into the proper alignment in a way Faegan wouldn’t suspect, so Faegan would believe it was all his idea.
And, so far, it looked like he had.
Please, Goddess,please!
ChapterTwo
Then
Donnel - A couple of decades later.
“What’llit take to get you off our tail and leave us alone for good?”Donnel asked.“You already have my share of the inheritance.I helped you get more pups.I don’t know what more you want from me.”
Donnel didn’t know how many more people Faegan might send after them, but he didn’t want to have to uproot them yet again.
And if this kept up much longer, he would start running out of ways—and places—to dispose of the bodies without detection.
Not to mention, eventually their luck would run out.So far, none of the men had discovered where they were living, but the latest encounter he’d survived two weeks ago was more than close enough that Donnel was ready to talk to the head of the snake directly and get some answers.
Even though he hadn’t set eyes on his brother in decades, Faegan’s cackle still raised Donnel’s hackles over the phone connection.“I want Bryn.”
“I don’t know where they are.Plus, Callum’s a Prime, if you’ll recall.I’m not even a shifter.Not sure how I’m supposed to help you do that.”
“I’m not asking you to take him down.I want you to arrange a meeting between you and her.Justher.”
“Why?”
“Because I know she’s pregnant.I found out about it through one of his relatives who owes me money.”
Donnel’s blood literally ran cold.Despite everything they’d already endured at the hands of his brother, he didn’t know that was a literal expression.“I told you, I don’t know where they’re living.”
“But you have a way of contacting her, don’t you?As close as you were to her, I can’t imagine the two of you didn’t set up a way to contact each other.”
Faegan paused.“We had a deal, Donnel.That you would help me find her.Besides, I know you helped her run in the first place.I let that slide when you helped me out with our… arrangement.And while you said you didn’t help Hamish run, I’d be willing to bet you tipped him off that night when you delivered the care package to him.Awfully strange how he disappeared that same night and sent me a letter telling me to go fuck myself.I told you to tell him I wanted to talk about buying out his share of the estate, and I can’t imagine that would have made him run.Did you reveal the real reason?”
Bloody fucking hell.
“I told you I had nothing to do with him leaving,” Donnel lied, because it wasn’t like Hamish was alive to contradict him.“I delivered your message.That’sall.I took the food and drink over, hoping to soften him up.Told him you wanted to talk to him about the future of the estate and have dinner in the big house.I never said anything about your other plans.You think me daft?”
At least he could lie to his brother without hesitation or guilt.
“Why don’t I believe you, Donnel?Anyway, you want me to leave you alone?All right, I’m offering you a chance to get your wish.Do this for me, and I will never again contact you or try to find you.”
“Or her?”
Donnel thought Faegan might have growled.“Orher.”
“Or send people after us or try to kill us?”
“Yes, I’m not splitting hairs.If you do this for me, as long as neither of you ever sets foot in this country again, you will no longer exist to me—either of you.You’re not a shifter, and I need shifter blood in this pack.She’sworthless to me now that she’s barren.”
At war within Donnel, the peace he and his mate so desperately craved and deserved versus the love he held for his sister.
