I clench my fists at my sides, the betrayal cutting deeper than I expected.
I thought it was bad enough that Ronan insisted on keeping a tracker on my phone, but now he has men following me too?
I thought he trusted me.
I thought…a lot of things…
“I was with Max because he washelpingme, Ronan. He was helping me decode the payment trail. He figured out the accounts weren’t just linked to my family, but to Callum specifically.” I can barely believe I’m saying it out loud. It still doesn’t feel real.
Ronan folds his arms across his chest as he scowls at me. “You lied to my face.”
“Is this a contest now? Who betrayed who the most?” I laugh bitterly. “You had someone following me, remember?”
“That’s not the point.”
“Then what is?”
When he doesn’t answer, I let out a sigh as I run my fingers through my tangled hair.
“You didn’t even give me a chance to explain before you stormed in here and marked your territory like a caveman.”
“You were at another man’s house, Ciara, and you lied about it. What was I supposed to think?”
“That there must have been a very good reason!”
A long silence stretches between us until finally Ronan exhales as he runs a hand over his face.
“None of this matters right now. We need to find Callum.”
I blink. “What?”
He looks at me, his expression grim.
“Everything points to him, Ciara. Not only is the mystery account in his name, but now Max is dead and Mila’s missing. You can’t tell me that’s all just a coincidence.”
My knees almost buckle beneath me at what Ronan is implying. “You think my brother’s involved?”
“I know he is.”
“No, you don’t understand. He was with me the day the account was created. Max checked the timestamps.”
“Even so, the fact that someone used his identity makes him a lead.”
“This is completely ridiculous. There’s no way he would have hurt Max or Mila. He’s not capable of?—”
Ronan’s phone rings again, and I swallow a cry as he picks it up and answers, once again cutting me off.
I want to scream at him, but instead I stand and watch him as he mutters into his phone.
“I need to go.” He stuffs his phone in his pocket and pushes off the desk.
Is he seriously leaving right now?
“Ronan!” I grab at the sleeve of his shirt as he passes me, and to my surprise, he halts in his tracks.
“I’ve got men coming to keep an eye on things.” He looks down at me with an almost pained expression. “They’ll keep you safe.”
“Please. Just… listen to me.” My eyes start to sting with tears of both sadness and rage, and they finally spill down my cheeks when Ronan reaches out to cup my face in his calloused hands.
