“Maeve, I promise we’ll find her.”
Over our cell phone connection, my sister’s breathing catches as she struggles to find the right words, because there are none.
“I vow it,” I say softly.
The volume of my voice, the solemnness of my promise to her, is at complete odds with the absolute rage consuming me. The steering wheel below my hand groans under the pressure of the tension. It’s the only obvious sign I’m about to lose the fucking plot.
It’s been hours since Maeve first called, telling me Daisy was missing. The timeline is sketchy as to when my niece was actually taken, not that it makes me feel any better. Later, we’ll run through what happened. Right now, our focus is only on finding her and getting her home.
My oldest sister stutters over her words. “No… No… Noinin will guide you, Ro. She’ll keep Daisy safe for us.” Hearing herstruggle is hard. Maeve O’Connor has an inner strength like no other.
“Aye, she will.” I drop my head forward, fighting to fucking breathe through the emotions twisting my insides.
Someone is playing fucking head games, using my baby sister’s abduction, no less. There’s no coincidence in Daisy, my youngest sister's namesake, being taken close to the date Noinin was snatched from us all those years back.
None of the people responsible for Noinin’s death are still breathing—my father made sure of that—but this attack is too personal for it not to be connected. Especially in light of the changes we’ve got going on inside the workings of our business.
My mouth opens and nothing comes out. I hit my head on the steering wheel, hoping it knocks some sense into me.
Keegan starts talking and finishes up when it becomes apparent to him I can’t. “Triple-check on the girls, Maeve. Then call your ma, she’ll be going daft too. I’ve got extra men stationed around your house. They’re all ours and you’ve met them before, so if someone is there you don’t recognize, shoot first, then scream. We’re going to go now, but we won’t stop until we find Daisy, yeah?”
He hangs up as soon as she agrees.
My thoughts are getting bogged down, spinning off in tangents, because the more I think about Daisy being taken, the surer I am it’s an inside job. Paddy would clip me behind the ears for even thinking it. And he should, but he’s blinded by their loyalty, trusting men to keep promises they made to him years and years ago. He doesn’t want to see behind the scenes, the changes happening and the clamoring going on in his inner circle. Each and every person he trusts believes it’s going to be them that gets his position when he retires. But only one person can be Boss.
Rafferty squeezes my thigh. “Go fuck some shit up, Ro. Someone here will know something. Later, we can work through all the details, but for now, I need you to go in there and remind every person on the street who they’re toying with. Maeve’s right—Noinin will guide and protect us.”
I turn to my Omega, soaking in his care. Raff, with Tynan, his brother, and Keegan have been by my side forever and a day. Sometimes I think I take how close we are for granted. I don’t tell Raff enough what he means to me.
“Hush up,” he scolds, but his eyes are full of the same history as mine are. He leans across the center console, his nose rubbing along my jaw to my ear, where he all but inhales my scent from my gland. “We’re fine, Alpha. Open your eyes and see how safe we are. If anyone can find her, it’s you and our pack.”
I sink into his touch and bask in his confidence. As I turn slightly, his lips brush over mine, his breath fills my lungs, and his sweetened sage scent is as grounding as it has always been.
“I’ll be fine,” he whispers. His lips are still ghosting mine. He doesn’t stop speaking, already understanding he’s part of my worry, because if someone is targeting little girls as a way to get to me, someone will definitely come after Raff. Our bond is too obvious, and everyone who knows us knows I’d burn the world down if he was hurt. “I can handle a weapon. I’ve got two knives on me, and a gun in the glove box.”
Keegan and Tynan get out of the SUV, though not to give us privacy. Fecking hell, we live in each other’s pockets and haven’t hidden anything from each other since we promised to pack. Now isn’t about that. It’s a sign for me to hurry.
Rafferty’s scent thickens. The woody notes of his sage perfume do what they always have, confuse and invigorate me at the same time. How he can have so much sway over me still confounds me, but I no longer fight it. His hair is down tonight, and my hands grab a hold of the long strands when he goes tomove away, but I need more from him than words and a brief touch of his lips.
Smirking, he closes the distance between us. My tongue is in his mouth, so he’s invading my senses, chasing all the ghosts from my mind. Raff kisses me back almost lazily, taking his time and exploring my mouth. It’s his way, of reminding me of his faith—well, that’s how my Alpha reads it. And it’s like a shot of caffeine in my veins, giving me the final push to get out of the car.
“Raff, do not get out of this car. I swear…”
“Do not say you’ll tie me up or something, Ronin. You know I’ll chase after you if you make promises like that,” he teases.
But there’s also a lot of truth in what he says. Raff enjoys being tied up, left to my mercy, and his lightheartedness is what has me slamming the door on him.
“Love you, big guy,” he yells from the passenger seat.
My time with him was necessary, even though the sky is falling. My emotions level out because of the time with him; his scent stays fresh in my mind like a lighthouse at sea. I look over to Tynan. He’s cracking his neck from side to side, the complete opposite of his twin in so many ways, except for the big one—what he means to me.
I get a small smile when he opens his eyes, and then I watch the warmth draining from his face as his colder side takes over.
“How come we weren’t told about this?” Keegan asks. His question is a good one, and another we’ll have to spend some time unraveling later.
Tynan walks off. “Come on, then, let’s remind these fuckers who the O’Connors are.”
Keegan gives me a shove in the shoulder before I get caught up about leaving Raff all alone. He knows me too fucking well.
