“Technically it was a weekend,” Liam adds, and I watch our uncle struggle to keep his composure. He’s not wrong; we killed Matteo on Friday night, and Aidan and Rory got married earlier today.
Conor Reilly is our mother’s older brother. Their family had strong ties back to Ireland and he’s been in the game now for decades. Best known for his ability to fly into a fury at the drop of a hat. Since my father died, he and my uncle Seamus—on our father’s side—have been acting as pseudo advisors to me.
“And what about your sister? Did you think on how this would affect her?” He frowns down his nose at the two of us.
“Aye, of course I did. Which is why she’s with Alex on her way to one of the safe houses right now.” I’d sent Reagan, as well as Aidan and his new wife Rory, out of the city for a few days to help the heat die down and give me a chance to sort out this mess so everyone doesn’t end up dead. It dawns on me that I haven’t checked in on either of them today and I reach for my phone. Reagan was pissed when I shoved her in a car and sent her away. By the looks of the unanswered thread of texts, she’s still not talking to me. I pull up Alex’s contact.
“Do you really think you can trust him?”
“Trust whom?” I don’t look up from the screen, typing out a quick message.
“Alexei.”
This has my attention and I glance up, leaning back in my chair, and take my uncle in fully.
“Alex, you mean?” I ask, for clarification. There’s a warning in my tone, asking if he really wants to go down this path with me.
“Are you really asking us that?” Liam fumes from beside me, and I feel the tension in the room pull tight. As my mother’s brother, he knows as well as anyone that Alexei Ryan was the child of his sister’s best friend. When his mother died, he came to live with us, and our parents raised him as their own.
AndAlex, even though he’s lived with the Bratva the past couple of years after reconnecting with his father, is just as much my blood, as Aidan and Liam are. And he’s just as much a brother to Reagan, too. There’s no doubt in my mind that he would protect her with his life if it came down to it.
Sensing my darkening mood, my uncle holds his hands up innocently. “I know, I know, you grew up with him, I know! But we’ve had a lot ofproblemslately—” My jaw tightens as I realize where he’s going with this. “—a lot of shipments gone missing or destroyed…”
“It’s not Alex.”
“As the newcomer, I think we have to consider the possibility?—”
“It’sNOTAlex.” I slam my fist down on the desk, shaking everything on it, before rising to my full height to stare down at my uncle. “And he’s not a fucking newcomer,” I bite out.
He relents, letting out an exhausted sigh. “Fine. Fine. But if it’snotAlexei, then who? Someone’s running their mouth to the Russians. I can’t prove it yet, but I know it’s them intercepting our cargo.”
I run my hand down my face. “I don’t know.” And while Alex has my full loyalty, Conor isn’t wrong. There’s still a traitor amongst the Irish.
A knock sounds at the door, pulling our attention.
“Am I interrupting something?” Uncle Seamus asks, poking his head in.
No,” Uncle Conor says, waving him in. “Come on in. You ought to hear this too.”
My two uncles couldn’t be more at odds. Conor is huge. Our height came from our mother’s side clearly, as he’s a bulky six-foot-five. He’s got wild and unruly red-gold hair and a thick beard that makes him look like he may as well live off in the Irish cliffs. Seamus, on the other hand, looks like our father. His graying hair is always slicked back, his suit neat, and he prefers strong-armed negotiations to backdoor alley threats.
Seamus looks between us for a moment, reading the room before entering, and closes the door behind him before helping himself to a glass of whiskey at the cart.
Conor continues, “Like I was saying, cash is low, the territory war in the city is only growing worse, and the men are restless. I don’t think I need to remind you that if you don’t get this shit under control, the clans won’t stand for it.”
“I’m working on it,” I seethe. Turning to pace the space behind my desk, I spy Seamus, out of the corner of my eye, slip a fresh glass of whiskey onto the desktop.
“You have a lot of enemies right now, you might want to consider making a fewfriends,” Seamus says smoothly, taking a sip from his own glass, watching me with a knowing look in his eyes.
“You already know my opinion on that,” I spit out, not even considering it.
“Aye, I knew your opinion on it when your father was alive and kicking, but—” he lets out a humorless laugh, “—things have changed.”
I glare at him sharply.
Still he presses on. “Alliances are important, but now that your father is dead, it’s even more crucial that you produce an heir.”
I can’t help but scoff, making eye contact with Liam, who sits by silently taking measure of the exchange. “An heir? I’ve been head of the O’Rourke family for six months and already I’m expected toproduce an heir?”
